Discovering interactions between flowering and branching regulation

Branching and flowering are two crucial plant developmental processes that determine reproductive success and yield in both nature and agriculture. While there is evidence for crosstalk between regulation of flowering and branching, little is known about how the plant coordinates the regulation of branching and flowering in concert and across varied environmental conditions. Breeders aim to manipulate flowering time and branching to enhance desired crop traits, but shifted growing regions and sowing dates due to climate change mean that it is now very important to understand the interactions between these two developmental processes otherwise there may be serious unintended implications for agriculture. This project will use the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana and molecular physiology approaches to decipher how the flowering regulatory pathway, light and photoperiod regulate shoot branching.

Prof. Christine Beveridge, FAA, is a leader in shoot architecture research, having discovered the hormonal properties of strigolactone and the important role of sugars in shoot branching. She is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science, a Highly Cited Researcher, an ARC Georgina Sweet Laureate Fellow and past President of the International Plant Growth Substances Association. In the role of Director, Christine has established the ARC Centre of Excellence for Plant Success in Nature and Agriculture.

This project is part of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Plant Success in Nature and Agriculture, a vibrant multi-discipline team of researchers of all levels. Based at the University of Queensland’s St Lucia campus, the Centre provides access to world-leading knowledge and expertise, high-performance computational systems, greenhouse and advanced phenotyping facilities, and extensive support in a collaborative environment.

This project is supported by the Research project scholarship.

Learn more about the Research project scholarship.

You must contact the principal supervisor for this project to discuss your interest. You should only complete the online application after you have reached agreement on supervision.

Always make sure you are approaching your potential supervisor in a professional way. We have provided some guidelines for you on how to contact a supervisor.

Your application will be assessed on a competitive basis.

We take into account your:

• previous academic record
• publication record
• honours and awards
• employment history

A working knowledge of plant biology and physiology would be of benefit to someone working on this project.

A background or knowledge of molecular biology/genetics is highly desirable.

To be considered for this scholarship, please email the following documents to Dr Stephanie Conway (s.conway@uq.edu.au) and Dr Elizabeth Dun (e.dun@uq.edu.au):

• Cover letter
• CV
• Academic transcript/s
• Evidence for meeting UQ's English language proficiency requirements eg TOEFL, IELTS

Please note the following: Submitting the above documents does not constitute a full application for admission into The University of Queensland's PhD program. If you are selected as the preferred applicant, you will then be invited to submit a full application for admission. You can familiarise yourself with the documents required for this process on the UQ Study website.