Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE160100893
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$364,000.00
Summary
How do effector proteins from necrotrophic fungi cause disease in plants? This project aims to develop new knowledge to support the development of strategies to protect wheat from necrotrophic fungi. Crop losses caused by plant diseases are a significant economic, environmental and social challenge in a world facing increased demands on food, fibre and biofuels. Parastagonospora nodorum is an economically important necrotrophic fungal pathogen of wheat. During infection, P. nodorum uses effector ....How do effector proteins from necrotrophic fungi cause disease in plants? This project aims to develop new knowledge to support the development of strategies to protect wheat from necrotrophic fungi. Crop losses caused by plant diseases are a significant economic, environmental and social challenge in a world facing increased demands on food, fibre and biofuels. Parastagonospora nodorum is an economically important necrotrophic fungal pathogen of wheat. During infection, P. nodorum uses effector proteins to target sensitivity gene products in wheat. This process, known as necrotrophic effector-triggered susceptibility, results in plant cell death and disease. This project aims to investigate the structural basis of necrotrophic effector-triggered susceptibility in the P. nodorum – wheat pathosystem.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE140100096
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$180,000.00
Summary
Biomolecular Interaction Facility. Biomolecular interaction facility: A biomolecular interaction facility located in Perth is essential to support the research performed by a growing community of key protein researchers. The infrastructure provided by this integrated facility will act as a hub for analysis of samples produced by high-throughput protein production methods and will provide high-level training with cutting-edge equipment for researchers at all levels. It will underpin faster and be ....Biomolecular Interaction Facility. Biomolecular interaction facility: A biomolecular interaction facility located in Perth is essential to support the research performed by a growing community of key protein researchers. The infrastructure provided by this integrated facility will act as a hub for analysis of samples produced by high-throughput protein production methods and will provide high-level training with cutting-edge equipment for researchers at all levels. It will underpin faster and better fundamental and translational research in the areas of structural biology, biotechnology, biomedical science, plant science and nanotechnology, supporting the activities of researchers and their collaborators in Australia and worldwide.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE210100323
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$431,000.00
Summary
Synthetic biology to engineer novel disease resistance in cereal crops. This project aims to engineer disease resistance in crops to dangerous fungal pathogens. The strategy is to exploit our knowledge of the plant immune system using structural biology and directed evolution of natural resistance genes, improving their ability to recognise and respond to fungal attack. Fungal pathogens cause some of the most harmful crop diseases in Australia and worldwide. The rapid evolution of fungi overcome ....Synthetic biology to engineer novel disease resistance in cereal crops. This project aims to engineer disease resistance in crops to dangerous fungal pathogens. The strategy is to exploit our knowledge of the plant immune system using structural biology and directed evolution of natural resistance genes, improving their ability to recognise and respond to fungal attack. Fungal pathogens cause some of the most harmful crop diseases in Australia and worldwide. The rapid evolution of fungi overcomes natural plant resistance and management of these diseases is a major challenge to agriculture. Expected outcomes of the project include engineered wheat plants with more effective disease resistance, reducing fungicide usage. This project intends to accelerate crop breeding and contribute to world food security.Read moreRead less
Understanding the molecular basis of fungal rust diseases in plants. This project aims to utilise structural biology, biochemistry and molecular biology approaches to substantially deepen our understanding of rust fungi-plant interactions. Fungal rust pathogens cause disease and significant yield losses in our most important food crops. During colonisation, rust fungi utilise secreted effector proteins to cause plant disease. Effectors can also be recognised by plant immunity receptors, leading ....Understanding the molecular basis of fungal rust diseases in plants. This project aims to utilise structural biology, biochemistry and molecular biology approaches to substantially deepen our understanding of rust fungi-plant interactions. Fungal rust pathogens cause disease and significant yield losses in our most important food crops. During colonisation, rust fungi utilise secreted effector proteins to cause plant disease. Effectors can also be recognised by plant immunity receptors, leading to resistance. The intended outcome of this work is to generate knowledge that can be used for the development of disease management and engineering strategies to protect plants from rust fungi. This should provide significant benefits to agricultural productivity and global food security.Read moreRead less
Enhancing stress tolerance in plants by manipulation of properties of stress responsive transcription factors. This project will describe structural and functional properties of cereal transcription factors that are critical to plant development under hostile environmental conditions. The knowledge of the revealed molecular mechanisms of transcription factors will open avenues to developments of improved crop plants.
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE120100092
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$240,000.00
Summary
A high-throughput protein production and structure facility. Making proteins and studying their structures and properties is a key activity in biotechnology, drug design, food security and bio-nanotechnology. The Protein Production and Structure Facility will provide Western Australian researchers and their international partners with world-class resources to pursue this research for the benefit of all Australians.
ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Cell Wall Biology. The ARC Centre for Plant Cell Wall Biology will define the regulatory mechanisms that control molecular, enzymic and cellular processes involved in the synthesis, deposition, re-modelling and depolymerisation of cell wall polysaccharides of cereals and grasses. Plant cell walls represent the world's largest renewable carbon resource, but the regulatory mechanisms responsible for their synthesis and assembly are not understood. Key distinguishi ....ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Cell Wall Biology. The ARC Centre for Plant Cell Wall Biology will define the regulatory mechanisms that control molecular, enzymic and cellular processes involved in the synthesis, deposition, re-modelling and depolymerisation of cell wall polysaccharides of cereals and grasses. Plant cell walls represent the world's largest renewable carbon resource, but the regulatory mechanisms responsible for their synthesis and assembly are not understood. Key distinguishing features of the Centre will be the international, integrative, and multidisciplinary approach towards addressing major questions in plant biology, its strategy to leverage ARC funding, and its linkages with potential national and international end-users of the fundamental scientific discoveries.Read moreRead less
Unlocking secrets of fertility restoration for hybrid breeding in crops. Hybrid varieties give higher and more stable yields than conventional lines, but a cost-effective system to make hybrid seed on a commercial scale is still missing for economically important crops like wheat or barley. By elucidating the mode of action of a new type of restorer gene plus exploiting ancient or exotic wheat and barley collections this project will reveal aspects of largely understudied mechanisms underlying f ....Unlocking secrets of fertility restoration for hybrid breeding in crops. Hybrid varieties give higher and more stable yields than conventional lines, but a cost-effective system to make hybrid seed on a commercial scale is still missing for economically important crops like wheat or barley. By elucidating the mode of action of a new type of restorer gene plus exploiting ancient or exotic wheat and barley collections this project will reveal aspects of largely understudied mechanisms underlying fertility restoration in wheat and barley. The expected outcomes of the proposed research have the potential to deliver new tools for hybrid seed production programs in wheat and barley. Higher and more stable yields from hybrids will ensure food security in the face of an uncertain climate and growing human population.Read moreRead less
Functional characterisation of the necrotrophic effector proteins Tox1 and Tox3 from the wheat pathogen Stagonospora nodorum. Fungal pathogens cost the Australian agricultural industry over one billion dollars per year. This project will build upon recent key advances to provide a fundamental basis on how fungal pathogens cause disease. The results from this study will promote future advances in disease management with the aim of securing Australian wheat supplies.
Isolation and functional characterisation of a pathogen meta effector able to inhibit detection of multiple disease effectors by resistant plants. The rust fungi are a major economic threat to crop production in Australia. This project will investigate the molecular mechanism used by a rust fungus to prevent detection of multiple disease-inducing proteins by resistant plants and generate knowledge that will lead to the development of new and more effective disease control strategies.