A powerful new genetic view of the recent evolutionary history of humans and their diseases. Bacteria on teeth cause dental disease, but have also recently been associated with broader health issues, including diabetes, stroke and heart issues. In this project ancient DNA will be used to reveal changes in these bacteria as humans moved from a hunter-gatherer to farming lifestyle, providing valuable background information for modern dental/medical practice.
eGenomics - Next generation biomonitoring of threatened species. DNA is the molecule of life and exists everywhere in the environment as a largely untapped source of information on evolution, biodiversity, and ecosystem health. Our overriding aim is to start mining that information to benefit threatened species. Based on optimized ancient DNA methods, powerful sequencing technology, whole genome analyses, and RNA profiling, we present a novel and holistic framework for genetic biomonitoring. In ....eGenomics - Next generation biomonitoring of threatened species. DNA is the molecule of life and exists everywhere in the environment as a largely untapped source of information on evolution, biodiversity, and ecosystem health. Our overriding aim is to start mining that information to benefit threatened species. Based on optimized ancient DNA methods, powerful sequencing technology, whole genome analyses, and RNA profiling, we present a novel and holistic framework for genetic biomonitoring. In two parallel model systems we will study corals and reptiles to improve environmental detection while simultaneously obtaining information on their population health. This will foster more efficient conservation of endangered species that are of tremendous importance to our marine and terrestrial ecosystems.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0775726
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$306,270.00
Summary
Australian Mirror of the UCSC Genome Database and Browser. Modern medical, biological, agricultural, and environmental research and industries are being transformed by access to genomic information that details the DNA sequence of various species, as well as of different strains and individuals within populations. This information is being generated at an exponentially increasing speed, and requires large computational resources. This facility will provide Australian researchers, R&D organizati ....Australian Mirror of the UCSC Genome Database and Browser. Modern medical, biological, agricultural, and environmental research and industries are being transformed by access to genomic information that details the DNA sequence of various species, as well as of different strains and individuals within populations. This information is being generated at an exponentially increasing speed, and requires large computational resources. This facility will provide Australian researchers, R&D organizations and industry with state-of-the-art genomic data storage and analysis capability, which will permit both public and proprietary access, and accelerate Australian research and development in genetic medicine, pharmaceuticals, animal breeding and biodiversity.Read moreRead less
Intron encoded RNA regulatory networks in yeast. This project has the capacity to transform our understanding of the evolution, development and genetic variation of complex organisms, as well as the self-organization of complex systems in general. The national and community benefits of the project will be to maintain Australian leadership in advanced genetics and genome-phenome informatics. It will provide a platform for many applications in biology and biotechnology, including new genetic diagn ....Intron encoded RNA regulatory networks in yeast. This project has the capacity to transform our understanding of the evolution, development and genetic variation of complex organisms, as well as the self-organization of complex systems in general. The national and community benefits of the project will be to maintain Australian leadership in advanced genetics and genome-phenome informatics. It will provide a platform for many applications in biology and biotechnology, including new genetic diagnostics and an informed basis for the engineering of complex traits in agriculture. The project will also provide insights into the structure of biological communication and control systems with applications in information science and the programming of integrated complex systems in other domains.Read moreRead less
Developing technology for the cost effective de novo sequencing and analysis of complex genomes. Applying the latest scientific advances supports society directly through promoting a knowledge based economy, as well as indirectly through securing agricultural productivity and improved biomedical applications. Establishing these methods places Australia at the forefront of genomics technology with direct applications for Australian biomedical and biotechnology industries. Maintaining agricultural ....Developing technology for the cost effective de novo sequencing and analysis of complex genomes. Applying the latest scientific advances supports society directly through promoting a knowledge based economy, as well as indirectly through securing agricultural productivity and improved biomedical applications. Establishing these methods places Australia at the forefront of genomics technology with direct applications for Australian biomedical and biotechnology industries. Maintaining agricultural production in an unreliable environment remains a national challenge, both for rural and urban communities. This sequencing technology will provide a detailed understanding of crop genome structure and lead to the development of crops that are better suited to the Australian climate, supporting a sustainable agricultural industry. Read moreRead less
The molecular evolution of wings in flightless birds. The flightless Australian emu and New Zealand kiwi have small wings, while the extinct moa had none at all. This project will identify the genetic changes that have lead to wing reduction and loss in flightless birds. The results will shed light on the genetic control of forelimb development and how it has evolved.
Echoes of the earliest Homo sapiens movement out of Africa. The "Out of Africa" and "Multiregional Evolution" theories have proposed sharply different accounts for the origins of our species Homo sapiens. These have converged on opposite readings of the Australian human fossil record. Recent perspectives resulting from research on Pleistocene Australian mitochondrial DNA, and by osteologists on early Homo sapiens remains in Africa and Israel, hint at a chapter, as yet unwritten, in our species' ....Echoes of the earliest Homo sapiens movement out of Africa. The "Out of Africa" and "Multiregional Evolution" theories have proposed sharply different accounts for the origins of our species Homo sapiens. These have converged on opposite readings of the Australian human fossil record. Recent perspectives resulting from research on Pleistocene Australian mitochondrial DNA, and by osteologists on early Homo sapiens remains in Africa and Israel, hint at a chapter, as yet unwritten, in our species' Late Pleistocene dispersal from Africa. This project's collaborative research on fossils from Sri Lanka and Australasia will explore and test the implications for the colonisation history of the Indian Ocean region.Read moreRead less
Characterising genetic variation in Brassica napus. Applying the latest scientific advances supports society through promoting a knowledge based economy, as well as through securing agricultural productivity and biomedical applications. Establishing these methods places Australia at the forefront of genomics technology with direct applications for Australian agricultural, biomedical and biotechnology industries. Maintaining agricultural production in an unreliable environment remains a national ....Characterising genetic variation in Brassica napus. Applying the latest scientific advances supports society through promoting a knowledge based economy, as well as through securing agricultural productivity and biomedical applications. Establishing these methods places Australia at the forefront of genomics technology with direct applications for Australian agricultural, biomedical and biotechnology industries. Maintaining agricultural production in an unreliable environment remains a national challenge, both for rural and urban communities. This technology will provide a detailed understanding of crop genome variation in relation to agronomic traits and lead to the development of crops that are better suited to the Australian climate, supporting a sustainable agricultural industry.Read moreRead less
Unravelling the biochemical fingerprint of Australian native plants for sustainable farm forestry and other applications. Dryland salinity is an issue of national significance due to its impact on primary industries which contribute billions of dollars to our economy. However, millions of hectares of arable land are now affected by salinity, with devastating effects on crops, native plants, water quality and wildlife. This project works with the rural community and exploits the unique gene poo ....Unravelling the biochemical fingerprint of Australian native plants for sustainable farm forestry and other applications. Dryland salinity is an issue of national significance due to its impact on primary industries which contribute billions of dollars to our economy. However, millions of hectares of arable land are now affected by salinity, with devastating effects on crops, native plants, water quality and wildlife. This project works with the rural community and exploits the unique gene pool of certain Australian salinity-tolerant plants for environmental benefits (revegetation, salinity control) and simultaneous economic returns through using these for timber and perennial fodder. The project thus addresses the national priorities of preventing the expansion of salinity, putting it to sustainable uses and preserving biodiversity.Read moreRead less
Genetic variation of transcriptional control. Genetic variation is a key cause phenotype differences in humans, animals, and plants and so of great economic importance. Despite its proven importance to human diseases, ?quantitative? variation in the amount of gene expression rather than ?qualitative? protein sequence changes, has not been systematically studied. We have developed a powerful method to identify genetic causes of quantitative variation using crosses of inbred mice in conjunction wi ....Genetic variation of transcriptional control. Genetic variation is a key cause phenotype differences in humans, animals, and plants and so of great economic importance. Despite its proven importance to human diseases, ?quantitative? variation in the amount of gene expression rather than ?qualitative? protein sequence changes, has not been systematically studied. We have developed a powerful method to identify genetic causes of quantitative variation using crosses of inbred mice in conjunction with microarray techniques to analyse expression of thousands of genes simultaneously. These studies will be extended to humans and be significant to wide areas of biological and commercial activity.Read moreRead less