Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE160101536
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$369,000.00
Summary
How does mitochondrial biogenesis regulate seed germination in plants? This project aims to develop a better understanding of seed germination to enable the generation of cereal seeds with optimised rates of germination for agricultural production. Seed germination is a fundamental phase of the plant life cycle. Every year, alterations in the rate of germination cause significant crop loss in rice and other cereals. Mitochondria are emerging as essential signalling hubs in the regulation of seed ....How does mitochondrial biogenesis regulate seed germination in plants? This project aims to develop a better understanding of seed germination to enable the generation of cereal seeds with optimised rates of germination for agricultural production. Seed germination is a fundamental phase of the plant life cycle. Every year, alterations in the rate of germination cause significant crop loss in rice and other cereals. Mitochondria are emerging as essential signalling hubs in the regulation of seed germination. The project aims to combine the latest technologies and molecular approaches with genetics to understand how mitochondria regulate seed germination and the rate of germination progression in rice. The project also plans to investigate and confirm the interplay between oxygen signalling, phytohormones and mitochondrial biogenesis.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