Transgenerational modification of survival efficacy in the advent of climate change
- Research Opportunity
- PhD students, Honours students, Master of Biomedical Science
- Number of Honour Places Available
- 1
- Number of Master Places Available
- 1
| Primary Supervisor | Number | Webpage | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prof Gary Hime | g.hime@unimelb.edu.au |
| Co-supervisor | Number | Webpage | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dr Terence Pang | terence.pang@florey.edu.au |
Summary The Hime groups studies regulation of organ development and regeneration in Drosophila and vertebrate tissues. Many differentiated but renewable cell types are derived from relatively small populations of dedicated precursors, or stem cells. The ability to replenish differentiated cells depends on the continued survival and proliferation of their respective stem cell populations. If we are to realise the goals of re-programming tissue differentiation, growing organs for transplantation in vitro, regeneration of damaged organs in vivo and targeted effective treatments for cancer it is essential that we understand the molecules and mechanisms that stem cells utilise for renewal and differentiation.
Project Details
There are several lines of evidence that parental health is strongly linked to offspring health outcomes. In humans and mammalian models, non-genetic factors established to impact on offspring include traumatic/chronic stress and imbalanced diets. However, metabolic consequences pertaining to thermoregulation are ill-defined. Extreme climate events are becoming more frequent with documented consequences for the reproduction and population sizes of a variety of insects globally. Here, we will use the drosophila model to study how transient exposures to temperature spikes can cause a transgenerational shift in the survival probability of subsequent generations. Using distinct genetic strains with differential heat resistance (Stonehouse, Hime & Pang, unpublished), we seek to identify precise molecular mechanisms regulation in form of transgenerational inheritance. We will also be investigating how heat stress impacts on the male reproductive system to initiate the transgenerational response.Research Opportunities
PhD students, Honours students, Master of Biomedical Science
Students who are interested in joining this project will need to consider their elegibility as well as other requirements before contacting the supervisor of this research
Key Contact
For further information about this research, please contact a supervisor.
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