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The Australian Centre for Plant Functional Genomics (ACPFG) is a research organisation focusing on improving the resistance of wheat and barley to hostile environmental conditions, using functional genomics technologies.
Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain which is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus Triticum; the most widely grown is common wheat.
Barley, a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Barley has been used as animal fodder, as a source of fermentable material for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods. It is used in soups and stews, and in barley bread of various cultures. Barley grains are commonly made into malt in a traditional and ancient method of preparation.
The natural environment encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally, meaning in this case not artificial. The term is most often applied to the Earth or some parts of Earth. This environment encompasses the interaction of all living species, climate, weather and natural resources that affect human survival and economic activity. The concept of the natural environment can be distinguished as components:
Scientists at the ACPFG are focusing on stresses that impact agriculture in Australia, including drought, salinity, high or low temperatures and mineral deficiencies or toxicities. These stresses, known as abiotic stresses, are a major cause of cereal crop yield and quality loss throughout the world.
Australia is a major agricultural producer and exporter, with over 325,300 employed in Agriculture, forestry and fishing as of February 2015. Agriculture and its closely related sectors earn $155 billion-a-year for a 12% share of GDP. Farmers and graziers own 135,997 farms, covering 61% of Australia's landmass. Approximately 64% of all farms across Australia belong to the state, with a further 23% that are still owned by indigenous groups or tribes. Across the country there is a mix of irrigation and dry-land farming. Australia leads the world with 35 million hectares certified organic, which is 8.8% of Australia's agricultural land. The CSIRO, the federal government agency for scientific research in Australia, has forecast that climate change will cause decreased precipitation over much of Australia and that this will exacerbate existing challenges to water availability and quality for agriculture.
A drought or drouth is a natural disaster of below-average precipitation in a given region, resulting in prolonged shortages in the water supply, whether atmospheric, surface water or ground water. A drought can last for months or years, or may be declared after as few as 15 days. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region and harm to the local economy. Annual dry seasons in the tropics significantly increase the chances of a drought developing and subsequent bush fires. Periods of heat can significantly worsen drought conditions by hastening evaporation of water vapour.
Soil salinity and dryland salinity are two problems degrading the environment of Australia. Salinity is a concern in most states, but especially in the south-west of Western Australia.
The ACPFG was established in December 2002 after being granted $27 million from the Australian Research Council (ARC), the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) and the South Australian Government.
The Australian Research Council (ARC) is one of the Australian government's two main agencies for competitively allocating research funding to academics and researchers at Australian universities. The other is the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC).
Grains Research and Development Corporation is an Australian research statutory corporation founded in October 1990 under the Primary Industries and Energy Research and Development Act, 1989. It invests in projects and partnerships to drive profitability and productivity in Australia's grains industry. It is funded by the Australian government and a levy on graingrowers, which is determined by the industry's peak bodies Grains Producers Australia (GPA) and Graingrowers Ltd (GGL). The Department of Agriculture is the relevant government department.
The Government of South Australia, also referred to as the South Australian Government, is the Australian state democratic administrative authority of South Australia. The Government of South Australia, a parliamentary constitutional monarchy, was formed in 1856 as prescribed in its Constitution, as amended from time to time. Since the Federation of Australia in 1901, South Australia has been a state of the Commonwealth of Australia, and the Constitution of Australia regulates its relationship with the Commonwealth. Under the Australian Constitution, South Australia ceded legislative and judicial supremacy to the Commonwealth, but retained powers in all matters not in conflict with the Commonwealth.
It also had support of $30 million from the University of Adelaide, The University of Melbourne, the Victorian Department of Primary Industries and the University of Queensland.
The University of Adelaide is a public university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on North Terrace in the Adelaide city centre, adjacent to the Art Gallery of South Australia, the South Australian Museum and the State Library of South Australia.
The University of Queensland (UQ) is a public research university primarily located in Queensland's capital city, Brisbane, Australia. Founded in 1909 by the state parliament, UQ is Australia's fifth oldest university and is colloquially known as a sandstone university. UQ is considered to be one of Australia's leading universities, and is ranked as the 48th most reputable university in the world. The University of Queensland is a founding member of online higher education consortium edX, Australia's research-intensive Group of Eight, and the global Universitas 21 network.
ACPFG as a research organisation has an unusual structure because it is a company, but its shareholders are the research organisations and governments that fund it.
A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity made up of an association of people, be they natural, legal, or a mixture of both, for carrying on a commercial or industrial enterprise. Company members share a common purpose, and unite to focus their various talents and organize their collectively available skills or resources to achieve specific, declared goals. Companies take various forms, such as:
In the second funding cycle the University of South Australia became a shareholder, increasing ACPFG’s focus on bioinformatics, which is the focus of ACPFG researchers in Queensland.
The University of South Australia (UniSA) is a public research university in the Australian state of South Australia. It is a founding member of the Australian Technology Network of universities, and is the largest university in South Australia with almost 32,000 students.
Bioinformatics is an interdisciplinary field that develops methods and software tools for understanding biological data. As an interdisciplinary field of science, bioinformatics combines biology, computer science, information engineering, mathematics and statistics to analyze and interpret biological data. Bioinformatics has been used for in silico analyses of biological queries using mathematical and statistical techniques.
Most ACPFG researchers are based on the University of Adelaide’s Waite Campus in the Plant Genomics Centre.
As well as the core research programs focused on environmental stresses, ACPFG researchers work with other organisations including CSIRO and the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research, on nutritional focuses such as beta-glucan and iron biofortification.
Though research outcomes are focused on wheat and barley for Australian farmers, model species such as arabidopsis and rice are often used in ACPFG research. Researchers also explore the genetic diversity of less commercially viable plant varieties, such as those originating from the fertile crescent.
