Does coevolution drive speciation? This project aims to connect micro-evolutionary processes with macro-evolutionary patterns to test the extent to which tightly coupled co-evolutionary interactions between species drive evolutionary diversification. The project will use techniques including the most recent phylogenetic modelling methods, field experiments and molecular genetics. Expected outcomes include advancing understanding of the mechanisms that generate biodiversity and developing new tec ....Does coevolution drive speciation? This project aims to connect micro-evolutionary processes with macro-evolutionary patterns to test the extent to which tightly coupled co-evolutionary interactions between species drive evolutionary diversification. The project will use techniques including the most recent phylogenetic modelling methods, field experiments and molecular genetics. Expected outcomes include advancing understanding of the mechanisms that generate biodiversity and developing new techniques for acquisition of DNA from museum specimens. The project is expected to provide significant benefits, such as insights into the processes that promote new species in nature.Read moreRead less
IDENTIFYING CONTROL ELEMENTS IN CHLOROPLAST GENE EXPRESSION. Energy from sunlight is captured by photosynthesis in plants, providing the basis for the terrestrial food chain. This process takes place in chloroplasts, subcellular structures that derived from photosynthetic bacteria a billion years ago. Chloroplasts have their own DNA, containing genes encoding the most important photosynthetic proteins. This project aims to provide the world’s best resources for the study of chloroplast genes. In ....IDENTIFYING CONTROL ELEMENTS IN CHLOROPLAST GENE EXPRESSION. Energy from sunlight is captured by photosynthesis in plants, providing the basis for the terrestrial food chain. This process takes place in chloroplasts, subcellular structures that derived from photosynthetic bacteria a billion years ago. Chloroplasts have their own DNA, containing genes encoding the most important photosynthetic proteins. This project aims to provide the world’s best resources for the study of chloroplast genes. In the process, we will discover how these important genes are regulated to provide photosynthetic proteins in the right amounts, in the right cells, at the right time. The knowledge and resources gained will facilitate improvement of photosynthetic function in future agricultural crops.Read moreRead less
Species redundancy in response to multiple disturbances. This project aims to elucidate how the context within which disturbances occur affects food web linkages and how these map to responses in ecosystem function. There is a critical need to test the common assumption in environmental management that high biodiversity makes ecosystems resilient to disturbances. Studies that merely observe biodiversity change after disturbance cannot identify ecological processes connecting high diversity and e ....Species redundancy in response to multiple disturbances. This project aims to elucidate how the context within which disturbances occur affects food web linkages and how these map to responses in ecosystem function. There is a critical need to test the common assumption in environmental management that high biodiversity makes ecosystems resilient to disturbances. Studies that merely observe biodiversity change after disturbance cannot identify ecological processes connecting high diversity and ecosystem function, making experiments that manipulate identical disturbances in ecosystems with different biodiversity essential. This project will use field experiments that manipulate disturbances in streams replicated in low and high biodiversity regions and across gradients of chronic background stress to show how biodiversity sustains functional ecosystems, and how much diversity can be lost before ecosystems collapse.Read moreRead less
Mastering pyrimidine editing in RNA. Many plants and animals can alter their genetic information via RNA (ribonucleic acid) editing, a process that is often essential for the growth and development of the organism. This ability provides accurate control over gene expression and has great potential as a biotechnological tool in agriculture and medicine. RNA editing could be used to switch genes on or off in biotechnological production systems with an unprecedented degree of precision, or to corre ....Mastering pyrimidine editing in RNA. Many plants and animals can alter their genetic information via RNA (ribonucleic acid) editing, a process that is often essential for the growth and development of the organism. This ability provides accurate control over gene expression and has great potential as a biotechnological tool in agriculture and medicine. RNA editing could be used to switch genes on or off in biotechnological production systems with an unprecedented degree of precision, or to correct genetic diseases. This project aims to understand two RNA editing pathways in plants, one of which is found nowhere else and likely to involve a novel enzymatic mechanism. We will use the understanding gained to develop novel RNA processing tools usable in any living organism.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE240101210
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,837.00
Summary
A liquid protein platform for dynamic bio-inspired reaction compartments. This project aims to investigate liquid protein as a novel material for biotechnology by producing protein droplets with a range of material and structural properties and assess the activity of internalised enzymes. The project will combine concepts from protein-based subcellular super-structure and enzyme protein structure and apply cutting-edge biochemistry methods to study how catalysis can be controlled and directed th ....A liquid protein platform for dynamic bio-inspired reaction compartments. This project aims to investigate liquid protein as a novel material for biotechnology by producing protein droplets with a range of material and structural properties and assess the activity of internalised enzymes. The project will combine concepts from protein-based subcellular super-structure and enzyme protein structure and apply cutting-edge biochemistry methods to study how catalysis can be controlled and directed through liquid protein design. Expected outcomes include a new platform for using protein droplets to engineer dynamic catalytic compartments, strong international and interdisciplinary collaborations, and a knowledge-base for building synthetic biology tools and technologies for future green chemistry-based industries.Read moreRead less
Engineering self-assembled intracellular biological condensates. Cells depend on proteins linking together to build cellular structure, but how weak interactions build stable structure is a mystery. New evidence suggests proteins come together and then change state, employing liquid-like behaviour that builds vital nanoscale structure, such as nuclear bodies called paraspeckles. This project will unlock the secrets of this mysterious behavior of proteins, using paraspeckles as a model. We will u ....Engineering self-assembled intracellular biological condensates. Cells depend on proteins linking together to build cellular structure, but how weak interactions build stable structure is a mystery. New evidence suggests proteins come together and then change state, employing liquid-like behaviour that builds vital nanoscale structure, such as nuclear bodies called paraspeckles. This project will unlock the secrets of this mysterious behavior of proteins, using paraspeckles as a model. We will use this information for nanotechnology application to build a synthetic paraspeckle inspired structure with bespoke function. Benefits will include new concepts in how vital cell structure is assembled and disassembled, and nanotechnology and synthetic biology tools to manipulate cellular processes.Read moreRead less
Advancing plant synthetic gene circuit capability, robustness, and use. This project aims to advance our ability to control gene expression in plants using synthetic gene circuits. By expanding the toolkit and optimizing circuit components, we aim to achieve more complex capabilities and robust implementation. Furthermore, we will apply gene circuit technologies to enhance plant frost tolerance. The expected project outcomes include a significant advance in gene circuit capabilities, a better un ....Advancing plant synthetic gene circuit capability, robustness, and use. This project aims to advance our ability to control gene expression in plants using synthetic gene circuits. By expanding the toolkit and optimizing circuit components, we aim to achieve more complex capabilities and robust implementation. Furthermore, we will apply gene circuit technologies to enhance plant frost tolerance. The expected project outcomes include a significant advance in gene circuit capabilities, a better understanding of their behavior in plant cells, and the ability to use them to confer advantageous traits. The benefits of this research include new plant biotechnology tools that will underpin future crop yield improvements, and advances in plant-based pharmaceuticals and materials.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE210100035
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,205,137.00
Summary
Founding an Australian Critical Zone Observatory Network. This proposal founds a new network of Australian Critical Zone Observatories. The network will fill essential knowledge gaps about interactions of under- and above-ground environmental processes and their responses to disturbance and change. These interactions determine the sustainability of food, clean water, mineral resources and Australian ecosystems, and cannot be studied with existing environmental infrastructure. The 5 foundation ....Founding an Australian Critical Zone Observatory Network. This proposal founds a new network of Australian Critical Zone Observatories. The network will fill essential knowledge gaps about interactions of under- and above-ground environmental processes and their responses to disturbance and change. These interactions determine the sustainability of food, clean water, mineral resources and Australian ecosystems, and cannot be studied with existing environmental infrastructure. The 5 foundational sites will host integrated monitoring equipment to observe stocks and fluxes of carbon, water, energy and mass across the “Critical Zone” – the vertical span from plant canopies to fresh bedrock. Joining a burgeoning international movement, the network will catalyse Critical Zone science in Australia.Read moreRead less