Identifying potential barriers to transplanting modified forms of the CO2-fixing enzyme, Rubisco, into plants. Improving the ability of crops to use water, light and fertiliser more efficiently would have economic benefits and ease the environmental impacts associated with agricultural practices. It is thought that such improvements can be made by enhancing the efficiency of the photosynthetic protein, Rubisco, which fixes most of the CO2 in the biosphere. The research proposed here uses unique ....Identifying potential barriers to transplanting modified forms of the CO2-fixing enzyme, Rubisco, into plants. Improving the ability of crops to use water, light and fertiliser more efficiently would have economic benefits and ease the environmental impacts associated with agricultural practices. It is thought that such improvements can be made by enhancing the efficiency of the photosynthetic protein, Rubisco, which fixes most of the CO2 in the biosphere. The research proposed here uses unique Rubisco transplantation capabilities that I have developed to improve our fundamental understanding of how Rubisco is processed and its activity regulated in plants. This will pave the way for our ongoing efforts to engineer and transplant more efficient Rubisco into crops.Read moreRead less
Are flavonoids metabolic regulators of plant development? This project will investigate the mechanisms of action of flavonoids, which are abundant and diverse plant products contained in all fruits and vegetables. We have very little knowledge on the range of activities this large class of natural compounds has in plants. This research will investigate the role of flavonoids in regulating plant development to identify flavonoids and their target proteins and genes that could alter plant develo ....Are flavonoids metabolic regulators of plant development? This project will investigate the mechanisms of action of flavonoids, which are abundant and diverse plant products contained in all fruits and vegetables. We have very little knowledge on the range of activities this large class of natural compounds has in plants. This research will investigate the role of flavonoids in regulating plant development to identify flavonoids and their target proteins and genes that could alter plant development in specific ways to create improved crops. This project will also strengthen Australia's expertise in proteomics, an important tool for the advancement of knowledge and application in biotechnology.Read moreRead less
Expression and characterisation of nutrient transporters from the intracellular malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum. The malaria parasite invades the red blood cells of its host and this provides it with a safe haven in which to grow and replicate. Within the red blood cell, the parasite takes up nutrients and excretes metabolic wastes via specialised membrane transport proteins which are, as yet, very poorly understood. The sequencing of the malaria parasite genome has enabled us to ident ....Expression and characterisation of nutrient transporters from the intracellular malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum. The malaria parasite invades the red blood cells of its host and this provides it with a safe haven in which to grow and replicate. Within the red blood cell, the parasite takes up nutrients and excretes metabolic wastes via specialised membrane transport proteins which are, as yet, very poorly understood. The sequencing of the malaria parasite genome has enabled us to identify candidates for a wide variety of these proteins. The aim of this project is to establish systems in which the functional properties of these transporter proteins may be characterised in detail.Read moreRead less
The biology of arbovirus virulence and fitness in arthropod and vertebrate hosts in vivo. In Australia, Ross River virus (RRV) represents significant concern to human health. Between 1992-2005 more than 50,000 notifications of RRV infection have been reported. While not fatal, the disease is responsible for morbidity in the community/individual that can have both social and economic costs. The project has several national benefits. It will help elucidate whether there is any association between ....The biology of arbovirus virulence and fitness in arthropod and vertebrate hosts in vivo. In Australia, Ross River virus (RRV) represents significant concern to human health. Between 1992-2005 more than 50,000 notifications of RRV infection have been reported. While not fatal, the disease is responsible for morbidity in the community/individual that can have both social and economic costs. The project has several national benefits. It will help elucidate whether there is any association between RRV strain and increased risk of RRV transmission and/or occurrence of more severe cases of human disease. It will help develop technologies that can lead towards the identification of viral markers, which could provide new avenues in the design of novel antiviral strategies.
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A genomic and phenomic investigation of a mitochondrial glutathione transferase. The aim of this study is to understand of the genomics, structure and function of glutathione transferase Kappa (GSTK), a novel GST found in mitochondria. The investigations will achieve several outcomes. (1)an understanding of the organisation of GSTK gene(s) in humans and mice; (2) determination of the role of GSTK in mitochondria, by investigating the phenotype of knockout mice; (3) determination of the crysta ....A genomic and phenomic investigation of a mitochondrial glutathione transferase. The aim of this study is to understand of the genomics, structure and function of glutathione transferase Kappa (GSTK), a novel GST found in mitochondria. The investigations will achieve several outcomes. (1)an understanding of the organisation of GSTK gene(s) in humans and mice; (2) determination of the role of GSTK in mitochondria, by investigating the phenotype of knockout mice; (3) determination of the crystal structure of human GSTK; (4) An understanding of GSTK's substrate specificity, reaction kinetics and structure/function relationships. Since GSTK is confined to mitochondria, and may not be related to other GSTs, we may also identify novel functionsRead moreRead less
Enabling Technologies for Structural Genomics. New technologies will be developed to save time, money and effort in rapid preparation of protein samples for structural genomics. Systems will be devised for preparing sufficient isotope-labelled proteins for nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy without using living organisms, for efficiently identifying points at which proteins can be broken into smaller fragments with the right properties, and for joining the ends of proteins and peptides toge ....Enabling Technologies for Structural Genomics. New technologies will be developed to save time, money and effort in rapid preparation of protein samples for structural genomics. Systems will be devised for preparing sufficient isotope-labelled proteins for nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy without using living organisms, for efficiently identifying points at which proteins can be broken into smaller fragments with the right properties, and for joining the ends of proteins and peptides together to make them much more stable. This combination of technologies are widely applicable to current problems in protein chemistry, molecular biology, functional genomics and the medical sciences.Read moreRead less
Developing an Essential Research Platform for the Molecular Engineering of Photosystem II. Sunlight reaching the earth is used by plants and algae to drive photosynthesis and to store chemical energy. Possibly the most fundamental contribution photosynthesis makes to earth is to generate gaseous oxygen, the result of solar driven water-splitting chemistry. However, the mechanism behind water-splitting is not exactly known. In this proposal we will construct a new model cyanobacteria host to stu ....Developing an Essential Research Platform for the Molecular Engineering of Photosystem II. Sunlight reaching the earth is used by plants and algae to drive photosynthesis and to store chemical energy. Possibly the most fundamental contribution photosynthesis makes to earth is to generate gaseous oxygen, the result of solar driven water-splitting chemistry. However, the mechanism behind water-splitting is not exactly known. In this proposal we will construct a new model cyanobacteria host to study water splitting. The host organism will be genetically modified to enable mechanistic questions of water oxidation to be tested and will provide new and pure forms of isolated protein. This model organism will provide team of international researchers with a remarkable tool new to study photosynthesis.Read moreRead less
The Awakening of Faith and New Confucian Philosophy. This project aims to provide a new understanding of how New Confucian philosophy was constructed in modern China. It proposes to debunk the prevailing myth that modern Chinese philosophy owes its identity as a continuation of Confucianism, to the exclusion of the fundamentally ‘foreign’ influence of Buddhism. It is anticipated that this project will substantially advance the knowledge base of Chinese philosophy both in Australia and internatio ....The Awakening of Faith and New Confucian Philosophy. This project aims to provide a new understanding of how New Confucian philosophy was constructed in modern China. It proposes to debunk the prevailing myth that modern Chinese philosophy owes its identity as a continuation of Confucianism, to the exclusion of the fundamentally ‘foreign’ influence of Buddhism. It is anticipated that this project will substantially advance the knowledge base of Chinese philosophy both in Australia and internationally, and will also contribute to a more informed understanding of the philosophical and religious traditions our neighbours use to define national and cultural identity.Read moreRead less
Sisters and Sojourners: Stories of Rural Women in Urban China. A large increase in unofficial rural to urban migration has been one of the most significant aspects of social change in China in the last two decades. This project aims to advance our understanding of this phenomenon through a study of rural Chinese women's experiences of migration to the city, and in particular, the effects of migration upon their sense of identity, worldview and relationships with others. The project will involv ....Sisters and Sojourners: Stories of Rural Women in Urban China. A large increase in unofficial rural to urban migration has been one of the most significant aspects of social change in China in the last two decades. This project aims to advance our understanding of this phenomenon through a study of rural Chinese women's experiences of migration to the city, and in particular, the effects of migration upon their sense of identity, worldview and relationships with others. The project will involve ethnographic fieldwork, centring on the collection and analysis of rural migrant women's life stories. It will result in the publication of a book and three scholarly articles.Read moreRead less
New Methods for Directed Molecular Evolution of Novel Protein Functions. Novel ribosome-based techniques can be used to carry out test-tube evolution of proteins with new structures and functions. The methods rely on (a) physical association of individual nucleic acid molecules with the particular protein molecules they encode, (b) selection of proteins with new functions, and (c) recovery of the attached genetic code. This project will address several issues that currently limit use of these fr ....New Methods for Directed Molecular Evolution of Novel Protein Functions. Novel ribosome-based techniques can be used to carry out test-tube evolution of proteins with new structures and functions. The methods rely on (a) physical association of individual nucleic acid molecules with the particular protein molecules they encode, (b) selection of proteins with new functions, and (c) recovery of the attached genetic code. This project will address several issues that currently limit use of these frontier technologies for evolution of new protein products that have a wide range of practical applications.Read moreRead less