Creating subject-specific mathematical models to understand the brain. This project aims to develop a mathematical framework that bridges the different scales of brain activities to provide a new tool for understanding the brain. Methods will be developed that unify individual neural activity with large scale brain activity. The approach will be validated by comparing predictions of interconnected models of neural populations (called mean-field models) to experimental data. The creation of subje ....Creating subject-specific mathematical models to understand the brain. This project aims to develop a mathematical framework that bridges the different scales of brain activities to provide a new tool for understanding the brain. Methods will be developed that unify individual neural activity with large scale brain activity. The approach will be validated by comparing predictions of interconnected models of neural populations (called mean-field models) to experimental data. The creation of subject-specific models from data is important, as there is large variability in neural circuits between individuals despite seemingly similar network activity. The intended outcome is new insights into the processes that govern brain function and methods for improving functional imaging of, and interfacing to, the brain.Read moreRead less
Mathematical models of 4D multicellular spheroids. Mathematical models have a long, successful history of providing biological insight, and new mathematical models must be developed to keep pace with emerging technologies. Modern experimental procedures involve studying 3D multicellular spheroids with fluorescent labels to show both the location of cells and the cell cycle progression. This 4D data (3D spatial information + cell cycle time) provides vast information. No mathematical models ha ....Mathematical models of 4D multicellular spheroids. Mathematical models have a long, successful history of providing biological insight, and new mathematical models must be developed to keep pace with emerging technologies. Modern experimental procedures involve studying 3D multicellular spheroids with fluorescent labels to show both the location of cells and the cell cycle progression. This 4D data (3D spatial information + cell cycle time) provides vast information. No mathematical models have been specifically developed to interpret/predict 4D spheroids. This project will deliver the first high-fidelity mathematical models to interpret/predict 4D spheroid experiments in real time, providing quantitative insight into innate mechanisms and responses to various intervention treatments. Read moreRead less
New mathematical approaches to learn the equations of life from noisy data. New mathematical models and mathematical modelling methods must be continually developed to interpret emerging biotechnology experiments. Contemporary research in tissue engineering involves growing tissues on 3d-printed scaffolds to mimic constrained in vivo geometries. Previous mathematical models of tissue growth focus on computationally expensive discrete mathematical models that are poorly suited for parameter infe ....New mathematical approaches to learn the equations of life from noisy data. New mathematical models and mathematical modelling methods must be continually developed to interpret emerging biotechnology experiments. Contemporary research in tissue engineering involves growing tissues on 3d-printed scaffolds to mimic constrained in vivo geometries. Previous mathematical models of tissue growth focus on computationally expensive discrete mathematical models that are poorly suited for parameter inference and experimental design. This project will deliver and deploy high-fidelity, computationally efficient moving boundary continuum mathematical models that will: (i) predict/interpret new experiments, (ii) provide quantitative insight into biological mechanisms, and (iii) enable reproducible experimental design.Read moreRead less
Mathematical models to connect experiments across biological scales. Understanding the function and development of organs is crucial to our understanding of fundamental biology. This project aims to address our inability to connect and understand behaviour between simple and complex biological experiments. This project expects to develop new mathematical theory and models to connect experiments across scales and complexity. Expected outcomes of this project include a new mathematical modelling f ....Mathematical models to connect experiments across biological scales. Understanding the function and development of organs is crucial to our understanding of fundamental biology. This project aims to address our inability to connect and understand behaviour between simple and complex biological experiments. This project expects to develop new mathematical theory and models to connect experiments across scales and complexity. Expected outcomes of this project include a new mathematical modelling framework, and advances in understanding in both biology and mathematics. This should provide significant benefits as using mathematical modelling to understand experimental connections will decrease the time- and financial- costs of performing experiments, while increasing efficiency and insight.Read moreRead less
Guiding principles and guardrails for genetic association studies. This project aims to investigate deep connections between genetic structure (population genetic processes, linkage disequilibrium and population structure) and the ability to statistically detect genetic variants responsible for variation in traits. The project expects to generate new knowledge in the areas of statistics, mathematics and biology through an innovative, multidisciplinary approach that synthesises and extends founda ....Guiding principles and guardrails for genetic association studies. This project aims to investigate deep connections between genetic structure (population genetic processes, linkage disequilibrium and population structure) and the ability to statistically detect genetic variants responsible for variation in traits. The project expects to generate new knowledge in the areas of statistics, mathematics and biology through an innovative, multidisciplinary approach that synthesises and extends foundational disciplinary results. Expected outcomes of this project include principles and methodology that underpin future genetic association studies by supplying a framework for interpreting results. This should provide significant benefits by reducing false conclusions and their associated costs.Read moreRead less
The mathematics of stochastic transport and signalling in cells. The project aims to develop new stochastic mathematical models of the dynamics of protein transport and cell signalling. The mathematics will link macro scale biological observations to micro scale molecular movements to characterise the relative role that different components and processes play. Expected outcomes are robust mathematical analyses of the transient dynamics of closed, finite capacity queueing networks and biological ....The mathematics of stochastic transport and signalling in cells. The project aims to develop new stochastic mathematical models of the dynamics of protein transport and cell signalling. The mathematics will link macro scale biological observations to micro scale molecular movements to characterise the relative role that different components and processes play. Expected outcomes are robust mathematical analyses of the transient dynamics of closed, finite capacity queueing networks and biological insight into the major control mechanisms in cellular insulin signalling. The project should provide significant benefits via the delivery of new mathematical tools and analysis for stochastic networks, impacting our understanding of metabolic transport, and providing interdisciplinary research training.Read moreRead less
Understanding animals through their movement. This project aims to develop a suite of analytical methods to understand animals' behaviour through their movement patterns. Animal movement patterns encode detailed information about their behavioural state. Collecting and analysing animal movement trajectories can provide us with completely new insights to behaviour. Recent developments in bio-logging technologies have provided an incredible amount of rich data on free-ranging animals. This project ....Understanding animals through their movement. This project aims to develop a suite of analytical methods to understand animals' behaviour through their movement patterns. Animal movement patterns encode detailed information about their behavioural state. Collecting and analysing animal movement trajectories can provide us with completely new insights to behaviour. Recent developments in bio-logging technologies have provided an incredible amount of rich data on free-ranging animals. This project will develop a suite of analytical techniques to interrogate this data through a combination of approaches, from fine scale experiments in the laboratory to tracking animal trajectories from the International Space Station. The findings will deliver major benefits to the broader community by transforming our ability to manage and conserve animal stocks.Read moreRead less
Sinusoidal voltage protocols for characterisation of ion channel kinetics. This project aims to implement an innovative approach to modelling ion channel behaviour that employs short, information-rich datasets and parameter inference. Using the hERG potassium channel as a test case, the project will show that this approach is more efficient than current methods and outperforms all published models in independent validations. The project aims to extend on initial implementation to probe the therm ....Sinusoidal voltage protocols for characterisation of ion channel kinetics. This project aims to implement an innovative approach to modelling ion channel behaviour that employs short, information-rich datasets and parameter inference. Using the hERG potassium channel as a test case, the project will show that this approach is more efficient than current methods and outperforms all published models in independent validations. The project aims to extend on initial implementation to probe the thermodynamics and pharmacology of ion channel gating. The anticipated outcomes are to grow fundamental knowledge of ion channel biophysics and ability to probe ion channel function in silico. The project will build on an emerging collaboration between international leaders in physiology, pharmacology, mathematics and computer modelling. The methodology and fundamental knowledge generated will significantly advance our understanding of the physiology and biophysics of ion channels, while the application of the method will have direct impact in the pharmaceutical industry and regulatory science.Read moreRead less
Unpacking the immune system with applied mathematics. This project aims to model immune interactions across cells and structures spanning scales of nanometres to millimetres. It expects to develop innovative mathematical insights, improve our understanding of immunology, and consolidate collaborations with top American and European laboratories and groups. Expected outcomes include cutting-edge techniques for multiscale biological modelling and improved prediction and analysis of immune dynami ....Unpacking the immune system with applied mathematics. This project aims to model immune interactions across cells and structures spanning scales of nanometres to millimetres. It expects to develop innovative mathematical insights, improve our understanding of immunology, and consolidate collaborations with top American and European laboratories and groups. Expected outcomes include cutting-edge techniques for multiscale biological modelling and improved prediction and analysis of immune dynamics. The project should provide benefits to industries where highly organised behaviours are important, for example those interested in robot swarming, optimal transportation, and epidemic management. It should also benefit Australian students and researchers with novel overseas training opportunities.Read moreRead less
Root-to-shoot: modeling the salt stress response of a plant vascular system. Salt and drought are the two major abiotic stresses affecting crop plant health, growth and development. We aim to understand salt and water transport in plants and the physiological effects of soil salinity. Using biophysical models, we will quantify the movement of salt through plant organs, tissues and cells, from root to leaf. We aim to answer the question of how salt moves across the different tissues and major org ....Root-to-shoot: modeling the salt stress response of a plant vascular system. Salt and drought are the two major abiotic stresses affecting crop plant health, growth and development. We aim to understand salt and water transport in plants and the physiological effects of soil salinity. Using biophysical models, we will quantify the movement of salt through plant organs, tissues and cells, from root to leaf. We aim to answer the question of how salt moves across the different tissues and major organs, how salt accumulates in root, leaf and shoot cells, and how movement and accumulation is controlled by the diversity of transport mechanisms operating in plants. We aim to quantify tissue tolerance, osmotic tolerance and ionic tolerance and discover new mechanisms by which plants can stave off the effect of salt stress.Read moreRead less