Nuclear structure and function in the nucleated planctomycete bacterium Gemmata obscuriglobus: a third cell plan for living organisms? The project will contribute knowledge of how cells such as those of animals and plants evolved from bacterial components. Origins of cell nuclei and pores in nuclear membranes will be studied via the simple eukaryote-like nucleus of the planctomycete Gemmata obscuriglobus, from Australian freshwater. Simple nuclear pore-like structures of G. obscuriglobus will he ....Nuclear structure and function in the nucleated planctomycete bacterium Gemmata obscuriglobus: a third cell plan for living organisms? The project will contribute knowledge of how cells such as those of animals and plants evolved from bacterial components. Origins of cell nuclei and pores in nuclear membranes will be studied via the simple eukaryote-like nucleus of the planctomycete Gemmata obscuriglobus, from Australian freshwater. Simple nuclear pore-like structures of G. obscuriglobus will help understanding nucleus function in animal cells, and such pores will give insight into 'minimal' composition needed for cell nuclei, and allow design of biological nanopores. The origin of the nucleus is a major problem in biology, and an Australian contribution to its solution will achieve international recognition. Read moreRead less
Cultivating numerically significant soil bacteria. The vast majority of soil bacteria have not been able to be studied in the laboratory because they cannot be grown outside the soil. They are therefore termed unculturable. Most of these belong to groups that are completely unstudied. Advances made in the Janssen lab have overcome this impediment to laboratory cultivation of numerically abundant and globally distributed soil bacteria. This project will develop these advances to generate simple a ....Cultivating numerically significant soil bacteria. The vast majority of soil bacteria have not been able to be studied in the laboratory because they cannot be grown outside the soil. They are therefore termed unculturable. Most of these belong to groups that are completely unstudied. Advances made in the Janssen lab have overcome this impediment to laboratory cultivation of numerically abundant and globally distributed soil bacteria. This project will develop these advances to generate simple and widely applicable methods to enable many of the previously unculturable soil bacteria to be studied. This will allow assessments of their ecological roles and biotechnological potentials to be made.Read moreRead less
Directed evolution of ancestral bacterial flagellar motors. This project aims to produce new knowledge concerning the adaptation of bacterial species to wide environmental changes. The bacterial flagellar motor (BFM) is a motor 40 nanometers in diameter that builds itself into bacterial membranes, rotates five times faster than a Formula One engine, and switches directions in milliseconds. . This project will combine ancestral reconstruction of ancient motor components with protein engineering t ....Directed evolution of ancestral bacterial flagellar motors. This project aims to produce new knowledge concerning the adaptation of bacterial species to wide environmental changes. The bacterial flagellar motor (BFM) is a motor 40 nanometers in diameter that builds itself into bacterial membranes, rotates five times faster than a Formula One engine, and switches directions in milliseconds. . This project will combine ancestral reconstruction of ancient motor components with protein engineering to understand how the different ion channels that power the BFM in different species are selective for different positive ions. It will inspire and inform future manufacturing in bionanotechnology.Read moreRead less
Molecular Cell Biology and Comparative Genomics Of Planctomycetes and Verrucomicrobia In Relation To Evolution Of Cytoskeletal Proteins and Membrane-bounded Compartments. Planctomycetes and verrucomicrobia are evolutionarily distinct groups of bacteria which possess unusual cell structure and which share some significant genes important in cell biology with eukaryotes e.g. in verrucomicrobia the cytoskeleton protein tubulin. These bacteria are important for understanding the transition from no ....Molecular Cell Biology and Comparative Genomics Of Planctomycetes and Verrucomicrobia In Relation To Evolution Of Cytoskeletal Proteins and Membrane-bounded Compartments. Planctomycetes and verrucomicrobia are evolutionarily distinct groups of bacteria which possess unusual cell structure and which share some significant genes important in cell biology with eukaryotes e.g. in verrucomicrobia the cytoskeleton protein tubulin. These bacteria are important for understanding the transition from non-nucleated cells with simple cell division to nucleated cells with chromosome separation via cytoskeletal protein movement.The project will compare genomes of of planctomycetes and verrucomicrobia to determine their relationship, determine whether the tubulin homolog of verrucomicrobia can form cytoskeleton structures, and characterize the cytoskeleton of ammonium-oxidizing planctomycetes used in wastewater treatment.Read moreRead less
Rerunning the evolution of an ancient bacterial propeller. This project aims to measure how the propeller which drives bacterial swimming originated and then evolved. This project expects to generate new knowledge in molecular evolution using interdisciplinary techniques in synthetic biology and biophysics to resurrect ancient proteins and test how they can be directed to evolve in a contemporary host. Expected outcomes include the development of new types of flagellar motor for applied uses in ....Rerunning the evolution of an ancient bacterial propeller. This project aims to measure how the propeller which drives bacterial swimming originated and then evolved. This project expects to generate new knowledge in molecular evolution using interdisciplinary techniques in synthetic biology and biophysics to resurrect ancient proteins and test how they can be directed to evolve in a contemporary host. Expected outcomes include the development of new types of flagellar motor for applied uses in synbio and microfluidics, and new methods to resurrect ancient proteins and evolve their function for purpose. This should provide significant benefits by delivering a de novo molecular motor for custom applications and galvanise public interest in how this iconic molecular complex originated and evolved.Read moreRead less