Embryo genomics for engineering change. The proposed research program will contribute to areas that are critically important for Australia, such as agriculture, animal biodiversity, biomedicine, human health and biosafety. By addressing the high economic losses due to early embryonic mortality in farm animals, results from this research will enhance the competitiveness of Australian agriculture and biomedical research. The establishment of a world class research Centre for Animal Biotechnology a ....Embryo genomics for engineering change. The proposed research program will contribute to areas that are critically important for Australia, such as agriculture, animal biodiversity, biomedicine, human health and biosafety. By addressing the high economic losses due to early embryonic mortality in farm animals, results from this research will enhance the competitiveness of Australian agriculture and biomedical research. The establishment of a world class research Centre for Animal Biotechnology at the University of Adelaide will create a major addition to the national research base. The Centre will develop technology platforms to support various groups across the entire Australian scientific community.Read moreRead less
Improving the efficiency of bovine oocyte maturation in vitro. For the dairy and beef industries, the hundreds of eggs (oocytes) in a high value cow's ovary that fail to produce a pregnancy are a wasted genetic resource. A key technology to unlocking this resource is in vitro maturation of oocytes, but the process is inefficient. One possible cause is that the current approaches to maturing oocytes in vitro do not adequately mimic the natural process in vivo. We will design new systems to matu ....Improving the efficiency of bovine oocyte maturation in vitro. For the dairy and beef industries, the hundreds of eggs (oocytes) in a high value cow's ovary that fail to produce a pregnancy are a wasted genetic resource. A key technology to unlocking this resource is in vitro maturation of oocytes, but the process is inefficient. One possible cause is that the current approaches to maturing oocytes in vitro do not adequately mimic the natural process in vivo. We will design new systems to mature cow oocytes in vitro by altering the chemical composition of maturation medium, thus improving the efficiency of laboratory embryo production and related technologies.Read moreRead less
Early Nutrition and the Programming of Body Composition in Cattle. Australia is the worlds largest beef exporter with the net value of beef export valued at $4.6 billion. The economy of rural and regional Australia relies upon cattle production with the industry bringing a total value to these communities of $7.4 billion. Cattle production in remote Australia is becoming less viable as input costs of production increase relative to income earned and the beef industry is keen to transform produc ....Early Nutrition and the Programming of Body Composition in Cattle. Australia is the worlds largest beef exporter with the net value of beef export valued at $4.6 billion. The economy of rural and regional Australia relies upon cattle production with the industry bringing a total value to these communities of $7.4 billion. Cattle production in remote Australia is becoming less viable as input costs of production increase relative to income earned and the beef industry is keen to transform production methods. Protein is the major limiting nutrient in the Australian rangelands and this proposal will provide new information on how providing protein to cattle during critical periods in their pregnancy can 'program' the body composition of the growing calf to be optimal for the market.Read moreRead less