The Darwin Prospective Melioidosis Study: Years 27-31
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,281,718.00
Summary
The Darwin Prospective Melioidosis Study has documented 914 cases since 1989, with 115 fatalities. A surge in Darwin melioidosis cases over the past 5 years has been linked to urban development and the discovery of a new bacterial strain. Whole genome sequencing of our unique 25+ year set of bacteria and their linked patient data will unravel the changing epidemiology and identify important virulence factors, forming a foundation for future diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines.
Linking Genomics Of Burkholderia Pseudomallei To Melioidosis: Diversity Of Clinical Manifestations, Changing Epidemiology And Microevolution In Chronic Carriage.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$602,769.00
Summary
The Darwin Prospective Melioidosis Study has documented 761 cases since 1989, with 102 fatalities. This study has led to improved therapy and public health initiatives. New technology to sequence whole bacterial genomes provides an opportunity to determine why urban melioidosis is increasing and to analyse this unique 22+ year set of bacteria and their linked patient data to find the important bacterial virulence factors, forming a foundation for future diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines.
Vulnerability of Australian savannas to climate change and variability. Australian savannas are productive and are culturally and biologically significant landscapes, but they are vulnerable to climate change. This project will determine savanna function (carbon and water balance) for the present and assess how sensitive they have been to past climate variability. The project will then address how they may respond to future climate change.
Investigating movement, distribution, abundance and diet to support management objectives for threatened riverine predators in Northern Australia. The rivers and estuaries of northern Australia are highly productive environments, containing an exceptional diversity and abundance of large predatory aquatic species. This project aims to monitor the movements, habitat preferences and diet in eight large predatory species in a northern Queensland river over the next three years. Movement data will b ....Investigating movement, distribution, abundance and diet to support management objectives for threatened riverine predators in Northern Australia. The rivers and estuaries of northern Australia are highly productive environments, containing an exceptional diversity and abundance of large predatory aquatic species. This project aims to monitor the movements, habitat preferences and diet in eight large predatory species in a northern Queensland river over the next three years. Movement data will be combined with isotopic analysis to reveal how environmental and biological factors drive animal movements and impact habitat connectivity. In a world of vanishing top predators, it is imperative to understand system dynamics before we can evaluate the impact of species removal on ecosystem function.Read moreRead less
The melioidosis agent Burkholderia pseudomallei in the anthropogenic environment of northern Australia. This project will analyse environmental factors contributing to the persistence of the soil bacterium and melioidosis agent, Burkholderia pseudomallei in the anthropogenic environment. This will increase understanding of the consequences of land use manipulations upon these bacteria and will suggest remediation measures to reduce the risk of exposure.
Stable lead isotopes, trace metals and radionuclides in sediments of the Alligator Rivers Region to assess impacts of uranium mining. A PhD student under the supervision of a multidisciplinary team of environmental analytical chemists, geochemists and environmental physicists will develop a new sensitive methodology to monitor impacts of past, present and future uranium mining activities in and near Kakadu National Park, although it may be applied to other mining activities as well. The method w ....Stable lead isotopes, trace metals and radionuclides in sediments of the Alligator Rivers Region to assess impacts of uranium mining. A PhD student under the supervision of a multidisciplinary team of environmental analytical chemists, geochemists and environmental physicists will develop a new sensitive methodology to monitor impacts of past, present and future uranium mining activities in and near Kakadu National Park, although it may be applied to other mining activities as well. The method will use a combination of stable lead isotopes, trace metals and radionuclide techniques. The outcomes of the research will increase the capacity of the Office of the Supervising Scientist to carry out its core function of assessing and supervising mines in the Alligator Rivers Region.Read moreRead less
Diagnosing river health using invertebrate traits and DNA barcodes. Diagnosing river health using invertebrate traits and DNA barcodes. This project aims to develop indices that link change in invertebrate communities to specific environmental stressors, and combine these indices with innovative, low cost molecular approaches to species identification to rapidly identify the causes of decline. River health assessment methods, usually based on aquatic invertebrates, identify if rivers are impaire ....Diagnosing river health using invertebrate traits and DNA barcodes. Diagnosing river health using invertebrate traits and DNA barcodes. This project aims to develop indices that link change in invertebrate communities to specific environmental stressors, and combine these indices with innovative, low cost molecular approaches to species identification to rapidly identify the causes of decline. River health assessment methods, usually based on aquatic invertebrates, identify if rivers are impaired but must be developed to identify the causes of decline. The intended outcomes are improved sustainable water resource management within and among states, and improved natural resource policy development.Read moreRead less
Bushfire smoke and the relationship between human and landscape health. A team of landscape ecologists, environmental chemists and public health specialists will determine the ecological causes and adverse health effects of different levels of bushfire smoke in Darwin. Darwin is an ideal setting for this research because the only source of air pollution is the high incidence of controlled and uncontrolled bushfires during the dry season causing variable air quality: a preliminary study found a ....Bushfire smoke and the relationship between human and landscape health. A team of landscape ecologists, environmental chemists and public health specialists will determine the ecological causes and adverse health effects of different levels of bushfire smoke in Darwin. Darwin is an ideal setting for this research because the only source of air pollution is the high incidence of controlled and uncontrolled bushfires during the dry season causing variable air quality: a preliminary study found a link between smoke pollution levels and asthma. The findings of the proposed research will contribute to improved fire management practices to reduce injurious smoke pollution events and contribute to setting appropriate national air quality standards.Read moreRead less
Forecasting fish resilience to environmental change in northern Australia. This project aims to use a traits-based modelling framework, incorporating variability both within and between species, to forecast the resilience of freshwater fishes in northern Australia to impending environmental change. While northern Australian rivers are among the most pristine and productive on earth, they face profound change due to human activity. Emerging evidence suggests that flexibility in functional traits ....Forecasting fish resilience to environmental change in northern Australia. This project aims to use a traits-based modelling framework, incorporating variability both within and between species, to forecast the resilience of freshwater fishes in northern Australia to impending environmental change. While northern Australian rivers are among the most pristine and productive on earth, they face profound change due to human activity. Emerging evidence suggests that flexibility in functional traits (e.g. life history, physiology, behaviour, diet) may result in resilience to environmental change. This project aims to provide decision-makers with essential information and new tools to underpin future planning and resource management.Read moreRead less
Darwin Harbour corals as environmental data archives and bio-monitors. The forecast rapid population growth and industrial development of the Darwin Harbour catchment necessitates research into novel environmental monitoring techniques to aid the sustainable management of the Harbours resources. This project will develop a powerful and cost-effective bio-monitoring system by using chemical data stored in yearly growth bands of coral skeletons stretching back at least two centuries. Such data wil ....Darwin Harbour corals as environmental data archives and bio-monitors. The forecast rapid population growth and industrial development of the Darwin Harbour catchment necessitates research into novel environmental monitoring techniques to aid the sustainable management of the Harbours resources. This project will develop a powerful and cost-effective bio-monitoring system by using chemical data stored in yearly growth bands of coral skeletons stretching back at least two centuries. Such data will form a comparative baseline against which present and future coral data on pollutants released by urban, industrial and other developments can be assessed.Read moreRead less