Location: James Cook University, Townsville 4814, QLD Australia.
Project Summary:
Chytridiomycosis, an emerging amphibian disease caused by the fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), is the most devastating disease ever described in vertebrates. This pathogen has caused the decline of at least 500 species of amphibians since spreading from Asia to naïve populations in the Americas and Australia. The lack of a solution is due, in part, to the lack of understanding of host immunity to Bd and the tools to manipulate immunity. This PhD project aims to better characterise the genetic basis of immunity to Bd in a high-priority species (ie., Corroboree frogs) and use this knowledge to increase disease resistance through advanced selective breeding. The knowledge will be used in ongoing conservation breeding programs with partner organisations (ie., Taronga Conservation Society Australia and Zoos Victoria), as well as form baseline information in other amphibian breeding programs. This PhD project is part of an ARC Linkage funded partnership with Australian and International Universities, (University of Melbourne, University of Rochester and James Cook University), as well as government and Industry partners (NSW DPIE, Taronga Conservation Society and Zoos Victoria). The PhD project will specifically investigate the genetic basis (ie., heritability and trait architecture) of Bd resistance in captive bred Corroboree frogs as well develop the necessary genetic tools and knowledge to implement this information in ongoing advanced breeding programs. This PhD project is suited to those with a background (or strong determination to advance) in quantitative genetics, animal health and genome wide investigations.
Primary Supervisor: Prof Kyall Zenger (https://research.jcu.edu.au/portfolio/kyall.zenger/)
Partner Supervisors: A/Prof Lee Skerratt, A/Prof Lee Berger – The University of Melbourne.
Applications:
PhD (International/Domestic). Applicants will need to apply for a JCU competitive Research Scholarship and should be familiar with the Higher Degree by Research Requirements.
Enquiries to: [Email Address Removed]