Plant Transfer Cells - Discovering the Mechanisms of Wall Ingrowth Formation. This project seeks fundamental molecular understanding of how specialized plant cells that are designed for optimum transport of nutrients develop. So-called "transfer cells" are important for efficient nutrient transport and distribution in many crop species of significance to agriculture. Discovering the mechanisms that coordinate development of these specialized cells will maintain Australia's international reputat ....Plant Transfer Cells - Discovering the Mechanisms of Wall Ingrowth Formation. This project seeks fundamental molecular understanding of how specialized plant cells that are designed for optimum transport of nutrients develop. So-called "transfer cells" are important for efficient nutrient transport and distribution in many crop species of significance to agriculture. Discovering the mechanisms that coordinate development of these specialized cells will maintain Australia's international reputation in this field of research, as well as provide technological opportunities to enhance crop yields by manipulating the efficiency of nutrient distribution in crop species. Read moreRead less
Induction of Plant Transfer Cells - Discovering Regulatory Networks. This project seeks molecular understanding of regulatory mechanisms responsible for inducing formation of specialized plant cells that are of central importance in controlling nutrient transport. These so-called "transfer cells" play pivotal roles in determining crop nutrition and hence yield under normal and stressful environments such as soil nutrient deficiencies and salinity. Discovering regulatory mechanisms that control f ....Induction of Plant Transfer Cells - Discovering Regulatory Networks. This project seeks molecular understanding of regulatory mechanisms responsible for inducing formation of specialized plant cells that are of central importance in controlling nutrient transport. These so-called "transfer cells" play pivotal roles in determining crop nutrition and hence yield under normal and stressful environments such as soil nutrient deficiencies and salinity. Discovering regulatory mechanisms that control formation of these specialized cells will maintain Australia's international reputation in this field of research. In addition, the information platform generated may provide technological opportunities to optimise nutrient flows in healthy plants, combat certain environmental stresses and control pathogen attack.
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Dissecting a hematopietic transcription factor complex. The development of mature active cells is a highly complex and coordinated process that is controlled largely by groups of interacting regulatory proteins. We are trying to understand, at a very detailed level, how a specific group of these proteins interact to regulate both normal blood cell development and the onset of childhood leukemias. Using this information we will try to develop reagents that can be used to inhibit these interaction ....Dissecting a hematopietic transcription factor complex. The development of mature active cells is a highly complex and coordinated process that is controlled largely by groups of interacting regulatory proteins. We are trying to understand, at a very detailed level, how a specific group of these proteins interact to regulate both normal blood cell development and the onset of childhood leukemias. Using this information we will try to develop reagents that can be used to inhibit these interactions and be used as lead compounds for treatments for disease.Read moreRead less
Oxidative Damage and Cell Ageing. This research will benefit Australia by providing a fundamental understanding of how cells age. This will have immediate international impact at the scientific level and will inform strategies to reduce the rate of ageing and alleviation of age-related disorders. In the longer term the research may provide commercial and social outcomes by identifying antioxidant systems that will provide a genuine benefit in reducing ageing.
Cellular Responses to Oxidative Damage: Cell Aging. The aim of this project is to identify the mechanisms by which oxidative stress and free radical damage cause cell aging. This work will make a significant contribution to our understanding of the aging process in cells by identifying the major reactive oxygen species that contribute to cell aging, which defence systems and antioxidants provide the greatest degree of protection, what damage accumulates as cells age and which genetic systems ar ....Cellular Responses to Oxidative Damage: Cell Aging. The aim of this project is to identify the mechanisms by which oxidative stress and free radical damage cause cell aging. This work will make a significant contribution to our understanding of the aging process in cells by identifying the major reactive oxygen species that contribute to cell aging, which defence systems and antioxidants provide the greatest degree of protection, what damage accumulates as cells age and which genetic systems are activated as during the process.Read moreRead less
LIM-homeodomain interactions in neuronal development. The loss of central nervous system function, through accident or disease, is devastating for affected individuals and their families. Our current inability to stimulate the regeneration of nervous tissue is a result of the lack of detailed knowledge of the complex processes that must take place, at the molecular and cellular levels, during neuronal development. We are determining how a group of cellular proteins that have key roles in motor n ....LIM-homeodomain interactions in neuronal development. The loss of central nervous system function, through accident or disease, is devastating for affected individuals and their families. Our current inability to stimulate the regeneration of nervous tissue is a result of the lack of detailed knowledge of the complex processes that must take place, at the molecular and cellular levels, during neuronal development. We are determining how a group of cellular proteins that have key roles in motor neuron development interact with each other and with DNA. With this information we are developing reagents that can be used to further probe central nervous system function and may ultimately be used to regenerate damaged nerves.Read moreRead less
The Dynamics of Plant Cell Division-Discovering the Mechanisms of Organelle Inheritance. This project seeks to understand molecular mechanisms responsible for organelle partitioning in dividing plant cells. Understanding these mechanisms will contribute new knowledge relevant to plant biotechnology (eg chloroplast transformation, cytoplasmic male sterility, plant development and totipotency) and thus to Australian agriculture broadly. This project will enhance Australian research capacity in the ....The Dynamics of Plant Cell Division-Discovering the Mechanisms of Organelle Inheritance. This project seeks to understand molecular mechanisms responsible for organelle partitioning in dividing plant cells. Understanding these mechanisms will contribute new knowledge relevant to plant biotechnology (eg chloroplast transformation, cytoplasmic male sterility, plant development and totipotency) and thus to Australian agriculture broadly. This project will enhance Australian research capacity in the fields of organelle inheritance and plant cytoskeletal dynamics and thus will maintain Australia's leading reputation in these fields. In addition, the project will maintain a high quality and productive research environment capable of providing excellent research training for new scientists in this field. Read moreRead less
Neurotrophic factors for pelvic autonomic neurons: the role of neurturin. This project is about pelvic parasympathetic neurons, which are responsible for involuntary activities such as bladder voiding and penile erection. We are interested in the neurotrophic factors that determine survival of these neurons during early mammalian development and keep them healthy in adults. Little is known about ?parasympathetic neurotrophic factors? in general. However we have recently discovered that the prote ....Neurotrophic factors for pelvic autonomic neurons: the role of neurturin. This project is about pelvic parasympathetic neurons, which are responsible for involuntary activities such as bladder voiding and penile erection. We are interested in the neurotrophic factors that determine survival of these neurons during early mammalian development and keep them healthy in adults. Little is known about ?parasympathetic neurotrophic factors? in general. However we have recently discovered that the protein neurturin is very important in the pelvic parasympathetic system. We will determine exactly how neurturin affects pelvic neurons and how it interacts with other neurotrophic factors. Our results will fill a major gap in our knowledge of fundamental neurobiology.Read moreRead less
Head and face development: dissecting tissue-specific gene function. The outcome of our investigation of the early development will inform us of the ways and means for the embryo to assemble the essential building blocks of the body, and insights into the developmental origin of birth defects. This knowledge will benefit the biomedical research community, the education sector and the general public by enabling the formulation of new hypotheses, enriching the curriculum, and providing an evidenc ....Head and face development: dissecting tissue-specific gene function. The outcome of our investigation of the early development will inform us of the ways and means for the embryo to assemble the essential building blocks of the body, and insights into the developmental origin of birth defects. This knowledge will benefit the biomedical research community, the education sector and the general public by enabling the formulation of new hypotheses, enriching the curriculum, and providing an evidence-based understanding of the genetic basis of congenital malformations for delivering informative counselling. The technical expertise gained from this project will enhance the nation's research capability through the sharing of skills and knowledge with other research teams in the academia and the industry. Read moreRead less
Structural elucidation and functional analysis of insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 domains. Translating information from the human genome project into information about cell function is a major challenge in the post-genome era. The multifunctional insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3), a member of a multigene superfamily, regulates cell growth and function through numerous signalling pathways. This project will provide structural information about IGFBP-3 as a protot ....Structural elucidation and functional analysis of insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 domains. Translating information from the human genome project into information about cell function is a major challenge in the post-genome era. The multifunctional insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3), a member of a multigene superfamily, regulates cell growth and function through numerous signalling pathways. This project will provide structural information about IGFBP-3 as a prototype for the superfamily, and using a combination of methodologies will unravel mechanisms of IGFBP-3 action. The project will advance understanding of IGFBP-3 and superfamily functions, and provide both benefits in international research leadership and economic and health benefits in animal and human growth and metabolism.Read moreRead less