Search Marsden awards 2008–2017
Search awarded Marsden Fund grants 2008–2017
Fund Type: Marsden Fund
Category: Standard
Year Awarded: 2011
Title: The genetic basis of independent movements of the left and right hands
Recipient(s): Assoc Prof E Franz | PI | University of Otago
Prof RJM Gardner | AI | University of Otago
Dr CL Jasoni | AI | University of Otago
Prof SP Robertson | AI | University of Otago
Public Summary: Independent dexterity of the left and right hands occurs with normal development. Nerve fibres from each motor cortex cross from their side of origin to communicate with muscles on the opposite side of the body. The genetic and developmental processes that underlie this critical fibre tract crossing are not known. People with Hereditary Congenital Mirror Movements (CMMs) provide a naturally-occurring genetic model to examine this. Whenever people with CMMs attempt to move the fingers or hand on one side of the body, they also exhibit unintentional (mirror) movements on the opposite side. Our team of NZ experts in neuroimaging, human genetics and neurodevelopment will elucidate the processes that determine this fibre tract crossing in an extended family with CMMs. With specialised ‘movement gloves’ we will conduct detailed clinical analysis, and will apply non-invasive brain mapping techniques to elucidate the neuroanatomical underpinnings of CMMs. We will identify the causative gene, and we will undertake developmental studies to determine how the gene product guides the growth of nerve fibres to the correct side in normal brain development. Our investigations will identify regulators of brain wiring that might also represent novel targets for neuroregenerative or neurorestorative therapies.
Total Awarded: $803,913
Duration: 3
Host: University of Otago
Contact Person: Assoc Prof E Franz
Panel: BMS
Project ID: 11-UOO-200
Fund Type: Marsden Fund
Category: Standard
Year Awarded: 2012
Title: The genetics and epigenetics of bird migration timing
Recipient(s): Dr PF Battley | PI | Massey University
Dr AE Fidler | PI | Cawthron Institute
Public Summary: The epic migrations of birds toward distant breeding grounds in anticipation of seasonally-available resources reveal an ability to accurately ‘tell time’. Moreover, individuals may migrate on consistently different dates, indicating the existence of sensitive, individually-tuned timing mechanisms. This is particularly well-characterised in bar-tailed godwits, long-distance migrant shorebirds that travel from New Zealand to breed in Alaska. Individuals embark on northward migration across 30 days but, remarkably, each bird typically leaves in the same week annually with some birds leaving within just a day or two year after year. We hypothesise that these behavioural differences reflect individual variation in responses to photoperiod changes, arising in part from variation in genes involved in the circadian core oscillator (CCO). We will investigate genetic and epigenetic (DNA methylation) variation in candidate genes central to the CCO (BMAL1, CLOCK) or its output (AANAT) and in a non-CCO gene that may relate to migratory propensity (ACDYAP1). We will look for associations between migration time and individual genotype/methylation at these four loci, correcting for underlying population structure using microsatellites. This work will provide insights into the mechanisms behind vertebrate photoperiodic responses as well as the ecological and evolutionary significance of genetic and epigenetic variation in natural populations.
Total Awarded: $800,000
Duration: 3
Host: Massey University
Contact Person: Dr PF Battley
Panel: EEB
Project ID: 12-MAU-032
Fund Type: Marsden Fund
Category: Standard
Year Awarded: 2012
Title: The genetics of complex cognition
Recipient(s): Dr GR Hunt | PI | The University of Auckland
Prof NJ Gemmell | AI | University of Otago
Prof RD Gray | AI | The University of Auckland
Public Summary: The discovery of complex avian cognitive abilities has revolutionized our understanding of the evolution of intelligence. However, the genetic basis of these abilities is unknown. One possibility is that numerous changes in genes across a wide range of functional domains are required for the evolution of complex intelligence. Alternatively, only a limited number of genetic tweaks might be required. We will compare the tool manufacturing New Caledonian crow with closely related non-tool-using crows to search for genes that underpin a tool-using lifestyle. Once identified, we will test the involvement of specific genes by examining if genetic polymorphisms can explain the variability in the tool-using lifestyles of New Caledonian crows that exists between individuals and populations. Our pioneering study will use the extraordinary advances in Next-Generation-Sequencing to uncover the genetic basis of complex cognition in the wild.
Total Awarded: $800,000
Duration: 3
Host: The University of Auckland
Contact Person: Dr GR Hunt
Panel: EEB
Project ID: 12-UOA-249
Fund Type: Marsden Fund
Category: Standard
Year Awarded: 2012
Title: The good without the bad: selective chelators for beryllium
Recipient(s): Dr PG Plieger | PI | Fundamental Sciences
Prof PJ Brothers | AI | The University of Auckland
Prof W Henderson | AI | University of Waikato
Public Summary: From mobile phones and aircraft braking systems, to golf clubs and the James Webb Space Telescope, the element beryllium (Be) is increasingly utilised in consumer, scientific and commercial applications. Unfortunately, beryllium has a poor reputation; it is considered the most toxic non-radioactive element on the planet and the cause of the incurable chronic beryllium disease (CBD). Surprisingly, this reputation has not deterred its use in manufacturing, but it has seriously hindered the exploration of the fundamental chemistry of beryllium. Given that Be usage in consumer and industrial products continues unabated, it is imperative that chemical chelating agents be developed for better detection of Be in the environment, that therapies for individuals exposed to beryllium be developed, and that protocols to remediate Be contamination are established. By building a greater understanding of the fundamental coordination chemistry of Be(2+), this project will develop strong, selective chelating agents for beryllium capture using a modern arsenal of chemical techniques. At the conclusion of this study we will have in hand a suite of chelators that bind beryllium both strongly and selectively. These ligands can then be refined and tailored for specific applications for which there are presently few effective solutions.
Total Awarded: $808,696
Duration: 3
Host: Massey University
Contact Person: Dr PG Plieger
Panel: PCB
Project ID: 12-MAU-047
Fund Type: Marsden Fund
Category: Standard
Year Awarded: 2017
Title: The greedy algae that are great for our environment: why do they pay an energy penalty to gorge phosphate?
Recipient(s): Professor BJ Guieysse | PI | Massey University Manawatu
Professor E Fernández Reyes | AI | University of Cordoba
Professor AN Shilton | AI | Massey University Manawatu
Dr D Wheeler | AI | Massey University Manawatu
Public Summary: Although Arthur Kornberg won a Nobel Prize for his work on DNA, he spent the last two decades of his career investigating the biological functions of polyphosphate (poly-P) because he believed this biopolymer was as critical to life as DNA. Poly-P is indeed found in all organisms and is involved in functions such as energy and phosphorus (P) storage and stress response in bacteria. In eukaryotic algae, poly-P synthesis has been reported in both P-rich (e.g. wastewater ponds) and P-depleted (e.g. natural ecosystems) environments, but we do not fully understand how (the molecular basis) and why (evolutionally and ecologically) algae expend cellular energy to synthesize poly-P. In this proposal, we hypothesize that identifying the genes responsible for poly-P synthesis in algae will provide the knowledge needed to better understand how phosphorus supply affects algal growth, which may in turn provide new engineering fundamentals in environmental engineering and algal biotechnology. This multidisciplinary research, therefore, seeks to use modern genomics methods and biochemical assays to identify and functionally characterise the genes involved in poly-P synthesis in the model algae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, in order to subsequently investigate the evolutionary, ecological, and industrial implications of this metabolism.
Total Awarded: $920,000
Duration: 3
Host: Massey University Manawatu
Contact Person: Professor BJ Guieysse
Panel: EIS
Project ID: 17-MAU-023
Fund Type: Marsden Fund
Category: Fast-Start
Year Awarded: 2017
Title: The heart of song; understanding the origins of vocal learning using New Zealand’s missing link, the titipounamu or rifleman
Recipient(s): Dr KE Cain | PI | The University of Auckland
Dr ML Hall | AI | University of Melbourne
Public Summary: Most animals communicate with innate sounds, but a select group of animals can learn new sounds. This special group includes humans, bats, elephants, some marine mammals (whales and dolphins), and three types of birds (parrots, songbirds, and hummingbirds). Birds are excellent models for human language research due to their accessibility and obvious behaviours. Future progress in this field requires a clear understanding of the evolutionary origins of vocal learning. However, recent research has drastically reordered the bird family tree. The new family tree has challenged many past assumptions, and lead to a hotly contested debate about when and how vocal learning evolved. The New Zealand wrens (Acanthisitti) are a critical missing link in this debate due to their unique position in the new bird family tree. However, very little is known about the vocal abilities of this group, and no one has tested them for vocal learning. Here, we combine our expertise in behavioural analyses with recently developed acoustic tools and techniques to determine whether this group of special New Zealand birds, are vocal learners. By studying the tītipounamu or rifleman, we aim to resolve the crucial question of when and how vocal learning evolved in birds.
Total Awarded: $300,000
Duration: 3
Host: The University of Auckland
Contact Person: Dr KE Cain
Panel: EEB
Project ID: 17-UOA-086
Fund Type: Marsden Fund
Category: Standard
Year Awarded: 2012
Title: The history of reading in colonial New Zealand and Australia
Recipient(s): Prof LJ Wevers | PI | Victoria University of Wellington
Public Summary: Reading was an essential component of colonial experience. Victorian novels filled cabin trunks and makeshift bookshelves but not much is known about how they were received and understood. We still know far too little about who was reading what where. This project will investigate the history of reading fiction in nineteenth century New Zealand and Australia and its associated culture of reading, including the connection of reading to colonial experience and imperialism. A nation defines itself by the books it produces, but also by the books it reads- were New Zealand and Australia separate 'reading nations' in William St Clair's phrase? Was a new readership developing in colonial societies that reflected the imbalances and pressures of colonial life, such as gender ratio distortions and class shocks? The project will have several points of focus, including the reading history of Dickens, and the reading preferences of indigenous readers. The project will result in the first history of reading in New Zealand and Australia in the nineteenth century,reflecting their shared cultures and markets but also seeking to tease out the differences and distinctions of two closely connected intellectual and social milieux.
Total Awarded: $386,957
Duration: 3
Host: Victoria University of Wellington
Contact Person: Prof LJ Wevers
Panel: HUM
Project ID: 12-VUW-043
Fund Type: Marsden Fund
Category: Fast-Start
Year Awarded: 2015
Title: The ice is melting: how do trace metals in the ocean influence the Antarctic marine ecosystem and global climate?
Recipient(s): Dr R Middag | PI | University of Otago
Associate Professor CH Stirling | AI | University of Otago
Associate Professor SG Sander | AI | University of Otago
Dr A-C Alderkamp | AI | Stanford University
Dr EM Bertrand | AI | Dalhousie University
Professor KR Arrigo | AI | Stanford University
Public Summary: Though often regarded as toxins, metals are required as nutrients for the growth of all organisms. Metals form the reactive centres of enzymes, enabling these to perform biochemical functions, such as oxygen-transport or photosynthesis. As such, trace metals are central to the health of individual organisms as well as entire ecosystems. In the open ocean, the base of the food web is formed by unicellular algae, known as phytoplankton. For certain ocean regions such as the Southern Ocean, trace metals regularly limit the amount of phytoplankton that can grow, and thus the amount of life that can be sustained. Since phytoplankton take up CO2 from the atmosphere, trace metals influence atmospheric CO2 levels and thus the global climate. However, only limited knowledge exists about these algae-trace metal interactions and their susceptibility to a changing climate. Coastal Antarctica harbours large phytoplankton blooms that sustain Antarctica's key higher organisms and are a crucial sink of anthropogenic CO2. This region experiences dramatic changes as temperatures are rising and glaciers are melting. This project will reveal what role trace metals play in the Antarctic ecosystem and give us the ability to predict how its role in global climate will change under future climate scenarios.
Total Awarded: $300,000
Duration: 3
Host: University of Otago
Contact Person: Dr R Middag
Panel: ESA
Project ID: 15-UOO-070
Fund Type: Marsden Fund
Category: Standard
Year Awarded: 2012
Title: The imaginative brain: neural networks supporting flexible future thinking
Recipient(s): Dr DR Addis | PI | The University of Auckland
Prof CL Grady | AI | Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care
Public Summary: The human brain can think flexibly about the future - a process critical to enhancing future success. When imagining the future, a network of regions distributed across the brain, known as the default network, is strongly engaged. However, little is known about how this network enables flexible future thinking. We plan to combine neuroimaging (fMRI) with emerging analysis techniques to explore whether two properties of network activity - brain variability and multi-voxel patterns - can index flexible future thinking. This research will provide a comprehensive understanding of how the brain is uniquely positioned to think creatively about the future.
Total Awarded: $678,261
Duration: 3
Host: The University of Auckland
Contact Person: Dr DR Addis
Panel: EHB
Project ID: 12-UOA-254
Fund Type: Marsden Fund
Category: Standard
Year Awarded: 2011
Title: The impact of behavioural and environmental change on health: indoor and outdoor pollution and immigrant asthma in New Zealand
Recipient(s): Prof J Gibson | PI | University of Waikato
Prof R Scarpa | AI | University of Waikato
Dr S Stillman | AI | Motu Economic and Public Policy Research
Public Summary: Asthma is a key public health problem in New Zealand. In addition to direct suffering, asthma has long-term impacts on health status, obesity, and missed school and work days. Asthma rates in New Zealand have doubled in recent decades, as part of a global increase that is too rapid to reflect genetic change in susceptibility. Attention has therefore turned to possible behavioural and environmental changes causing increased asthma. A natural laboratory for testing if such changes cause asthma comes from immigrants, since migration involves exposure to new allergens and pollutants and new behaviours. The proposed research examines the role of behavioural and environmental changes by studying immigrants to New Zealand who are selected through a random ballot. These immigrants are compared with non-migrants (those unlucky in the random ballot), who stay in their low asthma environment in the Pacific Islands, to test if changes in exposure to outdoor and indoor pollutants and behavioural changes in diets and children’s activities cause increased asthma. The proposed research will also inform strategies for this major public health problem in New Zealand by using choice experiments to estimate the values that these immigrants place on interventions that reduce the risk of asthma.
Total Awarded: $665,217
Duration: 3
Host: University of Waikato
Contact Person: Prof J Gibson
Panel: EHB
Project ID: 11-UOW-056