Role of an RNA m5C methyltransferase during plant reproduction
Investigate the role of an RNA m5C methyltransferase during early reproductive development as mutants abort early during seed development.
The project will involve using bs-RNA-seq and transgenic plants to uncover the function of the methyltransferase.
Study epigenetics and plant reproductive biology
Our overarching aim is to use the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana to understand the molecular basis of complex traits and translate these discoveries into crop plants like canola and cereals such as barley, wheat and rice.
We have discovered that Arabidopsis has a complex repertoire of non-coding RNAs that vastly exceeds the number of protein coding genes thereby supporting the RNA world hypothesis.
Research projects in our laboratory aim to elucidate the function of these non-coding RNAs during seed and plant development.
Our recent publications have demonstrated that many non-coding and coding RNAs have a hidden layer of chemical modifications thereby increasing the functional complexity of RNA.
Supervisors
- Dr Iain Searle
- Research area: Epigenetics and plant reproductive biology - Australia-China Joint Research Centre of Grains for Health
- Recommended honours enrolment: Honours in Molecular and Biomedical Science