Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE130100090
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$700,000.00
Summary
Three-dimensional cryo electron microscopy facility. The three-dimensional cryo-electron microscopy facility will let us visualise plants, pathogens and nanomachines with resolution not previously possible allowing us to see into cells and diseases with vastly more detail. Our world-class experts will provide regional and national researchers access to cutting-edge technology complementary to the Australian Synchrotron.
Membrane transporters in oxidative stress signalling and tolerance in plants. Oxidative stress imposed by salinity and drought severely limits agricultural crop production, resulting in multibillion dollar losses to farmers. Australia is one of the driest continents, with a significant proportion of arable land affected by salinity. Thus, developing salt- and drought tolerant species is critical to minimise the impact of these stresses on crop production. This project will reveal specific ionic ....Membrane transporters in oxidative stress signalling and tolerance in plants. Oxidative stress imposed by salinity and drought severely limits agricultural crop production, resulting in multibillion dollar losses to farmers. Australia is one of the driest continents, with a significant proportion of arable land affected by salinity. Thus, developing salt- and drought tolerant species is critical to minimise the impact of these stresses on crop production. This project will reveal specific ionic mechanisms mediating reactive oxygen species signalling and tolerance in plants. This will help achieve the above goal by providing plant breeders with vital information on key genes controlling oxidative stress tolerance in plants. Read moreRead less
Coping with flooding: nutrient transport in oxygen-deprived roots. Flooding damages plants by reducing oxygen supply to roots. The project will study effects of low oxygen on nutrient transport by roots. Understanding root functioning during low oxygen will enhance knowledge of plant acclimation to soil water logging. The project will contribute to the National Goal of 'Responding to Climate Change and Variability'.
Identifying novel salinity tolerance mechanisms by spatial and temporal analysis of lipids in barley. Agrifood production faces the dual challenges of an increasing world population and the threats of abiotic stresses arising from climate change and the erosion of arable land. Cereals, the major food crops, are poorly adapted to tolerate most abiotic stresses, including salinity. This project applies new technologies investigating spatial and temporal biochemical mechanisms a model cereal, Horde ....Identifying novel salinity tolerance mechanisms by spatial and temporal analysis of lipids in barley. Agrifood production faces the dual challenges of an increasing world population and the threats of abiotic stresses arising from climate change and the erosion of arable land. Cereals, the major food crops, are poorly adapted to tolerate most abiotic stresses, including salinity. This project applies new technologies investigating spatial and temporal biochemical mechanisms a model cereal, Hordeum vulgare (barley), utilises to adapt and tolerate salinity. The aims are to investigate the role of specifically plasma membrane lipids modulating either signalling pathways or membrane fluidity that impacts on adaptation during salinity. The results will provide new leads for the development of cereal germplasm with increased salt tolerance.Read moreRead less
Characterisation of PQ loop proteins in plants: are they voltage insensitive nonselective cation channels? Millions of hectares of Australian agricultural land are affected by salinity. This results in the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue each year. The identification of the pathway for the initial influx of Na+ into plants from the soil will be important in helping to develop crop plants that are salt tolerant. This will increase our understanding of the mechanisms of salinity ....Characterisation of PQ loop proteins in plants: are they voltage insensitive nonselective cation channels? Millions of hectares of Australian agricultural land are affected by salinity. This results in the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue each year. The identification of the pathway for the initial influx of Na+ into plants from the soil will be important in helping to develop crop plants that are salt tolerant. This will increase our understanding of the mechanisms of salinity tolerance, an area of great importance to Australian agriculture and environmental sustainability. The future applications of this work will increase agricultural productivity and enhance the quality of life for both Australians and the international community.Read moreRead less
Translocation of secreted effector proteins from fungal pathogens into host plant cells. Every year, fungal diseases of plants cause huge losses in agricultural productivity and extensive environmental damage in Australia. Disease control in major crops, like wheat, currently relies heavily on breeding for disease resistance. However, fungal pathogens continually adapt to overcome plant defences, necessitating identification of new sources of resistance. The research in this project will eluc ....Translocation of secreted effector proteins from fungal pathogens into host plant cells. Every year, fungal diseases of plants cause huge losses in agricultural productivity and extensive environmental damage in Australia. Disease control in major crops, like wheat, currently relies heavily on breeding for disease resistance. However, fungal pathogens continually adapt to overcome plant defences, necessitating identification of new sources of resistance. The research in this project will elucidate the molecular basis of a new aspect of the establishment of plant infection by fungi, and in so doing will provide new avenues for the development of novel disease resistance strategies, with relevance in particular to devastating cereal diseases like wheat rust.Read moreRead less
Role of fungal secreted proteins as plant disease effectors. Many crop diseases are economically significant threats to agricultural productivity in Australia, with rust fungi in particular being a major problem for cereal grain production. Current methods of rust disease control are based on breeding for resistance but continued adaption by rust fungi to overcome plant defences means there is an urgent need for new methods of crop protection. This project will investigate molecular processes ....Role of fungal secreted proteins as plant disease effectors. Many crop diseases are economically significant threats to agricultural productivity in Australia, with rust fungi in particular being a major problem for cereal grain production. Current methods of rust disease control are based on breeding for resistance but continued adaption by rust fungi to overcome plant defences means there is an urgent need for new methods of crop protection. This project will investigate molecular processes underlying fungal infection of plants, focusing on mechanisms that enable fungi to take over the metabolism of infected cells. The research will provide basic knowledge for development of novel and durable disease resistance strategies.Read moreRead less
Determining how the soluble dietary fibre beta-glucan is made in cereals. This Project aims to define the molecular mechanisms that control the processes involved in the biosynthesis and regulation of mixed linkage glucan, a major soluble dietary fibre in the cell walls of cereal grains. Plant cell walls determine the quality of most plant-based products used in modern human societies, yet the regulatory mechanisms responsible for their modulation are not well understood. Key distinguishing feat ....Determining how the soluble dietary fibre beta-glucan is made in cereals. This Project aims to define the molecular mechanisms that control the processes involved in the biosynthesis and regulation of mixed linkage glucan, a major soluble dietary fibre in the cell walls of cereal grains. Plant cell walls determine the quality of most plant-based products used in modern human societies, yet the regulatory mechanisms responsible for their modulation are not well understood. Key distinguishing features of the Project will be the international, integrative, and multidisciplinary approach towards addressing this major challenge in plant biology and the potential of the fundamental scientific discoveries to benefit end-users in the food, feed and beverage industries.Read moreRead less
Reduced Water Consumption in Commercial Malting Processes. The successful outcome for the project will be the production of barley varieties that can be successfully malted with a single steep, rather than the conventional two steeps currently employed. The objective will be achieved through the reduction of cell wall beta-glucan in barley grain. This will result in water savings of around 40%, or 1,500 megalitres per annum, for the Australian malting industry. The 1,500 megalitres saving in ....Reduced Water Consumption in Commercial Malting Processes. The successful outcome for the project will be the production of barley varieties that can be successfully malted with a single steep, rather than the conventional two steeps currently employed. The objective will be achieved through the reduction of cell wall beta-glucan in barley grain. This will result in water savings of around 40%, or 1,500 megalitres per annum, for the Australian malting industry. The 1,500 megalitres saving in water use would be sufficient to support the domestic water consumption of 30,000 people, based upon the use of 140 litres per person per day that was recently achieved in Brisbane.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0775503
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$255,000.00
Summary
Robotics for plant genomics: Increasing throughput in plant genetic analyses. Plant genomics has direct benefit to crop improvement, especially as focussed in the applicants' laboratories. Thus, the Australian agri-food sector will benefit substantially from the acceleration in plant functional genomics that will arise from the installation of the robotics equipment described in the current application, by both underpinning more applied research and also being used directly in crop improvement p ....Robotics for plant genomics: Increasing throughput in plant genetic analyses. Plant genomics has direct benefit to crop improvement, especially as focussed in the applicants' laboratories. Thus, the Australian agri-food sector will benefit substantially from the acceleration in plant functional genomics that will arise from the installation of the robotics equipment described in the current application, by both underpinning more applied research and also being used directly in crop improvement programs such as are based at the Waite Campus. The outputs will include crops with increased tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses, a reduced dependence on chemical inputs such as fertilisers and improved food quality, with consequent benefits to the environment and human health and nutrition.Read moreRead less