Research Success

CO₂ induced water efficiency in plants (PDF File 460.9 KB) (opens in a new window)
Professor David Ellsworth and Dr Brendan Choat from the Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment are working alongside Dr David Hammond from Campbell Scientific Australia Pty Ltd to develop new technology able to monitor the water efficiency of plants in real-time. This project will give an insight into how Australian native trees will cope with increasing CO₂ levels.

Promoting brilliance in evidence-based palliative care (PDF File 254.2 KB) (opens in a new window)
Dr Ann Dadich from the School of Business and a research team have received funding from the Agency for Clinical Innovation to examine brilliant exemplars of evidence-based palliative care in community settings. In collaboration with clinicians, they will determine the conditions required for and associated with extraordinary care for individuals with life-threatening conditions and their carers.

Innovation in bridge column design: Creating safer, longer lasting structures (PDF File 271.1 KB) (opens in a new window)
Professor Zhong Tao from the Institute for Infrastructure Engineering and a research team have received Research Partnerships Program funding to investigate a new type of bridge support column made from stainless steel and strain-hardening cement composites (SHCC). The team will test the properties of these materials, and will create design guidelines for constructing it in columns in different conditions.

Physical and mental wellbeing: A program for the long term rehabilitation of psychiatric patients (PDF File 185.9 KB) (opens in a new window)
Associate Professor Dafna Merom from the School of Science and Health and research team have received funding from Western Sydney Partners in Recovery to trial an exercise and healthy eating program in mental health rehabilitation units. The program aims to reduce cardio-metabolic risk by introducing lifestyle change early in rehabilitation.

Active transport by cells (PDF File 210.3 KB) (opens in a new window)
Professor Jens Coorssen from the School of Medicine has received funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council to investigate the exocytosis or secretory pathway of cells. He will also examine the roles of calcium and lipids in the vesicle docking and fusion process.

Why do oestrogenic drugs cause weight gain? (PDF File 243.8 KB) (opens in a new window)
Dr Vita Birzniece from the School of Medicine has received funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council to study the effects of oestrogenic medications on certain hormones and the metabolism of fats. The aim of this research is to find out more about how these chemicals interact and in what other processes they are involved.

When pleasure is pain: Understanding pain circuitry to help those in chronic pain (PDF File 613.0 KB) (opens in a new window)
Dr Saad Nagi, Research Fellow in the School of Medicine has been awarded funding from the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) to conduct research into the role that touch and cooling sensitive fibres, known as C-tactile fibres (CTs), play in generating tactile and cold allodynia.

After the rain drains: Removing pollutants using stormwater raingardens (PDF File 771.3 KB) (opens in a new window)
Dr Chris Derry of the School of Science and Health has been awarded funding by the Cooks River Alliance to research the performance of pollution removal from stormwater bioretention units or 'raingardens'. The project has been developed as part of the federally funded Cooks River: Place, People, Connections project.

Chain-die forming: Fast and effective (PDF File 665.9 KB) (opens in a new window)
Associate Professor Richard Yang and Professor Yang Xiang from the School of Computing, Engineering and Mathematics, in partnership with SNS UniCorp Pty Ltd, have received Research Partnerships Program funding to evaluate a new plastics production process. Findings from this research could result in a better process of producing complex and high performance structures made of fibre reinforced thermoplastics.

A Healthy Pulse: The genetics of disease resistance in chickpeas (PDF File 325.1 KB) (opens in a new window)
Dr Jonathan Plett of the Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment has received funding from the Department of Agriculture to identify the genetic markers that promote disease resistance in chickpeas. This research will provide the tools for chickpea breeders to screen new varieties in a simple and straightforward way, leading to less dependence on fertilizer and pesticides, and increased crop yield.

High-rises putting people to sleep (PDF File 266.8 KB) (opens in a new window)
Professor Kenny Kwok from the Institute for Infrastructure Engineering and Professor Vaughan Macefield from the School of Medicine, with Dr Darren Walton from the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, have teamed up to increase our understanding of the development of drowsiness of workers in tall buildings. This research is funded by the Australian Research Council through its Discovery Projects scheme.

Fungi for pest control (PDF File 721.3 KB) (opens in a new window)
Dr Zhong-Hua Chen and Associate Professor Robert Spooner-Hart from the School of Science and Health have received funding from the NSW Department of Primary Industries to identify novel differentially-expressed genes of a newly discovered fungus strain for use as a bio-pesticide. This may result in improved control of agricultural insects, improved productivity and the reduction of crop losses, benefiting the agricultural and forestry industries.

Saving Murray River turtles from extinction (PDF File 743.3 KB) (opens in a new window)
Dr Ricky Spencer from the School of Science and Health is leading a multidisciplinary team to identify the cause and manage the decline of turtles in the Murray River. The project will provide information on river health and biodiversity, as well as the mechanisms on how to improve it. This research is funded through the Australian Research Council’s Linkage Projects program.

The cost of going GREEN (PDF File 310.6 KB) (opens in a new window)
Associate Professor Vivian Tam and Dr Khoa Le from the School of Computing, Engineering and Mathematics are working together with Professor Li-Yin Shen from the Chongqing University in China to explore the cost-effectiveness of green building implementation and evaluate its greenhouse-gas emission. This project is funded by the Australian Research Council through its Discovery Projects scheme.

Transformation of biofuels’ by-product (PDF File 88.8 KB) (opens in a new window)
Associate Professors Kamali Kannangara and Gary Dennis of the School of Science and Health, in partnership with Ausbiodiesel Pty Ltd and the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, will lead a research team to investigate the conversion of glycerol into a more usable industrial chemical. This research aims to transform glycerol into a more valuable product with a variety of uses across a range of industries.