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Australian National Botanic Gardens plant Collecting. (Old ID 27684)
Recently, the Australian National Botanic Gardens (ANBG) suffered significant losses of propagated materials when environmental controllers in their propagation houses failed. The ANBG wishes to replace the lost materials with horticulturally and scientifically attractive plants collected from the rainforests of Queensland’s Wet Tropics bioregion.
Modelling unseen flow pathways of water and contaminants in the Wet Tropics: the role of alluvial palaeochannels (Old ID 27748)
Approximately 50% of nitrogen loss from agricultural landscapes in the Wet Tropics occurs via subsurface flow pathways. We know little about the partitioning of subsurface flows, especially through palaeochannels where field evidence shows them to be zones of preferential pathways of water movement and likely nutrients. This project, led by JCU, seeks to develop an adequate understanding of the role palaeochannels play in subsurface flow movement. We then make recommendations to the modelling community on how to model these landscapes better in order to guide intervention measures (e.g. bioreactors, constructed wetlands) to reduce nutrient release into environmentally sensitive coastal areas (GBR).
Capacity Building in French Polynesia: Research Capacity, Regional Integration and Economic Development (Old ID 22646)
The project aims at establishing research capacity in the field of Employment Relations and Economic Development in Polynesia in liaison with the Tahiti Business School (TBS). The development of research capacity will also provide TBS staff and students with bridging opportunities and a regional/international network that will enable them to invest in scientific activities, higher education and career development. The project includes three streams: (1) Organisational Development; (2) Research Development; (3) Regional Integration and Institutional Partnership. The project is developed in line with JCU’s strategic intent and commitment to capacity development in Tropical societies.
PNG National Malaria Control Program Long-lasting Insecticidal Net Quality Assurance Support (Old ID 28980)
The project will provide long-lasting insecticidal net (LLIN) quality assurance (QA) support to the PNG National Malaria Control Program.
Resource Technology and Critical Minerals Trailblazer (Old ID 29000)
The Resource Technology and Critical Minerals Trailblazer is a partnership with Curtin University (Lead), University of Queensland and JCU along with over 25 industry partners. This program has been successful and funded under the Department of Education, Skills and Employment Trailblazer Universities Program. The Trailblazer aims to more effectively commercialise university innovations, accelerate industry technology readiness and open up access to university infrastructure and human resources to support growth of Australian businesses in the field of Resource Technology and Critical Minerals processing.
Assessing the impacts of myrtle rust on forest dynamics and function (Old ID 31154)
This project investigates the consequences for environmental health of myrtle rust – an exotic fungal pathogen - infection on kanuka box (Tristaniopsis exiliflora). Kanuka box is a tree that grows along fast-flowing, rocky watercourses of northeast Queensland and is important for stabilising banks and preventing erosion within catchments of the Great Barrier Reef. Myrtle rust can kill kanuka box and is therefore a serious ecosystem-level threat that urgently needs to be better understood to assist in conservation management.
Adverse reactions to seafood: Molecular and immunological approaches in managing an Australasian epidemic (Old ID 19354)
Over 4 million Australians suffer from allergies with a financial burden in excess of $7 billion. Seafood is an increasingly important food allergy worldwide and is typically life-long, affecting about 5% of children and 2% of adults in Australia. This research will characterise allergenic proteins from crustacean and molluscs, leading to the design of recombinant proteins. Allergenicity of modified food allergens through heating will be studied using state-of-the-art in-vivo and in-vitro systems. This fellowship will considerably advance our knowledge on the influence of structure and chemical modifications on the immunoreactivity of seafood allergen, thus providing platform knowledge for better diagnostics and future therapeutics.
Discovery of novel biomarkers for Epstein Barr Virus (EBV) infection related cancers - HL and NK/T lymphomas (Old ID 26515)
There is a large body of evidence indicating that Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) actively contributes to the pathogenesis of multiple tumours. We hypothesize that the antibody response to EBV is altered in infection-related cancers. We are comprehensively assessing the antibody response to EBV in individuals with and without cancer (cases and controls) using our proprietary EBV proteome array, to identify an antibody signature which predicts cancer risk. The ultimate goal is an immunodiagnostic test to identify individuals in the general population who are at high risk of developing infection-related cancers. Extending previous studies, we will probe defined samples from Hodgkin Lymphoma and NK/T cell study provided by colleageus at NIH/NCI to define IgA and IgG antibody repertoires.
Seagrass monitoring for Inshore Marine South Zone for the Mackay-Whitsunday-Isaac Healthy Rivers to Reef Partnership (Old ID 26977)
Continuation of annual seagrass monitoring program and development and implementation of seagrass condition report card in the south zone of the Mackay-Whitsunday-Isaac region.
Conservation genetics and population trends in the endangered Mahogany Glider (Petaurus gracilis) (Old ID 27035)
Forest clearances has resulted in severe habitat fragmentation that threats population connectivity and genetic diversity of Mahogany Gliders, an endangered gliding possum endemic to Australian Wet Tropics. Using species distribution modelling, we aim to map the glider’s current theoretical distribution, and based on that, conducting fieldworks to collect DNA samples from different populations. These DNA samples enable us to do fine-scaled genomic analyses to estimate the population size and structures of the Mahogany Gliders, and to know whether the population suffers from inbreeding. Knowing these information helps to identify important corridors to connect populations and guide future conservation plans.