Media Release

Professor Alan Cooper (ARC Federation Fellow and Director, Australian Centre for Ancient DNA) has been awarded $500,000 for his collaborative project on "Environmental Genomics". Photo by Randy Larcombe. Full Image (51.22K)

Thursday, 28 May 2009

Ten new research projects led by the University of Adelaide have today been awarded more than $2.9 million in Federal funding, with projects spanning the fields of environment and ecology, water, agriculture, finance, health, genetics and marketing.

The funding has been announced in Round 2 of the Australian Research Council's (ARC) Linkage Projects scheme for 2009.

The successful projects and funding are:

• Environmental Genomics: mining, climate change, water, crime and health
  $500,000 to Professor Alan Cooper (ARC Federation Fellow, School of Earth & Environmental Sciences; and Director, Australian Centre for Ancient DNA)

• Role of alanine aminotransferase in improved nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) in cereals
  $480,000 to Dr Brent Kaiser (Senior Lecturer, Discipline of Wine and Horticulture)

• Reduced water consumption in commercial malting processes
  $450,000 to Professor Geoff Fincher (Deputy CEO of the Australian Centre for Plant Functional Genomics (ACPFG))

• Proteomic analysis of central nervous system inflammation in multiple sclerosis
  $375,000 to Professor Shaun McColl (Microbiology & Immunology Professor, School of Molecular and Biomedical Science)

• Phylogeography and host specificity of stemborer parasitoids: essential components for the pre-emptive biocontrol of sugarcane pests in Australia
  $265,000 to Professor Andrew Austin (Professor, School of Earth & Environmental Sciences)

• Ecology, Physiology and Phylogeography: an integrated approach to the study of the invasive marine green macroalga Caulerpa taxifolia in Australia
  $218,000 to Dr Fred Gurgel (Research Fellow, School of Earth & Environmental Sciences)

• The history of North Stradbroke Island's wetlands: defining natural climate variability in south-east Queensland and improving ecosystem management
  $200,000 to Dr John Tibby (Senior Lecturer, Discipline of Geographical and Environmental Studies)

• Early warning of cyanobacteria blooms in drinking water reservoirs by means of evolutionary algorithms
  $198,000 to Associate Professor Friedrich Recknagel (Associate Professor, School of Earth & Environmental Sciences)

• Can sponsorship deliver Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)? Examining internal and external perceptions of sponsors' CSR
  $156,840 to Professor Pascale Quester (Executive Dean, Faculty of the Professions)

• Survival of Australia's family farms: capital raising and credit access
  $99,982 to Professor Ralf Zurbrugg (Professor of Finance, Business School)

"This is a welcome boost for collaborative research funding at the University of Adelaide," says the University's Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research), Professor Mike Brooks.

"In addition to the $2.9 million announced today, the winning projects also stand to collectively receive more than $6.3 million in cash and in-kind contributions from collaborative partners, including industry."