Research Projects
Understanding allergens in alternative food from urban aquaculture fish to underpin food safety
Ludwig Lopata
01 Jul 2022 - 31 Dec 2026
This project aims at evaluating the food safety risks associated with innovative solutions to meet and secure Singapore’s nutritional needs through domestic fish production from sustainable urban aquaculture. Introducing novel food sources into the mainstream diet has potential significant unintended health consequences, particularly that of severe allergic reactions. The production of fish in urban aquaculture systems using combinatorial supplementation of fish feed and selective breeding along with processing innovations has not been evaluated for enhanced allergenicity, which is determined by the presence and immunoreactivity of allergenic proteins (allergens). Consequently, current food safety regulations for allergens are not equipped to tackle upcoming food safety issues faced by the growing innovative production of urban foods and alternative proteins. Their potential allergenicity is the focus of this project.
Using Outcomes of Marine Protected Area Implementation to Infer Potential Socioeconomic Consequences of Offshore Energy Development to Commercial Fisheries
Reniel Cabral
04 Oct 2023 - 03 Oct 2025
The purpose of this study is to describe the detectable socioeconomic consequences experienced by the commercial fishing industry due to the implementation of formal de facto marine protected areas in California and elsewhere and to use this information to inform impact analyses of prospective offshore energy projects, including offshore wind and marine hydrokinetic projects.
ACE Aquatic Veterinary Consultancy
Susan Kueh
01 Mar 2022 - 28 Feb 2023
This consultancy will provide a holistic end-to-end Aquatic Veterinary Service to ACE to boost production and biosecurity, including aquatic pathogen diagnostics to support disease management, and people development to build skills in aquatic animal health at the farm level. Diagnostic tools such as histopathological and molecular diagnostic techniques will be included in service provided. The fee supports holistic on-farm outreach, biosecurity audits, veterinary consultations and disease diagnostic services linked to improving production, reducing mortalities and upskilling farm staff.
Seaweed National Hatchery Network - Tropical Research Hub for Asparagopsis taxiformis
Mark Cyrus
30 Sep 2023 - 30 Apr 2025
This project provides the resources for JCU to establish and operate the Tropical Research Hub for the National Hatchery Network in collaboration with ASSA researchers for 18 months (until 31 March 2025) which is the stipulated grant duration. This FRDC project will provide the funding for JCU to engage key technical capability needed to support the Hub and establish the facilities for exclusive and continuous use for the project over the grant period, as well as provide the facilities and services of the ASSA employees (~2) working at this Hub. The core objectives of the Research Hub will be to: 1. Establish facilities and equipment required for the development of the Tropical Seaweed Research Hub 2. Deliver a focused research program to close the life cycle, of Asparagopsis taxiformis, with the goal of being able to produce spores and seedlings. 3. Develop biological contamination management techniques for seed production. 4. Collect and maintain a clean broodstock culture collection. 5. Develop hatchery technology and equipment needs through experimentation. 6. Contribute to the development of a Hatchery Manual and knowledge sharing and dissemination.
Research Assistant salary while on maternity leave (Old ID 23547)
Megan Higgie
01 Jul 2017 - 30 Jun 2018
This grant is for a casual research assistant to continue my existing research experiments and assist with running my lab while I am on maternity leave. The projects the research assistant will be assisting on are: - Can species interactions drive rapid niche adaptation? This project examines how the temperature niche of a rainforest fly evolves when it has intense competition from a closely related species with a very similar temperature niche. - Species interactions and the evolution of mating displays and preferences. This project examines how male mating display and female preference are expressed when closely related species are present, with a view to examining whether they can rapidly change their signal and preference to minimise detrimental hybridisation.
Molecular signatures of historic glacial events in marine benthic taxa (Old ID 26383)
Sally Lau
01 Jun 2019 - 31 May 2021
Molecular signatures detected in Southern Ocean benthic fauna are often discussed in the context of external selection, particularly linking to species survival throughout glacial cycles. I aim to investigate how other factors such as geological setting, oceanography and environmental parameters in the Southern Ocean influence species genetic patterns. The outcome of this extended research will not only identify how the interplay between physical features of the water column may determine genetic variation, it will also demonstrate the evolutionary drivers at regional scale in the Southern Ocean.
Genomics of lung cancer in Indigenous people of North Queensland (Old ID 26764)
Alan Baxter
11 Feb 2020 - 11 Feb 2021
Cancer genomic profiling is a major determinant of chemotherapy selection for non-small cell lung cancer and is widely used internationally. Indigenous genomes carry ~10X more uncharacterised DNA sequence variation than people of European heritage. THHS is currently trialling the use of whole exome sequencing, instead of the existing 4 gene panel, to base choice of targeted therapies in lung cancer. This creates an opportunity to study whether the cancer-associated variation currently being used to select therapies is adequate, and if not, these data will form the foundation for an NHMRC funding application to identify improved markers.
The mineralization potential for nickel, scandium, chromium and cobalt of ultramafic complexes in NE Queensland (Old ID 26823)
Ioan Sanislav
10 Apr 2020 - 31 Mar 2024
NE Queensland has exploration potential for a wide range of critical metals. Nickel, cobalt and scandium mineralization in NE Queensland occurs at Greenvale Nickel, Lucknow, Brolga, Kokomo and Bell Creek deposits and is mostly associated with laterites developed on altered ultramafic complexes. Un-explored ultramafic complexes occur north of Greenvale, near the Valley of Lagoons, in the Hodkinson and Kangaroo Hill Formations, Barnard and Running River Metamorphics. This project seeks to provide more detailed characterization and an improved geological perspective, for ultramafic occurrences of northeast Queensland. It is intended to attract the attention of explores to their mineralization potential.
Verily Life Sciences LLC (Old ID 26880)
Tom Burkot
01 Jul 2020 - 28 Feb 2022
Design and validate traps and associated sensor packages (if available) that are low cost and sensitive enough to capture Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes that they can be deployed for both Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) release surveillance during suppression and elimination operations, and also for sentinel surveillance after elimination.
Improved education and training models to futureproof the aquaculture industry need for skilled staff to 2050 (Old ID 27215)
Leo Nankervis
01 May 2021 - 14 Jul 2022
By evaluating industry workforce needs currently and into the future and analysing the gaps between industry need and educational output, we aim to highlight gaps in careers pathways to meet future industry requirements. These careers pathways will form the basis of promotional tools created to highlight education and skills development options that lead secondary students into the aquaculture industry. Cost-effective delivery models for training will be key to the outcomes of the project and a pilot project to up-skill existing industry employees in biosecurity will be used to develop and de-bottleneck new training delivery models.