Exploiting microbial metabolites to understand fungal biology. The project aims to investigate the principles of hyphal growth in fungi, by studying the mechanisms of action of a bacteria-derived compound that inhibits hyphae. Changing cell shape between yeast and hyphae is a prototype developmental switch enabling fungi to escape stressful environments, while hyphal invasion promotes fungal infections of animals and plants that endanger food security and biodiversity. By using interdisciplinary ....Exploiting microbial metabolites to understand fungal biology. The project aims to investigate the principles of hyphal growth in fungi, by studying the mechanisms of action of a bacteria-derived compound that inhibits hyphae. Changing cell shape between yeast and hyphae is a prototype developmental switch enabling fungi to escape stressful environments, while hyphal invasion promotes fungal infections of animals and plants that endanger food security and biodiversity. By using interdisciplinary approaches of microbiology and chemistry, the expected outcomes are to generate deep knowledge of an important microbial process and how it could be modulated, characterise a new bacterial compound and build research capacity at the nexus of biology and chemistry to benefit discoveries in academia and industry.Read moreRead less
A novel approach to fighting fungal infections: targeted disruption of hydrophobin monolayers. Fungal infestations of important crops such as cotton cause large economic losses to Australian agriculture while in the medical sector, fungal infections are responsible for high levels of mortality in immunocompromised patients. Our research will provide a new approach to fighting fungal infections by targeting the hydrophobin proteins, which form a robust coating on fungal aerial structures, such as ....A novel approach to fighting fungal infections: targeted disruption of hydrophobin monolayers. Fungal infestations of important crops such as cotton cause large economic losses to Australian agriculture while in the medical sector, fungal infections are responsible for high levels of mortality in immunocompromised patients. Our research will provide a new approach to fighting fungal infections by targeting the hydrophobin proteins, which form a robust coating on fungal aerial structures, such as spores. This layer is critical for fungal growth and reproduction and confers water resistance and tolerance to harsh conditions. Our work seeks to develop reagents that can specifically block regions on the protein that are responsible for forming this coating.
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The effects of damage and repair of fungal DNA on animal and plant diseases. DNA damage and its repair are implicated in enhancing the ability of fungi to cause disease. These processes enable genomic changes that generate fungal strains better adapted to host colonisation. This project will identify factors that influence mutation, virulence and host adaptation in two model fungi that cause devastating diseases - a human pathogen, Cryptococcus neoformans, and a plant pathogen, Leptosphaeria mac ....The effects of damage and repair of fungal DNA on animal and plant diseases. DNA damage and its repair are implicated in enhancing the ability of fungi to cause disease. These processes enable genomic changes that generate fungal strains better adapted to host colonisation. This project will identify factors that influence mutation, virulence and host adaptation in two model fungi that cause devastating diseases - a human pathogen, Cryptococcus neoformans, and a plant pathogen, Leptosphaeria maculans. Since increases in global temperatures are expected to lead to emerging fungal diseases, understanding effects of damage and repair of fungal DNA on animal and plant diseases is key to designing disease control approaches.Read moreRead less