Be(e) friendly venomous spiders! Novel biopesticides from arachnid venoms. The overall aim of this project is to improve global honeybee health by developing novel bee-friendly bioinsecticides as well as treatments against honeybee parasites such as varroa mites and small hive beetles. This project seeks to significantly improve existing insecticidal lead peptides from spider venoms to increase their oral toxicity and make them more pest-specific. Expected outcomes of this project include a pane ....Be(e) friendly venomous spiders! Novel biopesticides from arachnid venoms. The overall aim of this project is to improve global honeybee health by developing novel bee-friendly bioinsecticides as well as treatments against honeybee parasites such as varroa mites and small hive beetles. This project seeks to significantly improve existing insecticidal lead peptides from spider venoms to increase their oral toxicity and make them more pest-specific. Expected outcomes of this project include a panel of biologically degradable venom peptides that are active against selected pest and parasite species and that can be economically produced in large scale. This would not only provide significant environmental, social and economical benefits on a global scale, but also boost the Australian agrochemical research sector.Read moreRead less
Psyllids as biosecurity threats to plantation and native eucalypts in Australia and internationally. Psyllids are tiny cicada-like insects that are economic pests of forestry and horticulture because the saliva injected when feeding causes leaf death and some vector plant diseases. Advanced technologies and procedures will be used to determine what makes plants susceptible to psyllids and to improve Australian preparedness ahead of an incursion.
The effects of damage and repair of fungal DNA on animal and plant diseases. DNA damage and its repair are implicated in enhancing the ability of fungi to cause disease. These processes enable genomic changes that generate fungal strains better adapted to host colonisation. This project will identify factors that influence mutation, virulence and host adaptation in two model fungi that cause devastating diseases - a human pathogen, Cryptococcus neoformans, and a plant pathogen, Leptosphaeria mac ....The effects of damage and repair of fungal DNA on animal and plant diseases. DNA damage and its repair are implicated in enhancing the ability of fungi to cause disease. These processes enable genomic changes that generate fungal strains better adapted to host colonisation. This project will identify factors that influence mutation, virulence and host adaptation in two model fungi that cause devastating diseases - a human pathogen, Cryptococcus neoformans, and a plant pathogen, Leptosphaeria maculans. Since increases in global temperatures are expected to lead to emerging fungal diseases, understanding effects of damage and repair of fungal DNA on animal and plant diseases is key to designing disease control approaches.Read moreRead less
Understanding the enigma of the most energetic particles in the Universe. By combining an innovative Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)-based calibration technique with the unparalleled sensitivity of future gamma-ray and radio telescope arrays, this project will study astronomical particle accelerators and Dark Matter with unprecedented accuracy. This will afford us a unique view of the Universe' most energetic processes and allow us to study the laws of physics inaccessible to us in the lab. In the ....Understanding the enigma of the most energetic particles in the Universe. By combining an innovative Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)-based calibration technique with the unparalleled sensitivity of future gamma-ray and radio telescope arrays, this project will study astronomical particle accelerators and Dark Matter with unprecedented accuracy. This will afford us a unique view of the Universe' most energetic processes and allow us to study the laws of physics inaccessible to us in the lab. In the context of interdisciplinary research, the UAV innovation created will also be leveraged against key applications of remote sensing. With these two goals, this project will demonstrate the capabilities of novel Australian technology whilst providing Australia with a unique science use-case in high-energy astrophysics.Read moreRead less
Factors causing wheat stripe rust epidemics. This project aims to tackle wheat stripe rust, one of the most important fungal diseases of wheat in Australia, causing losses of up to $125 million a year. This project expects to gain insights into the fungal evolution and the molecular mechanism that causes hyper-virulent pathogen isolates. The expected outcome is to identify and characterise multiple genetic factors in the pathogen that contribute to wheat stripe rust epidemics in Australia. This ....Factors causing wheat stripe rust epidemics. This project aims to tackle wheat stripe rust, one of the most important fungal diseases of wheat in Australia, causing losses of up to $125 million a year. This project expects to gain insights into the fungal evolution and the molecular mechanism that causes hyper-virulent pathogen isolates. The expected outcome is to identify and characterise multiple genetic factors in the pathogen that contribute to wheat stripe rust epidemics in Australia. This project will contribute to improved disease management strategies to contain wheat stripe rust, resulting in higher wheat yields, reduced application of fungicides and increased revenue for Australian wheat farmers.Read moreRead less
Building better Brassicas: Understanding disease resistance mechanisms across the Brassicaceae. Brassica species are important crops producing cooking oil, vegetables and biofuel, grown in diverse environments with a high economic and export value. Blackleg disease, caused by the fungus Leptospheria maculans, is the most important disease of brassica crops world-wide. The newly available brassica genome sequence provides the resources to study the co-evolution of this plant and pathogen. This pr ....Building better Brassicas: Understanding disease resistance mechanisms across the Brassicaceae. Brassica species are important crops producing cooking oil, vegetables and biofuel, grown in diverse environments with a high economic and export value. Blackleg disease, caused by the fungus Leptospheria maculans, is the most important disease of brassica crops world-wide. The newly available brassica genome sequence provides the resources to study the co-evolution of this plant and pathogen. This project will characterise the evolution and conservation of resistance genes in wild and cultivated brassicas, using next-generation sequencing technology, to assess their potential for crop improvement. An understanding of the evolution of genes responsible for resistance will lead to improved plant protection strategies for brassica crops.Read moreRead less
The role of auxin in root organ specification - from symbiont to parasite. Sustainable agriculture in a changing climate depends on strategies to maximise crop performance and to minimise crop losses due to parasites. This project aims to identify genes and molecular mechanisms that symbiotic and parasitic microbes, which affect major crop plants, use to alter plant growth in a beneficial or detrimental way.
Understanding the molecular basis of fungal rust diseases in plants. This project aims to utilise structural biology, biochemistry and molecular biology approaches to substantially deepen our understanding of rust fungi-plant interactions. Fungal rust pathogens cause disease and significant yield losses in our most important food crops. During colonisation, rust fungi utilise secreted effector proteins to cause plant disease. Effectors can also be recognised by plant immunity receptors, leading ....Understanding the molecular basis of fungal rust diseases in plants. This project aims to utilise structural biology, biochemistry and molecular biology approaches to substantially deepen our understanding of rust fungi-plant interactions. Fungal rust pathogens cause disease and significant yield losses in our most important food crops. During colonisation, rust fungi utilise secreted effector proteins to cause plant disease. Effectors can also be recognised by plant immunity receptors, leading to resistance. The intended outcome of this work is to generate knowledge that can be used for the development of disease management and engineering strategies to protect plants from rust fungi. This should provide significant benefits to agricultural productivity and global food security.Read moreRead less
Striving for the path of least herbicide resistance. This project aims to investigate novel strategies to mitigate the rise in herbicide resistance threatening Australian agricultural production and exports. The project expects to pioneer long-term strategies for the development of herbicides that “resist” resistance generation in weeds to prolong their effectiveness. Expected outcomes include advances in the development of single- and multi-target herbicidal compounds with new modes of action, ....Striving for the path of least herbicide resistance. This project aims to investigate novel strategies to mitigate the rise in herbicide resistance threatening Australian agricultural production and exports. The project expects to pioneer long-term strategies for the development of herbicides that “resist” resistance generation in weeds to prolong their effectiveness. Expected outcomes include advances in the development of single- and multi-target herbicidal compounds with new modes of action, and validation of their potential to yield synergistic combinations and delay the evolution of resistance. This should lay the foundations for significant long-term benefits to farmers and consumers, both in Australia and globally, including increased crop yields and improved food security.Read moreRead less
The role of toxin biosynthesis for marine dinoflagellates - an evolutionary ecological approach. Dinoflagellates are a group of microalgae that include coral symbionts and phytoplankton. Many species produce potent toxins that can be a problem in the aquaculture industry. This project will use novel genetic methods to investigate the evolution and ecology of toxin production in a variety of marine dinoflagellates.