ARC Centre of Excellence - In Plant Energy Biology (CPEB). Plant cell metabolism underlies the synthesis of important products in crops, and subtle changes in metabolism can enhance germination rates, early seedling vigour, biomass/yield, and tolerance to harsh environments. Research in CPEB will focus on control of this metabolism. Its expertise will enhance Australia's participation in major international research efforts directly relevant to sustainable agriculture in a country with fragile/ ....ARC Centre of Excellence - In Plant Energy Biology (CPEB). Plant cell metabolism underlies the synthesis of important products in crops, and subtle changes in metabolism can enhance germination rates, early seedling vigour, biomass/yield, and tolerance to harsh environments. Research in CPEB will focus on control of this metabolism. Its expertise will enhance Australia's participation in major international research efforts directly relevant to sustainable agriculture in a country with fragile/degrading ecosystems. The research will provide new approaches for enhancing quality metabolite traits important for human health. It will further strengthen our international leadership in plant energy science, and will strengthen Australia's research training in systems biology to influence plant function.Read moreRead less
Spatio-temporal analysis of molecular changes during leaf senescence in arabidopsis and wheat and their response to the environment. Innovative agricultural solutions in Australia can be gained by changing the abundance of proteins and metabolites to influence plant performance and provide more robust plants and plant products. The aging and dying of leaves (leaf senescence) is a key factor in our understanding of plant development and the recovery of nutrients from dying tissues. Leaf senescenc ....Spatio-temporal analysis of molecular changes during leaf senescence in arabidopsis and wheat and their response to the environment. Innovative agricultural solutions in Australia can be gained by changing the abundance of proteins and metabolites to influence plant performance and provide more robust plants and plant products. The aging and dying of leaves (leaf senescence) is a key factor in our understanding of plant development and the recovery of nutrients from dying tissues. Leaf senescence is also important for pre-harvest impacts on seed and grain quality as leaves represent the major nitrogen store remobilised to feed these plant products. This work will support the generation of intellectual property to be applied within Australia's plant-based industries and at the same time provides a strong environment for the training of students and researchers.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0230245
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$600,000.00
Summary
Joint controlled environment facility for research and development in plant biotechnolgy in Western Australia. The aim of this proposal is to establish a high quality, controlled-environment growth facility for plant research in Perth, jointly managed by Murdoch University and the University of Western Australia. This facility is needed urgently to support current research and new initiatives in plant molecular biology and biotechnology. It will focus on the molecular bases of plant growth and ....Joint controlled environment facility for research and development in plant biotechnolgy in Western Australia. The aim of this proposal is to establish a high quality, controlled-environment growth facility for plant research in Perth, jointly managed by Murdoch University and the University of Western Australia. This facility is needed urgently to support current research and new initiatives in plant molecular biology and biotechnology. It will focus on the molecular bases of plant growth and defence against pathogens. Outcomes include enhancement of WA plant research and its application to improved agricultural production that will benefit rural industries and promote exports. It will also facilitate postgraduate training in plant biotechnology and enhance career prospects of graduates.Read moreRead less
Functional characterisation of novel transport protein in plants. The products of plants provide the food we eat, the air we breath and it is recognised that they play an integral role in defining and protecting the environment. Thus it is essential to understand how plant work to allow their use in novel applications and to adapt to changing environments. Many aspects of plant metabolism are unique to plants and thus we cannot guess or estimate importance from studies in animals or fungi. Appro ....Functional characterisation of novel transport protein in plants. The products of plants provide the food we eat, the air we breath and it is recognised that they play an integral role in defining and protecting the environment. Thus it is essential to understand how plant work to allow their use in novel applications and to adapt to changing environments. Many aspects of plant metabolism are unique to plants and thus we cannot guess or estimate importance from studies in animals or fungi. Approximately 4,000 proteins are specific to plants, or contain domains that are unique to plants. This investigation proposes to elucidate the function of some of these novel proteins, transporters, that play a critical role in transport processes in cells.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE120101562
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
Quantifying the contribution of leaf vein networks to the leaf economics spectrum in native and agricultural species. Using a combination of eco-physiological and geometric measures this project will evaluate the influence of leaf vein networks on leaf economics. It is expected that this work will identify vein investment and network design as major sources of variability underlying species adaptive strategies, and the global leaf economics spectrum as a whole.
Mid-rotation diagnosis and management options for correction of water and nutrient deficiencies in plantation-grown eucalypts. This research will improve productivity of bluegum plantations by improving current diagnostic techniques (foliage and soil analysis) for nutrient disorders and the supply of water. Using a novel phloem sampling and analysis technique, we will develop a nutrient (e.g. N, P) and water diagnosis procedure that is quick, cheap, robust and reliable for field use. A major in ....Mid-rotation diagnosis and management options for correction of water and nutrient deficiencies in plantation-grown eucalypts. This research will improve productivity of bluegum plantations by improving current diagnostic techniques (foliage and soil analysis) for nutrient disorders and the supply of water. Using a novel phloem sampling and analysis technique, we will develop a nutrient (e.g. N, P) and water diagnosis procedure that is quick, cheap, robust and reliable for field use. A major innovation will be distinguishing the effects of shortages of water on growth from those of other growth influences. Overall, this project will provide a highly significant theoretical, conceptual and practical advance in mid-rotation, diagnostics for plantations with considerable commercial promise.Read moreRead less
Functional genomics approaches to the mechanisms of starch mobilisation in Arabidopsis. Starch is a key carbon and energy reserve that underpins plant growth. This in turn underpins much of Australia's $60 billion agriculture industry. Starch also provides most of the calories in the human diet and is a renewable commodity supporting manufacturing industries. Dependence of society on starch will increase as it becomes used more for novel materials and for bio-ethanol production, which in turn w ....Functional genomics approaches to the mechanisms of starch mobilisation in Arabidopsis. Starch is a key carbon and energy reserve that underpins plant growth. This in turn underpins much of Australia's $60 billion agriculture industry. Starch also provides most of the calories in the human diet and is a renewable commodity supporting manufacturing industries. Dependence of society on starch will increase as it becomes used more for novel materials and for bio-ethanol production, which in turn will create new jobs in the rural economy. A major quality problem in cereal grain is pre-harvest starch breakdown caused by warm wet weather triggering events associated with germination. By understanding starch metabolism in plants we will be better able to manage and enhance growth of crop plants, starch production and seed quality.Read moreRead less
Metabolomic and genetic approaches to the discovery of genes that direct carbon partitioning in plants. Plants make starch, sucrose, cell walls (fibre), oil, organic acids, vitamins and other products of great economic and social importance. The partitioning of carbon resources into such products determines crop productivity and quality. This partitioning is strongly influenced by nutrients, water and salinity. The powerful genomics resources of Arabidopsis including the new discipline of metabo ....Metabolomic and genetic approaches to the discovery of genes that direct carbon partitioning in plants. Plants make starch, sucrose, cell walls (fibre), oil, organic acids, vitamins and other products of great economic and social importance. The partitioning of carbon resources into such products determines crop productivity and quality. This partitioning is strongly influenced by nutrients, water and salinity. The powerful genomics resources of Arabidopsis including the new discipline of metabolomics, will be deployed to understand the regulation of carbon partitioning in leaves and to discover genes that direct partitioning. National research capability will be enhanced and new resources will be generated to breed crops with improved yield potential and product quality under varied environmental conditions.Read moreRead less
Dual-targeting of proteins and its role in coordinating organelle functions in plants. Innovative agricultural solutions in Australia's future will be built on understanding and manipulating the expression of groups of genes to influence whole plant phenotypes providing more robust plants and high value plant products. Plant energy organelles are central components in plant metabolism, their coordination by processes such as dual-targeting has potential to modify germination characteristics, ear ....Dual-targeting of proteins and its role in coordinating organelle functions in plants. Innovative agricultural solutions in Australia's future will be built on understanding and manipulating the expression of groups of genes to influence whole plant phenotypes providing more robust plants and high value plant products. Plant energy organelles are central components in plant metabolism, their coordination by processes such as dual-targeting has potential to modify germination characteristics, early seedling vigour, and stress tolerance. Studying energy organelles could generate valuable intellectual property to be applied within Australia's large plant-based industries and at the same time provide a rich intellectual environment for the training of research students and postdoctoral researchers.Read moreRead less
Measuring protein turnover in vivo in plant mitochondria and chloroplasts to identify protease targets. This project plans to measure the rate at which proteins degrade inside plants by using stable isotopes of nitrogen and mass spectrometry analysis of isolated protein samples from different plant mutant lines. This will allow new insights into the in vivo role of specific proteases which are involved in regulating energy generating pathways in plant organelles and that are needed for light tol ....Measuring protein turnover in vivo in plant mitochondria and chloroplasts to identify protease targets. This project plans to measure the rate at which proteins degrade inside plants by using stable isotopes of nitrogen and mass spectrometry analysis of isolated protein samples from different plant mutant lines. This will allow new insights into the in vivo role of specific proteases which are involved in regulating energy generating pathways in plant organelles and that are needed for light tolerance, adaptation to day length, growth and normal leaf development. The new information will aid us to develop approaches to alter quality control of the plant proteome as a tool for engineering energy processes in plants.Read moreRead less