Epigenetic and biomarker approaches to improving dairy cow fertility. The dairy industry will not deliver sustainable higher productivity unless the reproductive performance of dairy cows is significantly improved. This expected outcome will be achieved via the identification of epigenetic and protein biomarkers of improved fertility that will be used to develop superior breeding stock. Caruncular and intercaruncular tissues and blood have been obtained from both fertile (New Zealand Holstein-Fr ....Epigenetic and biomarker approaches to improving dairy cow fertility. The dairy industry will not deliver sustainable higher productivity unless the reproductive performance of dairy cows is significantly improved. This expected outcome will be achieved via the identification of epigenetic and protein biomarkers of improved fertility that will be used to develop superior breeding stock. Caruncular and intercaruncular tissues and blood have been obtained from both fertile (New Zealand Holstein-Friesian) and sub-fertile (North American Holstein-Friesian) cows within pasture-based dairying systems that include seasonal calving and subclinical uterine inflammation (associated with poor reproductive performance). Determinations will be conducted using deep parallel (next generation) sequencing and mass spectrometry.Read moreRead less
Identification of at-risk transition cows: Use of exosomal biomarkers. This project aims to improve the early diagnosis of cows at risk of infectious disease and debilitating metabolic syndromes. Animal health and longevity are pillars of the dairy industry. The risk of death is up to 6 times greater during the transition from pregnancy to lactation, making this ‘transition period’ the time for detection and intervention. If successful, this project will permit the focus of resources on high ris ....Identification of at-risk transition cows: Use of exosomal biomarkers. This project aims to improve the early diagnosis of cows at risk of infectious disease and debilitating metabolic syndromes. Animal health and longevity are pillars of the dairy industry. The risk of death is up to 6 times greater during the transition from pregnancy to lactation, making this ‘transition period’ the time for detection and intervention. If successful, this project will permit the focus of resources on high risk cows and reduce poor outcomes: lower milk production, involuntary culling and increased cow maintenance costs. Within this overall objective, a cost-effective project design will leverage partner facilities and existing networks to translate findings to farm use, thereby clearly delivering economic value.Read moreRead less
An Integrated Biotechnological Process for Production of Lactic Acid from Carbohydrate-Waste Streams by Rhizopus sp. Lactic acid is the most widely occurring multifunctional organic acid. It has enormous applications in food and food-related industries, and great potential use for production of biodegradable and biocompatible polylactate polymers. The aim of this research is to develop an innovative biotechnological process, incorporating simultaneous saccharification and fermentation, which int ....An Integrated Biotechnological Process for Production of Lactic Acid from Carbohydrate-Waste Streams by Rhizopus sp. Lactic acid is the most widely occurring multifunctional organic acid. It has enormous applications in food and food-related industries, and great potential use for production of biodegradable and biocompatible polylactate polymers. The aim of this research is to develop an innovative biotechnological process, incorporating simultaneous saccharification and fermentation, which integrates the production of lactic acid with the treatment of high strength food industry ?effluent? streams - carbohydrate waste streams. The proposed SSF process will cultivate an identified fungal Rhizopus sp strain on the waste streams, as production substrates, leading to an environmentally friendly and economically sustainable new technology for the food industry.Read moreRead less
Enhancing biopharmaceuticals: A disruptive bioseparation resin technology. This project aims to develop an innovative and disruptive platform technology for designing and manufacturing tailor-made high-performance bioseparation resins to enhance biopharmaceuticals manufacturing. Bacterial cell factories will be developed to enable biotechnological production of innovative polyester bead-based bioseparation resins, which will revolutionise manufacturing of biopharmaceuticals. Expected outcomes o ....Enhancing biopharmaceuticals: A disruptive bioseparation resin technology. This project aims to develop an innovative and disruptive platform technology for designing and manufacturing tailor-made high-performance bioseparation resins to enhance biopharmaceuticals manufacturing. Bacterial cell factories will be developed to enable biotechnological production of innovative polyester bead-based bioseparation resins, which will revolutionise manufacturing of biopharmaceuticals. Expected outcomes of this project are cost-effective and strongly enhanced approaches for biopharmaceuticals recovery, thereby providing significant benefits to accelerate research and development in early stage discovery and manufacture of biologics, therapeutic proteins and vaccines.Read moreRead less
Non-invasive diagnosis using micropatches that sample biomarkers from skin. We are developing a technology called the micropatch that is laid onto the surface of the skin. When the patch is pulled away, it retains proteins found in the subsurface skin layers. We believe that by analysing these proteins we will be able to diagnose diseases like cancer earlier and therefore have a better chance of treating them successfully. The process is painless, and doctors already use it to give drugs and vac ....Non-invasive diagnosis using micropatches that sample biomarkers from skin. We are developing a technology called the micropatch that is laid onto the surface of the skin. When the patch is pulled away, it retains proteins found in the subsurface skin layers. We believe that by analysing these proteins we will be able to diagnose diseases like cancer earlier and therefore have a better chance of treating them successfully. The process is painless, and doctors already use it to give drugs and vaccines. In the future we hope that our technology will be simple enough for routine diagnosis, even in the Outback where doctors are hundreds of kilometres awayRead moreRead less
Kernel methods for the analysis of whole bacterial genomes. This project addresses the fundamental scientific problem of the identification of regulatory regions and specific promoters within bacterial genomes, with a focus upon two organisms of great social, economic and bioterrism significance. From the machine learning perspective, the project will be the first to produce a kernel-based approach directly tailored to the problem of the detection of regulatory regions. The methods developed wil ....Kernel methods for the analysis of whole bacterial genomes. This project addresses the fundamental scientific problem of the identification of regulatory regions and specific promoters within bacterial genomes, with a focus upon two organisms of great social, economic and bioterrism significance. From the machine learning perspective, the project will be the first to produce a kernel-based approach directly tailored to the problem of the detection of regulatory regions. The methods developed will be made available through a straightforward web-based interface, allowing biologists throughout the world to utilize the approach as a tool to be applied to a progressively widening class of bacterial genomes, and even to eukaryotes. Read moreRead less
Development of a biosensor/bioassay for measuring nutrient pollution. Input of nutrients to water bodies is associated with a deterioration of ecological health. Uncertainty remains about the effect of nutrients on the Great Barrier Reef as monitoring in remote locations remains difficult, expensive and rather sporadic. Here we aim to develop a sensitive and continuous monitoring technique. The availability of such a technique will allow more appropriate monitoring of nutrient inputs. This wi ....Development of a biosensor/bioassay for measuring nutrient pollution. Input of nutrients to water bodies is associated with a deterioration of ecological health. Uncertainty remains about the effect of nutrients on the Great Barrier Reef as monitoring in remote locations remains difficult, expensive and rather sporadic. Here we aim to develop a sensitive and continuous monitoring technique. The availability of such a technique will allow more appropriate monitoring of nutrient inputs. This will facilitate appropriate application of nutrients, in the form of agricultural fertilizer and sustainable land management practices in order to minimize the risk of nutrients to the environment and humans.Read moreRead less
Metagenomics and the genetic basis of ecology and evolution of communities - complex microbial communities in industrial processes as excellent paradigms. Benefits accrue on two fronts: the international reputation of Australian science in contributing significantly to two new, challenging and highly topical questions in ecology and evolution, and in pioneering a route to better efficiency and control of an important industrial process. Wastewater is rich in organic phosphorus that is damaging t ....Metagenomics and the genetic basis of ecology and evolution of communities - complex microbial communities in industrial processes as excellent paradigms. Benefits accrue on two fronts: the international reputation of Australian science in contributing significantly to two new, challenging and highly topical questions in ecology and evolution, and in pioneering a route to better efficiency and control of an important industrial process. Wastewater is rich in organic phosphorus that is damaging to the environment if untreated, but current understanding enables only rudimentary control of the microbial communities that are the basis of the treatment process. The work will provide unprecedented insight into the mechanisms underpinning the dynamics of phosphorus absorbing microbes in industrial facilities by integrating from gene-to-ecosystem.Read moreRead less
Toxic metal removal from wastewater sludge. This project aims to efficiently remove toxic metals from wastewater sludge. Sludge management is a problem for water utilities, incurring substantial costs. Land application of wastewater sludge is a sustainable way of sludge management, but toxic metals hinder its long-term repeated application. The project’s chemical-free and energy-positive technology is based on the treatment of wastewater sludge using acidified nitrite. The outcomes will help wat ....Toxic metal removal from wastewater sludge. This project aims to efficiently remove toxic metals from wastewater sludge. Sludge management is a problem for water utilities, incurring substantial costs. Land application of wastewater sludge is a sustainable way of sludge management, but toxic metals hinder its long-term repeated application. The project’s chemical-free and energy-positive technology is based on the treatment of wastewater sludge using acidified nitrite. The outcomes will help water utilities to sustainably manage sludge and could bring large economic, environmental and social benefits to the water utilities.Read moreRead less
Sequencing the mammalian transcriptome in toto. The mammalian genome projects have provided a huge leap forward for biological research by giving the framework to study genes on a global scale. This project will provide human genome project scale information for every major tissue in mammals and will provide the research community with a world class resource to further genomic research. It will also investigate parts of gene regulation which have been invisible to researchers in the past. Discov ....Sequencing the mammalian transcriptome in toto. The mammalian genome projects have provided a huge leap forward for biological research by giving the framework to study genes on a global scale. This project will provide human genome project scale information for every major tissue in mammals and will provide the research community with a world class resource to further genomic research. It will also investigate parts of gene regulation which have been invisible to researchers in the past. Discovering these rules will provide novel insights in pathology with a genetic component and provide a further boost to biotechnological approaches to obtain expression of specific sets of genes in model systems. Read moreRead less