Staff profile

Dr Anthony R Gendall

Senior Lecturer

Faculty of Science, Technology and Engineering

School of Life Sciences
Department of Botany
AgriBio, the Centre for AgriBioscience

Biological Sciences I Room 414; Lab 426-429, Melbourne (Bundoora)

 

Qualifications

BSc Hons (UWA)., PhD (Melb. at Ludwig Insitute)

Membership of professional Associations

Australian Society of Plant Scientists (ASPS)

Area of study

Botany

Brief Profile

Tony Gendall obtained his B.Sc with Honours in Biochemistry from the University of Western Australia in 1991, before completing a Ph. D at the University of Melbourne and the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research. Following post-doctoral work in the United Kingdom at The John Innes Centre, he was appointed as a Lecturer in Botany at La Trobe University in 2002, and Senior Lecturer in 2009. Tony Gendall's lab uses genetic and molecular approaches to study aspects of plant development and physiology.

Our current work is aimed at understanding two important aspects of plant development - flowering time and response to abiotic stresses. We are particularly interested in using the natural variation present between different varieties (or accessions) of a species to identify genes that regulate particular characteristics. These methods initially use genetic approaches (mapping of segregating traits) to determine how many genes are responsible for a particular trait, and molecular techniques to eventually clone the genes.

Research interests

Plant Physiology

- Ion homeostasis

- Plant developmental and stress biology

- Seed proteins

Teaching Units

2013: BOT3PB - Plant Biotechnology - analysis of plant gene function, plant genomics and genetics

2013: BOT3ABT - Agricultural biotechnology: biotech in agriculture

2013: BOT2ILP - Inner Life of Plants: plant development and physiology

2013: BIO1PS - Plant Science: introduction to plant structure/function, hormones and development

2013: BIO1OF - Organisation and Function of Cells and Organisms -introductory cell biology

 

 

Recent Publications

  • Pearson A, Cogan NO, Baillie RC, Hand ML, Bandaranayake CK, Erb S, Wang J, Kearney GA, Gendall AR, Smith KF, Forster JW. (2011) Identification of QTLs for morphological traits influencing waterlogging tolerance in perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.). Theoretical and Applied Genetics. 122, 609-622
  • Dracatos PM, Cogan NO, Sawbridge TI, Gendall AR, Smith KF, Spangenberg GC, Forster JW. (2009) Molecular characterisation and genetic mapping of candidate genes for qualitative disease resistance in perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.). BMC Plant Biology 9,62.
  • Dracatos, P.M., Dobrowolski, M.P., Lamb, J., Olle, R.S., Gendall, A.R., Cogan, N.O.I., Smith, K.F., and Forster, J.W. (2009b). Development of genetically homogenised populations of the crown rust pathogen (Puccinia coronata f.sp lolii) for disease trait dissection in perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.). Australasian Plant Pathology 38, 55-62.
  • George J, Sawbridge TI, Cogan NO, Gendall AR, Smith KF, Spangenberg GC, Forster JW. (2008) Comparison of genome structure between white clover and Medicago truncatula supports homoeologous group nomenclature based on conserved synteny. Mol Genet Genomics 280, 293-304
  • Gendall, AR and Forster, JW (2007) Genetics of reproductive development in forage legumes. International Journal of Plant Developmental Biology 1, 245-252.
  • Greb T, Mylne JS, Crevillen P , Geraldo N , An HL , Gendall AR , Dean C (2007) The PHD finger protein VRN5 functions in the epigenetic silencing of Arabidopsis FLC. Current Biology 17, 73-78.
  • Gendall, AR and Simpson GG (2006). Vernalization. In "Molecular Biology and Biotechnology of Flowering" (ed B.R. Jordan). CABI Press, Wallingford, UK. pp. 26-49.
  • Gazzani, S, Gendall, AR, Lister, C and Dean, C. (2003). Analysis of the molecular basis of flowering time variation in Arabidopsis accessions. Plant Physiology 132, 1107-1114. 
  • Levy, Y. Y., Mesnage, S., Mylne, J. S., Gendall, A. R. and Dean, C. (2002). Multiple roles of Arabidopsis VRN1 in vernalization and flowering time control. Science 297, 243-246. 
  • Gendall, A. R., Levy, Y. Y., Wilson, A. and Dean, C. (2001). The VERNALIZATION 2 gene mediates the epigenetic regulation of vernalization in Arabidopsis. Cell 107, 525-535. 

Older Publications

  • Simpson, G. G., Gendall, A. R. and Dean, C. (1999). When to switch to flowering. Annual Review of Cell and Developmental Biology 15, 519-550. 
  • Dean,C., Dijkwel, P., Duroux, M., Gendall, A. R., Hutchinson, C., Johanson, U., Levy, Y. Y., Lister, C., Macknight, R., Smart, B., Simpson, G., Sivadon, P., Torney, K. and West, J. (1999). Molecular analysis of flowering time and vernalization response in Arabidopsis. Flowering Newsletter 28, 6-11 (now published as part of J. Exp Bot.)

Research projects

We welcome outstanding applicants with experience in molecular biology, genetics or bichemistry, and an interest in plants  to apply for a variety of scholarship or fellowhips.