What's On at UWA

You are invited to join us at the first national melanoma conference hosted by the Scott Kirkbride Melonoma Research Centre.

This is an exciting time for research discoveries and treatment advances. The conference program brings together the world’s leading melanoma researchers to talk about the very latest in; • Melanoma clinical trials and outcomes • Molecular signalling pathways • Radiology therapy breakthroughs and palliative treatments • Biomarker discovery and , • Pathology and epidemiology studies

Distinguished guest speakers include:

Professor Charles Balch (Johns Hopkins Clinical Research Network) Professor Boris Bastian (UCSF)

Professor John Thompson (Melanoma Institute Australia) Professor Grant McArthur (Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre) Professor Graham Mann (MIA, University of Sydney) Professor Nick Hayward (Queensland Institute for Medical Research)

The Seminar: It is generally thought that lung growth follows a trajectory such that an early life deficit in lung function is maintained throughout life. This has important implications for the development of chronic lung disease whereby early life impairments in lung growth may decrease the threshold for the development of respiratory symptoms, while increasing the susceptibility to insults that exacerbate disease. As such it is critical that we understand the environmental factors that impair (or promote) lung growth in early life in order to inform public health initiatives that will improve long term lung health in the community. This presentation will discuss the importance of in utero and early life environmental exposures in modulating lung development and the susceptibility to chronic lung disease using two case studies: 1) arsenic exposure via drinking water in utero and 2) vitamin D. While arsenic and vitamin D work in opposing directions, with arsenic having a negative impact on lung development and vitamin D having a positive impact, they are both associated with chronic lung disease in later life and can be modified through public health interventions. The impact of these exposures on lung development will be discussed in light of our recent studies using mouse models.

The Speaker: Associate Professor Graeme Zosky is a Principal Investigator and Head of the Lung Growth and Environmental Health Group at the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research. He has a PhD in Zoology from U.W.A. (2003) and a Masters in Biostatistics from the University of Sydney (2010). His research focuses on the role of early life exposures in the development of chronic lung disease later in life. He is also an international leader in the design and application of novel techniques for assessing lung mechanics in laboratory animals.

Want to go on exchange to Europe? Come along to the info session to hear specific details on studying in Europe. Meet UWA students who have studied there as well as students studying at UWA from Europe.

The branch of limnology often referred to as ‘Tropical’ limnology is represented by lake studies as diverse as those from alpine, high elevation lakes in Papua New Guinea to athallasic saline lakes located in tropical desert climes.

Thus it can be argued that the internal variability in the limnological characteristics of tropical lakes may well be as great as that found between tropical lakes and temperate and sub-temperate lakes. We will discuss the properties that are assumed when we discuss ‘tropical’ limnology and whether the assumption of their jurisprudence or ‘special’ characteristics is sound. These will include:

- Water Temperature and Density

- Gas solubilities and their implications

- Nutrient cycling and primary production

- Metabolic rates

Bio:

Kevin Boland obtained his Ph.D. from James Cook University. He spent many years as Principal Scientist (Water Quality) with the Northern Territory Government and for the past 17 years has been the Managing Director of Tropical Water Solutions Pty. Ltd., a small, specialist company working in the field of tropical limnology and water quality management.

He has studied tropical limnology for 35 years and is internationally recognised as a leader in this field. He has been involved in studies that encompass most of the lakes located in tropical North Australia and many in South-east Asia and further abroad. His insight into tropical lakes includes both the technical and social issues that affect contemporary attitudes to lakes of the tropical belt.

In recent years Kevin has observed a renewal of respect for the value of tropical lakes not only as resources but also as a source for social cohesion within indigenous and non-indigenous communities. In his words paraphrased from Ivan Illyich ‘ We now talk about H2O and water as separate entities and are starting to understand their interactions and future roles for communities and social well-being’.

PS* This seminar is free and open to the public & no RSVP required.

****All Welcome****

Sue Fletcher completed her first degree at the University of Zimbabwe (when the country still had a functional education system) and a PhD at UWA. She is a Principal Research Fellow working with Steve Wilton on developing antisense therapies for inherited disorders at the Centre for Neuromuscular and Neurological Disorders, University of Western Australia. The Wilton laboratory is located within the Australian Neuromuscular Research Institute, which is also the home of Muscular Dystrophy Western Australia. This group pioneered antisense oligomer induced exon skipping to overcome dystrophin mutations, and have developed antisense oligos for every dystrophin exon, except the first and last. Although not all dystrophin mutations are amenable to exon skipping intervention, and the potential improvements will depend upon the nature and location of the mutation, oligomer strategies should be developed for all, not just those with common mutations. The group are now exploring ways to overcome DMD-causing non-deletion mutations, including duplications and extending the technology to other inherited neuromuscular disorders, including spinal muscular atrophy.

Be transported away from the everyday with our exciting line-up of Thursday 1.10pm, free lunchtime concerts. This year's revamped Lunchtime Concert series features the best of our students in solo and small ensemble performance.

Want to go on exchange to the USA? Come along to the info session to hear specific details on studying in the USA. Meet UWA students who have studied there as well as students studying at UWA from the USA.

Elections for the positions of Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary, or one of two Ordinary Committee Members. Position descriptions for Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer can be found here: http://calendar.publishing.uwa.edu.au/latest/partd/guildregulations/subsidiarycouncils

All successful candidates will take office on December 1st and will serve a one-year term.

In order to be eligible to be a candidate, a person must be a student and a member of the Guild. To nominate email Naomi at [email protected] with your name, student number, contact number, and the position(s) you are nominating for. Nominations close at 5.00pm on Tuesday 30 October.

Candidates will be asked to speak for one minute in support of their nomination.

South-western Australia was a part of Gondwanaland, and some of the most ancient parts of the Earth’ crust can be found here. Other parts of the landscape originated more recently from calcareous marine deposits [1]. Therefore, the soils of Western Australia are amongst the most heavily leached and nutrient-impoverished in the world. Moreover, the soils on lateritic profiles tightly bind phosphate, so that, phosphorus (P) is also poorly available to plants that are not adapted to these conditions. The old, climatically buffered ancient landscape (OCBIL) of south-western Australia is also one of the world’s hotspots of higher plant species diversity [2]. Therefore, this environment offers a unique opportunity to study plant adaptations to nutrient-poor conditions [3, 4].

A relatively large proportion of species from the P-poor environments in Western Australia cannot produce an association with mycorrhizal fungi, but, instead, produce cluster roots or dauciform roots [5, 6]. These specialised roots are an adaptation both in structure and in functioning; they release large amounts of exudates, in particular carboxylates [7]. Cluster-root-bearing Proteaceae in Western Australia occur on the most P-impoverished soils, whereas the mycorrhizal Myrtaceae tend to inhabit the less P-impoverished soils in this region [8].

The functioning of cluster roots in Proteaceae and Fabaceae has received considerable attention. Dauciform roots in Cyperaceae have been explored less [9, 10], but they appear to function in a similar manner [11]. The growth of specialised cluster or dauciform roots in species of the Cyperaceae, Fabaceae and Proteaceae is stimulated when plants are grown at a very low P supply, and suppressed when leaf P concentrations increase [5, 7]. These specialised roots are all short-lived structures, and they release large amounts of carboxylates during an ‘exudative burst’ at rates that are considerably faster than reported for non-specialised roots of a wide range of species. The carboxylate release plays a pivotal role in mobilisation of P from P-sorbing soil [5].

Because the world P reserves are being depleted whilst vast amounts of P are stored in fertilised soils, there is a growing need for crops with a high efficiency of P acquisition. Some Australian native species have traits that would be highly desirable for future crops. The possibilities of introducing P-acquisition efficient species in new cropping and pasture systems are currently being explored [12, 13]. In addition, possible strategies to introduce traits associated with a high P-use efficiency into future crop species are considered promising.

High P-use efficiency in Proteaceae includes a highly efficient and proficient mobilisation of P from senescing leaves [14]. In addition, many species operate at extremely low leaf P concentrations exhibiting rates of photosynthesis similar to crop plant; expressed per unit leaf P, their rates of photosynthesis are extraordinarily high [4, 14]. I will explore what traits these species have that allow them to exhibit high rates of photosynthesis at very low leaf P concentrations.

Biography

I was born on a farm in the Netherlands in 1950 and completed my undergraduate degree in biology (1976), with a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry, followed by research projects in plant physiology and microbiology. I finished my PhD degree (1979) at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, working on (cyanide-resistant) plant respiration and effects of flooding. My PhD supervisors were Dr Rinie Hofstra, and Professors Pieter Kuiper and Rienk Brouwer.

After completion of my PhD, I did postdoctoral work at the University of Western Australia, with Professor John Pate, Melbourne University, with Dr Michael Dalling, and the Research School of Biological Science at the Australian National University, with Professor Barry Osmond, working on various aspects of the metabolism and transport of carbon and nitrogen in wheat, white lupins, and a range of other species. After two years as a postdoctoral fellow back in Groningen, I was offered the chair in Ecophysiology at Utrecht University (in 1985).

While in Utrecht, I continued work on plant respiration and started a new program on the physiological basis of variation in plant growth rate and productivity. Twenty eight fascinating theses have come to fruition under my supervision during that great time.

My teaching activities in ecophysiology have led to the completion of a textbook, Plant Physiological Ecology, Springer, New York, just before I moved to UWA. The textbook was translated in both Chinese and Persian. The second, completely revised edition of this book appeared in 2008.

For three years, after my move to UWA, I maintained a fractional appointment at Utrecht University, to promote exchange of students between Utrecht University and UWA and to build collaborative research programs.

PS* This seminar is free and open to the public & no RSVP required.

****All Welcome****

Be transported away from the everyday with our exciting line-up of Thursday 1.10pm, free lunchtime concerts. This year's revamped Lunchtime Concert series features the best of our students in solo and small ensemble performance.

Want to go on exchange to Canada? Come along to the info session to hear specific details on studying in Canada. Meet UWA students who have studied there as well as students studying at UWA from Canada.

In the late 1970s pioneering art teacher Steve Culley transformed the Fremantle Prison art program from traditional watercolour painting into a course where ‘ideas unfold in the mind and lock into the creator’s hands, as each pursues his own style of art.’ (Shackles prison newsletter, Spring 1984). Jimmy Pike developed his unique style as a pupil of Steve Cully’s whilst serving time at Fremantle Prison. In this evening talk, Fremantle Prison’s curatorial staff will speak about the history of the prison art program at Fremantle and explore the richness and diversity of the Fremantle Prison art collection, which encompasses graffiti, murals, painted furniture, and more traditional works on paper and canvas.

The School of Music invites you and your guests to join us as we celebrate the musical achievements of students from across UWA, who have chosen to broaden and enrich their degrees with music!

In a concert that will take you on journey from the heady lights of Broadway, to the carnival beats of Brazil and beyond. Under the direction of Lee Stanley and Aaron Hales, the Percussion Ensemble and Show Choir will entertain you in a performance showcasing their semester’s work.

Friday 2 November - 4:00- 5:00pm Callaway Music Auditorium Entry is Free

Nutrient loss from terrestrial ecosystems causes nutrient enrichment in receiving waterways (eutrophication) threatening their water quality and biodiversity values. The Peel-Harvey estuary (WA), RAMSAR-listed wetlands and their contributing waterways in coastal plain catchments in the Peel-Harvey area are an example of the above issues. Fertilizer application on sandy soils has been targeted for Best Management Practices (BMPs) for phosphorus (P) due to their poor nutrient retention ability. Traditionally, conceptual and numerical models for catchment hydrology and P transport processes have been used to assess and implement BMPs that achieve “targeted P loading” at the catchment’s outlet. Validity of the model results is often questioned as model internal structures and process representations cannot be contrasted due to lack of comprehensive datasets.

New field sampling strategies, based on eco-hydrological concepts, have recently become a stepping stone in unlocking key first-order control processes in nutrient cycling (nutrient availability, pathways and transport mechanisms) in catchments by simultaneously monitoring water movement and nutrient cycle processes along a topo-sequence (from uplands to riparian and stream zones). In this talk, I will present results of the implementation of such approaches to investigate the effect that the seasonality on rainfall inputs, plants, and soil types exert on hydrological and biogeochemical pathways for P within hillslopes of coastal plain landscapes (Mayfield drain catchment, Harvey River, WA). Detailed documentation of water movement in surface and shallow subsurface pathways, passive tracers, biogeochemical parameters and P concentrations (total, total dissolved, and soluble reactive P) was undertaken from April 2011-October 2012 at several hillslopes representative of different land uses and soil types in the area.

The preliminary results highlighted: 1) significant differences in the way and timing at which the hydrological connectivity of upland-riparian zones via shallow subsurface flow takes place in different landscapes, 2) seasonal changes on the interaction of shallow subsurface flow in riparian zones with surface water in the drains, and 3) changes on biogeochemical functioning of upland and riparian zones in relation to P cycle and P forms (organic or inorganic). The implications of the findings for our current understanding and previously proposed conceptual models for hydrological and P pathways in coastal plain catchments in the Peel-Harvey area will be discussed.

This work was conducted within a trans-disciplinary project (plant-soil-water sciences) during 2011-2012 founded by Greening Australia-ALCOA Foundation US to investigate the use of novel plants to mitigate P losses towards sustainable landscapes in the Peel-Harvey catchment, and it will continue (2012-2015) under an ARC Linkage Project “Farming in a biodiversity hotspot – harnessing native plants to reduce deleterious off-site phosphorus flows” (J. Lambers and M Ryan, School of Plant Biology, UWA).

Bio

Dr Carlos Jorge Ocampo is a Research Assistant Professor at the Centre for Ecohydrology (UWA). Carlos holds an Engineering Degree in Water Resources (Hydrology/Hydraulic) from the Universidad Nacional del Litoral (UNL, Argentina) and a PhD in Environmental Engineering from UWA on the topic of hydrological and biogeochemical controls on catchment nitrate response.

On completion of his PhD, Carlos returned to Argentina where he was an Assistant Professor at UNL and a Research Scientist at the National Research Council (CONICET). He returned to UWA in 2010. Carlos is a field-oriented hydrologist (hillslope-catchment hydrology) but he has a strong background in numerical modelling in urban hydrology, catchment hydrology, and historical flood reconstruction in large river systems.

His research interests lie in linking hydrology and biogeochemistry (nutrient cycles) at catchment scale, by using a combined approach of hydrometric, passive and isotopic tracers, and numerical modelling. He has conducted field work in a number of sites in Australia and Argentina on nitrogen and phosphorus cycling, hydrological connectivity of shallow-transient groundwater systems, and surface/groundwater interactions.

PS* This seminar is free and open to the public & no RSVP required.

****All Welcome****

Professor Irminger-Finger studied biology and biochemistry in Zurich, where she graduated in molecular biology and biochemistry and obtained a PhD in molecular genetics. After a three year postdoctoral period at the Molecular Cell Biology Department at the Harvard University, she returned to Switzerland and first had a position as independent researcher at the Biochemistry Department of the University of Geneva. In 1997 she moved into oncology at the Medical Faculty of the University of Geneva, having obtained a Swiss federal career development award. In 1998 she started her own research group focusing on the molecular pathways at the aging and cancer interface as part of the Biology of Aging Institute at the same institution. Since 2006 she heads the Molecular Gynecology and Obstetrics Laboratory at the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics at the Geneva University Hospitals. The main interest of this laboratory is the function of tumor suppressor genes in normal and cancer cells and their implication in carcinogenesis and cancer progression, in particular the breast cancer genes BRCA1 and BARD1. Over the years, Dr. Irmgard Irminger-Finger built up her reputation as expert in the Cancer and Aging field and as expert on the BRCA1 and BARD1 genes, as author of scientific articles, speaker at conferences, organizer of meetings, and member of specific study groups and Task Forces.

The final of 3 FREE seminars on past, current and planned research in the Kimberley

Afternoon tea provided.

SEMINAR 3: FRIDAY 9 NOVEMBER

Dr Chris Simpson (DEC) The WAMSI Kimberley Marine Research Program: A once in a lifetime opportunity

Recent resource development proposals by oil and gas companies to process and export Browse Basin hydrocarbons on the Kimberley mainland and offshore islands have recently put the entire Kimberley region under the spotlight. Although the number of people living in the Kimberley and visitors to this region is still relatively small, the natural and cultural values of the Kimberley region are very well known by Australians.

The Kimberley region is considered widely as one of the world’s last great wilderness areas, a biodiversity ‘hotspot’ and a centre of Aboriginal culture. The resource development proposals provided impetus for the State Government’s Kimberley Science and Conservation Strategy (KSCS) that would help ensure that any development would be compatible with the maintenance of the natural and Aboriginal heritage values of this region.

The WAMSI Kimberley Marine Research Program (KMRP) is a key element of the KSCS and is a once in a lifetime opportunity to undertake and integrated program of marine research in this region. The KMRP is focused on providing the scientific information to underpin the conservation and management of the marine environment of the Kimberley in general and the proposed regional network of marine parks and reserves in particular. The KMRP began formally with the endorsement of KMRP Science Plan by the WAMSI Board in December 2011. The KMRP Science Plan was preceded by several other documents and reports, including the 2008 WAMSI a turning of the tide report, highlighting the urgent need for a program of marine research in the Kimberley coastal waters.

The presentation will briefly outline the history, objectives, geographical focus, research directions and outcomes of the KMRP. The operational and logistical difficulties of undertaking marine research in such a large and remote location will also be discussed.

Mr James Brown (Kimberley Marine Research Station) An insider’s perspective on marine research in the Kimberley

The Kimberley Marine Research Station (KMRS) was first established in 2009 with guidance from WAMSI in an endeavour to support and contribute to an enhanced marine science effort throughout the remote Kimberley region of the far north-west. KMRS was founded upon the overarching ethos of generating the highest standard of truly independent, peer-reviewed scientific output for the greater public good, working towards bridging relevant knowledge gaps on this remarkable yet largely under-studied marine region. Located at Cygnet Bay Pearl Farm on the tip of the Dampier Peninsula, 200km by road north of Broome, the KMRS venture was pioneered by Kimberley born-and-bred marine biologist and third generation pearl farmer James Brown. Today, KMRS represents one of only five marine research stations along WA’s 27,000km coastline; the first and only fully operational marine research facility along the 13,500km contours of Kimberley coastline; and the only privately funded marine research facility in the country. Along with resident marine scientists based permanently on-site year round, the Station offers a mainland base, vessels, infrastructure, support personnel and 65 years’ worth of local knowledge and marine expertise to researcher teams with boating, diving and aquarium facilities available for research use. This talk will provide insight into the opportunities, logistics and exciting potential for marine scientists interested in operating in and on Kimberley waters through KMRS.

The Seminar: With ageing, the progressive loss of skeletal muscle mass and function (sarcopenia) results in frailty, loss of independence and is a major cause of increased falls and fractures. Surprisingly little is known about the mechanisms of sarcopenia and these will prove to be complex. We have established a mouse model of sarcopenia and described the time course of age-related muscle wasting in C57Bl/6J mice. This model is currently used to investigate mechanisms of age-related muscle wasting. The talk will focus on three aspects of sarcopenia: 1) understanding molecular changes in ageing muscle with the aim to identify sarcopenia markers and develop therapies; 2) loss of myofibre innervation; 3) use of exercise as an intervention to prevent sarcopenia.

The Speaker: Tea Shavlakadze is a Research Associate Professor at the School of Anatomy, Physiology and Human Biology, the University of Western Australia. The research of TS has targeted factors controlling growth and maintenance of skeletal muscle mass and potential therapies for muscle disorders with a focus on in vivo studies using mouse models. Major areas of research include the role of Insulin-like Growth Factor-1 (IGF-1) in regulating skeletal muscle mass, and analyses of signalling pathways and other factors involved in many situations of skeletal muscle wasting.

Combining music, dance and story-telling, this performance will be an unforgettable opportunity to experience the riches of the Balinese performing arts.

Featuring some forty musicians and dancers from the Indonesian Institute of Arts, Denpasar.

Presented as a free ticketed event by the Consulate General of the Republic of Indonesia in partnership with The University of Western Australia.

Wednesday 14 November 2012, 12.30pm - 1.30pm, The Sunken Garden, UWA

RSVP essential: [email protected] / 08 6488 7836

The present ecological situation of the Black Sea in relation to increased shipping from ports in the Black Sea, the prospect of considerably high tanker traffic carrying Caspian and Central Asian oil through the Aegean and the excessive loads of nutrients and other harmful substances flowing from rivers such as Danube, Dniper and Dnister has generated fears in Greece and Turkey, as well as among environmentalists throughout the world, of still more acute threats to the ecosystem and cleanliness of the Aegean Sea.

A numerical simulation of the surface buoyant mega plume that is formed from the Black Sea brackish water discharge into the North Aegean Sea, through the Dardanelles Straits, has been performed using the ELCOM hydrodynamic model after validation with laboratory model results and available field and remote sensing data. Important climatological factors, such as air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, wind direction, solar radiation, atmospheric pressure and rainfall that affect the water circulation in North Aegean as well as the Coriolis force effect, are taken into account. The choice of the 3D hydrodynamic model ELCOM was made due to its advanced ability to monitor and predict the Black Sea pollutants that outflow in the North Aegean Sea using passive non-dimensional computational tracers.

The simulation was conducted for a total flow time of 16 years. Suitable tracers are introduced in order to predict the long term fate and distribution of pollutants that are transported from the Black sea into the North Aegean. The overall results of the present investigation indicate that the BSP concentration is very high at the coastal waters of Thassos, Samothraki, and Limnos islands, as well as along the mainland coastal waters between Alexandroupolis and Strymonikos Gulf, during summer and autumn when strong water column stratification occurs. In general, the BSP concentration in the North Aegean surface waters reaches considerable high values (47– 58 % of the initial pollutant concentration at Dardanelles outflow) within 16 years. Even for depths more than 500 m the BSP concentration is still remarkable, slightly increasing with time. The increase of the BSP concentration with respect to time at various depths (from free surface up to 750 m) was also investigated.

Biography

Kyriakos received the BEng Degree of Civil Engineering in 2000 and the MSc Degree in Concrete Technology, Construction and Management in 2002 from the Department of Civil Engineering at Dundee University in Scotland. He then received his MSc Degree in Hydraulic Mechanics in 2007 and his Ph.D. Degree in 2012 from the Department of Civil Engineering at Democritus University of Thrace in Greece. He is currently working as a researcher at Democritus University of Thrace and he is member of the Technical Chamber of Greece (TEE) and the ECRR (European Center for River Restoration).

His research interests are mainly in the area of Environmental Fluid Mechanics, CFD Modelling, Experimental Modelling and Physical and Chemical Oceanography and Limnology.

PS* This seminar is free and open to the public & no RSVP required.

****All Welcome****

Dr Terry Boyle is an early carer investigator whose research aims to identity and improve our understanding of modifiable risk factors (particularly physical activity and sedentary behaviour) for cancer. His recently completed PhD research involved investigating the effects of physical activity, sedentary behaviour and resistance training on the risk of colorectal cancer. These studies were among the first in the world to investigate these issues, and have provided new insights into the cancer-preventive effects of physical activity. His current research focuses on the influence of physical activity and sedentary behaviour on health and psychosocial outcomes in cancer survivors.