Search Marsden awards 2008–2017

Recipient(s): Dr K Mountjoy | PI | The University of Auckland

Public Summary: A promising way to treat or prevent obesity is to activate the melanocortin system. While large pharmaceutical companies have unsuccessfully targeted a melanocortin receptor, we propose an alternate approach that targets the natural melanocortin hormone responsible for body weight regulation. The family of melanocortin hormones are derived from a large precursor protein called pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC), found in the brain and in the periphery. Special enzymes chop-up POMC to form melanocortin hormones, according to the body's requirement. Recently, we developed a genetically engineered mouse that makes all melanocortin hormones except ACTH1-13. Remarkably, the ACTH1-13 null knockin mouse develops severe obesity but otherwise appears normal, indicating that ACTH1-13 is the single most important melanocortin hormone regulating body weight. We will now characterise the effects of a lack of ACTH1-13 on weight gain and glucose regulation. To confirm these effects, we will give the mice ACTH1-13 or a natural variant that is slightly chemically altered, called alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone (alpha-MSH). This will enable identification of the correct melanocortin hormone, and its target for weight control. The training opportunities offered are unique to NZ as we are the only ones to have developed this model.

Recipient(s): Dr R Sutherland | PI | GNS Science
Dr J Townend | PI | Victoria University of Wellington
Dr SC Cox | AI | GNS Science
Assoc Prof TRH Davies | AI | University of Canterbury
Prof P Malin | AI | The University of Auckland
Prof DJ Prior | AI | University of Liverpool
Prof DR Schmitt | AI | University of Alberta
Dr VG Toy | AI | University of Otago

Public Summary: Determining what temperatures, stresses, and chemical conditions prevail within active faults is fundamental to understanding how faults evolve and produce earthquakes. The Alpine Fault’s geometry, rapid and precisely-known slip rates, well-studied surface exposures, and >40 years of intensive research make it a site of global importance for research into the mechanics and evolution of large faults and the conditions under which earthquakes occur. Unlike many other major faults, however, the Alpine Fault has not produced large earthquakes in historic times, providing an opportunity to study a major fault late in the cycle of stress accumulation ahead of a future earthquake.

As part of a multi-year programme to investigate the Alpine Fault’s structure, mechanics, and evolution, we will drill to a depth of 1.5 km to measure and see beyond the shallow signals caused by landscape, groundwater and climatic processes. Using rock and fluid samples, geophysical and hydraulic data, and by establishing a long-term observatory inside the fault zone, we will provide new insights into how large faults operate. This will be the first deep borehole investigation of the Alpine Fault, New Zealand's most famous and possibly most hazardous fault, and a globally significant target for fault zone studies.

Recipient(s): Prof RJ Noble | PI | Victoria University of Wellington
Prof S Drossopoulou | AI | Imperial College, London

Public Summary: Software is ubiquitous in everyday life, however its shortcomings have never been more apparent.
The word processor crashing when asked to save a document, the immobiliser refusing to unlock
a car, and the telephone exchange refusing to connect emergency calls, are all symptoms of our
inability to engineer software that works correctly and reliably. This research will directly address
this problem by developing novel techniques to construct verified software. This project will use ownership type systems to capture important recurring patterns in the specification and design of software systems, and then develop tools to verify the software by ensuring those patterns are constructed correctly.

Recipient(s): Dr MT Cooling | PI | The University of Auckland
Prof RD Kamm | AI | Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Public Summary: The responses of endothelial cells to shear stress leading to vascular maladaptation are not fully understood. Signalling studies focus on small numbers of signalling pathways, despite a growing awareness of the need to consider complete networks. Recent advances in Systems Biology, microfluidic experimentation and modular library methodologies provide a substantial opportunity to tackle larger scale signalling projects than previously attempted. In this interdisciplinary project, we will combine modelling methods I have developed, and initiate an international collaboration in microfluidic techniques to construct the first library of realistic, modular mathematical models that together examine endothelial nitric oxide signalling at the network level.
Focusing on the initial six hours post-stimulation by shear stress, we will analyse, for the first time, the network quantitatively as a collection of inter-related functional modules, gaining a more complete understanding of the intracellular development of cardiovascular disease and how such networks function. This project will establish me as an independent research in modular signalling modelling, increase New Zealand’s skill base in microfluidic experimentation, and provide mentoring for postgraduate students. In addition, we will develop a New Zealand-based framework, in the form of an extensible, publically-available library of modular models, for quantitative signalling network research worldwide.

Recipient(s): Prof J Brown | PI | Victoria University of Wellington
Prof J Dillard | AI | Portland State University

Public Summary: How can accounting facilitate democratic dialogue among people with different social and political perspectives? Rather than focusing on business, how might it enable expression of other viewpoints?

Accounting has traditionally focused on meeting the information needs of financial markets and maximising shareholder wealth. It has downplayed or ignored many issues of concern in contemporary society, including questions about corporate accountability, sustainability and social justice. Social and environmental (SEA) accountants consider that this limited focus is inadequate for a profession that purports to act in the public interest.

This research aims to foster new accountings that account for a much wider range of phenomena than traditional accounting. It seeks to enable groups such as environmentalists, ethical investors, unionists and indigenous communities, working with SEA accountants, to co-develop accountings that accord with their own political and value standpoints. These 'dialogic accountings' would provide multi-dimensional (financial and non-financial) information for accountability and decision-making purposes, and debate about organisational practices.

The project draws on contemporary political theory and research in other disciplines to further dialogic accounting theory. It will also develop these conceptualisations by working with SEA accountants, activists, unionists and Maori in a participatory action research case study.

Recipient(s): Assoc Prof SR Wing | PI | University of Otago
Assoc Prof RD Frew | PI | University of Otago

Public Summary: Availability of iron to form light-absorbing pigments in phytoplankton limits productivity in the Southern Ocean. In these iron-limited waters sequestration of iron by bacteria and biomagnification within pelagic food webs leads to high concentrations in oceanic seabirds, which have vital metabolic needs for iron. Seabirds such as albatross and penguins receive iron from food webs across vast areas of the Southern Ocean and congregate around the sub-Antarctic islands in huge numbers to breed. This results in delivery of large amounts of soluble, bio-available iron from guano to these regions, with potential to greatly enhance productivity. This productivity supports the major hotspots of biodiversity in the Southern Ocean, including breeding colonies for several endangered species. Technical advances in tracing sources of carbon and iron in food webs using stable isotopes will allow us to resolve nutrient flux and bioaccumulation in these systems and answer this important question: Does bioaccumulation of iron by seabirds enhance productivity in the vicinity of the sub-Antarctic islands? Understanding the role of seabirds in nutrient dynamics around these islands is vital to our predictions of how biodiversity in the Southern Ocean will respond to stressors such as species introductions and commercial fishing, and to climate change.

Recipient(s): Dr CA Lehnebach | PI | Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Assoc Prof AW Robertson | AI | Massey University

Public Summary: The evolutionary success of orchids has generally been attributed to their highly specialised pollination mechanisms. In New Zealand there are over 100 species of orchids and most of them are endemic. Recently, it has been discovered that several populations of the spider orchid Nematoceras trilobum are composed of individuals with different chromosome numbers and flower colour. Theoretical models predict that these “races” can only coexist if they are reproductively isolated. It has been suggested that spider orchids mimic fungal fruiting bodies to attract only female fungus gnats which lay their eggs in the flowers and, by doing so, act as pollinators. If current theoretical understanding is correct, to lower competition these “races” should be using different pollinators or pollination mechanism(s) to reproduce. We will test this hypothesis by gathering evidence from field observations, pollination experiments and DNA sequences and fingerprinting techniques. Findings could provide evidence to support sympatric speciation and refute the long held view that plant-insect interactions are unspecialised in New Zealand and unable to assist speciation. Ultimately, these results will help to clarify the taxonomic status of entities currently of conservation concern, and provide information on vital ecological interactions if translocation of these orchids is required.

Recipient(s): Prof T Klee | PI | University of Canterbury
Dr CA Moran | AI | University of Canterbury
Prof S Stokes | AI | University of Canterbury

Public Summary: Parents are rightly concerned if their two-year-old child is late in learning to talk. At present we cannot accurately predict which of these late talkers will ‘grow out of it’ and which will go on to have later language and literacy problems. We know that risk factors include being a boy, having low optimal birth weight and a family history of speech/language problems. We also know that other social and environmental factors (like socio-economic status, being a single parent, etc), are not risk factors. But as yet, we cannot accurately tell a parent whether or not their child will continue to have problems. No single study has used the right tests and the right mix of child and family measures, like prematurity and a family history of language problems, in combination with children’s developing thinking skills (like short-term memory) to predict whether or not a 2-year-old late talker will have a later language problem. This is the focus of the current research. We will test the value of including three new measures to predict outcomes. These are verbal short-term memory, parent concern about their child’s development, and how the child learns over time.

Recipient(s): Prof SC Cary | PI | University of Waikato
Mr PS McNabb | AI | Cawthron Institute
Prof BA Neilan | AI | University of New South Wales
Dr SA Wood | AI | Cawthron Institute

Public Summary: Tetrodotoxin (TTX) is an enigmatic natural toxin found in multiple genetically unrelated marine and terrestrial organisms. Despite many decades of intensive research the exact origin of TTX remains uncertain. Recent evidence suggests that in marine taxa TTX is not endogenously produced but that it bio-accumulates from TTX-producing bacteria, either symbiotically or through the diet. A major impediment to research on the origin of TTX has been an inability to culture any marine TTX-containing organism through all life stages. In 2009 we identified TTX for the first time in NZ in the grey side-gilled sea slug - Pleurobranchaea maculata. Pleurobranchaea maculata has been raised through its complete lifecycle in captivity and our recent research identified high concentrations of TTX in all development stages surveyed. This provides a unique opportunity to solve this international marine science paradox in NZ. Using a combination of immunohistochemical and molecular procedures coupled with advanced microscopy we will identify the location of TTX in all life stages. Chemical, microbiological and molecular techniques will then be used in concert with environmental surveys and hypothesis-driven manipulative experiments to resolve the point source of TTX and explore TTX transmission among individuals and between generations.

Recipient(s): Dr JL Tallon | PI | Industrial Research Ltd
Dr HK Hossain | PI | Victoria University of Wellington
Dr SV Chong | AI | Industrial Research Ltd
Dr GR Willmott | AI | Industrial Research Ltd

Public Summary: This programme establishes a novel generic nanotechnology platform, comprising metal
nanoparticles tethered to cyclodextrin molecular rings, for detection of single molecules and
potentially for DNA sequencing. The cyclodextrin rings bind the nanoparticles to a fixed
separation, enabling a huge signal amplification in surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS)
sufficient to detect single molecules as they diffuse through or bind inside the cyclodextrin ring.
The platform will be used in combination with a variable nanopore to correlate
spectroscopic signals with occlusion events and, in a second phase, to identify base sequences in
lengths of DNA.