Vineyard soil health and microbial biodiversity under different cover crop and floor management practices. This project will examine vineyard ?soil health? by monitoring the populations of soil microorganisms under different vineyard cultural practices, with an emphasis on microbial populations capable of suppressing soil borne disease and of increasing the nutrient uptake by the vine. The project will identify vineyard cover crop and floor management practices for the improvement of soil healt ....Vineyard soil health and microbial biodiversity under different cover crop and floor management practices. This project will examine vineyard ?soil health? by monitoring the populations of soil microorganisms under different vineyard cultural practices, with an emphasis on microbial populations capable of suppressing soil borne disease and of increasing the nutrient uptake by the vine. The project will identify vineyard cover crop and floor management practices for the improvement of soil health and sustainability in the rapidly expanding wine industry, providing considerable economic and environmental advantages to regional and rural communities.Read moreRead less
Understanding fungal diversity and functioning in forest soils using molecular and stable isotope approaches. The project aims to investigate fungal community structure and functioning in forest soils using novel molecular, stable isotope and physiological approaches. This will provide new insights into the linkage between diversity and functioning in forest soil fungal communities and the importance of these organisms in ecosystem processes. In addition, this pioneering research will facilitate ....Understanding fungal diversity and functioning in forest soils using molecular and stable isotope approaches. The project aims to investigate fungal community structure and functioning in forest soils using novel molecular, stable isotope and physiological approaches. This will provide new insights into the linkage between diversity and functioning in forest soil fungal communities and the importance of these organisms in ecosystem processes. In addition, this pioneering research will facilitate development and refinement of methodologies that will pave the way for future investigations of fungal ecology. The on-going collaboration will produce high quality joint publications and provide significant opportunities for early career researchers to gain international experience in a dynamic research environment.Read moreRead less
Cryptococcal Meningoencephalitis - Fungal Determinants Of Invasion Of The CNS
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$587,634.00
Summary
Meningitis and brain infection (meningoencephalitis) due to the fungus Cryptococcus, affect over 1 million patients with AIDS annually, especially in developing countries; with more than 600,000 deaths. It is not known how Cryptococci cross from the blood stream into the brain; this must be elucidated in order to prevent and/or control this devastating infection. This project will determine how cryptococci influence host blood cells to act as “Trojan horses” and/or release products that initiate ....Meningitis and brain infection (meningoencephalitis) due to the fungus Cryptococcus, affect over 1 million patients with AIDS annually, especially in developing countries; with more than 600,000 deaths. It is not known how Cryptococci cross from the blood stream into the brain; this must be elucidated in order to prevent and/or control this devastating infection. This project will determine how cryptococci influence host blood cells to act as “Trojan horses” and/or release products that initiate invasion of brain tissue and meningitis.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE150100408
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$393,416.00
Summary
Understanding plant:fungal communication to increase plant productivity. Relationships between mutualistic fungi and plants are exploited as they foster plant productivity and vigour. One significant problem facing the agro-forestry and agricultural industries is that the ability of beneficial fungi to colonise plant hosts is highly dependent on the genetic background of the host. Ultimately, this means that if fungal inoculants are not matched with the appropriate plant host, maximal benefits f ....Understanding plant:fungal communication to increase plant productivity. Relationships between mutualistic fungi and plants are exploited as they foster plant productivity and vigour. One significant problem facing the agro-forestry and agricultural industries is that the ability of beneficial fungi to colonise plant hosts is highly dependent on the genetic background of the host. Ultimately, this means that if fungal inoculants are not matched with the appropriate plant host, maximal benefits from these relationships are not achieved. This project aims to identify the first genetic markers to be used for matching plants with appropriate fungal isolates, thereby guaranteeing optimal plant performance. This will add a critical component to the global effort of increasing the productivity of our natural resources.Read moreRead less
Factors controlling ectomycorrhizal contributions to plant N nutrition. This project aims to define the mechanistic link between nitrogen metabolism in symbiotic ectomycorrhizal fungi and its effect on the quantity of nitrogen shared with a plant host. Using a genetically diverse population of a key Australian fungal species, the project expects to uncover genetic features related to nitrogen metabolism that correlate to improved support of plant nutrition. Expected outcomes include better under ....Factors controlling ectomycorrhizal contributions to plant N nutrition. This project aims to define the mechanistic link between nitrogen metabolism in symbiotic ectomycorrhizal fungi and its effect on the quantity of nitrogen shared with a plant host. Using a genetically diverse population of a key Australian fungal species, the project expects to uncover genetic features related to nitrogen metabolism that correlate to improved support of plant nutrition. Expected outcomes include better understanding of plant-microbe interactions, groundwork for tools to better model the role of fungi in soil nutrient cycling and guidelines for plant:fungal pairings in reforestation practices. Overall, these should provide significant benefit to the global effort in understanding the role of soil microbes in plant nutrition.Read moreRead less
Characterising controls of carbon flow from trees into mycorrhizal fungi. This project aims to improve our understanding of below-ground carbon sequestration. A significant portion of plant photosynthate is shuttled to root-associated mutualistic ectomycorrhizal fungi in forest ecosystems. Therefore, fungal partners of forest trees are valuable carbon sinks. One problem impeding below-ground carbon accounting in forest soils is a lack of understanding concerning the genetic control of how photos ....Characterising controls of carbon flow from trees into mycorrhizal fungi. This project aims to improve our understanding of below-ground carbon sequestration. A significant portion of plant photosynthate is shuttled to root-associated mutualistic ectomycorrhizal fungi in forest ecosystems. Therefore, fungal partners of forest trees are valuable carbon sinks. One problem impeding below-ground carbon accounting in forest soils is a lack of understanding concerning the genetic control of how photosynthetically fixed sugars are passed to root-associated microbes. This project aims to identify and characterise the sugar transporters that shuttle carbon in ectomycorrhizal plant–fungal interactions and investigate how these are affected by elevated carbon dioxide. It may also identify isolates of mutualistic fungi that could be paired with eucalypt hosts to maximise carbon sequestration and forest productivity.Read moreRead less
Closing the carbon cycle: an ecological understanding of wood decay. The project aims to understand the controls on the return of carbon to the atmosphere within forests, especially focusing on this problem from a microbial perspective. Microbial dynamics and wood decay are crucially important for the global carbon cycle. What the field is lacking is a trait-based ecology of wood decomposers. The project plans to examine the interactions among fungal and oomycete endophytes and decomposers throu ....Closing the carbon cycle: an ecological understanding of wood decay. The project aims to understand the controls on the return of carbon to the atmosphere within forests, especially focusing on this problem from a microbial perspective. Microbial dynamics and wood decay are crucially important for the global carbon cycle. What the field is lacking is a trait-based ecology of wood decomposers. The project plans to examine the interactions among fungal and oomycete endophytes and decomposers through a series of experiments. The expected outcome of this project is a clear understanding of the role of traits in wood decomposer communities, especially their influence on priority effects, competitive hierarchies, and the resultant wood decay rate.Read moreRead less
Plant : fungal symbioses in Australian forests - new perspectives using laser microdissection. Ericaceae are important components of the Australian flora in many habitats, including forests and fragile alpine regions that are significant to Australia's cultural and natural heritage, and several species are considered threatened. This project addresses the fundamental question of whether networks of symbiotic fungal mycelia act as below-ground bridges between Ericaceae plants and tree roots. If d ....Plant : fungal symbioses in Australian forests - new perspectives using laser microdissection. Ericaceae are important components of the Australian flora in many habitats, including forests and fragile alpine regions that are significant to Australia's cultural and natural heritage, and several species are considered threatened. This project addresses the fundamental question of whether networks of symbiotic fungal mycelia act as below-ground bridges between Ericaceae plants and tree roots. If demonstrated, this would alter current views of carbon and nutrient cycling in Australian forests and provide the basis for better informed decisions for the sustainable management of Australian forest resources. This is particularly important in the context of carbon sequestration and future climate change.Read moreRead less
Future climate change: consequences for decomposition and pathways of carbon flow through rhizosphere fungal communities. The proposed collaboration will provide novel insights into likely consequences of global climate change on decomposition and pathways of carbon flow through forest soils. This will refine predictive models of future climate change and its impacts on the sustainability of Australia's forests. It will also enhance the protection of our valued habitats and their important soil ....Future climate change: consequences for decomposition and pathways of carbon flow through rhizosphere fungal communities. The proposed collaboration will provide novel insights into likely consequences of global climate change on decomposition and pathways of carbon flow through forest soils. This will refine predictive models of future climate change and its impacts on the sustainability of Australia's forests. It will also enhance the protection of our valued habitats and their important soil biodiversity. The knowledge gained will help land managers to adapt current practices to meet the demands of future climate change. This will maximize the opportunities for sequestering carbon in Australia's forests and so contribute to meeting Australia's global responsibility for mitigation of climate change.Read moreRead less
Targeting Fungal Phospholipid Metabolism For Antifungal Drug Discovery
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$828,557.00
Summary
Invasive fungal infections are a serious and escalating health problem. They cause severe disease with a high death rate and are very costly to the health system. New antifungal drugs with novel properties are needed now because there are problems with current drugs. This project aims to develop potent new antifungal drugs that are effective in many fungal diseases and are well-tolerated.