RSBS Scientist wins the Prime Minister's Science Prize

For details of the award see:
DEST Science grants: 2006 Prime Minister's Prize for Science.
Sydney Morning Herald: The buzz in science is what makes a bee so smart.
Canberra Times: A bug's life offers vision for robotics.
ANU OnCampus: Bee researcher wins nation's highest science prize.
ABC NewsOnline: Robotics Pioneer win's PM's science prize.
The Australian: Science prize goes to top-flight bee study.
Australasian Science: PM Recognises Insect Intelligence (pdf).

New Microscope commissioned for Electron Microscopy Unit

On October 5, at a gathering in the School's foyer, the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Ian Chubb formally commissioned a new electron microscope. The new machine, a Hitachi 4300 analytical field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) will be part of the University's Electron Microscope Unit. The Coordinator of the EMU, Dr. Sally Stowe (pictured, with Professor Chubb at the FESEM, and the RSBS Director, Professor Stone) expressed delight that the long-anticipated 'scope was now a reality. It will provide researchers across campus and beyond with state-of-the-art analytical capabilities.

(Posted 19/10/2006)

Professor Farquhar awarded Honorary Doctorate by the University of Antwerp

Professor Farquhar was awarded the title of doctor honoris causa at the University of Antwerp on April 20, 2005. The award is in recognition of Professor Farquhar's expertise in the field of Environmental Biology.
Images courtesy of the University of Antwerp. Click here to view a gallery from the awards ceremony.

Professor Farquhar was also honoured by the Royal Society of Tasmania with the prestigious RM Johnston Memorial Medal. Click here to view the media release.

(Posted 28/07/2006)

New RUBISCO insights

A new study shows how evolutionary forces related to subcellular environments may affect the functioning of the world's most plentiful enzyme, Rubisco. Rubisco is responsible for taking carbon dioxide from the air and incorporating it into organic matter during photosynthesis. It must make a compromise between having a fast catalytic rate and having the ability to strongly select for carbon dioxide, rather than the similar looking oxygen molecule. The nature of this compromise is explored in terms of transition states, the discrimination by the enzyme against carbon dioxide with heavy carbon, and other properties of the enzyme.

Optimisation of Rubisco is explored in an article by Tcherkez, Farquhar and Andrews, and further in commentaries by Nature and PNAS.

> Read the PNAS journal article by Tcherkez, Farquhar and Andrews. (747kb pdf)
> Read the Commentary by Nature. (210kb pdf)
> Read the Commentrary by PNAS. (203kb pdf)

(Posted 28/07/2006)

Carbon isotope discrimination used to develop drought-resistant crops

Water is the major limiting factor for Australian farmers, and it's increasing scarcity is forecast to be a key agricultural challenge of climate change. CSIRO Plant Industry principal scientist Dr. Richard Richards and Professor Graham Farquhar, the Research School of Biological Sciences at the ANU, have collaborated to develop wheat varieties with improved yield and tolerance of arid conditions.

Professor Farquhar's contribution was to demonstrate that the plant's carbon-fixing enzyme, rubisco, preferentially selects the lighter form of atmospheric carbon, ¹²C, over the rarer heavier isotope, ¹³C, limiting diffusion through stomatal pores reduces this effect. The overall measure can be used to assess the plant's water-use efficiency. Genetic screening for water-efficient varieties using the plant's ¹²C:¹³C signature was instrumental in developing the drought-resistant wheats “Drysdale” and “Rees”, and the technique is now being applied to produce barley and cowpeas for African climates.

> Read about drought-resistant wheat in The Canberra Times (19/06/2006) (702kb pdf),
or the Launceston Examiner (26/06/2006) (598kb pdf).

(Posted 28//07/2006)

Clearing up the mystery surrounding Alzheimer's

Thursday's Financial Review carried a long article on the Director's work on Alzheimer's disease. Accessing the original article from this link costs a few dollars, however, and we couldn't get around that (it's available here for those interested). A copy of the article has been posted in RSBS's atrium area (Catcheside Court).

Briefly, the FR article:

• Discusses the prevailing ('amyloid cascade') theory of this disease;
• Notes the evidence which Jonathan and Sydney colleagues have recently published showing that every senile plaque in the demented brain is the site of a small bleed (a microhaemorrhage). This suggests that the age-related dementias are primarily vascular diseases.
• Notes supporting evidence that the risk factors for dementia are essentially the same as for cardiovascular health;
• And evidence that vaso-protective drugs are strongly protective against dementia.
• Notes that this is a hopeful step forward in the prevention and understanding of dementia;
• And finally presents some contrary views.

A new development is that Jonathan's Sydney collaborator, Dr. Karen Cullen, has been asked to contribute to an on-going consensus process, for the differential diagnosis of cerebrovascular disease. This may lead to recognition at the practitioner level that Alzheimer's disease should be recognized as part of a spectrum of cerebrovascular diseases.

Which would, says the Director, be "an enormous step forward towards the management of a disease which degrades the life of millions of sufferers, and their carers and families."

> A transcript of the Ockham's Razor talk Jonathan gave last year on this topic is available here.

(Posted 19/05/2006)

RSBS Scientist wins Asia/Pacific Women in Science Laureate

Thursday 2nd March in Paris, RSBS scientist Professor Jennifer Graves won the
prestigious L'ORÉAL -UNESCO For Women in Science award for Asia/Pacific --
one of only five Laureate awards presented annually to leading female
scientists.......Full Story.

RSBS Beekeeper Champion

During the Royal Canberra Show last weekend, the ACT Beekeepers Association held their annual beekeeping competition.
Like in 2005, Paul Helliwell, who has been the pillar of Visual Science's From Molecules to Memory lab for so many years, collected a number of first and second prizes that gave him enough points to be declared the Champion for 2006.

(Posted 02/03/2006)