Microscale insights into ocean-scale processes: microbial behaviour as a driver of ocean biogeochemistry. Microscopic plankton regulate the ocean's chemical cycles, which ultimately support life on earth. However, the ecological interactions driving these processes are poorly understood. This project will use novel approaches to decipher the behaviours of marine microbes, providing a more complete perception of how ocean ecosystems operate and influence climate.
Function and application of novel proteins from sponge symbionts. This project aims to determine the function of eukaryotic-like proteins (ELPs) from bacterial symbionts of sponges and apply this knowledge to develop new tools for biotechnology. This project will use innovative microscopy techniques and gene expression studies to define the molecular and cellular interactions of ELPs with sponges and how this is influenced by changing environmental conditions. ELPs will be further used to create ....Function and application of novel proteins from sponge symbionts. This project aims to determine the function of eukaryotic-like proteins (ELPs) from bacterial symbionts of sponges and apply this knowledge to develop new tools for biotechnology. This project will use innovative microscopy techniques and gene expression studies to define the molecular and cellular interactions of ELPs with sponges and how this is influenced by changing environmental conditions. ELPs will be further used to create new, artificial interactions between bacteria and eukaryotes. This project will provide fundamental knowledge on the evolution and function of newly discovered ELPs found in both beneficial and pathogenic bacteria and paves the way to control symbiosis for biotechnological applications.Read moreRead less
Chemical warfare at small scales: does eukaryotic chemical defense theory fit biofilms? The ecology of bacteria has long been treated separately from the ecology of higher organisms. Thus we do not know whether the ecology of bacteria operates by the same general rules as those of plants and animals. This significantly diminishes our understanding of the natural world, and our capacity to manage our environment. In this project we will systematically test ecological defense theories in bacterial ....Chemical warfare at small scales: does eukaryotic chemical defense theory fit biofilms? The ecology of bacteria has long been treated separately from the ecology of higher organisms. Thus we do not know whether the ecology of bacteria operates by the same general rules as those of plants and animals. This significantly diminishes our understanding of the natural world, and our capacity to manage our environment. In this project we will systematically test ecological defense theories in bacterial systems. Our aim is to merge our understanding of the ecology of these very different organisms. This integration of plant and animal ecology and environmental microbiology is new for both fields, and thus studies such as this one have the potential to put Australia at the forefront of this exciting new approach to our environment.Read moreRead less
Australia's ocean microbiome: how the diversity and functionality of microbes influence key oceanographic provinces. Every millilitre of seawater contains millions of microbes that maintain the health of our planet, but their identity and function in Australian waters is undefined. This project will identify the microbes inhabiting Australian marine systems, elucidate the services they provide, and predict how they will be affected by future environmental changes
The effect of microbial diversity vs function on marine holobionts. This project aims to integrate a central theme of modern ecology - the relationship between biodiversity and functioning of communities - with the new biological paradigm of holobionts, where organisms are the entirety of the host plus its associated microbiome. This project blends marine and microbial ecology, aiming to experimentally decouple effects of microbial diversity versus function on the performance of dominant marine ....The effect of microbial diversity vs function on marine holobionts. This project aims to integrate a central theme of modern ecology - the relationship between biodiversity and functioning of communities - with the new biological paradigm of holobionts, where organisms are the entirety of the host plus its associated microbiome. This project blends marine and microbial ecology, aiming to experimentally decouple effects of microbial diversity versus function on the performance of dominant marine holobionts, habitat-forming seaweeds. Expected outcomes are to characterise key microbial taxa and functions and their effects on seaweed performance, and how this is affected by environmental stress. This will provide significant benefits, such as providing critical information and new tools for understanding and managing a major Australian ecosystem.Read moreRead less
Do marine heat waves cause pathogen outbreaks in Australian coastal waters? This project aims to identify links between increasingly frequent Marine Heat Wave (MHW) events and outbreaks of microbes that cause disease in marine animals, reduced aquaculture yields and human health hazards. Pathogenic bacteria from the Vibrio genus exhibit a preference for elevated seawater temperature and this project will test the hypothesis that episodic MHWs will trigger blooms of dangerous species. Using innov ....Do marine heat waves cause pathogen outbreaks in Australian coastal waters? This project aims to identify links between increasingly frequent Marine Heat Wave (MHW) events and outbreaks of microbes that cause disease in marine animals, reduced aquaculture yields and human health hazards. Pathogenic bacteria from the Vibrio genus exhibit a preference for elevated seawater temperature and this project will test the hypothesis that episodic MHWs will trigger blooms of dangerous species. Using innovative ecogenomic tools, this project will track the impact of MHWs on the dynamics of pathogenic Vibrio within coastal habitats, oyster farming facilities and coral reefs. The benefit of this project will be essential new knowledge on an emerging threat to Australia’s valuable marine estate, food security and public health.Read moreRead less
Coastal tropicalisation – adapting to novel ecosystems and trajectories. This project aims to quantify the impacts of a changing climate on key ecosystem functions of temperate reefs. As global temperate reefs respond to ocean warming, iconic and economically important kelp forests and associated fishes and invertebrates are being lost. Novel communities and never-before seen configurations of species are emerging in these systems. This project aims to characterise the new dynamics of these nove ....Coastal tropicalisation – adapting to novel ecosystems and trajectories. This project aims to quantify the impacts of a changing climate on key ecosystem functions of temperate reefs. As global temperate reefs respond to ocean warming, iconic and economically important kelp forests and associated fishes and invertebrates are being lost. Novel communities and never-before seen configurations of species are emerging in these systems. This project aims to characterise the new dynamics of these novel systems, and provide an understanding of how to maintain key ecosystem functions - primary productivity, fish production - that underpin the benefits that humans derive from our coastlines.Read moreRead less
Stress, virulence and bacterial disease in temperate seaweeds: the rise of the microbes. Climate change is predicted to increase the spread and virulence of pathogens, and decrease the resistance to disease via temperature stress on the hosts. Combined with other human impacts (higher nutrients, pollution), we may be facing a major rise in the effect of disease on natural communities. However, these effects are largely unstudied. We will investigate the impact of marine pathogens on kelps and ....Stress, virulence and bacterial disease in temperate seaweeds: the rise of the microbes. Climate change is predicted to increase the spread and virulence of pathogens, and decrease the resistance to disease via temperature stress on the hosts. Combined with other human impacts (higher nutrients, pollution), we may be facing a major rise in the effect of disease on natural communities. However, these effects are largely unstudied. We will investigate the impact of marine pathogens on kelps and other seaweeds when they are stressed by temperature, elevated nutrients or other anthropogenic stressors. Kelp are the 'trees of the oceans', the organisms responsible for creating much of the habitat that fishes and other organisms live in. The loss of kelp forests due to disease would radically change these environments.Read moreRead less
Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL140100021
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,700,000.00
Summary
Building virtual cyanobacteria: moving beyond the genomics era. Building virtual cyanobacteria: moving beyond the genomics era. This project aims to establish a new understanding of complex biological systems through the development of computational models of single cells and global ecosystems. The project will focus on globally important photosynthetic bacteria that underlie the entire marine food web. This project aims to characterise the diversity and abundance of photosynthetic bacteria acro ....Building virtual cyanobacteria: moving beyond the genomics era. Building virtual cyanobacteria: moving beyond the genomics era. This project aims to establish a new understanding of complex biological systems through the development of computational models of single cells and global ecosystems. The project will focus on globally important photosynthetic bacteria that underlie the entire marine food web. This project aims to characterise the diversity and abundance of photosynthetic bacteria across Australia's marine habitats and unravel the genetic basis for their adaptation to different environments. This data will be integrated with biochemical and physiological studies to create quantitative models at the cellular and global ecosystem scales. This project aims to develop new biomonitoring technologies, which combined with these models, will enable assessment of the health of Australia's marine ecosystems.Read moreRead less
Do binding proteins allow cyanobacteria to scavenge diverse nutrients? Marine cyanobacteria are abundant primary producers that underlie the entire marine food web. They encode a diverse range of predicted nutrient uptake systems that are highly conserved, suggesting these transporters play critical roles in their success in diverse marine ecosystems. However, there is very limited data regarding their function, specificity and ecological importance. Using our pioneering combinatorial approach, ....Do binding proteins allow cyanobacteria to scavenge diverse nutrients? Marine cyanobacteria are abundant primary producers that underlie the entire marine food web. They encode a diverse range of predicted nutrient uptake systems that are highly conserved, suggesting these transporters play critical roles in their success in diverse marine ecosystems. However, there is very limited data regarding their function, specificity and ecological importance. Using our pioneering combinatorial approach, we will undertake systematic functional characterisation of these nutrient uptake systems and determine their physiological and ecological importance. Our integrative science will provide a molecules-to-ecosystems understanding of cyanobacterial nutrient acquisition.Read moreRead less