The changing face of agricultural R&D - New education and new discoveries producing outcomes for the WA agricultural industry

‘I have never seen Francis Crick in a modest mood’ – this is the opening sentence of Nobel Laureate Jim Watson’s book ‘Life Story”, his account of the discovery of the structure of DNA. In the 50 years since this momentous discovery, even Watson and Crick could not have foreseen how rapidly the world would change as a result.

Earlier this month I made a pilgrimage to the Eagle pub in Cambridge, where the dynamic duo celebrated their discovery, and proclaimed that they had discovered ‘the secret of life’. Crick’s lack of modesty can be forgiven, given the momentous nature of their discovery.

There have indeed been incredible developments in biology over the past 50 years.

The revolution in molecular biology now reaches all aspects of life, and none more so than in agriculture.

The sciences of genomics, proteomics, metabolomics and bioinformatics dominate research discussions, and the advent of GM crops and livestock provides completely new possibilities for breeders, and novel uses for crops and animal products.

Plant and animal breeding will be based on knowledge of genes that underlie traits, and the genes will be mapped to precise positions on the chromosomes. High throughput technologies that rely on automation will be needed for marker-assisted selection and whole genome scanning.

It is impossible to predict the future, but one thing is certain: that the rate of scientific advances will increase, and this will further impact on agricultural R&D.

Murdoch’s Vision – 10 years investment in agricultural biotechnology

When it was established, Murdoch was committed to agricultural R&D – as shown by its Degree Course in Veterinary Sciences, a $100 million investment in the Veterinary area, and a 52ha farm on campus.

It is not surprising that staff and researchers at Murdoch were the first in WA to recognise the impact that new technologies would have on agricultural R&D, and Murdoch is now the recognised leader in agricultural biotechnology in the State.

This leadership has been achieved in collaboration with researchers at the Department of Agriculture (DAWA) and other partner organisations.

Investment in infrastructure for advanced R&D in agriculture

The SABC, recognised in 1998 as a WA State Government Centre of Excellence, has grown impressively in 10 years, and now acts as the engine room that drives over 20 research groups and a total of over 200 researchers. It does this by providing state-of-the-art facilities for major technologies that are not available elsewhere in WA.

The multi-million dollar facilities include DNA sequencing, gene mapping, genomics and microarray technologies, proteomics, robotic workstations for high throughput diagnostics, and a new $1 million high tech glasshouse for plant research.

Such facilities provide competitive advantages for research: having been obtained from competitive Federal funds, they also bring tax dollars back to WA.

Broad basis of agricultural R&D - from forestry to the environment

Murdoch boasts a broad basis to its agricultural R&D – from forest pathology and environmental biotechnology, to gene discovery and its application. Murdoch is a core member of the Molecular Plant Breeding CRC, CRCs for Sheep and Beef, and a core member of the new Environmental Biotechnology CRC (EBCRC). EBCRC focuses on management of waste products (eg from abattoirs or intensive animal rearing), and generating added value products in a safe and environmentally friendly way.

New requirements for education and training for agricultural R&D

The Murdoch vision recognised that agricultural R&D was changing rapidly – training needs for practical farming are quite different from those for research that underpin agricultural R&D. Cutting edge R&D now requires understanding molecular genetics, gene discovery and function, GM technologies, genomics, proteomics and bioinformatics. These are areas which Murdoch leads in WA.

These advances must be reflected in current education for R&D, together with access to the latest technologies and instrumentation.

Future developments in agriculture will increasingly be based on knowledge and on technology, at a level that requires a range of specialist inputs.

Incubation of new companies and benefits to WA

All farms are businesses, so it is not surprising that agricultural biotechnology and commercialisation of R&D go hand in hand – Murdoch supported and is pleased to host companies in ag biotech such as Grain Biotech Australia (GBA), Saturn Biotech and Proteomics International.

These companies are part of the ‘knowledge economy’, and will provide jobs for graduates, new Intellectual Property and the potential to create wealth for WA and the nation.

Most of the university R&D is also practical in nature, underpinning the breeding programs, and adding value using knowledge to speed up the production of new varieties with better properties for farmers, developing new vaccines or improving quality in the handling chain.