SCRC: PhD Extension : RNA Interference (RNAi) As A Means To Control Neoparamoeba Perurans, The Causative Agent Of Amoebic Gill Disease (AGD). (Student: Paula Lima)
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Summary
Paula Lima began her PhD within project 2007/750 ‘AGD Vaccine Phase III: Sea-based trials, refinement and commercialisation’. Paula began in 2009 and her full stipend, travel and operating funds were paid out of this project. Paula was adopted into the Seafood CRC in late 2009, with no further financial support for her stipend or operating expenses. In 2010 at a meeting of the project’s Management Advisory Committee (MAC), a decision was made to redirect research as it was apparent that the vacc ....Paula Lima began her PhD within project 2007/750 ‘AGD Vaccine Phase III: Sea-based trials, refinement and commercialisation’. Paula began in 2009 and her full stipend, travel and operating funds were paid out of this project. Paula was adopted into the Seafood CRC in late 2009, with no further financial support for her stipend or operating expenses. In 2010 at a meeting of the project’s Management Advisory Committee (MAC), a decision was made to redirect research as it was apparent that the vaccine was not a commercial reality. This occurred one full year into her PhD. This had an effect on Paula’s PhD which was subsequently changed to investigating the use of RNAi as either a research tool and/or a control strategy for AGD. This meant that the entire 1st year’s work was made redundant and Paula had to effectively ‘start over’. Paula has effectively been working in her new area for almost two years. However, the project which funded her stipend is no longer operating. Therefore, Paula still has effectively one year of her PhD left to run. For this reason we sought support from the Seafood CRC to enable Paula to complete her research. This application has the full support of Adam Main, the CEO of the Tasmanian Salmonid Growers' Association (TSGA).Read moreRead less
Exploring the Frontiers of Feasible Computation. The project aims to delineate the boundary between feasible and infeasible computational problems. A problem is considered feasible if there is an algorithm to solve it in worst-case time bounded by a polynomial in the input size. This is probably impossible for the important class of NP-complete problems. However, typical examples of NP-complete problems can often be solved in polynomial time, because worst-case problems are rare. The project is ....Exploring the Frontiers of Feasible Computation. The project aims to delineate the boundary between feasible and infeasible computational problems. A problem is considered feasible if there is an algorithm to solve it in worst-case time bounded by a polynomial in the input size. This is probably impossible for the important class of NP-complete problems. However, typical examples of NP-complete problems can often be solved in polynomial time, because worst-case problems are rare. The project is relevant to public-key cryptography, where breaking an encryption scheme should be infeasible, and to many real-life situations where NP-complete problems need to be solved, either exactly or approximately.Read moreRead less
Use of Interval Arithmetic and GRID Computing in Computational Molecular Science: Bounding Errors and Locating Global Minima. Catastrophic failure of the Ariane 5 rocket in 1996 and the inability of Patriot missile systems to reach their targets during the 1991 Gulf war were both attributed to numerical computing errors. Less dramatic, but in a similar vein, this project aims to study the numerical stability of contemporary computational molecular science applications. The focus will be on linea ....Use of Interval Arithmetic and GRID Computing in Computational Molecular Science: Bounding Errors and Locating Global Minima. Catastrophic failure of the Ariane 5 rocket in 1996 and the inability of Patriot missile systems to reach their targets during the 1991 Gulf war were both attributed to numerical computing errors. Less dramatic, but in a similar vein, this project aims to study the numerical stability of contemporary computational molecular science applications. The focus will be on linear scaling electronic structure codes, methods that are critical to the study of nano- and bio-materials, and are therefore of great importance to our economic future and medical well being. The project will build expertise within Australia in the area of interval arithmetic, an area that is currently poorly represented.Read moreRead less
On effectively modelling and efficiently discovering communities from large networks. Finding and maintaining close communities from very large scale, dynamically changing networks is interesting and challenging. This project aims to develop new techniques to identify such communities as fast as possible through exploiting the rich semantics and individual relationships within the communities.
Pearl Oyster Aquaculture: Health Survey Of NT, WA And Qld Pearl Oyster Beds And Farms
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$266,135.00
Summary
Objectives: 1. Detect and document the serious diseases and significant pathogens of farmed pearl oysters in WA, NT and QLD 2. Develop a database of pearl disease, location and prevalence that can assist both government and farmers in making informed decisions about translocation of stock
Literacy and Numeracy, Schooling, Neighbourhoods and Labour Market Success. Our research will assess the role of literacy and numeracy in explaining the educational attainment and labour markets outcomes of young Australians, after accounting for background characteristics and school and neighbourhood effects. By exploiting differences in Australian jurisdictions? school structures, it will enable, for the first time, the direct estimation of the effect of schooling on literacy and numeracy. T ....Literacy and Numeracy, Schooling, Neighbourhoods and Labour Market Success. Our research will assess the role of literacy and numeracy in explaining the educational attainment and labour markets outcomes of young Australians, after accounting for background characteristics and school and neighbourhood effects. By exploiting differences in Australian jurisdictions? school structures, it will enable, for the first time, the direct estimation of the effect of schooling on literacy and numeracy. This will clarify the role of literacy and numeracy in subsequent decisions to acquire more human capital through education. This will enable more precise estimates of the contribution of literacy and numeracy to subsequent labour market outcomes achieved by young Australians.Read moreRead less
Aquatic Animal Health Subprogram: Development Of Molecular Diagnostic Expertise For The Mollusc Pathogen Bonamia Sp.
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$112,316.00
Summary
Australian edible mollusc production has increased by 22% in the last three years, reaching a total gross value of $70,000,000 in 2000/2001. The growing world-demand for aquaculture products opens export opportunities for Australia’s aquaculture sector (Australian Fisheries Statistics, 2001). However, translocation of live molluscs is often associated with pathogen spread with resulting disease outbreaks having detrimental effects on production, trade and the ability to open new overseas markets ....Australian edible mollusc production has increased by 22% in the last three years, reaching a total gross value of $70,000,000 in 2000/2001. The growing world-demand for aquaculture products opens export opportunities for Australia’s aquaculture sector (Australian Fisheries Statistics, 2001). However, translocation of live molluscs is often associated with pathogen spread with resulting disease outbreaks having detrimental effects on production, trade and the ability to open new overseas markets (Berthe and Boudry, 1999). A rapid and reliable diagnostic capability (expertise and molecular tools) for the detection and identification of important mollusc pathogens worldwide is not currently available in Australia. Such diagnostic capability is necessary to ascertain the presence or absence of Bonamia spp. a notifiable pathogen in domestically farmed oysters. It is essential to develop both expertise and modern molecular assays (e.g. PCR, gene sequencing (Berthe et al., 1999)) for identification and comparison of the Bonamia sp. present in Australia with overseas Bonamia spp. (Pichot et al., 1980; Campalas et al., 2000; Diggles et al., 2003). Without development of this expertise, including the required reagents and procedures, it will be difficult to establish a health certification and surveillance program for the mollusc aquaculture industry. Moreover, these resources are essential for development of strategies for disease management in Australia.
References -Australian Fisheries Statistics. 2001. Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics. 64 pages. -Berthe, F. and Boudry, P. 1999. Pister les huitres et leurs pathogens. Biofutur, 195: 38-42. -Berthe, F., Burreson, E. and Hine, M. 1999. Use of molecular tools for mollusc disease diagnosis. Bull. Eur. Ass. Fish Pathol. 19(6): 277-278. -Campalans, M., Rojas, P. and Gonzalez, M. 2000. Haemocytic parasitosis in farmed oyster Tiostrea chilensis. Bull. Eur. Ass. Fish Pathol. 20(1): 31-33. -Diggles, B. K., Cochennec-Laureau, N., Hine, M. 2003. Comparison of diagnostic techniques for Bonamia exitiosus from flat oysters Ostreae chilensis in New Zeland. Aquaculture, 220(1-4):145-156. -Pichot, Y., Comps, M., Tige, G., Grizel, H. and Rabouin, M. A. 1980. Recherche sur Bonamia ostreae gen. n., parasite nouveau de l’huitre plate Ostrea edulis L.. Rev. Trav. Inst. Scient. Tech. Pech. Marit. 43: 131-140.
Objectives: 1. To develop and validate real-time TaqMan PCR assay for the detection of Bonamia species in mollusc tissues. 2. To develop strategies and primers for conventional PCR amplification and sequencing of DNA products (amplicons), that will allow the differentiation of the Australian Bonamia from the exotic Bonamia spp. 3. To establish the detection limit of the TaqMan PCR assay. 4. To establish a reference collection of material (mollusc tissues) infected with exotic Bonamia species. Read moreRead less
The impact of crime on the mental wellbeing of communities. Considering not only the direct impact of crime on the victims but also the indirect consequences of living in a community with a higher crime rate may in fact lead to a more accurate analysis of the size of the consequences of criminal activities on the society. Further, it may also be the case that the negative externality of crime on non-victims is much larger for some crimes than for others. If this were the case, it could have impl ....The impact of crime on the mental wellbeing of communities. Considering not only the direct impact of crime on the victims but also the indirect consequences of living in a community with a higher crime rate may in fact lead to a more accurate analysis of the size of the consequences of criminal activities on the society. Further, it may also be the case that the negative externality of crime on non-victims is much larger for some crimes than for others. If this were the case, it could have implications for the way in which police resources are presently distributed across different crimes. Better understanding the total societal cost of crime - to both victims and non-victims - could therefore help improve public policy. Read moreRead less
The Dynamics of Low Income, Welfare reliance, and Changes in the Family Stucture of Parents with Dependent children. We build a new seven-year longitudinal database, from FaCS administrative records and supplementary surveys, for low income parents with dependent children to analyse the dynamics of, and interrationships among, changes in family structure, income and welfare reliance. We identify and analyse exit and entry routes from low income, short and long run welfare receipt and movement fr ....The Dynamics of Low Income, Welfare reliance, and Changes in the Family Stucture of Parents with Dependent children. We build a new seven-year longitudinal database, from FaCS administrative records and supplementary surveys, for low income parents with dependent children to analyse the dynamics of, and interrationships among, changes in family structure, income and welfare reliance. We identify and analyse exit and entry routes from low income, short and long run welfare receipt and movement from one program to another, and highlight locational/regional variations in these movements. The project will help policy makers evaluate the impacts of existing programs and will change the nature and significance of Australian research and policy development in welfare dependency and support.Read moreRead less
NCCP: Development Of Hydrological, Ecological And Epidemiological Modelling To Inform A CyHV3 Release Strategy For The Biocontrol Of Carp In The Murray Darling Basin
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$1,057,000.00
Summary
The complexity of developing an optimized "release strategy" requires a modelling approach, as undertaking field trials to develop this strategy is not an option - due to the impossibility of containing the virus to the trial site.
Whilst it might be possible to develop a theoretical model for release, it is much preferable that this be based on the available and relevant data that exists for each catchment.
To achieve this we will develop a series of inter-related hydrol .... The complexity of developing an optimized "release strategy" requires a modelling approach, as undertaking field trials to develop this strategy is not an option - due to the impossibility of containing the virus to the trial site.
Whilst it might be possible to develop a theoretical model for release, it is much preferable that this be based on the available and relevant data that exists for each catchment.
To achieve this we will develop a series of inter-related hydrological, ecological, demographic and epidemiological models, and integrate these using a Big Data approach, where the underlying data is stored in databases and accessed using work-flow tools such as CSIRO's Workspace (https://research.csiro.au/workspace/)
Objectives: 1. Develop a series of inter-related hydrological, ecological and epidemiological models that will enable the development of a strategy to inform the strategic staged release of CyHV-3 so as to deliver maximum impact whilst minimizing the major anticipated adverse ecological consequence, i.e. large scale anoxic river events. 2. Develop Big Data management and visualization systems for delivering the large amount of data that will arise from the modelling exercises in an interactive and informative manner. Read moreRead less