Managing uncertainty in RFID traceability networks. Australia suffers 5.4 million cases of food-borne illness every year, which leads to 2.1 million days of lost work, 1.2 million people visiting a doctor, and 120 deaths annually. This has revealed the urgent need for improved ways of locating and recalling problematic products that have been released into the community. The project will develop novel techniques driven by Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology for improving the effici ....Managing uncertainty in RFID traceability networks. Australia suffers 5.4 million cases of food-borne illness every year, which leads to 2.1 million days of lost work, 1.2 million people visiting a doctor, and 120 deaths annually. This has revealed the urgent need for improved ways of locating and recalling problematic products that have been released into the community. The project will develop novel techniques driven by Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology for improving the efficiency and accuracy of product tracking in distribution networks. This project will place Australia at the forefront of RFID research. It will also be an excellent vehicle for educating young researchers and engineers in Australia.Read moreRead less
Towards Scalable, Internet-Based RFID Traceability Networks. Food and drug safety is a major public health issue in Australia. Recent events involving poisoning of chocolate bars and paracetamol tablets in Australia have demonstrated the urgent need for improved ways of locating and recalling commercial products that have been released into the community. This project will develop novel techniques for locating items in large-scale distribution networks driven by RFID (Radio Frequency Identificat ....Towards Scalable, Internet-Based RFID Traceability Networks. Food and drug safety is a major public health issue in Australia. Recent events involving poisoning of chocolate bars and paracetamol tablets in Australia have demonstrated the urgent need for improved ways of locating and recalling commercial products that have been released into the community. This project will develop novel techniques for locating items in large-scale distribution networks driven by RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology. The outcomes of the project will make it easier to rapidly and accurately pinpoint product locations in the event of problems such as an illness outbreak due to contaminated food or counterfeited drugs. Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354739
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$20,000.00
Summary
Network on eRAM: Environmental Risk Assessment and Management. The proposed network seeks to provide an understanding of the relationship between environmental agents/factors and public health. It provides Australia's first, unified effort to undertand the processes involved at a whole-of-environment level. By virtue of its operation, the network will co-ordinate and expand upon the largely scattered and matrix-specific research in this field that currently takes place. It will permit evaluat ....Network on eRAM: Environmental Risk Assessment and Management. The proposed network seeks to provide an understanding of the relationship between environmental agents/factors and public health. It provides Australia's first, unified effort to undertand the processes involved at a whole-of-environment level. By virtue of its operation, the network will co-ordinate and expand upon the largely scattered and matrix-specific research in this field that currently takes place. It will permit evaluation of environmental agents/factors, as they relate to public health under prevailing environmental conditions. Thus, the major outcome of the network will be effective risk assessment of the expected real-time effects of environmental agents/factors on public health.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE170100093
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$510,000.00
Summary
High-throughput technology targeting antimicrobial resistance in animals. This project aims to establish reference laboratories as biobanks for resistant isolate collections from veterinary diagnostic laboratories / surveillance programmes and a national research network to mitigate antimicrobial resistance in animals. Antimicrobial resistance in zoonotic/foodborne pathogens and livestock commensals is a global issue. This project will use mass-spectroscopy biotypers, information management soft ....High-throughput technology targeting antimicrobial resistance in animals. This project aims to establish reference laboratories as biobanks for resistant isolate collections from veterinary diagnostic laboratories / surveillance programmes and a national research network to mitigate antimicrobial resistance in animals. Antimicrobial resistance in zoonotic/foodborne pathogens and livestock commensals is a global issue. This project will use mass-spectroscopy biotypers, information management software, robotic liquid handling and a research dairy to develop high-throughput screening technologies to rapidly determine major animal species’ resistance status, and research anti-infectives and vaccines for livestock diseases. This will improve the health and production of Australian livestock, leading to greater market access for high quality products.Read moreRead less
Globalization, WTO and sustainable development: new challenges, opportunities and implications for Australia. Australia is benefiting greatly from opening its economy and encouraging the same in its trading partners, particularly through the World Trade Organization (WTO). A major new challenge is to ensure that the WTO continues to enhance economic welfare by responding to recent criticisms levelled at it by anti-globalization groups. This project will analyse those groups' claims about the eff ....Globalization, WTO and sustainable development: new challenges, opportunities and implications for Australia. Australia is benefiting greatly from opening its economy and encouraging the same in its trading partners, particularly through the World Trade Organization (WTO). A major new challenge is to ensure that the WTO continues to enhance economic welfare by responding to recent criticisms levelled at it by anti-globalization groups. This project will analyse those groups' claims about the effects of trade and investment policy reforms, and of WTO rules and other contributors to globalization, by going beyond the traditional economic effects to examine effects on income distribution, poverty alleviation, the environment, labour, and food safety and security.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE120100390
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
Characterisation of collagenous lectins and their roles in ovine infectious diseases. Specific proteins involved in immunity against infections will be studied in sheep to enhance their immune response against specific infections, such as ovine Johne's disease and footrot. This may lead to selective breeding of sheep that are more resistant to disease, minimising production losses and use of medications.
Development and application of an index for substantiating health benefits of omega-3 enriched foods. A cost-effective means of substantiating health claims for omega-3 (w3) rich functional foods is needed to fully exploit growing consumer demand for these products. In a two-stage approach, cardiovascular and anti-inflammatory benefits of w3 will be assessed in human dietary trials; improvements of health status in response to graded doses of w3 supplements will be correlated with docosahexaenoi ....Development and application of an index for substantiating health benefits of omega-3 enriched foods. A cost-effective means of substantiating health claims for omega-3 (w3) rich functional foods is needed to fully exploit growing consumer demand for these products. In a two-stage approach, cardiovascular and anti-inflammatory benefits of w3 will be assessed in human dietary trials; improvements of health status in response to graded doses of w3 supplements will be correlated with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) levels in erythrocytes (DHA Index). Simple bioavailability trials can then be used to determine the intakes of foods required to attain the DHA Index, thus confirming their potential to deliver specified health benefits. Initial trials will support health claims for w3 rich fresh pork and processed pork products.Read moreRead less
Protecting Critical Transport Infrastructure using Hybrid Approaches for Interference and Spoofer Detection and Localisation. Modern infrastructure increasingly relies on the positioning and timing capabilities provided by the Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS). GNSS signals, however, are vulnerable to interference and spoofing attacks. This vulnerability is aggravated as satellite navigation becomes more central to the operation of airports, ports, railways, and communications systems. ....Protecting Critical Transport Infrastructure using Hybrid Approaches for Interference and Spoofer Detection and Localisation. Modern infrastructure increasingly relies on the positioning and timing capabilities provided by the Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS). GNSS signals, however, are vulnerable to interference and spoofing attacks. This vulnerability is aggravated as satellite navigation becomes more central to the operation of airports, ports, railways, and communications systems. Building on from earlier work by University of New South Wales, University of Adelaide and GPSat Systems, this project aims to create a system for locating interference and spoofers to GNSS of any power in real time, providing layered monitoring and reactive mitigation solutions against interference and spoofing attacks.Read moreRead less
Electrochemical sensors as early alert screening tools for water quality assessment. This project will impact on water safety assessment and provide better management tools for water pollutant control. It will address a real need to develop on-line detection technologies for application in the water industry and will demonstrate the potential broad applicability of this technology to a wide range of analytes of concern.
Protein biosensors for detecting smoke exposure of grapes. Bush fires and controlled burns that take place in the vicinity of vineyards can lead to grape contamination with tasteless phenolic glucosides. Their hydrolysis during wine making leads to “smoke taint” – an unpleasant medicinal taste that can render wine undrinkable. We will apply a combination of organic synthesis, protein engineering and directed evolution to develop protein-based biosensors of phenolic glucosides. These biosensors w ....Protein biosensors for detecting smoke exposure of grapes. Bush fires and controlled burns that take place in the vicinity of vineyards can lead to grape contamination with tasteless phenolic glucosides. Their hydrolysis during wine making leads to “smoke taint” – an unpleasant medicinal taste that can render wine undrinkable. We will apply a combination of organic synthesis, protein engineering and directed evolution to develop protein-based biosensors of phenolic glucosides. These biosensors will be used to devise a simple portable colorimetric test that can be performed in the vineyard or the winery. The ability to rapidly determine the level of grape contamination with phenolic glucosides would give Australian wine growers and wine makers a powerful tool to mitigate the effects of bushfires.Read moreRead less