Download PhD Project Portfolio - School of Animal Biology

School of Animal Biology
PhD
Project Portfolio
2014
Welcome,
This is a list of PhD projects currently (Updated 05 2014) available in the School of Animal
Biology. If you are interested in the project please contact the potential supervisor to
determine whether the project is suitable/available and the round of applications
appropriate for you. ‘Domestic’ i.e. Australian and New Zealand Permanent
Residents/Citizens, are eligible for APA/UPA funding; ‘International’ applicants can be
funded either through scholarship programs from their own country or through competition
for International Scholarships at UWA.
Domestic applications:
Domestic students have to meet eligibility criteria.
In Brief:
•
•
•
Domestic applicants must be Australian or New Zealand citizens or permanent residents in
Australia.
Domestic students must have obtained or be expected to obtain an upper division second
class honours degree or equivalent.
Other criteria apply.
International applications:
In Brief:
International applicants should assess their own eligibility requirements in the first
instance.
•
•
•
•
International (IPRS and SIRF) students must have completed an undergraduate degree
and attained First Class Honours – or the equivalent; e.g. hold a Masters degree.
IPRS and SIRF competition is intense - there are 20 across UWA - most of the successful
applicants in the Sciences have degrees from universities equivalent in world rank to the
Group of Eight in Australia (Top 300 in Academic Ranking of World Universities) and
publications in ISI listed journals (the better your university and your degree classification
the less publications become important).
UWA has guidelines for applicants regarding English proficiency.
Other criteria apply.
If you have any further questions please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Prof Joe Tomkins & W/Prof Leigh Simmons
[email protected] [email protected]
School of Animal Biology Postgraduate Co-ordinators
PhD Project: Targeted nanoparticles to deliver novel combinatorial treatments for
secondary degeneration following neurotrauma
Primary Supervisor: Assoc Prof Lindy Fitzgerald [email protected]
Co-supervisor: Dr K. Swaminathan Iyer [email protected]
Injury to the central nervous system is exacerbated by the progressive secondary
degeneration of residual tissue beyond the original injury site. Secondary degeneration is
characterised by disruption to myelin and loss of oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs),
associated with excess calcium (Ca2+) flux, oxidative stress and loss of function1-4. We
have demonstrated that three Ca2+channel inhibitors in combination prevent structural
changes to myelin and successfully restore function in an in vivo model of secondary
degeneration in rat optic nerve5. However, two of the inhibitors must be administered
directly to the site of injury by osmotic mini-pump, significantly reducing the clinical
translation potential of the combination.
In this project, the student will generate nanoparticle based therapies to deliver
combinations of Ca2+ channel inhibitors directly to OPCs, critical for maintaining myelin in
tissue vulnerable to secondary degeneration following neurotrauma. We will specifically
functionalise the nanoparticles to localise to the injury site for short-term treatment or cross
the blood brain barrier for long-term treatment, allowing intravenous rather than direct
administration. The student will compare short and long-term efficacy of the resulting
nanoparticle therapy systems in our rat in vivo partial optic nerve transection model of
secondary degeneration and thereby optimise the therapeutic system.
1. Payne, S. C., Bartlett, C. A., Harvey, A. R., et al. 2011. Chronic swelling and abnormal
myelination during secondary degeneration after partial injury to a central nervous system
tract. J Neurotrauma, 28, 1077-88.
2. Payne, S. C., Bartlett, C. A., Harvey, A. R., et al. 2012. Myelin sheath decompaction, axon
swelling, and functional loss during chronic secondary degeneration in rat optic nerve.
Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci, 53, 6093-101.
3. Payne, S. C., Bartlett, C. A., Savigni, D. L., et al. 2013. Early proliferation does not prevent the
loss of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells during the chronic phase of secondary
degeneration in a CNS white matter tract. PLoS One, 8, e65710.
4. Szymanski, C. R., Chiha, W., Morellini, N., et al. 2013. Paranode Abnormalities and Oxidative
Stress in Optic Nerve Vulnerable to Secondary Degeneration: Modulation by 670 nm Light
Treatment. PLoS One, 8, e66448.
5. Savigni, D. L., O'hare Doig, R. L., Szymanski, C. R., et al. 2013. Three Ca channel inhibitors in
combination
limit
chronic
secondary
degeneration
following
neurotrauma.
Neuropharmacology, 75C, 380-390.
PhD Project: Overcoming the barriers to clinical translation of red/near-infrared
irradiation therapy for treatment of neurotrauma
Primary Supervisor: Assoc Prof Lindy Fitzgerald [email protected]
Co-supervisor: Assoc Prof Nathan Hart [email protected]
Injury to the central nervous system is exacerbated by the progressive secondary
degeneration of neurons and glia in residual tissue beyond the original injury site. We and
others have reported that red/near-infrared irradiation therapy (R/NIR-IT) delivered by light
emitting diode (LED) array limits the structural and functional loss of secondary
degeneration following neurotrauma1-3. Clinical trials are currently underway for use of
R/NIR-IT in management of stroke and macular degeneration4, 5. However, while some
positive results have been reported, overall outcomes have been disappointing, due in
large part to a lack of knowledge regarding the optimal treatment intensity, duration and
wavelength to employ. Furthermore, scepticism persists due to uncertainty regarding
mechanism and penetrance of the irradiation.
Using our highly reproducible and well characterised rat optic nerve cut model, this PhD
project features a comprehensive in vivo optimisation study to test the hypothesis that we
can define the optimal wavelength, intensity, duration and time of onset of R/NIR-IT
delivered by LED array, for effective penetrance and prevention of secondary
degeneration. We will then determine the mechanism of action of the optimised R/NIR-IT
protocol. The project will provide the necessary pre-clinical evidence for translation of
R/NIR-IT to the clinic.
1. Fitzgerald, H., Van Den Heuvel, Natoli, Hart, Valter, Harvey, Vink, Provis, Dunlop 2013.
Red/near-infrared irradiation therapy for treatment of central nervous system injuries and
disorders. Reviews in the Neurosciences, available online, in press.
2. Fitzgerald, M., Bartlett, C. A., Payne, S. C., et al. 2010. Near infrared light reduces oxidative
stress and preserves function in CNS tissue vulnerable to secondary degeneration
following partial transection of the optic nerve. J Neurotrauma, 27, 2107-19.
3. Szymanski, C. R., Chiha, W., Morellini, N., et al. 2013. Paranode Abnormalities and Oxidative
Stress in Optic Nerve Vulnerable to Secondary Degeneration: Modulation by 670 nm Light
Treatment. PLoS One, 8, e66448.
4. Stemer, A. B., Huisa, B. N. & Zivin, J. A. 2010. The evolution of transcranial laser therapy for
acute ischemic stroke, including a pooled analysis of NEST-1 and NEST-2. Curr Cardiol
Rep, 12, 29-33.
5. Lapchak, P. A. 2010. Taking a light approach to treating acute ischemic stroke patients:
transcranial near-infrared laser therapy translational science. Ann Med, 42, 576-86.
Sensory ecology: the bioacoustics of plants
Supervisor: Dr Monica Gagliano
[email protected]
Like animals, plants have evolved a range of adaptive strategies to exploit sound waves or
vibrations in their environment. However, we have no information on the mechanisms
through which plants detect and respond to sound and its information content.
This
is research is designed to experimentally
investigate the capacity of plants to detect
and use sounds.
By capturing signals emitted by plants
under different environmental conditions
and applying to plants experimental
techniques that are widely used in animal
ecology, this research explores the
ecological significance of different sounds
to potential communication among plants
and between plants and other organisms.
Background reading
Gagliano, M. 2013. Green symphonies: a call for studies on acoustic communication in plants.
Behavioral Ecology 24(4), 789-796.
789
Gagliano, M., Mancuso, S., Robert, D. 2012. Towards understanding plant
bioacoustics. Trends in Plant Science 17, 323–325.
323
Gagliano, M., Renton, M., Duvdevani,
Duvdevani, N., Timmins, M., Mancuso, S. 2012. Out of sight but not
out of mind: alternative means of communication in plants. PloS ONE 7(5), e37382.
Gagliano, M., Renton, M. 2013. Love thy neighbour: facilitation through an alternative
signalling modality in plants.
nts. BMC Ecology 13, 19.
Gagliano, M., Renton, M., Duvdevani, N., Timmins, M., Mancuso S. 2012. Acoustic and
magnetic communication in plants: is it possible? Plant Signalling and Behavior 7, 1346 –
1348.
Learning ability and memory in plants
Supervisor: Dr Monica Gagliano
[email protected]
Can plants, like animals, learn and remember?
The conventional belief is that learning,
remembering and recalling former experiences
are unique adaptive feats of animals. Recent
evidence, however, suggests that plants can
learn and remember too, and they can do it all
without a brain.
This is an experimental investigation aimed at
characterizing plant learning and specifically,
how plants obtain and make use of information
about their environment through learning.
Specifically, we will conduct experiments in the
laboratory to examine both non-associative
non
learning, such as habituation and associative
learning, such as classical Pavlovian
conditioning
ditioning in plants. Ultimately, this project
will offer a novel perspective on the capacity of plants to adapt (through learning) to
variable natural environments.
Background reading
Karban, R. 2008. Plant behaviour and communication. Ecology Letters 11,
1 727-739.
Rankin, C.H., Abrams, T., Barry, R.J., Bhatnagar, S., Clayton, D.F. et al. 2009. Habituation
revisited: an updated and revised description of the behavioural characteristics of
habituation. Neurobiology Learning and Memory 92, 135-138.
135
Eisenstein, E.M., Eisenstein, D., Smith, J.C. 2001. The evolutionary significance of
habituation and sensitization across phylogeny: a behavioural homeostasis model.
Integrative Psychological & Behavioral Science 36, 251–265.
251
Chamovitz, D., 2012. What a plant knows: a field guide to the senses. One world
Publications, UK.
Gagliano M, Renton M, Depczynski M & S Mancuso (2014) Experience teaches plants to learn
faster and forget slower in environments where it matters. Oecologia in press (DOI
10.1007/s00442-013-2873-7).
7).
Fish recruitment dynamics in the Kimberley
Supervisors: Dr Monica Gagliano ([email protected]) & Dr Martial
Depczynski ([email protected])
Critical to marine ecosystem processes and current indigenous food security and
management plans, stable fish populations represent a fundamental part of marine
biodiversity and food webs by linking the very bottom of food chains (i.e. primary
productivity) right through to consumption by humans. Currently, we know next to nothing
about what, where, when and how fish replenishment processes operate in the Kimberley
marine region. This project will concentrate on understanding two key aspects of
Kimberley fish replenishment processes; 1) the seasonal timing of fish recruitment, and 2)
the relative contribution of key marine habitats in providing safe nursery grounds for
juvenile fish growth. The project will achieve this through a carefully considered selection
of 4-6 fish species that represent; 1) ecologically important species (i.e. those that play a
disproportionate role in ecosystem health such as herbivores or high-tiered predators), and
2) species of indigenous significance by virtue of their status as a primary food source
and/or their cultural and symbolic status to indigenous communities.
The evolutionary implications of environmentally determined paternal effects in
broadcast spawning marine invertebrates
Supervisor: Jon Evans [email protected]
Recent studies on birds, insects and marine invertebrates have unveiled remarkable levels
of phenotypic plasticity in sperm traits. Together these studies suggest the expression of
many of these traits (e.g. sperm length) are tailored according to local conditions (e.g.
Immler et al. 2010). More recent work has shown that in broadcast spawning marine
invertebrates, environmental effects on sperm phenotype can influence offspring
performance (Crean et al. 2013). This PhD project will seek to determine the possible
evolutionary implications of these effects in marine broadcast spawners. The project will
determine whether sperm traits from locally abundant broadcast spawning marine
invertebrates (sea urchins, mussels, etc.) are similarly labile, for example in relation to
variation in adult spawning densities (e.g. modulating the level of sperm competition)
and/or changes in the physical ambient environment (temperature and pH). The project
will then test whether these environmentally determined paternal effects influence offspring
traits to explore their fitness implications. Finally, the use breeding designs will determine
whether environmental paternal effects have the potential to ‘contaminate’ standard
quantitative genetic parameters (heritability/evolvability), thus addressing their evolutionary
implications.
Crean AJ, Dwyer JM, Marshall DJ (2013) Adaptive paternal effects? Experimental
evidence that the paternal environment affects offspring performance. Ecology, 94: 2575–
2582
Immler S, Pryke SR, Birkhead TR, & Griffith SC (2010) Pronounced within-individual
plasticity in sperm morphometry across social environments. Evolution 64: 1634-1643
Reproductive and behavioural ecology of guppies
Supervisors: Jon Evans & Clelia Gasparini
[email protected] [email protected]
The guppy (Poecilia reticulata) is a well established model for studies of sexual selection.
We are offering PhD project(s) that focus on both pre- and postcopualtory sexual selection
and their potential interactions within a number of contexts. Some ideas of the sorts of
topic that could be considered include: (1) an examination of classic sexual selection
theory, including the evaluation of Bateman’s principles in the light of behavioural and
molecular approaches for studying mating and reproductive success; (2) sperm
competition and pre- and postcopulatory trade-offs, where male reproductive investment
strategies will be explored across a range of environmental and social environments; (3)
offspring fitness in relation to sperm ageing, where the fitness implications of sperm
storage and ageing are explored; (4) condition-dependence in females, where traditional
approaches to study condition-dependent expression of sexual traits are turned on their
head by exploring these effects in females. These and/or other topics can be merged into
a successful PhD program.
PhD opportunities at the Centre for Integrative Bee Research (CIBER)
For a general overview of CIBER see www.ciber.science.uwa.edu.au or contact
Supervisor: Boris Baer [email protected]
Honeybees are of central importance for human food production, as they pollinate more
than 80 crops of agricultural interest. About a third of what you eat depends on bee
pollination, with an estimated value of 4-6 bn A$ annually for the Australian agricultural
sector. The pollination services of honeybees for agricultural crops and ecosystems have
largely been taken for granted but we currently face a dramatic worldwide decline in bees,
and spreading parasites contribute towards these losses. Australia has so far been spared
major losses of honeybees, although they are declining as well and catastrophic losses
caused by newly invading pathogens are expected to occur in the coming decade. The
Centre for Integrative Bee Research (CIBER) is a cross disciplinary team of scientists that
conduct research to better understand honeybees and to provide support for the honeybee
industry to overcome present and future problems. What we need is to breed better bees
that are capable to cope with the challenges. Consequently we need to study the
reproductive biology and immunity of honeybees. To do this we use an approach that is
referred to as evolutionary proteomics, where we want to understand evolutionary
dynamics such as the functioning of the immune system or sexual reproduction on the
molecular scale. To do this we use genomic, proteomic and metabolomics approaches.
Research Projects:
For a latest update of potential PhD projects available see:
http://www.ciber.science.uwa.edu.au/studentprojects.html.
Molecular warfare in honeybees:
1. Sexual warfare on the molecular level
Our research has shown that molecules that males transfer to
the female as part of their ejaculate have a fundamental
influence on paternity success. These molecules are part of the
seminal fluid and are amazingly efficient in keeping sperm
alive. Furthermore, proteins within the seminal fluid seem
effective agents against parasites and can therefore combat
sexually transmitted diseases. Finally, proteins within the
seminal fluid are also agents of sexual warfare. In honeybees
for example, seminal fluid proteins are able to recognize sperm
of competing males and kill it, a process known as sperm
incapacitation. We are interested to identify those proteins or
proteomic networks that are involved in sperm survival, defense and competitiveness and
to understand their functioning.
2. Honeybee molecules combatting Parasites
Honeybees are hosts to a large number of parasites and they
maintain an immune system that is able to recognize and
combat infections. The immune system of honeybees has often
been referred to as more basal or rudimentary, because bees
seem to have fewer immune genes compared to other animals
as they lack a specific immune response towards parasites or a
immune memory as known from vertebrates. We are interested
to identify and study immunoproteins and -peptides within the
blood (haemolymph) of honeybees and to understand their
functioning, especially their specificity towards specific pathogens.
3. Sub-lethal effects of chemicals on honeybees
Honeybees are exposed to a wide range of man-made
chemicals: Modern agriculture requires an intense use of
pesticides and pathogens to protect crops and bees are
exposed to these chemicals while foraging and pollinating.
Furthermore, a number of chemicals have been developed to
treat various honeybee diseases. There are increasing
concerns that these chemicals are responsible for major bee
losses such as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). We are
interested to use some of these chemicals to test whether and
how they influence the physiology of the bee. We are specifically interested to quantify
whether these chemicals compromise the functioning of the immune system and their
possible effects on male and female fertility.
Key References:
Baer B., Armitage S. A. O. & Boomsma J. J. (2006) Sperm storage induces an immunity
cost in ants. Nature 441: 872-875.
Baer B. & Schmid-Hempel P. (1999): Experimental variation in polyandry affects parasite
loads and fitness in a bumblebee. Nature 397 (6715): 151-154.
den Boer S. P. A., Baer B. & Boomsma J. J. (2006) Seminal fluid mediates ejaculate
competition in social insects. Science 327: 1506-1509.
Poland, V., Eubel, H., King, M., Solheim, C., Millar, A.H., & Baer, B. Stored sperm differs
from ejaculated sperm by proteome alterations associated with energy metabolism in the
honeybee Apis mellifera. Mol. Ecol. 20:2643-2654.
Baer B., Morgan E. D. & Schmid-Hempel P. (2001): A non-specific fatty acid prevents
females from re-mating in bumblebees. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 98 (7): 3926-3928
Two PhD opportunities: Marine and terrestrial invertebrate diversity and evolution in
the Pilbara region, Australia
Supervisors: Marine: Nerida Wilson ([email protected]) Jason
Kennington ([email protected]). Those interested in terrestrial
invertebrates should contact Joel Huey ([email protected]) and
Raphael Didham ([email protected]).
The Western Australian Museum has secured funding from the Net Conservation Benefits
fund (NCB) to undertake a five year project on the Conservation Systematics of the
western Pilbara fauna. In this project we are using molecular tools to provide a systematic
framework for understanding the diversity, evolutionary relationships, and distributions of
marine and terrestrial fauna in the Pilbara region. Included under this broad objective are
specific questions pertaining to evolutionary history, understanding the drivers of
speciation, species delimitation, phylogeography, taxonomy, and co-speciation.
This project has funding to support two PhD projects that broadly align with the NCB
project objectives.
The PhD projects will be aimed at using molecular markers to investigate biodiversity in
invertebrates from the Pilbara region, and surrounds. One project will focus on marine
invertebrates (eg, sponges, soft corals, nudibranchs, crinoids, or other groups) and the
other will focus on terrestrial invertebrates (eg, trap-door spiders, opiliones, millipedes, or
other arachnid or insect groups). The PhD students will be enrolled in the School of Animal
Biology at the University of Western Australia, and based jointly at the new Molecular
Systematics Unit laboratory, Western Australian Museum, Welshpool, Perth, where the
successful applicants will have the opportunity to work directly with specialists in these
fields. The specific project aims, questions, design and methods will be developed
collaboratively by the students and supervisors.
The work will include opportunities for field work in the Pilbara region, and lab costs will be
generously supported by the NCB project.
Currently, this opportunity is open to domestic students (Australia and New Zealand).
Although the position is fully funded, students will be expected to put in an application for
an Australian Postgraduate Award (APA or University Postgraduate Award (UPA)
(http://www.scholarships.uwa.edu.au/search?sc_view=1&id=341&page=1&q=Australian+P
ostgraduate+Award&s=1&old_key=0) through UWA. The NCB funding will provide an
additional top-up scholarship of $5k per year, bringing the total stipend to approx. $34k per
year (tax free).
Applications open 2 June, and close 11 July for a 1 Aug 2014 start. However, we
encourage any applicants to contact us and begin discussions as soon as possible.
PhD research on vocal communication in the cooperatively breeding Western
Australian Magpie
Supervisor: Mandy Ridley [email protected]
We are seeking a PhD student to conduct research on vocal communication in the
Western Australian Magpie. Magpies are incredibly vocally complex, and group members
constantly communicate with one another throughout the day. Our previous research on
cooperatively breeding species has revealed that group members constantly relay
information to one another regarding predator threats, contributions to cooperative
behaviour, and the presence of territory threats (non-group members). We have an
established population of magpies based in Perth. This population is fully habituated and
ringed, and subject to long-term research. We are seeking a student that would be able to
conduct sound recordings, acoustic analysis and playback experiments to determine the
complexity of communication among group members, what information is conveyed, and
how such information benefits group members. We would be interested in students
addressing advanced issues such as the possibility of vocal negotiation of cooperation and
conflict avoidance among group members.
Evolution of the mammalian baculum
Supervisor: Leigh Simmons
[email protected]
The baculum or os penis is the most evolutionary divergent bone in the mammalian
body(1). Some mammals have a morphologically elaborate baculum while other species
lack the bone altogether. Consistent with studies of the evolution of insect genitalia(2),
recent work from our lab has demonstrated that sexual selection is responsible for the
evolutionary divergence of baculum morphology among populations of house mice(3),
although the mechanisms involved are unknown. This PhD project will use cross
disciplinary approaches to explore the selective mechanisms acting on the mammalian
baculum. The effects of baculum morphology on changes in female reproductive hormone
profiles, pregnancy initiation, and embryo development will be examined using the house
mouse model. Quantitative genetic approaches will explore genetic variation in baculum
morphology and correlated endocrine responses to stimulation during copulation among
females, while comparative studies among species of mammal generally will examine
macroevolutionary changes in baculum complexity in response to the strength of sexual
selection. The project thereby aims to provide a comprehensive view of the proximate
mechanisms of selection and its ultimate consequences for evolutionary divergence of this
most remarkable bone.
For more information the interested applicant should contact W/Prof Leigh Simmons
<[email protected]>
1.
2.
3.
P. Stockley, The baculum. Curr. Biol. 22, R1032 (Dec, 2012).
L. W. Simmons, Sexual selection and genital evolution. Austral Entomology 53, 1-17
(2014).
L. W. Simmons, R. C. Firman, Experimental evidence for the evolution of the mammalian
baculum by sexual selection. Evolution 68, 276-283 (2014).
The evolutionary genetics of phase change in plague locusts
Joseph Tomkins [email protected]
web site:www.alternativetactics.org
In my lab we specialise on the evolutionary genetics of
threshold traits, and recently benefitted from the award of an
ARC Future Fellowship that will fund the running of this
project.
Very little is known about the evolutionary genetics of phase change in locusts, but we now
have the tools and the opportunity to link studies of quantitative genetics of phase change
with gene expression. This project will be at the cutting edge of evolutionary research with
the added advantage of having an applied angle.
The project is focussed on the Australian plague locust Chortoicetes terminifera – a
significant pest of crops throughout Australia. There are three parts to the proposed
research.
1) A comparison of thresholds to gregarization between populations.
2) Estimates of the genetic variation in the threshold for gregarisation, i.e. estimate the
heritability of the propensity to form plagues.
3) Relate recently documented changes in gene expression using quantitative real-time PCR
to quantitative genetic parameters for this threshold trait.
Within the School of Animal Biology you would have access to rearing facilities for the
locusts and a state of the art genetics laboratory. The Centre for Evolutionary Biology is a
group of world-leading evolutionary biologists and provides a stimulating atmosphere in
which to work.
Interested candidates should have a background in evolutionary biology, behavioural
ecology or genetics. Please contact me for further information.
Experimental Threshold Evolution
Supervisor: Joseph Tomkins [email protected]
www.alternativetactics.org
In my lab we specialise on the evolutionary genetics of
threshold traits, and recently benefitted from the award of an
ARC Future Fellowship that will fund the running of this project.
We use male dimorphic mites and single celled algae as
laboratory model systems. Both of these species have huge
and proven potential for understanding evolution. They have a
short generation time and are easy to maintain in large
numbers. We have all of the equipment and expertise
necessary to conduct this project.
The project involves using selection and experimental evolution
to understand the evolution of sex ratio, the evolution of
conditional strategies and the constraints on threshold evolution.
Two large selection/experimental evolution experiments would be conducted alongside
shorter term phenotypic or genetic studies.
Interested candidates should have a background in evolutionary biology, behavioural
ecology or genetics. Please contact me for further information.
Escape responses in fiddler crabs.
Supervisor: Jan Hemmi, Yuri Ogawa, Shaun Collin
[email protected]
How do animals decide when to start their escape
dash from an approaching predator?
Understanding the sensory information animals
use when making such decisions, will tell us how
they measure risk and how they use visual
information to organise their behaviour to avoid
being eaten while still being able to feed and find
mates. Fiddler crabs are highly visual animals that
live under constant threat of predation from birds.
Our field experiments have shown that the crabs’
eye limits their ability to measure a predator’s distance and their direction of movement – a
problem they share with many other small animals. To overcome this deficit, they stage
their responses and learn to ignore certain objects. This project will bring fiddler crabs into
the laboratory to test their escape decisions under controlled conditions. The combination
of behavioural with physiological measurements of visual abilities in the same animals,
using Electroretinaogram (ERG) or intracellular electrophysiology, will provide an
understanding of the mechanisms underlying visually guided behaviour in these animals.
The project will compare field experiments with laboratory experiments and animals will be
tested in our artificial mudflat or on a custom made treadmill (How et al 2012) that allows
us to record the movements of crabs in response to visual stimulation. There are many
possible variations of this project and you will be able to choose in which direction you
want the project to evolve according to your interest and ability.
Hemmi JM & Pfeil A (2010) A multi-stage anti-predator response increases information on
predation risk. Journal of Experimental Biology, 213 1484–1489
Hemmi, JM, & Tomsic, D (2012). The neuroethology of escape in crabs: from sensory
ecology to neurons and back. Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 22, 194–200
How et al. (2012) High e-vector acuity in the polarisation vision system of the fiddler crab
Journal of Experimental Biology 215, 2128-2134
Comparative colour vision and spatial vision in ants
Supervisors: Jan Hemmi, Yuri Ogawa, Wayne Davies
[email protected]
Ants have some of the smallest brains in the animal
kingdom, yet they show a wide range of interesting
behaviours, many of them visually driven. Their small
size and limited head and eye space has forced them
to optimise their visual system in very distinct ways
(e.g. Greiner et al 2007). We
Greiner et al 2007
have recently shown that one
of
the Australian bull ants, a species exclusively active
in the dark of the night, has trichromatic colour vision
like humans. As this is the first ant that has been
shown to have more than two spectral photoreceptor
types, this project will compare ants from different
phylogenetic branches using a range of different techniques in order to understand the
evolution of colour vision and spatial vision in ants in general. This project, run in
collaboration with researchers from the Australian National University, will use a range of
complementary techniques such as behavioural, anatomical, physiological
(Electroretinogram and/or intracellular electrophysiology) methods, as well as comparative
genetics (standard molecular biology, qPCR and transcriptome sequencing (RNA-Seq))
and UV-vis spectrophotometry. This powerful combination of methods will provide a rich
picture of these animals’ ability to see their world and help us understand how these
animals are able to solve such a wide range of visual tasks despite being so small.
Greiner B, Narendra A, Reid SF, Dacke M, Ribi WA, & Zeil J (2007) Eye structure
correlates with distinct foraging-bout timing in primitive ants. Current Biology, 17 R879R880.
The visual world of fiddler crabs
Supervisors: Jan Hemmi, Yuri Ogawa, Wayne Davies
[email protected]
Australian fiddler crabs are highly visual animals that
inhabit mud and sand-flats. Despite extensive research
into their behaviour and visual ecology, we know
relatively little about their ability to see different colours
and the extent of their ability to see polarised light (How
et al 2012). This project will conduct behavioural,
Fiddler crab
physiological and or genetic experiments aimed at
measuring the visual capabilities of the crabs’ eyes,
including their ability to see patterns, colour and
polarisation. The measurements will show us the extent
Treadmill
of fiddler crab vision and help us understand how these
animals react to their environment. Experiments will be
conducted using our resident UWA fiddler crab colony. The crabs are housed in a 4 m2
fully functional artificial mudflat with periodic tidal inundation. You will discover how
sensory information affects animal behaviour, learn how to probe the visual capabilities of
animals and learn genetic (standard molecular biology, qPCR and transcriptome
sequencing (RNA-Seq) ) and electrophysiological recording techniques, as well as UV-vis
spectrophotometry. This project is flexible and allows the combination of behavioural,
physiological and genetic techniques according to your interest and ability.
Polarisation
monitor
Camera
Hemmi, JM, & Tomsic, D (2012). The neuroethology of escape in crabs: from sensory
ecology to neurons and back. Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 22, 194–200
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