The Origin and Evolution of the Animal Phyla inferred from Analysis of Multiple-Gene Data. Australia has recently begun an extensive research programme in the genomics of our flora and fauna. The enormous amounts of data that emerge from such research are highly complex, but they hold the key to understanding how biological organisms change over time. Our research will untangle that data to answer fundamental, unanswered questions in modern science: How did the animal groups originate? How are ....The Origin and Evolution of the Animal Phyla inferred from Analysis of Multiple-Gene Data. Australia has recently begun an extensive research programme in the genomics of our flora and fauna. The enormous amounts of data that emerge from such research are highly complex, but they hold the key to understanding how biological organisms change over time. Our research will untangle that data to answer fundamental, unanswered questions in modern science: How did the animal groups originate? How are they related to each other? How is biodiversity changing? The answers to these questions and the new analytical tools we will develop will put Australia firmly on the international "map" of Bioinformatics.Read moreRead less
New Molecular Approaches to Comparative Phylogeography. Funds are requested to gather data to test new molecular and analytical approaches in the field of molecular phylogeography. We will generate phylogeographic hypotheses from mitochondrial and microsatellite DNA for six species and evaluate the utility of microsatellite data for the reconstruction of phylogeographic history. We will borrow powerful analytical techniques from the field of evolutionary ecology and use them in a completely nove ....New Molecular Approaches to Comparative Phylogeography. Funds are requested to gather data to test new molecular and analytical approaches in the field of molecular phylogeography. We will generate phylogeographic hypotheses from mitochondrial and microsatellite DNA for six species and evaluate the utility of microsatellite data for the reconstruction of phylogeographic history. We will borrow powerful analytical techniques from the field of evolutionary ecology and use them in a completely novel way to test hypotheses of microsatellite diversity. Our research is inter-disciplinary in that we will bridge the gap between molecular phylogenetics and molecular evolution and in so doing make a major advancement in this emerging field.Read moreRead less
Analysing and modelling molecular rate variation among nuclear and mitochondrial genomes. My research will have important practical benefits for bioinformaticians and evolutionary biologists, because existing analytical methods will be rigorously tested and new tools will be developed. Australia has a comparatively high concentration of researchers in this field, so my research will foster domestic collaboration and import international expertise. The research will provide important insights int ....Analysing and modelling molecular rate variation among nuclear and mitochondrial genomes. My research will have important practical benefits for bioinformaticians and evolutionary biologists, because existing analytical methods will be rigorously tested and new tools will be developed. Australia has a comparatively high concentration of researchers in this field, so my research will foster domestic collaboration and import international expertise. The research will provide important insights into the rates and patterns of genetic changes associated with domestication, and into variation in evolutionary rates among the primate ancestors of humans. In addition to developing new software, which will be made publicly available, I will develop new evolutionary models to supplement existing software packages. Read moreRead less
Improving the accuracy of phylogenetic reconstruction by improving models of sequence divergence. Phylogenies describe the relationships among species and provide the essential framework for understanding evolutionary processes. They are an essential tool in the identification of functionally important regions in DNA sequences. An important aspect of identifying phylogenies is measuring how DNA sequences change in time. The proposed research will develop sophisticated, practical models of sequen ....Improving the accuracy of phylogenetic reconstruction by improving models of sequence divergence. Phylogenies describe the relationships among species and provide the essential framework for understanding evolutionary processes. They are an essential tool in the identification of functionally important regions in DNA sequences. An important aspect of identifying phylogenies is measuring how DNA sequences change in time. The proposed research will develop sophisticated, practical models of sequence divergence and make them freely available in open source software. The software and models will positively impact on studies seeking to understand Australian biological diversity. The proposed resolution of the eutherian mammal orders will further significantly impact on utilisation of rodents as a model organism for human biology.Read moreRead less
Old brains, new data - early evolution of structural complexity in the vertebrate head. Of the all the complex structures biology has provided, the evolution of the vertebrate brain and its sensory organs is perhaps the most enigmatic. The fossil record occasionally provides a chance to trace this evolution, but only with the use of novel X-ray scanning techniques can these secrets be detailed in three dimensions. Exploiting the exceptional fossil record from Australia and China, this team will ....Old brains, new data - early evolution of structural complexity in the vertebrate head. Of the all the complex structures biology has provided, the evolution of the vertebrate brain and its sensory organs is perhaps the most enigmatic. The fossil record occasionally provides a chance to trace this evolution, but only with the use of novel X-ray scanning techniques can these secrets be detailed in three dimensions. Exploiting the exceptional fossil record from Australia and China, this team will for the first time collect a vast comparative data base which will yield clues on the early evolution of the ear, eye and brain. Read moreRead less
Origin of jaws - the greatest unsolved mystery of early vertebrate evolution. The 2008 discovery of an unborn embryo in the 380 million-year-old "Mother Fish" from the famous Gogo fossil deposit in NW Australia has attracted a collaboration of Australian, American and Chinese scientists to a new international collaboration. The team will study spectacular new fossils from central Australia and southern China, the oldest known back-boned animals with jaws and a hard skeleton. Innovative 3D X-ray ....Origin of jaws - the greatest unsolved mystery of early vertebrate evolution. The 2008 discovery of an unborn embryo in the 380 million-year-old "Mother Fish" from the famous Gogo fossil deposit in NW Australia has attracted a collaboration of Australian, American and Chinese scientists to a new international collaboration. The team will study spectacular new fossils from central Australia and southern China, the oldest known back-boned animals with jaws and a hard skeleton. Innovative 3D X-ray computer tomography, and the Australian synchrotron, will be used to investigate ancient cells and preserved soft tissue structures, to search for evidence that copulation and internal fertilization, as in modern mammals, might have originated when jaws first evolved. Read moreRead less
Distinguishing among patterns of extinction and speciation through geological and climatic change: a molecular modelling approach. This research will enhance our understanding of the ancient origins of Australia's unique floral heritage. By developing new molecular modelling methods, it will strengthen Australia's position at the cutting edge of evolutionary phylogenetics. When Australia separated from Gondwana by continental drift 32 million years ago, the changed ocean circulation patterns tri ....Distinguishing among patterns of extinction and speciation through geological and climatic change: a molecular modelling approach. This research will enhance our understanding of the ancient origins of Australia's unique floral heritage. By developing new molecular modelling methods, it will strengthen Australia's position at the cutting edge of evolutionary phylogenetics. When Australia separated from Gondwana by continental drift 32 million years ago, the changed ocean circulation patterns triggered global climate change. The result was turnover of biota world-wide and dramatic changes within Australia. We will develop new insights into the rate and mode of these changes that will have international significance. Understanding the long-term turnover of flora from previous global climate changes will help to predict the impact of current and future climate change.Read moreRead less
Australia's exceptional Palaeozoic fossil fishes, and a Gondwana origin for land vertebrates. The 370 million-year-old Gogo deposit in WA has produced the World's best-preserved fossil fishes of Devonian age. New discoveries of related forms in eastern and central Australia document the deep history of Australia's unique vertebrate fauna, and provide new evidence on the evolution of the first jaws and limbs in vertebrates. They indicate that the first land animals may have evolved on the Austral ....Australia's exceptional Palaeozoic fossil fishes, and a Gondwana origin for land vertebrates. The 370 million-year-old Gogo deposit in WA has produced the World's best-preserved fossil fishes of Devonian age. New discoveries of related forms in eastern and central Australia document the deep history of Australia's unique vertebrate fauna, and provide new evidence on the evolution of the first jaws and limbs in vertebrates. They indicate that the first land animals may have evolved on the Australian landmass. These remarkably preserved, information-rich skulls and braincases of some of the oldest known vertebrate fossils provide unique data on early evolution of the head and brain; they are held in national collections as a significant contribution to both National and World Heritage.Read moreRead less
The role of ecological specialisation in insect-plant macroevolutionary processes: a molecular phylogenetic approach across three kingdoms. Flowering plants and phytophagous insects are major components of the world's biodiversity and their evolution has been closely linked. This project will increase our knowledge of insect-endosymbiont-plant interactions and enhance our understanding of the origin, generation and maintenance of much of the world's biodiversity. A broader understanding of how i ....The role of ecological specialisation in insect-plant macroevolutionary processes: a molecular phylogenetic approach across three kingdoms. Flowering plants and phytophagous insects are major components of the world's biodiversity and their evolution has been closely linked. This project will increase our knowledge of insect-endosymbiont-plant interactions and enhance our understanding of the origin, generation and maintenance of much of the world's biodiversity. A broader understanding of how insects, their symbionts and plants have co-evolved should improve our understanding of why and how some insects are able to become pests whereas others do not. Scale insects (the model system in this study) are important pests, both ecologically (Christmas Island interaction between coccids, rainforest plants and crazy ants) and economically (e.g. citrus mealybug).Read moreRead less
Uncovering the evolutionary history of Australasian marsupials: combining molecular phylogenetics and ecological inference. Marsupials are symbolic of the uniqueness of Australia's biological systems and there is widespread public interest in their natural history. Yet we know little of the evolutionary mechanisms that have shaped their biodiversity. This is a critical problem when considered in the context of Australian marsupials having suffered the highest extinction rate of any continental m ....Uncovering the evolutionary history of Australasian marsupials: combining molecular phylogenetics and ecological inference. Marsupials are symbolic of the uniqueness of Australia's biological systems and there is widespread public interest in their natural history. Yet we know little of the evolutionary mechanisms that have shaped their biodiversity. This is a critical problem when considered in the context of Australian marsupials having suffered the highest extinction rate of any continental mammal fauna over the past 200 years. This project will make a major contribution to understanding the origins, timescale and ecological nature of Australasian marsupial evolution. In doing so, it will inform conservation strategy, promote Australasian marsupials as a model system for studying faunal coevolution and develop widely applicable bioinformatic tools.Read moreRead less