ARC PHD SCHOLARSHIP – CHARACTERISING THE SALT-STRESS RESPONSE IN GRAPEVINE

The ARC PhD Scholarship “Characterising the salt stress response in grapevines” is funded by an Australian Research Council Discovery Project to support a full-time PhD who is commencing research in Plant Biology and / or Viticulture.

The ARC Discovery Project “Root to shoot; modelling salt stress in the plant vascular system” was awarded to Prof Stan Miklavcic (University of South Australia) and Dr Megan Shelden (University of Adelaide). The position will be located in the Department of Agriculture, Food and Wine at the Waite Campus, University of Adelaide.

ARC Discovery Project Summary

Salt and drought are the two major abiotic stresses affecting crop plant health, growth and development. The project aims to understand salt and water transport in plants and the physiological effects of soil salinity. Biophysical models will be used to quantify the movement of salt through plant organs, tissues and cells, from root to leaf. Using these models, the project aims to answer the question of how salt moves across the different tissues and major organs, how salt accumulates in leaf cells, and how movement and accumulation is controlled by the diversity of transport mechanisms operating in plants. The project seeks to quantify tissue tolerance, osmotic tolerance and ionic tolerance and discover new mechanisms by which plants can stave off the effect of salt stress.

The PhD student will be primarily responsible for collecting experimental data on how salt and water move through the grapevine vascular system under different environmental conditions that will subsequently be utilised in the model, developed at the University of South Australia. The PhD project will integrate components of plant physiology and molecular biology to understand salt and water movement at the whole plant, tissue and cellular level. They will join the team of researchers involved in this project and will be expected to collaborate with colleagues at the University of South Australia.

Eligibility:

Applicants must be Australian citizens or permanent residents of Australia who are acceptable as candidates for a PhD degree at the University of Adelaide. International students currently residing in Australia are eligible to apply.

How to apply:

Expressions of interest should be submitted to Dr Megan Shelden, megan.shelden@adelaide.edu.au with the name of scholarship in the subject heading. Please ensure you include all of the following documents:

  • A brief statement explaining your research interests in plant science and the proposed research topic
  • Evidence of Australian or New Zealand citizenship, or Australian permanent resident status, if applicable
  • Degree certificates (testamurs)
  • Academic transcripts
  • Translations of non-English documentation
  • Evidence of English language proficiency
  • Curriculum vitae

Short-listed applicants may be invited to an interview. Selected candidates will be invited to submit a formal application for admission. Instructions will be provided to candidates in due course.

Enquiries:

Dr Megan Shelden

School of Agriculture, Food and Wine

Tel: (08) 83136652

Email:  megan.shelden@adelaide.edu.au

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