Understanding mycorrhizal phenotypes using functional traits. This project aims to develop a new framework linked to tangible, measurable traits of beneficial plant-fungal partnerships that lead to empirical predictions. The project expects to deliver an understanding of how ecological strategies of plant-fungal partnerships control plant productivity and soil nutrient cycling. Expected outcomes include new methods for predicting whether beneficial partnerships can be realised and knowledge that ....Understanding mycorrhizal phenotypes using functional traits. This project aims to develop a new framework linked to tangible, measurable traits of beneficial plant-fungal partnerships that lead to empirical predictions. The project expects to deliver an understanding of how ecological strategies of plant-fungal partnerships control plant productivity and soil nutrient cycling. Expected outcomes include new methods for predicting whether beneficial partnerships can be realised and knowledge that can be transformed into recommendations for practitioners. This should lead to significant impact associated with trustworthy assessments of commercial products and of management recommendations, supporting economic and environmental benefits linked with more productive soils and improved ecosystem health.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE150100408
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$393,416.00
Summary
Understanding plant:fungal communication to increase plant productivity. Relationships between mutualistic fungi and plants are exploited as they foster plant productivity and vigour. One significant problem facing the agro-forestry and agricultural industries is that the ability of beneficial fungi to colonise plant hosts is highly dependent on the genetic background of the host. Ultimately, this means that if fungal inoculants are not matched with the appropriate plant host, maximal benefits f ....Understanding plant:fungal communication to increase plant productivity. Relationships between mutualistic fungi and plants are exploited as they foster plant productivity and vigour. One significant problem facing the agro-forestry and agricultural industries is that the ability of beneficial fungi to colonise plant hosts is highly dependent on the genetic background of the host. Ultimately, this means that if fungal inoculants are not matched with the appropriate plant host, maximal benefits from these relationships are not achieved. This project aims to identify the first genetic markers to be used for matching plants with appropriate fungal isolates, thereby guaranteeing optimal plant performance. This will add a critical component to the global effort of increasing the productivity of our natural resources.Read moreRead less
Factors controlling ectomycorrhizal contributions to plant N nutrition. This project aims to define the mechanistic link between nitrogen metabolism in symbiotic ectomycorrhizal fungi and its effect on the quantity of nitrogen shared with a plant host. Using a genetically diverse population of a key Australian fungal species, the project expects to uncover genetic features related to nitrogen metabolism that correlate to improved support of plant nutrition. Expected outcomes include better under ....Factors controlling ectomycorrhizal contributions to plant N nutrition. This project aims to define the mechanistic link between nitrogen metabolism in symbiotic ectomycorrhizal fungi and its effect on the quantity of nitrogen shared with a plant host. Using a genetically diverse population of a key Australian fungal species, the project expects to uncover genetic features related to nitrogen metabolism that correlate to improved support of plant nutrition. Expected outcomes include better understanding of plant-microbe interactions, groundwork for tools to better model the role of fungi in soil nutrient cycling and guidelines for plant:fungal pairings in reforestation practices. Overall, these should provide significant benefit to the global effort in understanding the role of soil microbes in plant nutrition.Read moreRead less
Characterising controls of carbon flow from trees into mycorrhizal fungi. This project aims to improve our understanding of below-ground carbon sequestration. A significant portion of plant photosynthate is shuttled to root-associated mutualistic ectomycorrhizal fungi in forest ecosystems. Therefore, fungal partners of forest trees are valuable carbon sinks. One problem impeding below-ground carbon accounting in forest soils is a lack of understanding concerning the genetic control of how photos ....Characterising controls of carbon flow from trees into mycorrhizal fungi. This project aims to improve our understanding of below-ground carbon sequestration. A significant portion of plant photosynthate is shuttled to root-associated mutualistic ectomycorrhizal fungi in forest ecosystems. Therefore, fungal partners of forest trees are valuable carbon sinks. One problem impeding below-ground carbon accounting in forest soils is a lack of understanding concerning the genetic control of how photosynthetically fixed sugars are passed to root-associated microbes. This project aims to identify and characterise the sugar transporters that shuttle carbon in ectomycorrhizal plant–fungal interactions and investigate how these are affected by elevated carbon dioxide. It may also identify isolates of mutualistic fungi that could be paired with eucalypt hosts to maximise carbon sequestration and forest productivity.Read moreRead less
Closing the carbon cycle: an ecological understanding of wood decay. The project aims to understand the controls on the return of carbon to the atmosphere within forests, especially focusing on this problem from a microbial perspective. Microbial dynamics and wood decay are crucially important for the global carbon cycle. What the field is lacking is a trait-based ecology of wood decomposers. The project plans to examine the interactions among fungal and oomycete endophytes and decomposers throu ....Closing the carbon cycle: an ecological understanding of wood decay. The project aims to understand the controls on the return of carbon to the atmosphere within forests, especially focusing on this problem from a microbial perspective. Microbial dynamics and wood decay are crucially important for the global carbon cycle. What the field is lacking is a trait-based ecology of wood decomposers. The project plans to examine the interactions among fungal and oomycete endophytes and decomposers through a series of experiments. The expected outcome of this project is a clear understanding of the role of traits in wood decomposer communities, especially their influence on priority effects, competitive hierarchies, and the resultant wood decay rate.Read moreRead less
Can ecological theory help to unravel microbial regulation of soil functions? Much attention has been paid to relationships between ecosystem health and biodiversity in above-ground communities, yet little notice is taken of the vast below-ground soil microbial communities. This project will reveal if soil microbial diversity is similarly important for ecosystem function in the face of future environmental challenges.
Understanding the role of a newly recognised retrovirus in the induction of cancer and immunosuppressive disease in koalas. Leukaemia, lymphoma and opportunistic infections are major causes of mortality in both captive and wild koala populations. It is our hypothesis that a recently discovered retrovirus is responsible for these disease syndromes. Using a multidisciplinary approach, this project will determine viral parameters that correlate with the disease status of koalas and lead to improvem ....Understanding the role of a newly recognised retrovirus in the induction of cancer and immunosuppressive disease in koalas. Leukaemia, lymphoma and opportunistic infections are major causes of mortality in both captive and wild koala populations. It is our hypothesis that a recently discovered retrovirus is responsible for these disease syndromes. Using a multidisciplinary approach, this project will determine viral parameters that correlate with the disease status of koalas and lead to improvements in diagnosis and management of disease in koala populations. The planned research will also provide some insight into cross-species transmission of retroviruses.Read moreRead less
Plant : fungal symbioses in Australian forests - new perspectives using laser microdissection. Ericaceae are important components of the Australian flora in many habitats, including forests and fragile alpine regions that are significant to Australia's cultural and natural heritage, and several species are considered threatened. This project addresses the fundamental question of whether networks of symbiotic fungal mycelia act as below-ground bridges between Ericaceae plants and tree roots. If d ....Plant : fungal symbioses in Australian forests - new perspectives using laser microdissection. Ericaceae are important components of the Australian flora in many habitats, including forests and fragile alpine regions that are significant to Australia's cultural and natural heritage, and several species are considered threatened. This project addresses the fundamental question of whether networks of symbiotic fungal mycelia act as below-ground bridges between Ericaceae plants and tree roots. If demonstrated, this would alter current views of carbon and nutrient cycling in Australian forests and provide the basis for better informed decisions for the sustainable management of Australian forest resources. This is particularly important in the context of carbon sequestration and future climate change.Read moreRead less
Genome-level insight into the dynamics of a model coral microbiome. The aim of the project is to examine structural and functional microbiome dynamics in an ecologically important coral on the Great Barrier Reef along a natural temperature gradient. Microorganisms form an intimate symbiotic relationship with corals and are critical to their health. However, the microbiome can be disrupted by environmental perturbations, including higher-than-normal ocean temperatures, leaving the coral susceptib ....Genome-level insight into the dynamics of a model coral microbiome. The aim of the project is to examine structural and functional microbiome dynamics in an ecologically important coral on the Great Barrier Reef along a natural temperature gradient. Microorganisms form an intimate symbiotic relationship with corals and are critical to their health. However, the microbiome can be disrupted by environmental perturbations, including higher-than-normal ocean temperatures, leaving the coral susceptible to disease and bleaching. Currently, our understanding of how the microbiome composition and metabolic function change in response to seasonal temperature variation and disease is limited. This project is designed to provide insight into the role the microbiome plays in maintaining coral health and may aid in the long-term preservation of the reefs.Read moreRead less
Switching partners: a driving force for tree productivity in a changing environment? Eucalypts take part in a mutually beneficial association with diverse communities of mycorrhizal fungi to satisfy nutrient demands. The fungi that eucalypts interact with change as they grow but the reasons for this shift are not known. To improve forestry management strategies, the project will determine why and how this shift occurs.