Commensal benefits: genomic basis for suppressing plant pathogens with Pseudomonas biocontrol species. Food security is an issue of mounting significance due to unpredictable climate trends and increasing global population growth. A feature of paramount importance to reliable crop production is the capacity to control plant diseases. This project investigates natural plant colonising bacteria as a tool for protecting plants from disease.
To eat or not to eat? How symbiotic bacteria manipulate the phagocytic behaviour of their eukaryotic host. Bacteria often live in close association with eukaryotic cells, ranging from simple amoeba to humans. This project will identify key factors that control their interactions and will yield important information on the evolution of beneficial or harmful relationships.
The dynamics of evolution: How horizontal gene transfer drives the diversification and adaptation of complex, bacterial communities. The genetic exchange between populations is a prerequisite for the long-term evolution of bacteria, however its short-term dynamics are largely unexplored. This project aims to define the temporal dynamics of gene transfer and how it shapes the genetic composition of entire bacterial communities. Using innovative DNA sequencing technologies and bioinformatics, This ....The dynamics of evolution: How horizontal gene transfer drives the diversification and adaptation of complex, bacterial communities. The genetic exchange between populations is a prerequisite for the long-term evolution of bacteria, however its short-term dynamics are largely unexplored. This project aims to define the temporal dynamics of gene transfer and how it shapes the genetic composition of entire bacterial communities. Using innovative DNA sequencing technologies and bioinformatics, This project aims to offer a significant new understanding of the short-term diversification of communities and how different evolutionary forces shape bacterial function. It will show how bacterial systems can adapt to new environmental conditions and the effect on essential ecosystem functions.Read moreRead less
Lifestyle choices: genomic analysis of niche adaptations in marine Synechococcus. Photosynthetic marine bacteria are very important in the global carbon cycle. This project aims to discover how these bacteria adapt to survive in different marine environments. This is important for understanding how they will be affected by climate change and other environmental alterations.
Mitigating the risk of cyanobacterial blooms in wastewater ponds. Cyanobacterial blooms in wastewater treatment plants impact on effluent quality and the utility of recycled water, posing a significant risk to the economy, the environment and public health. To understand the causes of cyanobacterial blooms in pond-based wastewater treatment plants and the risk they pose, this project will use the latest molecular techniques to examine how the microbial communities within these systems interact w ....Mitigating the risk of cyanobacterial blooms in wastewater ponds. Cyanobacterial blooms in wastewater treatment plants impact on effluent quality and the utility of recycled water, posing a significant risk to the economy, the environment and public health. To understand the causes of cyanobacterial blooms in pond-based wastewater treatment plants and the risk they pose, this project will use the latest molecular techniques to examine how the microbial communities within these systems interact with each other and their surrounding environment to form blooms and produce toxins and other harmful metabolites. Such knowledge will inform risk assessment and provide strategies for the mitigation of future bloom events, improving the security of our increasingly valuable recycled water resources.Read moreRead less
What do Microorganisms do Season by Season, Year after Year in the Frigid Antarctic Wilderness? Antarctica is arguably the world’s most important continent for influencing the Earth’s climate and global ocean ecosystem. Like most natural aquatic environments on Earth, in Antarctica microorganisms dominate the genetic pool and biomass and play the key roles in maintaining proper ecosystem function. The project aims to determine how microbial communities change throughout a complete annual cycle i ....What do Microorganisms do Season by Season, Year after Year in the Frigid Antarctic Wilderness? Antarctica is arguably the world’s most important continent for influencing the Earth’s climate and global ocean ecosystem. Like most natural aquatic environments on Earth, in Antarctica microorganisms dominate the genetic pool and biomass and play the key roles in maintaining proper ecosystem function. The project aims to determine how microbial communities change throughout a complete annual cycle in three climate sensitive, Antarctic lakes. By establishing what the microorganisms do in different seasons the study will learn which microbial processes change and how environmental perturbation will impact on normal ecological cycles. This will form the basis for evaluating the effects of climate change on sensitive ecosystems in the Antarctic.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE100100130
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$850,000.00
Summary
Systems biology: New generation DNA sequencing to functional analysis. The technique of DNA sequencing (or 'reading' the lines of the four repeating letters that make up the genetic code) illustrates how technological developments have become the main drivers in exploring the roles of genetic factors across a spectrum of research activities. Funding provided through this ARC grant will allow the purchase of the latest DNA sequencing platform, the Illumina Solexa, as well as equipment that will b ....Systems biology: New generation DNA sequencing to functional analysis. The technique of DNA sequencing (or 'reading' the lines of the four repeating letters that make up the genetic code) illustrates how technological developments have become the main drivers in exploring the roles of genetic factors across a spectrum of research activities. Funding provided through this ARC grant will allow the purchase of the latest DNA sequencing platform, the Illumina Solexa, as well as equipment that will be used to understand the biological function of the DNA sequencing results that are obtained. The equipment will allow Australian researchers to compete on an equal footing with the international leaders in understanding the roles played by genes in plants, microorganisms, animals and humans.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE120100038
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$654,000.00
Summary
Single cell genomics. This facility will allow us to discover the complete DNA sequence of an organism from as little material as a single cell. This equipment will allow Australian researchers to compete on an equal footing with international leaders in understanding the roles of genes in plants, bacteria, animals and humans.