Host-microbe biology

Several groups in RSB, spanning all three Divisions, work on topics at the interface between microbes and their host. The School has expertise in both plant and animal hosts, pathogenic, parasitic and symbiotic microbes and projects investigating host-microbe interactions at the genomic, cellular, organismal and ecological level. Fundamental knowledge about the interactions between microbes and their hosts is critical for understanding natural ecosystems and their evolution, improving plant biomass for food production and development of vaccines and drugs for the treatment of infectious diseases.

 

Project Groups
ANU team for Australasian Synthetic Biology Challenge 2021
  • Brock Group - Membrane Structural & Synthetic Biology
  • Rathjen Group - Plant immunity
  • Pogson Group - Chloroplast to nuclear signalling: light, drought and carotenoids
  • ANU International applicants for PhDs in Biomedical Science and Biochemistry
  • Adamska Group - Genomic and evolutionary basis of animal development
  • Altin Group - Tumour immunology and liposome targeting group
  • Behm Group - Nematode molecular biology
  • Brock Group - Membrane Structural & Synthetic Biology
  • Broer Group - Membrane transport and nutrition
  • Callaghan Group - Human disease and membrane transport
  • Chung Group - Biophysics of ion channels
  • Corry Group - Transport proteins and computational biophysics
  • Fahrer Group - Immunology
  • Howitt Group - Transporter structure and function
  • Kirk Group - Membrane transport in parasites
  • Lehane Group - Antimalarial drug action and resistance
  • Leyton Group - Assembly, function, and applications of nanoscale bacterial surface structures
  • Maier Group - Molecular mechanisms of malaria pathogenesis
  • Maleszka Group - From molecules to behaviour
  • Saliba Group - Physiology and biochemistry of the malaria parasite
  • van Dooren Group - Cell biology and metabolism of apicomplexan parasites
  • Verma Group - Bacterial and bacteriophage genetics, and vaccine development
  • Ascochyta blight of chickpea Linde Group - Population genetics, evolution, phylogeography and molecular phylogenetics of fungi
    Australian native truffle diversity Linde Group - Population genetics, evolution, phylogeography and molecular phylogenetics of fungi
    BeePocalypse Now: How the arrival of parasitic bee mites will change Australia's ecosystems and agriculture Mikheyev Group - Evolutionary genomics
    Bioinformatics and gene discovery in wheat rust pathogens Rathjen Group - Plant immunity
    Caenorhabditis elegans as a potential animal model to study host-pathogen interactions Verma Group - Bacterial and bacteriophage genetics, and vaccine development
    Cell specific activation of plant hormones Mathesius Group - Root microbe interactions - symbionts to parasites
    Cellular adaptations that allow the transmission and survival of Plasmodium falciparum when taken up by the mosquito Maier Group - Molecular mechanisms of malaria pathogenesis
    Delivery of virulence proteins by fungal rust pathogens Rathjen Group - Plant immunity
    Dissecting the defence responses activated by tomato receptors able to detect Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici infection Jones Group - Disease resistance
    Effector delivery by fungal rust pathogens Rathjen Group - Plant immunity
    Engineering microRNA pathways for broad-spectrum plant disease resistance. Millar Group - Plant microRNA biology and disease resistance
    Environmental risk assessment of genetically modified Alfalfa mosaic virus resistant white clover (Trifolium repens L.) Linde Group - Population genetics, evolution, phylogeography and molecular phylogenetics of fungi
    Erythrocyte membrane modifications during malaria infection Maier Group - Molecular mechanisms of malaria pathogenesis
    Evolution of scald and net form of net blotch Linde Group - Population genetics, evolution, phylogeography and molecular phylogenetics of fungi
    Factors affecting Perigord truffle production in Australia Linde Group - Population genetics, evolution, phylogeography and molecular phylogenetics of fungi
    Flavonoid functions in nitrogen-fixing symbioses Mathesius Group - Root microbe interactions - symbionts to parasites
    Function of molecular chaperones in the export and display of parasite proteins Maier Group - Molecular mechanisms of malaria pathogenesis
    Functional characterisation of the flax rust fungus AvrP and AvrL2 effector proteins Jones Group - Disease resistance
    Fungal bioinformatics Linde Group - Population genetics, evolution, phylogeography and molecular phylogenetics of fungi
    How do effector proteins from necrotrophic fungi cause disease in wheat
  • Solomon Group - Wheat biosecurity
  • Williams Group - Plant structural immunology
  • How does pfCRT confer drug resistance to malaria? Callaghan Group - Human disease and membrane transport
    Identification and functional characterisation of flax rust effectors Jones Group - Disease resistance
    Identification and functional characterisation of the Fusarium oxysporum Avr7 effector gene. Jones Group - Disease resistance
    Identification of signal transduction and accessory protein requirements for resistance responses mediated by the tomato I gene for Fusarium wilt resistance. Jones Group - Disease resistance
    Ion homeostasis in the malaria parasite Kirk Group - Membrane transport in parasites
    Laboratory overview Rathjen Group - Plant immunity
    Microbial control of root developmental plasticity
  • Mathesius Group - Root microbe interactions - symbionts to parasites
  • Nicotra Group - Plant physiological ecology, plant evolutionary biology, reproductive ecology
  • Molecular tools to reveal protein function and identify drug targets Maier Group - Molecular mechanisms of malaria pathogenesis
    New molecular targets for drugs to treat human and animal nematode parasites Behm Group - Nematode molecular biology
    Novel nutrient/metabolite transporters in apicomplexan parasites
  • Kirk Group - Membrane transport in parasites
  • van Dooren Group - Cell biology and metabolism of apicomplexan parasites
  • Nutrient acquisition in apicomplexan parasites
  • Kirk Group - Membrane transport in parasites
  • Lehane Group - Antimalarial drug action and resistance
  • van Dooren Group - Cell biology and metabolism of apicomplexan parasites
  • Phytophthora cell wall degrading enzymes Hardham Group - Plant pathogen interactions
    Phytophthora pathogenicity Hardham Group - Plant pathogen interactions
    Phytophthora zoospore adhesion Hardham Group - Plant pathogen interactions
    Phytophthora zoospore motility Hardham Group - Plant pathogen interactions
    Protein function in plant immunity Rathjen Group - Plant immunity
    Quorum sensing signalling in root symbioses Mathesius Group - Root microbe interactions - symbionts to parasites
    Rust resistance in Australian Myrtaceae Foley Group - Animal-Plant interactions
    Serotype-converting bacteriophages and O-antigen modification in Shigella flexneri Verma Group - Bacterial and bacteriophage genetics, and vaccine development
    Shigella virulence and vaccine development Verma Group - Bacterial and bacteriophage genetics, and vaccine development
    Speciation in co-evolved taxa: sexually-deceptive orchids and their mycorrhizal symbionts Linde Group - Population genetics, evolution, phylogeography and molecular phylogenetics of fungi
    Structural basis of drug resistance in the Malaria parasite Brock Group - Membrane Structural & Synthetic Biology
    SynBio enabled biosensors Brock Group - Membrane Structural & Synthetic Biology
    Synthetic biology to engineer novel disease resistance in cereal crops Rathjen Group - Plant immunity
    Targeting ion transport in apicomplexan parasites with new generation antimalarials
  • Kirk Group - Membrane transport in parasites
  • Lehane Group - Antimalarial drug action and resistance
  • van Dooren Group - Cell biology and metabolism of apicomplexan parasites
  • The biology of the mitochondrion of apicomplexan parasites van Dooren Group - Cell biology and metabolism of apicomplexan parasites
    The molecular basis for plant susceptibility and immunity to Fusarium wilt disease
  • Jones Group - Disease resistance
  • Williams Group - Plant structural immunology
  • Uncovering the hare microbiome
  • Rathjen Group - Plant immunity
  • Schwessinger Group - Plants, fungi, evolution
  • Use of a tobacco Pathogenesis-related Protein-5 (PR-5) promoter: β glucuronidase (GUS) reporter system to study plant defence activation in response to phytohormones, abiotic stresses and biotic inducers. Jones Group - Disease resistance
    Vitamin utilisation by malaria parasites Saliba Group - Physiology and biochemistry of the malaria parasite
    Wheat immunity and applied synthetic biology Rathjen Group - Plant immunity