Current Members

Professor Alex Johnson – Principle investigator

johnsa@unimelb.edu.au

• GradCert – University Teaching (University of Melbourne, 2016)
• PhD – Horticulture (Virginia Tech, 2001)
• MSc – Horticulture (Virginia Tech, 1998)
• BA – Biology (Gustavus Adolphus College, 1996)

My lab uses a variety of molecular tools including metabolic profiling, genetic engineering and gene editing to develop biofortified crops. I teach into several undergraduate and postgraduate subjects at the University and am actively involved in postgraduate student supervision. I also sit on the board of the University of Melbourne Botany Foundation and am a College Fellow at Ormond College.

Dr Stephanie Watts-Fawkes – ARC DECRA & Future Making Fellow

stephanie.watts-fawkes@adelaide.edu.au

• PhD – Plant and Soil Science (Monash University, 2015)
• BEnvSci (Hons) – Plant Science (Monash University, 2010)

I enjoy conducting research on the plant-fungal symbiosis known as arbuscular mycorrhizas, especially investigating how they can improve plant zinc and phosphorus nutrition on nutrient-depleted soils. I am particularly interested in the potential agricultural applications of arbuscular mycorrhizas, and use important crops as model species in my research. I am currently an ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) and Future Making Fellow, based at The University of Adelaide’s Waite Research Institute.

Oscar Fung – PhD student

ofung@student.unimelb.edu.au

• MSc – BioSciences (University of Melbourne, 2020)
• BSc – Genetics (Monash University, 2018)

In my PhD I am using transgenic, intragenic and gene editing strategies to improve bread wheat growth and grain nutrition. In particular, I am studying the effect of several different overexpression constructs on grain iron and vitamin C content, as well as plant growth under control and abiotic stress conditions. I am also using CRISPR-Cas9-based gene editing to knockout negative regulators of Fe homeostasis and putative cis-acting regulatory elements that reduce the translation of key enzymes and regulators involved in vitamin C biosynthesis and the Fe deficiency response.

Rucha Patil – PhD student

ruchap@student.unimelb.edu.au

• MSc – BioSciences (University of Melbourne, 2021)
• BSc (Blended) – BioSciences (Savitribai Phule Pune University, 2019)

Human iron deficiency is a major problem in countries where micronutrient-poor cereal products such as bread are consumed as staple foods. My PhD project aims to improve bread Fe bioavailability through targeted manipulation of phytonutrients and antinutrients derived from a diverse range of bread wheat and soybean genotypes.  I am also investigating the effect of AM fungi-wheat symbioses on Fe bioavailability in bread wheat.

Amy Liu – PhD student

amyl4@student.unimelb.edu.au

• MSc – BioSciences (University of Melbourne, 2021)
• BSc – Plant Science (University of Melbourne, 2019)

My PhD project aims to improve soybean as a source of dietary Fe through the investigation and manipulation of nicotianamine (NA) and other compounds that are important for iron nutrition in plants. I am keen to develop more sustainable food production systems for the rapidly growing human population. I believe new biotechnological tools will be key drivers for the production of higher-yielding crops.

Lily Tarry-Smith – MSc student

ltarrysmith@student.unimelb.edu.au

Plants require iron as an essential element for numerous metabolic functions. Approximately 25-30% of the worlds cultivated land areas have low iron bioavailability due to high soil pH levels and this is particularly common in calcareous soils. In these conditions, crops can suffer from symptoms of iron deficiency leading to significant reductions in crop productivity and yield. I am researching the impact of genetically engineered overexpression of nicotianamine synthase genes in bread wheat using glasshouse and field growth trials. This project will assess the feasibility of using biotechnology strategies to improve the productivity of bread wheat under iron-limiting, calcareous soil conditions.

Lab Alumni

• Jesse Beasley – Postdoctoral researcher, 2021-2024. Contact: jessebeasley@121seed.com

• Edbert Parlindungan – MSc student, graduated 2022. Contact: eparlindung@student.unimelb.edu.au

• Ronan Broad – PhD student, graduated 2020. Contact: ronanbroad@gmail.com

• Ouda Khammy – Lab supervisor, 2017-2020. Contact: ouda@plen.ku.dk

• Marianne Weisser – PhD student, graduated 2020. Contact: weisser.marianne@gmail.com

• Julien Bonneau – Postdoctoral researcher, 2013-2019. Contact: julbfox@gmail.com

• Martin O’Brien – Postdoctoral researcher, 2017-2019. Contact: Martin.OBrien@latrobe.edu.au

• Natasha Nyangoma – Graduate Diploma in Science (Advanced Botany), graduated 2019. Contact: nati4mi@yahoo.co.uk

• Laura Moreno – Postdoctoral researcher, 2015-2017. Contact: lt.morenomoyano@gmail.com

• Tonatiuh Sánchez-Palacios – Postdoctoral researcher, 2014-2016. Contact: Tona.SanchezPalacios@murdoch.edu.au

• Jamie Selby-Pham – PhD student, graduated 2016. Contact: jamies@nutrifield.com.au