2026 research projects

Pioneering targeted recombination by pushing the boundaries of Mendel’s meiosis using CRISPR/cas genome editing

Are you ready to join the next revolution in plant genetics? This project offers motivated students the chance to explore one of the most exciting frontiers in genome engineering: targeted recombination. Recombination naturally shuffles genetic material during reproduction, creating diversity that plant breeders use for crop improvement. But in many crops, it’s rare and unpredictable, slowing breeding progress. Imagine being able to guide recombination exactly where it matters most. Using CRISPR/Cas genome editing, this project aims to do just that—reshuffling DNA precisely to assemble key traits like stress tolerance, disease resistance, and yield stability (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41477-021-00910-4). As a Master’s student, you’ll gain hands-on experience in CRISPR editing, molecular biology, and advanced genomics. You’ll apply these tools to WA’s major crops, such as wheat and canola, working alongside industry partners. Beyond technical skills, you’ll help drive real-world outcomes in food security and climate resilience. Suitable for Accelerated Research Masters with Training. A basic knowledge of genetics and molecular biology required.

Unlocking wheat's full reproductive potential for hybrid breeding using the latest techniques in synthetic biology and genome editing (CRISPR/Cas)

Wheat feeds more people worldwide than any other crop—yet yields have stagnated for decades. Unlike rice and corn, which benefit from hybrid breeding, wheat remains inbred and self-fertilizing. Hybrids could boost yields by 10–22%, but high seed production costs—caused by wheat’s floral architecture and poor outcrossing—blocks progress. This project aims to overcome that barrier by enhancing wheat’s female receptivity to airborne pollen, cutting seed costs and unlocking hybrid potential. The result: more stable harvests, higher yields, and stronger food security in a changing climate. Backed by the Australian Research Council, BASF, and a global alliance of seed companies and universities (https://doi.org/10.1002/tpg2.70092), this is your chance to work at the frontier of plant genetics. As a Master’s student, you’ll gain hands-on expertise in CRISPR/Cas9 editing, synthetic biology, molecular cloning, transformation, microscopy, and trait phenotyping—skills in high demand across academia and industry. Help shape the future of agriculture with real-world impact. Suitable for Accelerated Research Masters with Training. Basic knowledge of genetics and molecular techniques required.

Hydration, Health, and Human Performance: Advancing Non-Invasive Monitoring and Predictive Systems for Health and Industry

Maintaining hydration is essential to health, performance, and safety—yet in most workplaces and community settings, we lack accurate, scalable ways to assess hydration in real time. This research opportunity invites HDR students to join a program focused on the development, validation, and application of non-invasive hydration monitoring tools and predictive systems, with direct relevance to occupational, clinical, sporting, defence, and consumer health.

The program is grounded in commercially aligned, industry-facing research and contributes to the broader validation and refinement of a wearable-compatible hydration algorithm currently undergoing real-world testing.

Key research directions may include:

• Validating non-invasive hydration technologies against established gold-standard measures
• Supporting the real-world application of hydration monitoring in industrial, military, sporting, aged-care, or clinical rehabilitation settings
• Contributing to predictive model development and risk stratification tools using physiological and behavioural data
• Evaluating hydration behaviours, patterns, and barriers across large and diverse populations

We welcome applicants motivated to work on real-world problems across occupational, sporting, military, clinical, and community settings, with both scientific rigour and practical impact. Suitable for Research Masters with Training or Masters by Research.

How does Concept Art differ from Illustration? Exploring the creative process in the entertainment industry

Within the video game and animation industries exist creatives known as Concept Artists, whose main job is to explore ideas through series of drawings, paintings, production art and illustrations. Alike film creation, the development stages are pre-production, development and post-production. Concept Artists aim to set the visual style within pre-production and establish artwork that is used by development stage.

However, I argue in my research that there is a large misunderstanding as to what Concept Art does. What the job entails and the work completed within this space, often confused with illustration. The reason for this I argue is from the art books and artworks released from game projects showing more “final” designs from the projects for advertising.

It is my goal to better inform the community, industry and potential students/junior concept artists to what the process actually entails by engaging with current industry in the SEA region.

Suitable for Research Masters with Training or Masters by Research.

Dr O’Mahony is an industry Concept Artist with 15 years that is now teaching in the field at Murdoch University, undertaking my Master and later PhD on topics surrounding human creativity and their place in the entertainment industry in order to create better pedagogical tools and understanding of what the creative brings to this world.

Accessible Environmental Education: from the oncology ward to the Early Learning Centre

This project investigates the impact of educational material about local native plants in paediatric oncology wards, where nature-based activities are often restricted. The project is part of a multi-year collaboration with Perth Children’s Hospital. To assess the program's effectiveness, observational assessments and structured interviews will be conducted with Early Childhood Educators and carers, providing valuable insights into the children's developmental responses, linked to the EYLF 2.0 and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This initiative seeks to create a nurturing environment within the hospital setting, promoting healing and supporting the cognitive and physical development of children undergoing challenging medical treatments.

Dr Janene Sproul (Education)

Vocational education and training for the Australian government’s manufacturing agenda

The Australian government has prioritised the development of high valued-added manufacturing in the food and beverage, medical products, renewable energy, mineral processing, defence, and aeronautics sectors. A major challenge in developing Australia’s manufacturing capacity in these sectors is a shortage of skilled labour. Finding ways to develop Australia’s labour force is therefore essential for meeting its manufacturing priorities. One strategy for developing labour skills is through vocational secondary education and training. The aim of this study is to identify models from other countries that could provide insights for the Australian context. The findings of the study will lead to specific recommendations about how vocational secondary education and training can be leveraged to meet Australia’s skilled labour needs in high value-added manufacturing.

Specialist programs in secondary schools: benefits and challenges

Secondary schools in Australia are increasingly adopting specialist programs to cater to student needs, increase student engagement, and compete with other schools for student enrolments. This aRMT project comprises a systematic review of the benefits, opportunities, challenges, barriers and limitations of specialist programs in secondary schools. 

Student well-being in the Programme for International Student Assessment

Student well-being is an important facet of education that has been receiving increased attention of the last several years. The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), the largest international student assessment in the world, collects data from 15-year students about cognitive, social, physical and psychological wellbeing. This aRMT project comprises a systematic review about wellbeing as measured on PISA and its relation with academic achievement and other educational outcomes. 

Increasing access to Environmental Education: Primary school students with disability

These projects investigate effect of modified environmental education materials for either primary or secondary students. As part of a multi-year program, novel resources will be trialed and linked to the new SCSA Science curriculum (v9) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Differentiated resources incorporating Universal Design for Learning and Cognitive load theory focus on sustainable ecosystems and plants native to Noongar Country. Structured interviews will be conducted with teachers and Education Assistants to assess the program's effectiveness.

Dr Janene Sproul (Education)

Development of a hybrid wind turbine drone

This project is concerned with the development of an innovative wind turbine and its control system. Drone avionics technology is used by the control system to enable the rotor of the turbine to prescribe an optimal path in terms of aerodynamic efficiency. The forces on the rotor are controlled to be balanced throughout its path, reducing the amount of infrastructure required to support the turbine. This could lead to a wind turbine that is efficient, stable and low-cost. Initial studies have focused on construction of a prototype and its operation in the absence of an external wind flow. A control system has been set up that regulates rotor speed and allows wireless communication between sensors and microcontrollers to log data on rotor position and orientation. The project requires a student to optimise and commission the control system and conduct tests on the prototype in air flows generated by an industrial fan. Further studies would involve prototypes on floating platforms.

Suitable for Research Masters with Training or Masters by Research.

Is it better to have large workers or more of them?

Trade-offs of group size and worker size in ants Social animals must choose where to invest their limited resources to maximise group competitiveness. For ants, there is a proposed trade-off between investing in the inpidual size of workers and the size of the colony. This trade-off affects how and where ants can live. For example, previous work has suggested that invasive ants should invest less in inpidual size and more in producing large colonies. We are seeking interested students to help us investigate this trade-off, which is fundamental to the fitness and strategy of ant colonies, and the environmental and social factors that control it. Approaches could include conducting a comprehensive meta-analysis and/or review to determine whether such a trade-off is consistent across ant species, and categorising ants along the trade-off curve according to such features as invasiveness, pest potential, habitat, diet, and foraging strategy.

If interested, please contact Sam at Samuel.lymbery@murdoch.edu.au

Cognition and Warfare Humans aren’t the only animals that go to war.

The mechanisms of non-human warfare, however, remains an understudied and exciting area of research. This project will use ants, the ideal model system for such studies, this system to examine the link between success in group battles and a crucial element of animal behaviour: cognitive ability.

There will be opportunity for students to work flexibly with us to develop their own projects within this over-arching goal. Broadly, we envision assaying the cognitive abilities of inpidual ants, constructing experimental armies from relatively “smart” or “stupid” inpiduals, and staging laboratory battles between these armies. This work will provide valuable data on ant cognition, and generate insights into the relative success of ant species. Since ants are one of the world’s most important groups of animal pests, such information is always of practical importance as well as fundamentally advancing the study of non-human warfare.

Redesigning sea containers to mitigate incursion risk

Exotic pests, diseases and weeds can hitch a ride to Australia inside shipping containers. Sea containers are demonstrated vectors to many economically important quarantinable insects, including timber pests, agricultural pests, environmental pests, and nuisance pests. The Harry Butler Institute is working with the Department of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries to identify hotspots within sea container for pest refuge and to redesign niches to reduce the risk of incursion into Australia. We are looking for students who are passionate about protecting Australia’s biopersity and agriculture industry to join this project. Students can work with us to arrive at targeted projects, and examples could include:

• Matching microclimate and habitat variables within shipping containers to preferences of pest species
• Investigating the role of diapause in resistance to control measures and how this may change management approaches
• Optimising lure placement for effectively detecting pest presence/absence"

Analysis of regional climate model simulations of historical and future climate

High resolution regional climate projections are available over Australia from dynamical downscaling of the latest global climate models from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Coupled Model Intercomparison Project version 6 (CMIP6). Several research questions can be developed using these projections, for example, how will compound extremes events change in the future? What will be the effect of climate change on renewable energy resources? Etc. Projects can also be tailored to suit the student’s interests. The student should have some prior background is atmospheric science/meteorology/oceanography/climate etc, and should also have some knowledge of scientific programming using scripted languages such as Python/R/Matlab/NCL or similar.

Associate Professor Jatin Kala;
Dr. Kerryn Hawke

The Fortescue Marsh

The Fortescue Marsh is a recognised Important Bird Area (IBA), s upporting 187 bird species and up to 270,000 waterbirds when inundated. As part of Western Australia’s commitment to be carbon neutral by 2050, many Pilbara mining companies have announced their intention to move to wind and solar energy for their operations. While an important step towards reducing climate change, this shift to renewable energy could have biodiversity impacts that need to be considered as part of green energy planning and commissioning. Understanding which bird and bat species are likely to be using proposed sites is an important first step towards identifying potential risk. This project will compile a list of all bird and bat species reported in published and available grey literature for a 10,000 km2 area centred around the Fortescue Marsh, and compile a traits database for these species to calculate (a) wing loading (the weight of the bird / surface area of the wing), and (b) aspect ratio (wing length /wing width). Missing data will be compiled through measurement of museum specimens. These data will then inform species-specific flight risk windows and provide input values to Collision Risk Models (aerodynamic ability, flight speed, altitude and directionality), which can then inform conservation management decisions.

Feral cats can be difficult to monitor and control due to neophobia and trap avoidance behaviour resultng in low detection rates and variable success of control measures. We will test a novel, long-life (up to 1 year) lure system to increase camera trap success and reduce neophobic behaviour of cats. Using this lure, we will develop a monitoring system to record feral cat activity, comparing between three camera types and identifying individual cats from distinctive markings.

Are all Phytophthora species invasive?

Phytophthora dieback cause by the invasive pathogen Phytophthora cinnamomi has devastated impacted natural ecosystems in Western Australia.  In mapping its presence, 70 other Phytophthora species have been recovered some of which appear to be native, some introduced.  The bridgehead effect suggest that new species arrive, becomes established in urban environments and then spread into natural ecosystems.  However, traits of the species and environmental filtering, may influence invasiveness.  This project would use the extensive database  and targeted sampling from Western Australia to interrogate these principals.

Diversity of pathogens in stressed forest ecosystems

The  decline of forests worldwide is driven by multiple stressors including disease, fire and drought. Unfortunately, the interactions of multiple stressors may increase a forest’s susceptibility to future stressors. For example, a forest that has experienced drought and fire may have reduced health and vigour and thus be more prone to pathogen incursions. This project will determine how prone these stressed forests are to future pathogen incursions. We will quantify the diversity of pathogens and compare to the diversity of pathogens in healthy forest.

Pathogen accumulation in healthy vs disturbed forests

Habitat fragmentation has resulted in forest fragments spread throughout other land uses (i.e. farming and horticulture). The edges of these fragments are more prone to human and animal traffic and increased access for invasive species including pathogens. This project will determine whether plant species along these disturbed edges accumulate more pathogens than plant species in the forest's interior. Roots from multiple plant species in these two distinct areas will be collected and root fragments plated on selective media for culturing of potential fungal and oomycete pathogens.

Susceptibility of invasive and native plant species to plant pathogens

Invasive plant species can alter plant communities and pose a risk to native plants through pathogen accumulation. Invasive plant species may be less susceptible to some plant pathogens, acting as reservoirs that can increase transmission to native plant species. This project will determine the susceptibility of invasive and native plants to various plant pathogens through leaf/branch assays. The student will inoculate the various host material and measure lesion growth over time. This project will enhance knowledge of the host range of important plant pathogens and highlight possible hosts that may act as reservoirs or be less susceptible.

How to court a jumping spider using chemicals

Did you know that the largest living land animal, the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) shares the same sex pheromone as 140 species of moth? Although it is unlikely that elephants and moths will choose the incorrect mate, this sharing of sex pheromones demonstrates the ubiquity of pheromones across the animal kingdom. This project will investigate the sex pheromones used by the jumping spider Menemerus nigli. Jumping spiders are known for complex courtship displays with both visual, vibratory, and chemical components. The jumping spider Menemerus nigli is considered non-indigenous to Australia and results from this study will be used to determine the feasibility of isolating chemicals for use as a lure in traps. 

Aliens among us - biosecurity matters 

Rats on Gough island that attack adult albatross and dive into water to prey on crabs. Possums in New Zealand that forego their plant-based diet for native bird eggs. Fire ants in Australia who are known to wipe out entire native ecosystems. These invasive species, and many more, are causing significant environmental and economic harm and their numbers are accelerating as the world becomes ever increasingly connected. Invasive alien species are considered one of the five direct drivers causing a global decline in nature and without significant transformation to support a global sustainable pathway, it’s only going to get worse. We are using a multidisciplinary approach (evolutionary, ecology, chemical, computer science, social science) to develop innovative solutions that will help staunch the flow of invasive species from moving around the globe. If you are interested in this area of research, please contact me to discuss project options that will suit your own interests and strengths. 

Harvey River Habitat Restoration

See this video for summary of the project

This fully funded project will determine the response of an aquatic ecosystem to the first re-snagging program of a channalised river system in south-western Australia. The student will collect data from the third post-restoration monitoring in autumn 2024 and in doing so skill themselves in standardised sampling (that are also used by State Government scientists) of fish, crayfish, mussels, turtles and macroinvertebrates. They will them combine that information and analyse it with our existing dataset to quantify how the aquatic ecosystem has changed in response to re-snagging of the Harvey River.  Skills attained will include species ID, univariate and multivariate analyses, along with enhancing their knowledge on aquatic biodiversity.  This high-project project will suit a student who has an interest and passion for the conservation of native fauna and is pursuing a career in the research or management of aquatic ecosystems.

Ecosystem services of invasive bivalves on restored shellfish reef habitats

Shellfish reefs are among the most imperiled marine ecosystems in the world. Because of their provision of important ecosystem services (e.g. water filtration and habitat provision), large scale initiatives have aimed to restore these ecosystems. In the Swan River, 1.5 ha of limestone reef bases were deployed in 2022 and seeded with Mediterranean Mussels. While the abundance of the candidate species remains below target levels, other non-indigenous bivalves (Asian Date Mussel and Spiny Scallop) have become relatively abundant. This project aims to quantify the ecosystem services of these non-indigenous bivalves and to elucidate why these species are more successful than native bivalves.

Alan Cottingham,
James Tweedley

Meta-analysis in ecology and evolution

Various projects are available to explore broad-scale ecological and evolutionary patterns and general principles, such as species responses to environmental change, patterns of biodiversity, or evolutionary trade-offs, via meta-analysis. Students will gain valuable skills in systematic review methodology, statistical analysis (mainly using R), and scientific communication, with the potential to contribute to high-impact publications and evidence-based conservation or policy recommendations. This research pathway is ideal for students seeking to develop strong analytical capabilities and contribute meaningfully to the advancement of ecological and evolutionary science.

Climate influence on body size in frog and reptile communities

Climate has a profound influence on the evolution of body size, with various hypotheses to explain these patterns. This project will test competing hypotheses such as resource availability, desiccation resistance, and ecogeographic rules in wide-ranging Western Australian frogs and reptiles. This work will involve measuring museum and live animals across climate gradients, analysing climate datasets, and using phylogenetic and statistical analysis. This project suits students interested in climate change biology, especially those keen to develop quantitative skills. A background in ecology, zoology, or environmental science is helpful, but training in data handling and analysis will be provided.

Gender and the Climate-Security Nexus

Climate change will have enormous implications on food and water security, health, and potentially even conflict and migration. Such security risks are not distributed equally, but vary along intersecting identities like gender, race, and class. The project will pick a particular aspect of the climate-security nexus (e.g., water, food, violence) and study its gendered dimensions.

Tobias Ide

Resistance against Green Minerals

Renewable energy technologies like wind power, solar energy, and electric vehicles are key to mitigating climate change. Expanding renewables will require increased extraction of key minerals like lithium cobalt, and nickel. Such mining often results in conflict, for instance between the mining company and local communities. The project will study the causes and dynamics of as well as ways to mediate such conflicts. The regional focus can be adjusted by the student and may include Western Australia, Indonesia, India, Bhutan, or another place.

Tobias Ide

Political Conflicts in the Pacific Island Countries

The Pacific Island countries are of key strategic importance to Australia, while several Pacific nations suffered from political instability in the past. Despite of this, systematic knowledge on political conflicts in the region is scarce. The project will build and analyse a geo-referenced, time-coded dataset of conflict events (e.g., protests, riots) in the Pacific. Note: Basic knowledge of statistics or big data analyses is helpful but not a requirement.

Tobias Ide

Environmental Activism - On the responsibility to protest

Why aren’t we all eco-warriors? There’s a long tradition in philosophy discussing the use of civil disobedience for political goals. What is permissible when it comes to climate protests and activism? Is it ok to damage revered art works for a greater cause? Does it go too far to protest outside the private home of the CEO of a major fossil fuel company? Another – even older - tradition in philosophy (and theology) ponders the justifiability of political violence. The so-called Just War Tradition has influenced International Law from the Geneva Conventions to the Doctrine of Responsibility to Protect (R2P). In the face of runaway global warming and dangerous climate change many fear that our political systems are not apt for addressing the current crisis and averting looming disaster. Are more radical means required? Would fighting for radical climate action be a case of ‘justified’ political violence?

The epistemic conditions of corporate ethical responsibility

In order to act on their social and ethical responsibilities, corporate agents – which include for-profit and not-for-profit organizations, but also public institutions such as universities – must be internally constituted in a way that allows them to be effective agents in the first place. This imposes certain requirements on their organisational structure with regard to information flow and distribution. The greater a corporate agent’s complexity the greater is the risk of internal failures in agency, in particular with regard to norms of rationality such as coherence and consistency. There is an emerging literature concerning the role of structural elements in triggering failures of moral agency. The goal of the project is to (1) develop a better understanding of structural epistemic failings of corporate agency, (2) conduct a series of case studies, in order to (3) design practice-relevant guidelines to identify and repair such flaws in corporate structures.

Information ecologies and participatory and deliberative democratic responses

The digital public sphere has unique features that enable creative and experimental modes of participation in deliberation, nationally and globally. Yet disorders and pathologies such as platform concentration, algorithmic censorship and filtering, and a pressing need for information veracity while maintaining a capacity for contestation and critique, present a challenge for the democratic quality of the public sphere. These information ecologies can be both empowering and disordered. What would responses based on participatory and deliberative democracy offer to address these challenges? We invite candidates with a background in political theory, political science, or communication studies to develop a project on responses based on participatory and deliberative democracy. Research can span a range of interests such as fact-checking communities, civil society efforts, or government or business commissioned processes.

Proposed Project: Predicting Employee Cybersecurity Violations: Comparison of Theoretical Model and Machine Learning Model

The proposed research aims to examine factors behind employees violating cybersecurity policies. While existing cybersecurity behavioral studies focus primarily on organizational, environmental, and behavioral factors, a growing body of literature suggests individual differences such as personality traits as a strong predictor of cybersecurity violations. For instance, extroverted employees, due to their inherent risk-taking nature, might often bypass security guidelines. Given that 90% of cyberattacks originate from human actions, this project seeks to identify factors that contribute to cybersecurity violations using established human behavioral theories and incorporating individual factors such as personality traits. Based on the identified factors, the ultimate goal of the proposed project is to develop and test a theoretical using statistical techniques such as structural equation modeling, and a propose a machine learning model. A comparison between the two models and how well they predict cybersecurity violations key and the novelty of this research.

Optical Nutritient Sensing for Hydroponic Systems

Hydroponic is an alternative form of agriculture, it's a soiless method for growing plant, using a nutrient infused solution. This project is seeking new ways to measure the nutrient content in the solution using innovative methods of spectroscopy. Combining the advancements of IoT and Machine Learning, we will create spectroscopic sensing that will allow us to determine nutrient concentrations in water.

Suitable for Research Masters with Training or Masters by Research.

Prediction Modelling for Complex Datasets

In the era of big data, datasets are increasingly high-dimensional, often containing multiple layers of linked information. A key question across many fields is whether these datasets can be used to accurately predict future events. Traditional statistical approaches, such as regression models, have been widely used. Recent advances in machine learning, including boosting methods and decision trees, offer powerful alternatives.

The performance of predictive models is closely tied to the structure and characteristics of the data. This motivates the development of data-driven methods for complex datasets. One of the main challenges lies in identifying the most informative features and integrating them into models to optimise predictive accuracy.

This project aims to develop novel, data-driven methods for predicting future events from complex, high-dimensional datasets. You will work at the interface of statistics, machine learning, and applied data science, contributing to methodologies that have broad applications in many domains such as health.

Suitable for accelerated Research Masters with Training. Require R programming skill.

Bio-inspired and biomimetic material designs for 3D print applications

Many biological tissues and materials exhibit elaborate and beautiful structures and designs at microscopic scales that are visible in X-ray or electron microscopy or tomography studies. Many of these have functionality that has been refined through millions of years of evolution, leading to efficient and effective solutions. Biomimetics and biomimicry attempt to harness some of biology's features for material design solutions, including in 3D printing and other free-form fabrication methods. This project proposes to explore biological material structure in butterflies, beetles, crustaceans, corals, plants or other organisms through microscopy or tomography studies and to replicate the structural forms in 3D printing for material analysis. There is flexibility within this project as to the specific organism studied and as to choice of focus on microscopy, material design or biological function. .

Stochastic Collision Risk Modeling for Avian Species around Wind Turbines

This project aims to develop a comprehensive collision risk model for birds interacting with wind energy infrastructure using a stochastic modeling approach. The model will incorporate key environmental variables (e.g., wind speed, time of day, habitat type, turbine specifications) alongside species-specific flight height distributions to improve the accuracy of risk assessments.

By fitting empirical flight height data for different bird species and integrating these distributions into the collision risk framework, the study will evaluate how variations in wind turbine design (height, rotor diameter, location) and environmental conditions influence collision probabilities.

The model will be adaptable across multiple species, with particular focus on sensitive or high-risk avian species, and will aim to support evidence-based mitigation strategies and inform site-specific wind farm planning.

Suitable for accelerated Research Masters with Training.

Data-Driven Modeling of Bird Groups from Radar Observations

This project explores data-driven techniques to improve the identification and grouping of birds from radar observations by comparing supervised and unsupervised learning approaches. While radar systems may offer preliminary classifications, these labels can be uncertain or limited in scope. To address this, the study will develop two parallel modeling pipelines:

1. A supervised learning model trained using the available radar-provided labels
2. An unsupervised learning model that detects natural groupings in the data without relying on those labels

The project will extract relevant features from radar data, such as flight speed, trajectory, altitude, and temporal patterns, and apply advanced computational techniques to both models. The performance of supervised and unsupervised models will be systematically evaluated and compared to assess their effectiveness in improving bird classification accuracy.

The outcomes of this research will contribute to more effective bird monitoring, with applications in ecological research, conservation planning, and collision risk assessment in areas such as wind energy development.

Suitable for accelerated Research Masters with Training.

Integrative plasma metabolic and lipidomic modelling of acute phase burn injury in children

The Australian National Phenome Centre laboratory routinely measures thousands of metabolites using a combination of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and Mass Spectrometry (MS). A recent study within the centre (DOI:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1105163) showed that children 3 years post burn injury demonstrated metabolic signatures of hyperglycaemia, hypermetabolism and inflammation and an increased risk of cardiovascular disease in the long-term independent of burn severity. This project will analyse the blood plasma of children using NMR and MS to understand the metabolic and lipidomic perturbations that arise in the acute phase of burn injury. In addition, follow up samples of the same patients will be analysed and using the associated clinical metadata of the samples statistical modelling will be completed to determine if a specific plasma metabolomic and lipidomic signature in the acute phase leads to better clinical outcomes.

Exploring longitudinal metabolic markers through day-to-day, weekly, and monthly variation in healthy individuals

The ANPC laboratory can routinely measure thousands of metabolites using a combination of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance and Mass Spectrometry. Metabolites such as lipids and lipoproteins indicate an individual's health. Comparing biomarkers from healthy individuals and others with medical conditions (such as diabetes, COVID-19 etc.) is a key step in understanding metabolic disturbances and diseases aetiology. However, little is known regarding the 'normal' fluctuation of metabolism within a day, between days and even across months in each individual, resulting in unwanted noise in the statistical models. Recent advances in the lab allow small blood volume self-collection, allowing repeated sample collection with reduce patient burden. This project's initial work is to help understand variations due to lifestyle (diet, exercise, circadian rhythm, etc.) on metabolic signature of individuals. It is hoped that the study's results will allow for future personalised health and monitoring applications taking science from the 'bench' to the ‘community’.

Exploring lifestyle choices and how they influence metabolic markers in healthy individuals

The ANPC laboratory can routinely measure thousands of metabolites using a combination of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance and Mass Spectrometry. Metabolites such as lipids and lipoproteins indicate an individual's health. Comparing biomarkers from healthy individuals and others with medical conditions (such as diabetes, COVID-19 etc.) is a key step in understanding metabolic disturbances and diseases aetiology. However, little is known regarding the 'normal' fluctuation of metabolism due to lifestyle choices adding unwanted noise in statistical models. Recent advances in the lab allow small blood volume self-collection, allowing repeated sample collection with reduce patient burden. This project's initial work is to help understand variations due to lifestyle (diet, exercise, circadian rhythm, etc.) on metabolic signature of individuals. It is hoped that the study's results will allow for future personalised health and monitoring applications taking science from the 'bench' to the ‘community’.

Characterising our innate immune response to viral infection mediated by the RSAD2 pathway

Due to their adverse impact on healthcare systems, COVID-19, and the causative agent SARS-CoV-2, have been the subject of intense clinical and biochemical study over the last three years. In addition to understanding the clinical impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection, it is important to broaden our understanding of the length of the infectious period and possible shortcomings of direct viral testing.

Work in our laboratories has discovered several candidate biomarkers in human urine, derived via modified nucleotide metabolism and linked to the RSAD2 gene, with potential clinical application in acute viral infection diagnosis. In this project we hope to further characterise the biomarker response, as well as provide an in-depth correlation to clinical parameters already acquired for cohorts under investigation. The project is not restrained and can be tailored to the individual interests of students applying for the project, for instance: analytical chemistry, or bioinformatics.

Unravelling the Complex Picture of Microbiome-Host Metabolic Interactions

The human microbiome is a collection of all the microbes, such as bacteria, fungi, viruses, as well as their genetic information, that reside on our bodies, and inside of us. Recent work has uncovered just how large a contribution our individual microbiomes make to our health, along various signalling-axes including defence against pathogens, development of innate and adaptive immunity, energy homeostasis, and the digestion of food and nutrients.

The following project would seek to unravel some of the complex interactions between humans and the microbiome, using a variety of state-of-the-art metabolomic analytical techniques, such as Nuclear Magnetic Resonance and Mass Spectrometry. Data will be analysed using dimensionality reduction techniques, allowing for the detection of key molecules involved in some of the numerous “small molecule” metabolic Host-Microbe signalling axes.

Application of Machine Learning to Small Molecule Structure Elucidation

Advances in computational technology, and access to computational resources have brought Density Functional Theory (DFT) prediction of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectra well within the experimental chemist’s toolbox, as evidenced by the extensive adoption of quantum mechanical techniques within structural elucidation literature over the past decade. Recently, application of machine learning and statistical methodology, both at the level of chemical shift prediction, and decision making from ensembles of isomers, have represented an improvement of several orders of magnitude over previous quantum mechanical methods in terms of raw computational time, and accuracy.

The following project would seek to integrate various existing and open-source chemical shift prediction algorithms (e.g., CASCADE, NMRshiftdb-NN, etc.), with alternative open-source decision making algorithms (e.g., CD3, DP4+, etc.). Benchmarking would be achieved on an ensemble of test molecules. The project seeks a student with an interest in organic chemistry and informatics.

Modelling genotype x environment interactions and their translational effects on plant phenotypes

With the fast development of Next Generation Sequencing technologies, hundreds of crop accessions have been genetically profiled. The large volume of genomics data will be incorporated into phenotyping data and environment variables measured in large field trials across Australia to develop genotype to phenotype predictive models. Such models predict phenotypic traits as functions of genotypic and environmental inputs as well as their complicated interactions. The project will have access to thousands of high-density genetic markers and variations obtained by other methods, which will boost the reliability of the models that can predict phenotypes using multi-level genomics profiles. The project will also evaluate the prediction of gene sets that can give optimal barley yield and quality given a specific environmental condition. Using machine learning, new models will not only provide a framework for de novo breeding and precision agriculture, but give a new systems biology perspective in the context of crop genetics.

Fast and automatic deep learning-based crop phenotyping methods using remote imagery

Improving crop grain yield and other important quality, including heat and drought tolerance, disease resistance, etc, rely on understanding the regulatory interaction between genotype and environment and identifying the genes controlling crop genotypes. This requires mapping the phenotypic performance of large number of genotypes under different environmental conditions. The fast development of Next-Generation Sequencing technology has enabled sequencing thousands of oat germplasms and made available large amounts of genomic resources, including the oat pan-genome. On the contrary, phenotyping remains a labour-intensive process and desperately needs a high-throughput approach. The project aims to develop a fast and automatic phenotyping method using deep learning-based image analysis. The project will develop skills in state-of-the-art deep learning methods and have access to more hundreds of Gigabytes of image data from > 900 oat varieties.

Unbiased Discovery of Pathogen Nucleic Acids in Saliva of Inclusion Body Myositis Patients Project discipline areas: Medical, Molecular and Forensic Sciences

Inclusion body myositis (IBM) is the most common acquired muscle disease in individuals over 50, yet why it develops remains unknown. Emerging evidence suggests that microbial triggers may contribute to disease pathogenesis, but comprehensive studies assessing pathogen presence are limited. This project aims to perform an unbiased analysis of nucleic acids extracted from saliva of IBM patients to identify potential viral and bacterial signatures associated with the disease. Nucleic acids will be subjected to high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatic analysis. Comparative profiling with healthy controls will allow detection of enriched microbial taxa and novel pathogens. By leveraging an untargeted approach, this study seeks to expand our understanding of potential infectious contributors to IBM, providing foundational data for future mechanistic and therapeutic investigations. The findings may uncover novel pathogen associations, enhancing knowledge of IBM aetiology and informing biomarker development. Knowledge of R would be advantageous.

Suitable for Research Masters with Training or Masters by Research.

Discovery of disease-driving antigens from inclusion body myositis muscle

Inclusion Body Myositis (IBM) is a chronic autoimmune myopathy characterised by progressive muscle weakness and cytotoxic T cell infiltration. The antigens driving this immune response remain unknown. This project aims to identify peptides presented by HLA class I molecules on IBM muscle fibres to generate candidate autoantigens or neo-epitopes. Paired biopsies from affected and unaffected muscle of IBM patients will be collected, and HLA-I/antigen complexes immunoprecipitated. Bound peptides will be eluted, desalted, and analysed by high-resolution LC-MS/MS in collaboration with experts in peptide identification field. Peptides will be assigned to specific HLA alleles using high-resolution typing and in silico binding prediction. Optimisation will first be performed on dermatomyositis skin biopsies to refine immunoprecipitation, elution, and mass spectrometry conditions. Bioinformatic prioritisation will identify peptides enriched in affected muscle, derived from muscle-expressed proteins, or associated with IBM. This unbiased immunopeptidomics approach has the potential to uncover novel antigenic targets, informing pathogenesis, biomarker discovery, and future immunotherapeutic strategies for IBM.

Exploring the Metabolic Responses to Different Healthy Diets in the Context of Type 2 Diabetes Prevention

Type 2 diabetes is a chronic condition characterised by high blood glucose due to insulin resistance or insufficient insulin production. It is a major global health challenge, affecting hundreds of millions and incurring substantial healthcare costs. Dietary management is crucial for prevention, but a one-size-fits-all approach is often ineffective due to inter-individual variation. This project will use metabolic phenotyping, profiling of blood and/or urine metabolites, to assess individual metabolic responses to different healthy diets. Key analyses will focus on identifying diet-induced metabolite changes and correlating them with continuous glucose measurements. The findings aim to uncover personalized dietary response patterns, advancing strategies for tailored nutrition interventions to prevent and manage Type 2 diabetes.

Suitable for accelerated Research Masters with Training or Research Masters with Training.

Mental health and Activity engagement following cancer diagnoses in 3-5 year olds

This project investigates an element of impact of a paediatric in-patient tailored therapy tool. The tool utilizes educational material about local native plants to determine impact on the mental health and well-being of children in paediatric oncology wards, where nature-based activities are often restricted. The program aims to engage children through interactive learning experiences that foster appreciation for the natural world while stimulating cognitive and motor function. Additionally, it will facilitate carer agency in targeted therapy and age-appropriate activities to enhance wrap-around support for the child. To assess the program's effectiveness, observational assessments and structured interviews will be conducted with Early Childhood Educators, parents and caregivers, providing valuable insights into the children's emotional and psychological responses. This initiative seeks to create a nurturing environment within the hospital setting, promoting healing and supporting the mental health of children undergoing challenging medical treatments.

Dr Hakuei Fujiyama (Psychology),
Dr Janene Sproul (Education)

Neural Mechanisms underlying Tourette Syndrome and Potential Interventions to Reduce associated Symptoms

Tourette Syndrome (TS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by involuntary, rapid, and stereotyped movements (motor tics) or vocalisations (phonic tics) that are present for at least 1 year. The severity of tics ranges from mild and non-impairing to severe and incapacitating, with 29% of patients exhibiting self-injurious behaviours such as head banging or self-hitting. As such, it is unsurprising that TS can have profound consequences on a person’s social life as well as educational and occupational opportunities. However, the exact mechanisms of TS are highly elusive and the understanding of the mechanisms underlying TS would pave the way for developing future interventions. Here, we investigate the neurophysiological mechanisms underlying TS, focusing on brain connectivity using neurophysiological techniques. 

Psychological trauma and alcohol consumption

Preliminary data collected from a student sample at Murdoch University demonstrates that coping drinking motives fully mediate the causal pathway between symptoms of posttraumatic stress and alcohol involvement. In other words, people who experience traumatic events are motivated to consume alcohol in order to cope with their symptoms of trauma. This is evidence in support of the self-medication hypothesis. Various quantitative and qualitative projects to further explore this relationship or phenomenon involve the following research questions: 

1. Does the experience of a Criterion A traumatic event predict coping drinking motives?
2. What are the experiences of drinking amongst participants who have also experienced a traumatic event? (Qualitative project)
3. Does the symptom threshold for drinking to cope decrease over time?
4. Does a cognitive-behavioural treatment intervention that targets coping drinking motives reduce alcohol involvement and/or trauma symptoms for trauma-exposed individuals at risk of alcohol use disorders?

Exercise for people living with Multiple Sclerosis

Physical activity is an essential component of managing and improving health in multiple sclerosis (MS). MS is the most common non-traumatic neurological condition affecting young adults in Australia. 

Available projects will see you engaging with people with MS, for example through 1. a project which monitors the delivery and effects of online exercise programs, 2. a focus group project to understand their opinions on monitoring physical activity. You will work with established researchers and be joining other students working together to answer similar research questions. 

If you are interested in a career in clinical healthcare, underpinned by evidence based practice & promotion of positive health behaviours these projects are for you. Over the course you will improve your research skills in literature reviews, engaging with consumers, data gathering, data analysis (quantitative & qualitative) and presentation of research evidence to both the scientific and consumer community. 

Exploring the link between collective action and well-being among young people in Australia

This project aims to investigate the social issues that elicit fear and hope amongst young people (i.e., Gen Z aged between 18 and 27 years old), their well-being, and their intentions to participate in collective action to address those issues. We expect to gain insights into the well-being of this generation and how their interconnected concerns shape their behaviour and mental health. The project utilises network analysis, an analytical tool that will allow us to explore and map the interconnections between various social issues and their influence on well-being and collective action engagement. This analysis will enable us to identify clusters of related social issues, the central issues that represent the most significant concerns and hopes, and the pathway through which these issues are connected to one another.

1. An understanding of theories of collective action in social psychology (e.g., the Social Identity Model of Collective Action, SIMCA) will be highly beneficial for contributing to this project.
2. Basic knowledge of statistics will be very helpful for engaging with the analyses and interpreting the findings.

Time Perspective and Savouring: Relationship with Wellbeing

Savouring has been defined as emotion regulation strategy to enhance positive emotions. There are three forms of savouring, savouring through reminiscence, in moment savouring, and savouring through anticipation. Thus, an individual needs to reflect on their past, present and future events to savour. Relatedly, time perspective was defined as how an individual feels about their past, present, and future. Although these two concepts are related, there is not any study assessed the relationship between three temporal forms of savouring and time perspective. It is also unclear how time perspective could mediate the relationship between savouring and wellbeing. We shall adopt a range of methods to assess this relationship including cross-sectional survey, and experiencing sampling method.

Suitable for Research Masters with Training or Masters by Research.

Assessing welfare of cattle used for veterinary student practical classes

Cattle handling and other practical classes are an essential part of veterinary training, classes a "day 1 skill" necessary for accreditation. Whenever possible, the use of live animals for training is replaced by models, simulators or cadaver materials but inevitably some live animal training is required. The aims of this project is to validate a welfare scoring system (Cavalieri et al 2023) with current assessment approaches, and compare the performance over time with repeated exposure to classes. The methods involved will include traditional direct observation methods, physiological monitoring using new technology and the use of novel biomarkers to estimate the level of stress experienced during practical classes. In particular, evluating the cumulative effect of procedures will be evaluated. The findings of this study will help guide teaching institutions on the optimal use of cattle to minimise negative welfare as a refinement strategy within the 3Rs.

This project would suit a veterinarian with an interest in welfare science and holding a qualification registerable in Australia. The project could, potentially, lead on to further research and ultimately a PhD for the right candidate if they are interested.

Investigating the efficiencies of Cas endonucleases in inducing DNA editing in Australian cereals

Gene or DNA editing techniques can now facilitate the breeding of elite varieties of cereals, such as wheat and barley, improving their resilience against diseases and abiotic stresses such as drought and frost. The success depends on the ability of the bacteria endonuclease used, such as Cas proteins, to induce small RNA-directed mutations in precise locations in a gene or DNA promoter sequence to increase or decrease the expression of protein(s). In the decade since Cas9 was used to edit plant DNA, several Cas enzymes or variants have been developed with improved efficiency, specificity and precision. The relatively low transformation efficiency of cereals and reported varying frequencies of mutations induced by Cas endonucleases make it imperative to know the right endonuclease for efficient editing in cereals. This project will investigate the DNA editing efficiency of a series of bacteria Cas endonucleases in Australian wheat and barley lines.

John Fosu-Nyarko

Cold plasma treatment of broadacre crops and its impact on the microbiome

Plasma is the fourth state of matter after solids, liquids, and gases. Cold (room temperature) plasma and plasma activated water (PAW) can be used to treat seeds to increase germination, and to reduce pathogens that impact emergence and subsequent crop growth. The microbiome comprises all of the microbes (and their genes) associated with a crop, and assists with growth, nutrient uptake, and stress tolerance. We are seeking a suitable PhD candidate to investigate how cold plasma/PAW impacts the microbial community associated with broadacre crops, complementing a larger GRDC-supported project that examines crop growth and yield responses to these technologies. The candidate will use traditional and molecular techniques (metabarcoding) to identify plant pathogens and beneficial microbes and examine how these change in response to cold plasma/PAW application. The candidate will work closely with members of our plasma and microbiome teams and become part of our larger plant pathology group.

Associate Professor Kirsty Bayliss, Tona Sanchez-Palacios, Henry Obiazikwor

Rewiring Meiotic Pathways for Next-Generation Crop Breeding

What if we could take control of one of nature’s most powerful engines of diversity—meiosis—and redesign it for agriculture’s future? This PhD project offers ambitious students the chance to push genome biology forward by engineering meiotic pathways to accelerate crop improvement. During meiosis, chromosomes exchange DNA through crossing-over, creating the diversity breeders depend on. In crops like wheat and canola, however, crossovers are limited and unevenly distributed, leaving large genome regions inaccessible. This project will use CRISPR/Cas genome editing, synthetic biology, and advanced genomics to reprogram meiotic proteins and regulatory elements, boosting recombination where it matters most (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41477-021-00910-4). As a PhD candidate, you’ll gain expertise in genome editing, genotyping, and molecular imaging while applying these tools to WA’s key crops. Collaborating with academic and industry partners, you’ll develop high-demand skills while contributing directly to future food security under a changing climate.

We prefer candidates capable of working in a team environment, having strong communication skills, and previous experience in standard lab practices as well as recombinant DNA techniques like PCR, electrophoresis, and gene cloning.

Associate Professor Ryan Whitford

Unlocking Hybrid Wheat for a Food-Secure Future

Wheat is the world’s most important food crop—yet yields have stagnated while rice and corn yields continue to surge ahead, thanks to hybrid breeding. Hybrid wheat has the potential to deliver a 10–22% yield boost, but widespread adoption is blocked by the high cost of seed production. The culprit? Wheat’s floral architecture and poor outcrossing characteristics. This PhD project aims to break through that barrier by applying cutting-edge tools—including CRISPR/Cas genome editing, molecular genetics, and synthetic biology—to re-engineer key reproductive traits. By enhancing female receptivity and improving outcrossing efficiency, you’ll help develop the foundation for commercially viable hybrid wheat.

You’ll work at the interface of fundamental discovery and real-world application, gaining high-value expertise in molecular cloning, transformation, advanced microscopy, phenotyping, and genomic analysis. Supported by the Australian Research Council, BASF, and a global alliance of universities and seed companies, this project offers unparalleled training and collaboration opportunities (https://doi.org/10.1002/tpg2.70092). Your research will contribute directly to reshaping the future of wheat breeding—delivering more resilient harvests, higher yields, and food security in a changing climate. We prefer candidates capable of working in a team environment, having strong communication skills, and previous experience in standard lab practices as well as recombinant DNA techniques like PCR, electrophoresis, and gene cloning.

Associate Professor Ryan Whitford

Using systemic hypoxia (i.e., simulated altitude) and localised hypoxia (i.e., blood flow restriction) to enhance athletic development

Several projects are available for PhD or Masters, including specific topics such as:

• Repeated sprint training with systemic or localised hypoxia
• Sport-specific training with systemic of localised hypoxia
• Resistance training with systemic or localised hypoxia.

Paul Goods, Brendan Scott

Hydration, Health, and Human Performance: Advancing Non-Invasive Monitoring and Predictive Systems for Health and Industry

Maintaining hydration is essential to health, performance, and safety—yet in most workplaces and community settings, we lack accurate, scalable ways to assess hydration in real time. This research opportunity invites HDR students to join a program focused on the development, validation, and application of non-invasive hydration monitoring tools and predictive systems, with direct relevance to occupational, clinical, sporting, defence, and consumer health.

The program is grounded in commercially aligned, industry-facing research and contributes to the broader validation and refinement of a wearable-compatible hydration algorithm currently undergoing real-world testing.

Key research directions may include:

• Validating non-invasive hydration technologies against established gold-standard measures
• Supporting the real-world application of hydration monitoring in industrial, military, sporting, aged-care, or clinical rehabilitation settings
• Contributing to predictive model development and risk stratification tools using physiological and behavioural data
• Evaluating hydration behaviours, patterns, and barriers across large and diverse populations

We welcome applicants motivated to work on real-world problems across occupational, sporting, military, clinical, and community settings, with both scientific rigour and practical impact.

Greig Watson

Effective Leadership requires a global mindset: The role of cultural intelligence in a digital transformation era

This research argues that a leader with a global mindset in a digital transformation environment will display a higher cultural intelligence. Still, the effect is indirect, as it also depends on the type of culture the leader is leading. In turn, the relationships between the leader’s level of cultural intelligence and the leader’s effectiveness, thriving, well-being, and mentality vary according to the degree of the ethical practices and digital leadership behaviours the leader displays. The project helps us understand and identify a leader’s effectiveness, well-being, mentality and thriving through the direct and indirect relationships among a leader’s global mindset, cultural intelligence levels, leadership behaviour and practice, and the cultural environment where they operate. More specifically, the project primarily aims to:

1. Assess the factors that give leaders the edge when leading in foreign locations and
2. Examine the relationships between leaders’ global mindset and global leadership effectiveness, well-being, mentality and thriving by investigating the role of cultural tightness-looseness, cultural intelligence and their leadership behaviour and practice.

Leading to Innovation: Developing Leadership Capability Framework for Small to Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs)

Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) have always been a significant contributor to the economy and employment, accounting for over 70% of the working population and a considerable portion of economic output. However, SMEs have faced numerous challenges, including a lack of access to financial support, which has resulted in comparatively low investment in innovation. While over 70% of Research and Development (R&D) is funded, SMEs only account for less than 10% of this funding, according to the OECD’s Science, Technology, and Industry Scoreboard. These numbers should be concerning, given that SMEs were expected to be the future growth engines for the country's economy. Therefore, this research aims to explore the role of leadership behaviour that fosters business innovation in SMEs and, consequently, to develop a Leadership Capability Framework that enhances the innovation performance of SMEs.

Leadership for Responsible Digital Transformation in Healthcare

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare leaders must grasp the changing opportunity where exceptional leadership qualities are crucial. These leaders must use digital technology effectively in the rapidly expanding healthcare sector. This study proposes that healthcare leaders must transform their organisations to become more digitally advanced in response to the post-Covid era and execute this transformation thoughtfully, considering its impact on various stakeholders. The relationship between leadership and digital transformations at the organisational, team, and individual levels is complex and indirect, as it can affect employees' physical and mental well-being. Consequently, this can influence the quality of services provided by these employees.

The aim of this project is to explore the impact of responsible leadership on digital transformation implementation, the well-being of employees, and the service quality of organisations.

Information Ecologies – Trust in journalism in increasingly polarised societies

Journalism is not in a good place today. While trust in government and business institutions have ebbed and waned with different political climates and controversies, trust in journalistic media continue to decline. Increasing partisanship and polarisation in media outlets have eroded their once-valued status as the Fourth Estate. Meanwhile, contemporary use of both the digital platforms and traditional news outlets to propagate disinformation and sectarian interests has further decimated public trust. But is this pattern of decline uniform across all societies? Is there anything to learn from societies where trust in the media have remained high? How do advanced societies with entrenched media practices excavate themselves from declining media trust? Is diversity of choice or strict media ethical codes a viable solution? Why is it important for the media to maintain a healthy level of public trust, anyway? If you have research interest to evaluate and critique media trust, across any society and using any methodology, you are welcome to apply.

Keywords: media trust, media partisanship, media ethics, Fourth Estate

Howard Lee

Information Ecologies – Testing the boundaries: evolving practices in digital journalism Project discipline areas: Media and Communication

In the late-1990s heydays of blogging, the internet was seen as the great liberator for journalists constrained by censorship, restrictive media regulations, political pressure and commercial interests. The ability to publish instantaneously – unfettered by legal, political and economic limits – gave rise to new ways of thinking about and using news media. New revenue strains evolved to supplement, disrupt and rival traditional advertising models in the ‘attention economy’. Decades from those heady days, the promise of the internet for journalistic freedom looks less lustrous. Governments have become more sophisticated in restricting online media, while algorithms (and those who own them) have become the new monopolies of digital currencies. Peddlers of disinformation have not only set up shanty towns in cyber space, but colonised entire swarths of public discourse, defiling the very principles of media freedom the internet promised. Is there still a place for independent journalism in the online world? What practices have independent journalists adopted to break away from repressive legal constraints and restrictive financing models? How do digital journalists manage or fight against info-sewerage? What are the new standards of journalism ethics in this new environment? What is the impact of cultural and political conditions in specific societies that affect these new practices? If you have research interests in digital journalism, you are welcome to apply.

Keywords: digital journalism, freedom, innovation, economy, regulation

Howard Lee

Analysis of high resolution regional climate projections of current and future climate from dynamical downscaling of global climate models.

High resolution regional climate projections are available over Australia from dynamical downscaling of the latest global climate models from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Coupled Model Intercomparison Project version 6 (CMIP6). Several research questions can be developed using these projections, for example, how will compound extremes events change in the future? What will be the effect of climate change on renewable energy resources? Etc. Projects can also be tailored to suit the student’s interests. The student should have some prior background is atmospheric science/meteorology/oceanography/climate etc, and should also have some knowledge of scientific programming using scripted languages such as Python/R/Matlab/NCL or similar.

Associate Professor Jatin Kala,
Dr. Kerryn Hawke

Bird and bat collision risk modelling

Australia is the world's largest iron ore producer (29% of the global total). Most of this iron ore is developed in Western Australia, making up 99% of overall production, the bulk of which has been mined from deposits in the Hamersley province in the Pilbara of Western Australia. Central to the Pilbara lies the Fortescue Marsh, an extensive (10 x 100 km) ephemeral saltmarsh subject to extensive episodic inundation, once every 10 or more years. The Fortescue Marsh is a recognised Important Bird Area (IBA), supporting 187 bird species and up to 270,000 waterbirds when inundated. As part of Western Australia’s commitment to be carbon neutral by 2050, many Pilbara mining companies have announced their intention to move to wind and solar energy for their operations.

While an important step towards reducing climate change, this shift to renewable energy could have biodiversity impacts that need to be considered as part of green energy planning and commissioning. Understanding which bird and bat species are likely to be using proposed sites is an important first step towards identifying potential risk.

For example, nocturnally migrating birds (species that are on the wing for multiple days) are more exposed than diurnally migrating birds. Raptors, which fly looking down and have limited binocular overlap and poor visual acuity towards the top of their head (likely an adaption to avoid solar glare) are more vulnerable to turbine strike, with Accipitriformes making up the most common bird family impacted by turbine strike. Also, larger birds are more likely to be recovered after turbine strike, while those with slower flight speed are also more vulnerable to turbine strike. In a global meta-analysis of the traits correlated with wind turbine collision for 9,538 bird and 888 bat species, avian collision rate was affected by migratory strategy, dispersal distance and habitat associations, while bat collision rates were influenced by dispersal distance.

This project will compile a list of all bird and bat species reported in published and available grey literature for a 10,000 km2 area centred around the Fortescue Marsh, and compile a traits database for these species to calculate (a) wing loading (the weight of the bird / surface area of the wing), and (b) aspect ratio (wing length /wing width). Missing data will be compiled through measurement of museum specimens.

These data will then inform species-specific flight risk windows and provide input values to Collision Risk Models (aerodynamic ability, flight speed, altitude and directionality), which can then inform conservation management decisions.

Trish Fleming,
Jill Shephard

Snap-Cat! monitoring feral cats around quokka habitat

Feral cats can be difficult to monitor and control due to neophobia and trap avoidance behaviour, resulting in low detection rates and variable success of control measures. We will test a novel, long-life (up to 1 year) lure system to increase camera trap success and reduce neophobic behaviour of cats. Using this lure, we will develop a monitoring system to record feral cat activity, comparing between three camera types and identifying individual cats from distinctive markings.

Trish Fleming,
Melissa Thomas

Effects of river restoration on biodiversity

See this video for summary of the project

This fully funded project will determine the response of an aquatic ecosystem to the first re-snagging program of a channalised river system in south-western Australia. The student will collect data from the fourth and fifth post-restoration monitoring in autumn 2025, 2026 and in doing so skill themselves in standardised sampling (that are also used by State Government scientists) of fish, crayfish, mussels, turtles and macroinvertebrates. They will them combine that information and analyse it with our large existing dataset to quantify how the aquatic ecosystem has changed in response to re-snagging of the Harvey River.

Skills attained will include species ID, univariate and multivariate analyses, along with enhancing their knowledge on aquatic biodiversity. This high-profile project will suit a student who has an interest and passion for the conservation of native fauna, working with Traditional Custodians and is pursuing a career in the research or management of aquatic ecosystems.

Stephen Beatty,
Mark Allen,
David Morgan

Bat movement and wind energy impact mitigation

We are seeking a PhD candidate for a funded research program supporting proposed wind farm developments in the Pilbara, Western Australia. The PhD project will investigate bat movement ecology using cutting-edge radar and acoustic monitoring technologies to inform environmental impact assessments and mitigation strategies for wind energy infrastructure.

Candidates with a strong background in movement ecology, spatial analysis, and automated IDing of Australian bats via acoustics are encouraged to reach out.

Note: The candidate will need to apply for an RTP scholarship for tuition fees offset and stipend, but we have support for project costs.

Trish Fleming, Nicholas Wu

Predicting and Conserving Habitat for Short-Range Endemic Invertebrates

Short-range endemic (SRE) invertebrates are uniquely vulnerable to habitat loss and environmental change due to their restricted distributions. This project will investigate habitat similarity and environmental drivers that shape SRE distributions using geospatial modelling approaches to predict where suitable habitats occur and how they relate to target species. The outcomes of this project will provide both fundamental insights into the processes governing SRE persistence and inform conservation planning and environmental management in biodiversity hotspots.

Melissa Thomas, Volker Framenau, Sam Lymbery

Physiological and Ecological Determinants of Male Maturity Switching in an Introduced Millipede

The Portuguese millipede (Ommatoiulus moreleti) offers a rare opportunity to test and extend scientific models of life-history evolution. Unlike most animals, males of this invasive species can repeatedly switch between sexually mature and immature states across moults, defying the conventional view that sexual maturation is an irreversible process. This project will investigate the physiological mechanisms and ecological drivers of this plasticity, using the system as a model to explore broader questions about reproductive trade-offs, resource allocation, and the evolution of flexible life-history strategies.

Melissa Thomas, Nicholas Wu

Chemical Phylogenies: Using Chemical Profiles for Arthropod Identification

Chemical traits offer a powerful but underutilised window into the evolution, ecology, and identification of insects. Many insect groups produce highly diverse and lineage-specific chemical compounds for defence, communication, and reproduction. These compounds could act as stable phylogenetic markers and provide unique chemical “fingerprints” for species identification. This PhD project will focus on a particular group of Arthropods to investigate the phylogeny of their chemical profiles. By combining analytical chemistry (e.g. GC–MS, LC–MS), and phylogenetic comparative methods, the research will explore how chemical diversity evolves across lineages and assess the reliability of chemical profiles as tools for rapid and accurate species identification.

Melissa Thomas, Todd Gillam, Volker Framenau

Mining and mineral processing waste characterisation for low carbon geopolymer concrete

Australia has enormous volumes of industrial and mining waste materials disposal of at great cost when mush of it has the potential to be turned into high value green concrete products, for example, wind turbine footings at 1,000 tonnes each. Mining and mineral processing waste characterisation for low carbon geopolymer concrete is necessary to determine which of these wastes are ideally suited to this application. A new low-cost, rapid test methodology is required, the necessary lab test procedure to be set up and trials undertaken in order for a new approach to be validated and commercialised with industry partners.

Martin Anda,
Linda Li

Advanced Wastewater and Water Treatment for Improved Pollutant Removal

Increasing industrialization, urbanization and agricultural activities release various pollutants, such as PFAS, microplastics, antibiotics, dyes and heavy metals, into water bodies. Many of these pollutants are carcinogenic, mutagenic, and ecotoxic, posing significant environmental and health risks. They can persist in water bodies, reduce light penetration for aquatic plants, disrupt ecosystems, and accumulate in the food chain. This project aims to develop an effective, low-cost, and sustainable treatment solution by exploring/integrating adsorption, photocatalysis, and membrane separation. Depending on the student’s interest, the project focus can be on functional and hierarchically structured material design or process optimization and modelling.

Linda Li, Professor Aleks Nikoloski, Professor Goen Ho

The political economy of loss and damage

Analysing the international/regional/national politics of the new UNFCC Loss and Damage Fund.

Jacqui Baker

The politics of police reform in Western Australia

This project would examine the history of police reform in WAPOL, looking particularly at the dynamics of how reform is proposed, contested and achieved by different groups (political elites, bureaucracy, police reformers and civil society).

The political economy of critical minerals in Western Australia

How is the Western Australian government readying the regulatory landscape for this new industry? What players are entering the sector and what constraints/opportunities do they find? What kind of labour is necessary for this sector?

Policing Protest in Australia

In recent year, state and federal governments appear to have shifted their approach and strategies towards the right to protest. There have been numerous changes to protest laws and the use of repressive strategies by the police have been amplified for certain kinds of protestors and causes. What is driving these changes and with what consequence for the future of contestation in Australia?

Police Use of Force: Permissions and Obligations

The aim of my research project is to conduct an ethical analysis of the principles of defensive harming by police inside well-ordered liberal democracies like Australia. I intend to answer the following research question: How do the special moral obligations of police affect their permissions and obligations to use force? My project is divided into three parts. Part one will describe the permissions of ordinary citizens to use force in self-defence. Part two will explore the permissions and obligations (if there are any) of ordinary citizens to use force in defence of others. Part three will describe the moral obligations which a person incurs when voluntarily undertaking the role of police officer, and describe if and how such obligations affect the role-occupant’s permissions and obligations to use defensive force.

Dr Anne Schwenkenbecher (Murdoch University),
Dr Kathryn Trees (Murdoch University),
Dr Adam Henschke (University of Twente)

Information ecologies: De-individualising our responses to misinformation

This interdisciplinary project focuses on developing better responses to misinformation and disinformation by understanding them as fundamentally social phenomena. This means that both for explaining how these problems emerge and for addressing them a shift in our focus is required from individual agents to our epistemic environments. The project will develop conceptual and practical tools for fostering healthy epistemic environments as a social epistemic responsibility. Candidates with a background in either Philosophy (Social Epistemology), Politics or Communication Studies are welcome to apply - willingness to engage with research across disciplines is an essential requirement. Demonstrated ability for interdisciplinary research is an advantage.

Anne Schwenkenbecher, Tauel Harper; Howard Lee, Nardine Alnemr

Environmental Activism - On the responsibility to protest

Why aren’t we all eco-warriors? There’s a long tradition in philosophy discussing the use of civil disobedience for political goals. What is permissible when it comes to climate protests and activism? Is it ok to damage revered art works for a greater cause? Does it go too far to protest outside the private home of the CEO of a major fossil fuel company? Another – even older - tradition in philosophy (and theology) ponders the justifiability of political violence. The so-called Just War Tradition has influenced International Law from the Geneva Conventions to the Doctrine of Responsibility to Protect (R2P). In the face of runaway global warming and dangerous climate change many fear that our political systems are not apt for addressing the current crisis and averting looming disaster. Are more radical means required? Would fighting for radical climate action be a case of ‘justified’ political violence?

Anne Schwenkenbecher

The epistemic conditions of corporate ethical responsibility

In order to act on their social and ethical responsibilities, corporate agents – which include for-profit and not-for-profit organizations, but also public institutions such as universities – must be internally constituted in a way that allows them to be effective agents in the first place. This imposes certain requirements on their organisational structure with regard to information flow and distribution. The greater a corporate agent’s complexity the greater is the risk of internal failures in agency, in particular with regard to norms of rationality such as coherence and consistency. There is an emerging literature concerning the role of structural elements in triggering failures of moral agency. The goal of the project is to (1) develop a better understanding of structural epistemic failings of corporate agency, (2) conduct a series of case studies, in order to (3) design practice-relevant guidelines to identify and repair such flaws in corporate structures.

Anne Schwenkenbecher

Information ecologies and participatory and deliberative democratic responses

The digital public sphere has unique features that enable creative and experimental modes of participation in deliberation, nationally and globally. Yet disorders and pathologies such as platform concentration, algorithmic censorship and filtering, and a pressing need for information veracity while maintaining a capacity for contestation and critique, present a challenge for the democratic quality of the public sphere. These information ecologies can be both empowering and disordered. What would responses based on participatory and deliberative democracy offer to address these challenges? We invite candidates with a background in political theory, political science, or communication studies to develop a project on responses based on participatory and deliberative democracy. Research can span a range of interests such as fact-checking communities, civil society efforts, or government or business commissioned processes.

Nardine Alnemr, Anne Schwenkenbecher, Tauel Harper, Howard Lee

Art, Environment, Activism

This interdisciplinary project located at the intersection of Creative Arts, Philosophy and Social Theory will examine the role that art can (and should) play in environmental activism and ecological awareness. Leaving traditional disciplinary boundaries behind, the project will explore to what extent environmental activism should appeal to people’s imagination, creativity and play-drive, rather than merely to their moral consciousness. Candidates may pursue either a research-led pathway (producing a written thesis that critically investigates art, environment and activism) or a practice-as-research pathway (developing creative works such as performances, exhibitions, installations or digital media projects and accompanied by a research component). Both approaches provide scope to investigate how creative practices foster ecological awareness, mobilise activism and contribute to environmental responsibility.

Anne Schwenkenbecher, Alys Daroy

Racism and Allyship in Aboriginal Youth Spaces

We invite you to participate in a research study exploring awareness and practices of allyship toward Aboriginal peoples among adults who work with Aboriginal youth. This study is being conducted by a research team of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal researchers, across research institutions around Australia, but primarily in Perth (Boorloo). Please see the project site for details. Seeking qualitative or quantitative social science researchers with an interest in racism studies in Australia and allyship. Students from all social science disciplines or psychology are encouraged to apply. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students also strongly encouraged to apply.

Rebecca Bennett

Enhanced Human-AI Collaboration for Building Trustworthy AI Systems

AI has become a significant development area in many application domains. There has been a sharp increase in human-AI collaboration development in recent years especially by focusing on providing more trustworthy and safer AI systems. This research emphasizes on the different approaches that can enhance explainability, accountability, and ethical alignment, ensuring that AI systems not only deliver accurate results but also foster user confidence and societal trust. The areas covered are strategies and techniques to improved transparency and interpretability of AI models, establishing frameworks for accountability in shared decision-making, and examining how human oversight can mitigate risks such as bias, data problems, and over-reliance on automation.

Kevin Wong

Mathematical Modelling of Medical problems in the retina

It can be very difficult to study problems in the eye in a living subject, and so mathematical models can be used to simulate the blood flow and oxygen delivery to the eye, the growth of vasculature and help understand detached retinas. All of these can cause impaired vision and yet there is still much to learn about them. This project would use mathematical modelling and simulation techniques to help better understand these issues and assist in the design of new medical procedures.

Professor Graeme Hocking,
Dr. Wafaa Mansoor

Mathematical modelling of Reservoir Dynamics

The supply of water is vital to the survival of humanity. Climate change and increasing urbanisation have lead to increased difficulties in obtained clean water throughout the world. However, understanding what is happening in lakes, reservoirs and underground aquifers requires sophisticated mathematical modelling techniques. In this project, important aspects of fluid flow in water reservoirs will be studied with a view to improving water quality throughout the world.

Professor Graeme Hocking,
Dr. Wafaa Mansoor

Poisson-Dirichlet processes as models for genetic variation

Poisson-Dirichlet processes are sophisticated probabilistic models which can be used for measuring and comparing genetic diversity, for example between and within human and native animal populations in Australia and elsewhere. Detailed knowledge of the genetic diversity of an endangered animal species is essential for its successful management.

My work with collaborating researchers in developing new versions of these models has opened up a rich and fruitful area of research which can be built on with this applications area as a main objective. Other potential applications of the technology are the analysis of genetics data gathered in bioassays of human populations for medical purposes.

The proposed project will extend the field of application of population genetics while advancing its mathematical underpinnings, providing new ways of looking at ecological and environmental problems as reflected by their genetic attributes. The newly developed models will add to our understanding of the genetic makeups of a variety of populations, possibly including but not restricted to, various Australian animal species, by measuring and comparing genetic diversity within and between them. This valuable information can be used in particular for deciding which populations may provide sources for the reintroductions of endangered species.

Soudabeh Shemehsavar,
Ross Maller

Prediction of protein aggregation propensity based statistical learning methods

The formation of aggregated proteins often serves as an early indicator of various human disorders, particularly those associated with oxidative stress. These protein aggregates play a key role in the development of amyloidogenesis and cause multiple diseases including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, and prion encephalopathies.

Amyloids are insoluble, misfolded protein aggregates that accumulate either intracellularly or extracellularly within host cells or tissues. The aggregation of these proteins often results in a loss of their functional properties, as their biological activity is highly dependent on their molecular structure and determinants. Therefore, accurately predicting protein aggregation is crucial for developing preventive strategies against amyloid-related diseases, as well as for the production and assessment of biopharmaceuticals and engineered proteins.

The main goal of the research is to develop statistical learning approaches to predict protein aggregation propensity based on physiochemical features. We will also analyze how each physiochemical property affects the aggregation tendency.

Soudabeh Shemehsavar,
Hamid Sohrabi

Investigating interactions between sulfide minerals and in-situ recovery fluids for copper mining

This project offers a 4-year full scholarship (~$50,000 per year stipend) for a domestic PhD student. In-situ recovery (ISR) is emerging as a transformative technique for the extraction of copper (Cu) from Australian sediment-hosted deposits and reprocessing of mine tailings. In contrast to conventional hard-rock mining, ISR offers a non-invasive, environmentally sustainable and economically viable alternative, with the potential to unlock copper resources from low-grade or marginal deposits. As Cu is essential for the electrification of transport and renewable energy systems, ISR technologies hold significant potential to contribute to the global development and deployment of low-carbon energy and transport infrastructure in a manner that minimise impacts on the environment and local communities. This project, in collaboration with EnviroCopper Ltd, will investigate the mineralogical, geochemical, biological and kinetic aspects of fluid-rock interactions during ISR of the Kapunda Cu deposit, South Australia. By addressing these aspects, it will advance our understanding of ISR processes and support its broader adoption at both national and global scale.

Professor Fang Xia, Dr. Tobias Bamforth (Monash University); Dr. Yuan Mei (CSIRO); Leon Faulkner (EnviroCopper Ltd)

Stochastic Collision Risk Modeling for Avian Species around Wind Turbines

This project aims to develop a comprehensive collision risk model for birds interacting with wind energy infrastructure using a stochastic modeling approach. The model will incorporate key environmental variables (e.g., wind speed, time of day, habitat type, turbine specifications) alongside species-specific flight height distributions to improve the accuracy of risk assessments.

By fitting empirical flight height data for different bird species and integrating these distributions into the collision risk framework, the study will evaluate how variations in wind turbine design (height, rotor diameter, location) and environmental conditions influence collision probabilities.

The model will be adaptable across multiple species, with particular focus on sensitive or high-risk avian species, and will aim to support evidence-based mitigation strategies and inform site-specific wind farm planning.

Soudabeh Shemehsavar, Graeme Hocking

Evaluating the impact of gut microbiome composition on inulin metabolism.

Inulin, a prebiotic fiber, is known to promote a diverse and beneficial gut microbiota, leading to increased production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) such as acetate, butyrate, and propionate. These SCFAs are associated with improved glucose homeostasis, inhibition of hepatic lipogenesis, enhanced lipid profiles, and anti-inflammatory effects. However, it is unknown how differences in gut microbiome compositions affect the metabolism of inulin of varying molecular sizes. This study aims to evaluate these changes using a batch culture system and subsequently an artificial human gut.

 A/Prof Ruey Leng Loo 

Exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals and their impact on human health

Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are exogenous chemicals that interfere with hormone action and have been associated with adverse health outcomes. EDCs are found in commonly used products such as plastics, pesticides and personal care products and are widespread throughout the environment. Yet, there remains a knowledge gap between exposure and implications for endocrine function, with a limited number of EDCs comprehensively studied in the context of their impact on human health.

Using an advanced analytical approach, using targeted and untargeted ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry to simultaneously determine a diverse panel of EDCs in samples from human biosamples, this project aims to generate comprehensive, accurate and precise measurements of EDCs. EDC exposures will be examined to establish associations with cardiometabolic risk factors, such as central adiposity, hypertension, dyslipidaemia and diabetes. This new knowledge will advance understanding of physiological changes and disease risks associated with the EDC exposome.

Dr Nicola Gray

Exploring Therapies for those who have none

The focus of our laboratory is studying the consequences of rare genetic mutations on gene expression and exploring molecular therapies. This project will explore the best way to diagnose patients with rare diseases, study the functional consequences of mutations and develop personalised nucleic acid therapies.

Dr May Aung-Htut,
Dr Kelly M. Martinovich,
Dr Jessica Cale

Molecular therapies for rare diseases

Our laboratory is one of the world leaders in the development of therapeutic antisense oligomers with three US Food and Drug Administration-approved drugs developed in our laboratory. This project will design and assess antisense oligomer therapies applicable to rare diseases, including Kleefstra syndrome and DYRK1A syndrome using patient-derived iPSC, neurons.

Dr May Aung-Htut,
Dr Kelly M. Martinovich,
Dr Jessica Cale

Understanding the functional consequences of non-coding regions in human genes

Understanding the consequences of mutations in non-coding regions (5'UTR and 3'UTR) in human genes. The project aims to understand the significance of mutation in non-coding regions and will explore the function of mRNA isoforms with alternatives 5' and 3' untranslated regions. This basic understanding will provide us with a better understanding of the pathogenicity of various diseases.

Dr May Aung-Htut,
Dr Kelly M. Martinovich,
Dr Jessica Cale

Improving the delivery of an emerging class of therapeutic, antisense oligomers

One limitation of antisense therapy is effectively delivering to target tissues/cells. This project will explore ways to improve the delivery of therapeutic antisense oligomers to various organs.

Dr May Aung-Htut,
Dr Kelly M. Martinovich,
Dr Jessica Cale

Identification of Therapeutic Compounds for Childhood Dementia

Childhood dementia is caused by more than 70 rare genetic diseases. Symptoms can include memory loss, confusion, developmental regression, seizures, and difficulties with movement and communication. Sadly, it also affects the child’s ability to recognise family and friends. Half of the children with dementia die by the age of 10, and there is currently no cure, though research and supportive therapies aim to improve quality of life. Our laboratory has three decades of experience in designing and evaluating a class of drugs known as antisense oligomers (ASOs) for both rare and common diseases. We are now developing treatments for childhood dementia.

Dr May Aung-Htut, Dr Jessica Cale

Establishing an Age-Appropriate Neuronal Cell Model to Study Age Related Neurological Disorders

Do you want to be part of a team that’s helping to develop new medicines for serious diseases like dementia and Alzheimer’s? Our lab has been working on a type of medicine called antisense oligomers (ASOs) for over 30 years, and some of these drugs are already helping children with muscle diseases like Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Now, we’re focusing on brain-related conditions—and we need your help!

In this project, you will help build a simple, brain-like cell model in the lab. These cells are made by "reprogramming" ordinary skin cells (called fibroblasts) into neuron-like cells using a special mix of small molecules. This method keeps the “age” of the cells, which helps us better study diseases that happen later in life, like Alzheimer’s Disease. Once we have these neuron-like cells, you’ll test how well ASOs work by measuring their effects on gene activity and proteins linked to aging and brain disease. This project will take place in a certified PC2 lab at the Personalised Medicine Centre, Murdoch University.

Dr May Aung-Htut, Dr Kelly Martinovich

The Development of Novel Tailored Therapeutics for People with Familial Hypercholesterolemia

Are you interested in genetics, heart health, and cutting-edge therapies? This project focuses on familial hypercholesterolemia (FH)—a common inherited condition that causes dangerously high levels of cholesterol from a young age. People with FH often develop heart disease early in life, sometimes as young as their teens.

FH is usually caused by mutations in the LDLR gene, which is responsible for clearing “bad cholesterol” from the blood. Our lab is working on a new way to help these patients by using antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs)—or what we like to call gene patches. These patches work a bit like molecular correction tape, covering up the faulty section of the gene so that the rest can still do its job. You’ll be part of a research effort to develop these gene patches and test how well they work in cells—and possibly in animal models too. This project will be conducted in a certified PC2 lab at the Personalised Medicine Centre, Murdoch University.

Dr May Aung-Htut, Dr Kelly Martinovich

Exploring presymptomatic indicators for an inherited form of motor neuron disease Project discipline areas: Health Futures Institute

Motor neuron disease (MND) is caused by the loss of special cells in the brain that control movement and brain and spinal cord pathology can start ~10 years before symptom onset. Our patient community have identified the need for early disease detection in the presymptomatic C9ORF72 mutation positive population to enable the potential for early treatments and interventions that may delay onset and/or slow the course of their disease. In this project, we aim to explore indicators in presymptomatic mutation carriers and develop a methodology to identify those who have disease pathology and are at risk of developing MND. Early identification of disease may lead to early intervention with approved MND treatments and/or enable clinical trials for emerging targeted therapeutics in presymptomatic mutation carriers.

In this project, you will work with a multidisciplinary team of researchers and clinicians that span the laboratory, clinic, bioethics and health economics.

Dr Ianthe Pitout, Professor Susan Fletcher; Professor Anthony Akkari, Professor Merrilee Needham

Establishing an Age-Appropriate Neuronal Cell Model to Study Age Related Neurological Disorders

Do you want to be part of a team that’s helping to develop new medicines for serious diseases like dementia and Alzheimer’s? Our lab has been working on a type of medicine called antisense oligomers (ASOs) for over 30 years, and some of these drugs are already helping children with muscle diseases like Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Now, we’re focusing on brain-related conditions-and we need your help!

In this project, you will help build a simple, brain-like cell model in the lab. These cells are made by "reprogramming" ordinary skin cells (called fibroblasts) into neuron-like cells using a special mix of small molecules. This method keeps the “age” of the cells, which helps us better study diseases that happen later in life, like Alzheimer’s Disease. Once we have these neuron-like cells, you’ll test how well ASOs work by measuring their effects on gene activity and proteins linked to aging and brain disease. This project will take place in a certified PC2 lab at the Personalised Medicine Centre, Murdoch University.

This project aims to:

1. Create a brain cell model from human skin cells using small molecules
2. Test how well ASOs enter the cells and affect gene expression
3. Measure changes in proteins linked to age-related brain conditions.

Kelly Martinovich, May Aung-Htut

Mental health and Activity engagement following cancer diagnoses in 3-5 year olds

This project investigates an element of impact of a paediatric in-patient tailored therapy tool. The tool utilizes educational material about local native plants to determine impact on the mental health and well-being of children in paediatric oncology wards, where nature-based activities are often restricted. The program aims to engage children through interactive learning experiences that foster appreciation for the natural world while stimulating cognitive and motor function. Additionally, it will facilitate carer agency in targeted therapy and age-appropriate activities to enhance wrap-around support for the child. To assess the program's effectiveness, observational assessments and structured interviews will be conducted with Early Childhood Educators, parents and caregivers, providing valuable insights into the children's emotional and psychological responses. This initiative seeks to create a nurturing environment within the hospital setting, promoting healing and supporting the mental health of children undergoing challenging medical treatments.

Dr Hakuei Fujiyama (Psychology), Dr Janene Sproul (Education)

Exploring the Effectiveness of a Psychological Intervention for Individuals who have Experienced a Negative Life Event that may have had a Traumatic Effect

The impact of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) can be extremely debilitating, and unfortunately, many individuals suffering from these symptoms may not receive or seek out treatment. A potential contributing factor to the persistence of PTSS is emotion dysregulation. While the area of mindfulness and compassion research has grown to suggest that emotion regulation may be one of its underlying mechanisms, its efficacy in addressing PTSS-related emotion dysregulation remains unknown.

Hak Fujiyama,
Helen Correia (external),
Auretta Kummar (external)

Brain network connectivity in individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder

Description: obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a series of neuropsychological issues, including obsessive thinking and compulsive behavior as the main clinical manifestations. The prevalence of OCD is about 3% in the general population (Robbins et al., 2019). While recent neuroimaging evidence suggests that functional brain connectivity may be the neurophysiological underpinnings of OCD, exact mechanisms are still elusive. Here, we will investigate cortical connectivity using neurophysiological techniques in individuals with OCD.

Hak Fujiyama,
Danielle Mathersul

Identification of barriers and enablers to appropriate and acceptable healthcare for individuals living with chronic pain in Australia.

WA patients with chronic pain conditions are frustrated by their healthcare, particularly those with fibromyalgia (FM) and hypermobility spectrum disorders (HSD). Recently, US and UK authors recognised that better care is required. Results indicate that on average diagnoses and treatment are sought for ~10.5 years, via ~10.5 specialists. The majority were dissatisfied with current or past healthcare, diagnoses, and pain management, and felt their pain is consistently invalidated by practitioners. Equivalent studies for WA individuals living with chronic pain conditions (including Indigenous populations) are required.

This project will identify:

1. barriers and enabling factors to diagnosis and effective healthcare
2. patient and health practitioner education gaps
3. and perform an extensive psychological characterisation of these populations (e.g., health-related quality of life (HR-QOL), pain invalidation, depression and anxiety scale (DASS))
4. pilot study comparing effectiveness of pain management approaches: pharmacogenetics-informed (pharmaceutical), structured physiotherapy, standard of care self-directed online pain therapy course.

Professor Peter Drummond,
Dr Brianne Hastie,
Dr Sarah Lyn Rea.

Understanding resilience in collective action networks

Protests have surged across the globe, with more people mobilising for a wider range of issues than ever before in history. Studies on collective action, such as protest or advocacy often adopt a siloed approach, focusing on individual traits and intra-group dynamics while comparatively neglecting how inter-group processes influence long-term engagement. This project addresses this key gap by examining how inter-connections between causes, tactics, and outcomes shape resilience in sustaining the action. The findings should strengthen the understanding of social networks and collective action engagement, offering policymakers and practitioners tools to sustain engagement and empower communities to address complex challenges.

Understanding theories of collective action (e.g., the Social Identity Model of Collective Action, SIMCA) will be highly beneficial for contributing to this project. In addition, a basic knowledge of statistical analyses will be very helpful for engaging with the analyses and interpreting the findings.

Susilo Wibisono

Understanding brain changes following burn injury

Improvements in burn treatments have vastly reduced mortality rates and hospitalisation duration. Whilst improved treatments have increased survival rates, it has resulted in an increased burden of disease due to the profound disabilities associated with burn injury. These disabilities include loss of functionality and sensation, increased pain, and reduced quality of life. Despite the extensive research on burn-induced dysfunctions, there are still many aspects that remain poorly understood. Specifically, we lack a comprehensive understanding of the underlying mechanisms driving the persistent dysfunction following burn injury. In addition, evidence suggests there are changes in inflammation following burn injury, which might play a role in the pain, sensory, and motor dysfunction observed in burn survivors.

For this reason, the proposed project aims to comprehensively examine associations between inflammation in burn survivors and their experience of pain, sensory function, and motor function. We will examine inflammatory markers, sensory function, motor function, and neurophysiological function (using non-invasive brain stimulation) for the first 12 weeks following burn injury. The project will provide invaluable insights into the relationship between the inflammatory response, sensory function, motor function, and pain processing in burn survivors. Information from the proposed research will be vital in informing the design of future interventions contributing to optimal functional recovery. If we could use these interventions to manage the pain associated with dysfunction, this could improve quality of life, enhance functional ability, and decrease dependency on pain medication.

Associate Professor Ann-Maree Vallence, Professor Fiona Wood

Hedonic and Eudaimonic Savouring and Wellbeing

Savouring has been defined as an emotion regulation strategy to enhance positive emotion. An individual could apply hedonic and eudaimonic savouring based on their hedonic and eudaimonic experiences. It is still unclear how hedonic and eudaimonic savouring distinctively related to hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing. In this mixed method study, we shall apply a novel experimental paradigm, qualitative questions, and experience sampling method to find the association. This project can be a good opportunity for a psychologist practitioner to devise novel intervention.

Samiul Hossain

Dairy herd health, welfare and productivity in Western Australia

Currently there are no published figures on disease status, disease occurrence, broader welfare or productivity for dairy herds in Western Australia. Evaluating health, welfare and productivity will allow prioritisation of economically important disease for interventions with cost-benefit analysis. This study applies an epidemiological approach to estimate disease incidence/prevalence to evaluate priorities in the context of economics, markets and consumer trends. Assessments will be repeated to examine farm and seasonality effects. As well as reporting epidemiological findings, the economic burden of disease would be estimated using novel methodologies (Rasmussen et al 2025). This would allow cost-benefit analysis to be modelled for scenarios such as the implementation of specific regional control strategies. The entire process could act as a blueprint for an Australian National monitoring and strategic planning process.

This project would suit a veterinarian with a knowledge of dairy farming in Australia and an interest in epidemiology, welfare, economics and statistical modelling. Training on the latter subjects will be given.

Professor Nick Bell, Dr Mieghan Bruce