Physiology of oxygen transport in the mammalian kidney. This project aims to improve understanding of oxygen regulation in renal tissue and knowledge of the physiology of the kidney. The mammalian kidney receives more oxygen than it uses or needs, and yet renal tissue is commonly found to be hypoxic. This project proposes that oxygen transport to the renal tissue is limited by blood vessel surface area. The project expects to generate anatomical data currently missing from the renal physiology c ....Physiology of oxygen transport in the mammalian kidney. This project aims to improve understanding of oxygen regulation in renal tissue and knowledge of the physiology of the kidney. The mammalian kidney receives more oxygen than it uses or needs, and yet renal tissue is commonly found to be hypoxic. This project proposes that oxygen transport to the renal tissue is limited by blood vessel surface area. The project expects to generate anatomical data currently missing from the renal physiology community, and potentially change the accepted story of oxygen homeostasis in the kidney. This will provide significant benefits, such as the provision of the foundational physiological science behind a determinant of kidney health and its flow-on impact to quality of life.Read moreRead less
How are visual gene pathways lost and restored during reptile evolution? This project aims to investigate how complex traits are lost during evolution, and once lost if they can be regained. The project will use the diverse visual systems of snakes and lizards to shed light on the process of gene loss in degenerative lineages, and discover the mechanisms that compensate for gene losses in taxa with secondarily evolved visual capabilities- providing a case of evolutionary re-innovation in complex ....How are visual gene pathways lost and restored during reptile evolution? This project aims to investigate how complex traits are lost during evolution, and once lost if they can be regained. The project will use the diverse visual systems of snakes and lizards to shed light on the process of gene loss in degenerative lineages, and discover the mechanisms that compensate for gene losses in taxa with secondarily evolved visual capabilities- providing a case of evolutionary re-innovation in complex traits.Read moreRead less
The evolution of specialised orchid pollination and its reversibility. This project aims to determine the changes in key floral volatile compounds underpinning pollination transitions, identify their molecular basis, and understand the ecological processes favouring reversals away from extreme specialisation. By focusing on pollination of sexually deceptive Australian orchids, this project would be the first to determine the molecular, chemical and behavioural basis of evolutionary reversals to ....The evolution of specialised orchid pollination and its reversibility. This project aims to determine the changes in key floral volatile compounds underpinning pollination transitions, identify their molecular basis, and understand the ecological processes favouring reversals away from extreme specialisation. By focusing on pollination of sexually deceptive Australian orchids, this project would be the first to determine the molecular, chemical and behavioural basis of evolutionary reversals to more generalised strategies in a group of plants facing high risk of pollinator extinction. The expected outcome, a mechanistic understanding of how pollination transitions occur, would be internationally ground-breaking, and provide crucial insights to protect this diverse but highly threatened group of plants.Read moreRead less
Meta-microscopy of insect tissue: How nature grows bicontinuous nanosolids. Several butterfly species grow a complex nano-sculptured matrix whose chiral network structure confers remarkable optical properties, including jewel-like reflections. The formation process remains mysterious and a spectacular case of bottom-up self-assembly at far larger scales than accessible in the lab. The project aims to decipher this process, by (a) tomography of a species where arrested growth sites represent time ....Meta-microscopy of insect tissue: How nature grows bicontinuous nanosolids. Several butterfly species grow a complex nano-sculptured matrix whose chiral network structure confers remarkable optical properties, including jewel-like reflections. The formation process remains mysterious and a spectacular case of bottom-up self-assembly at far larger scales than accessible in the lab. The project aims to decipher this process, by (a) tomography of a species where arrested growth sites represent time-frozen snapshots of the development, and (b) by a combination of micron-resolved in-vivo microscopy of a developing butterfly wing with a growth model to infer nanometer-scale information. This insight will lead to blueprints for self-assembly strategies and shed light on function and form of inner-cellular membranes. Read moreRead less
Industrial Transformation Training Centres - Grant ID: IC170100016
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$3,123,492.00
Summary
ARC Training Centre for Personalised Therapeutics Technologies. The ARC Training Centre for Personalised Therapeutics Technologies aims to create and develop the skills and technology to benefit from the transformative impacts that cell/organ-on-a-chip technology will have on the medtech/pharma industries. By combining microfluidics-based/real-time technologies with personalised medicine the Training Centre will provide industry growth opportunities through improved screening of potential therap ....ARC Training Centre for Personalised Therapeutics Technologies. The ARC Training Centre for Personalised Therapeutics Technologies aims to create and develop the skills and technology to benefit from the transformative impacts that cell/organ-on-a-chip technology will have on the medtech/pharma industries. By combining microfluidics-based/real-time technologies with personalised medicine the Training Centre will provide industry growth opportunities through improved screening of potential therapeutics. The use of an individual patient’s cellular and molecular research findings will ultimately enable personalised diagnostic and therapeutic decisions.Read moreRead less
Unlocking secrets of fertility restoration for hybrid breeding in crops. Hybrid varieties give higher and more stable yields than conventional lines, but a cost-effective system to make hybrid seed on a commercial scale is still missing for economically important crops like wheat or barley. By elucidating the mode of action of a new type of restorer gene plus exploiting ancient or exotic wheat and barley collections this project will reveal aspects of largely understudied mechanisms underlying f ....Unlocking secrets of fertility restoration for hybrid breeding in crops. Hybrid varieties give higher and more stable yields than conventional lines, but a cost-effective system to make hybrid seed on a commercial scale is still missing for economically important crops like wheat or barley. By elucidating the mode of action of a new type of restorer gene plus exploiting ancient or exotic wheat and barley collections this project will reveal aspects of largely understudied mechanisms underlying fertility restoration in wheat and barley. The expected outcomes of the proposed research have the potential to deliver new tools for hybrid seed production programs in wheat and barley. Higher and more stable yields from hybrids will ensure food security in the face of an uncertain climate and growing human population.Read moreRead less
Industrial Transformation Training Centres - Grant ID: IC210100056
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$3,975,864.00
Summary
ARC Training Centre for Next-Gen Technologies in Biomedical Analysis . The Centre for Next-Gen Technologies in Biomedical Analysis will deliver workforce trained in the development of transformative technologies that will rapidly expand the Australian pharmaceutical, diagnostic and defence sector. The university-industry partnership will increase Australia’s manufacturing capability by fast tracking screening, by integrating 3D printing, advanced sensing, big data analytics, machine learning an ....ARC Training Centre for Next-Gen Technologies in Biomedical Analysis . The Centre for Next-Gen Technologies in Biomedical Analysis will deliver workforce trained in the development of transformative technologies that will rapidly expand the Australian pharmaceutical, diagnostic and defence sector. The university-industry partnership will increase Australia’s manufacturing capability by fast tracking screening, by integrating 3D printing, advanced sensing, big data analytics, machine learning and artificial intelligence for the delivery of optimal solutions in diagnosis, treatment and wellbeing. The centre will deliver training in Industry 4.0 skills which will boost early-stage scale-up and accelerate the sector’s supply chain, which is pivotal for the Australian industries to maintain a competitive edge. Read moreRead less
Dynamic assessment of threats to marine megafauna in face of global change. This project aims to develop a global approach to synthesise global tracking datasets and deliver near real-time diagnostics on risks for marine megafauna at a global scale pushing forward a new frontier in dynamic marine spatial management to improve conservation. This project expects to increase our understanding of how marine megafauna movements vary with environmental changes and how much they overlap with threatenin ....Dynamic assessment of threats to marine megafauna in face of global change. This project aims to develop a global approach to synthesise global tracking datasets and deliver near real-time diagnostics on risks for marine megafauna at a global scale pushing forward a new frontier in dynamic marine spatial management to improve conservation. This project expects to increase our understanding of how marine megafauna movements vary with environmental changes and how much they overlap with threatening global human activities. Expected outcomes will demonstrate how big data in marine telemetry can be synthesised and translated into ecologically significant behaviours. This should provide significant benefits to address global scientific and societal problems highlighted in the Australian science and research priorities.Read moreRead less
Does coevolution drive speciation? This project aims to connect micro-evolutionary processes with macro-evolutionary patterns to test the extent to which tightly coupled co-evolutionary interactions between species drive evolutionary diversification. The project will use techniques including the most recent phylogenetic modelling methods, field experiments and molecular genetics. Expected outcomes include advancing understanding of the mechanisms that generate biodiversity and developing new tec ....Does coevolution drive speciation? This project aims to connect micro-evolutionary processes with macro-evolutionary patterns to test the extent to which tightly coupled co-evolutionary interactions between species drive evolutionary diversification. The project will use techniques including the most recent phylogenetic modelling methods, field experiments and molecular genetics. Expected outcomes include advancing understanding of the mechanisms that generate biodiversity and developing new techniques for acquisition of DNA from museum specimens. The project is expected to provide significant benefits, such as insights into the processes that promote new species in nature.Read moreRead less
Fungal Ribosomally Synthesised and Post-translationally Modified Peptides. Fungi produce an array of molecules called secondary metabolites (SMs) that impact on everyday life (e.g. penicillin). This project aims to investigate a new class of fungal peptide SMs called RiPPs which are structurally unique from existing molecules and offer the exciting prospect of harbouring new and novel biological activities. This project expects to discover the mechanisms of RiPP synthesis and their biological ro ....Fungal Ribosomally Synthesised and Post-translationally Modified Peptides. Fungi produce an array of molecules called secondary metabolites (SMs) that impact on everyday life (e.g. penicillin). This project aims to investigate a new class of fungal peptide SMs called RiPPs which are structurally unique from existing molecules and offer the exciting prospect of harbouring new and novel biological activities. This project expects to discover the mechanisms of RiPP synthesis and their biological roles in plant pathogenic fungi, and uncover and engineer novel RiPPs with desired bioactivities. The expected outcome from this project will be a seminal advance in fungal SM biology which should provide significant benefits through the generation of exciting new lead molecules for the agricultural and medical industries.Read moreRead less