Identification of 12 new susceptibility loci for different histotypes of epithelial ovarian cancer.

To identify common alleles associated with different histotypes of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC), we pooled data from multiple genome-wide genotyping projects totaling 25,509 EOC cases and 40,941 controls. We identified nine new susceptibility loci for different EOC histotypes: six for serous EOC histotypes (3q28, 4q32.3, 8q21.11, 10q24.33, 18q11.2 and 22q12.1), two for mucinous EOC (3q22.3 and 9q31.1) and one for endometrioid EOC (5q12.3). We then performed meta-analysis on the results for high-grade serous ovarian cancer with the results from analysis of 31,448 BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers, including 3,887 mutation carriers with EOC. This identified three additional susceptibility loci at 2q13, 8q24.1 and 12q24.31. Integrated analyses of genes and regulatory biofeatures at each locus predicted candidate susceptibility genes, including OBFC1, a new candidate susceptibility gene for low-grade and borderline serous EOC

Landscape-scale conservation planning in a changing climate : a koala case study

ABSTRACT The extinctions of species and the decline of biodiversity due to human-induced habitat loss and landscape fragmentation continue globally. Compounding these threats is rapid anthropogenic climate change, which will cause many species and their habitats to experience shifts in their distributions and even extinctions. For effective conservation planning, it is critical we understand where these climate change-induced range shifts are likely to occur, which are co-occurring with existing stressors and what we can do to try and help solve this problem. There are now many modelling techniques and conservation planning tools that can provide quantitative and robust information to support conservation planning decisions under future climate change. The aim of this thesis was to advance the understanding of how the distributions of species and their essential habitats will shift in response to climate change, so that conservation planning resources can be invested most effectively. This was achieved by using the koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) as a case study species. I chose the koala because it is a wide-ranging endemic specialist folivore that is vulnerable to land clearing and anthropogenic climate change. The koala family (Phascolarctidae) has an ancient history of adaptation to the Australian landscape and climate that has spanned tens of millions of years and incorporated numerous genera and species. Today, P. cinereus is the only remaining member of this ancient family and its future survival in the wild is becoming increasingly tenuous. This project applied landscape-scale species distribution modelling techniques and a conservation prioritisation framework to explore the past, present and future distribution of the koala. Firstly, I investigated the fossil records of koalas to ascertain their historical distribution and found that in the past, koalas have inhabited areas of Australia such as Central and Western Australia, where they no longer occur. Using bioclimatic modelling, I developed a ‘climate envelope’ for koalas and found that modern koalas occur at a temperature range of -4 oC to 37.7 oC (mean annual 16.4 oC) and an annual precipitation range of 234 to 2480 mm (mean annual 863 mm). I then examined their potential distribution, or climate refugia, at the Last Glacial Maximum and showed that their core range contracted significantly to small areas of southeast Queensland and northern New South Wales. Secondly, species distribution modelling was undertaken for koalas throughout their modern range in eastern Australia and under a range of future climate change scenarios. I found that their distribution will contract progressively eastwards and southwards under climate change and koalas will disappear from their western regions. The highest probability of koala presence occurred between mean maximum summer temperatures of 23 oC and 26 oC and mean annual rainfall of between 700 and 1500 mm and the most important variable was mean maximum summer temperatures. Finally, for the state of Queensland, a prioritisation analysis was applied to identify the local government area districts that are the highest priority for conservation resources. To do this I used species distribution models predicting the probability distributions of koalas and their critical food and habitat resources in Queensland, under current and future climate change scenarios. These probability models were used as habitat layers to identify priority local government areas, using the conservation planning software Zonation for four scenarios based on: 1) koalas predicted distribution under the current climate, 2) koalas and their major food trees predicted distributions under the current climate, 3) koalas and their major food trees predicted distributions under current, 2030 and 2050 climates and 4) koalas and their major food trees predicted distributions under the 2050 climate. It was important to use this combination of scenarios so that the effects of including the koala food trees in the prioritisation analysis could be ascertained. By 2050, the potential overlaps between predicted koala distributions and their critical food trees were reduced, with koalas in western regions contracting further eastwards than their key food tree E. camaldulensis (river red gum). By 2070, the koala and two key food trees, E. tereticornis, (forest red gum) and E. crebra, (narrow-leaved ironbark) were limited to a narrow zone of coastal southeast Queensland. By 2050, there was a decrease in priority western areas and a general concentration of priority areas in the more costly and rapidly urbanising southeast Queensland regions, therefore posing significant conservation investment challenges. This thesis makes an important contribution to furthering the understanding of the impact of climate change on species and their habitats, by simultaneously modelling a specialist folivore and its essential eucalypt food trees. It demonstrates a novel quantitative approach to deciding where conservation planning resources should be invested, for a species dependent on a specialised habitat requirement, to gain the most effective conservation planning outcomes, particularly under climate change

Koalas, people and climate change: not a good mix

The koala is an iconic Australian native marsupial that has a very limited diet. It can only eat certain trees – predominantly eucalypts – that contain particular leaf chemistry (such as high levels of nitrogen) and moisture. The koala’s habitat and food trees have been relentlessly cleared since European settlement. Koalas were also hunted to near extinction in many parts of eastern Australia for the fur trade. On 22 September, a Senate inquiry released its report, The koala - saving our national icon. The inquiry made 19 recommendations, and called for more funding for koala research. The environment minister is now considering whether to list the species as threatened

Prime real estate for the platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus): Habitat requirements in a peri-urban environment

Platypuses have specific habitat requirements but continue to persist in urban and peri-urban areas where these requirements are continually impacted upon. Identifying the species requirements in an ecosystem is important for population persistence. The aim of this project was to determine platypus presence and associated habitat preferences along Moggill Creek, west of Brisbane. This was established through observational surveys and platypus habitat assessments. Observational surveys were completed at 33 sites to determine platypus presence. At these sites, riparian and in-stream habitat assessments were completed on the characteristics associated with platypus presence. Ten sightings at 10 individual sites were recorded, two of which were recorded in peri-urban areas and eight in the lower reaches, characterised by urban landscapes. The significant habitat characteristics associated with platypus presence were: consolidated bank height > 0.95 m (p = 0.004), bank slope > 35° (p = 0.009) and water depth > 1.1 m (p = 0.011). The identification of platypus habitat requirements allows management practices to be implemented for protection of these habitat characteristics and promotion of healthy waterways

Where are the platypuses (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) now? A snapshot in time of their distribution in the Greater Brisbane region

Distribution data on platypus populations within the Greater Brisbane region is currently lacking, limiting our understanding of their population status. We report 4 years of platypus environmental DNA data from waterways in this region and compare them to historical observational records from 1990 to 2016 to determine any changes to their distribution. Twenty-one of the 54 eDNA sampled waterways were sampled multiple times and had records of previous platypus presence. Five of these 21 repeatedly sampled waterways (24%) did not have evidence of platypus presence, based on eDNA. This raises the concern that platypuses may no longer inhabit these waterways. We hope this study encourages further investigations on platypus to identify the extent of their decline within the region, along with possible broader state-wide review of their conservation status for future protection

Working together: a call for inclusive conservation

An age-old conflict around a seemingly simple question has resurfaced: why do we conserve nature? Contention around this issue has come and gone many times, but in the past several years we believe that it has reappeared as an increasingly acrimonious debate between, in essence, those who argue that nature should be protected for its own sake (intrinsic value) and those who argue that we must also save nature to help ourselves (instrumental value)

Modelling the potential range of the koala at the Last Glacial Maximum: future conservation implications

The koala Phascolarctos cinereus is the only member of the once diverse marsupial family Phascolarctidae to have survived the Last Glacial Maximum. A climate envelope model for P. cinereus was developed to predict the range for this species at present and at the Last Glacial Maximum. The model was compared to the contemporary koala records and the known fossil records of P. cinereus during the Quaternary.The predicted current core range for koalas was concentrated in southeast Queensland, eastern New South Wales and eastern Victoria. At the Last Glacial Maximum their predicted core range contracted significantly to southeast Queensland and northeast New South Wales. Our findings concord with other studies that find species experienced range contractions during glacial maxima. In the context of the future conservation planning for koalas in the wild, our historical perspective demonstrates the past adaptations of koalas to changes in climate and their probable range contraction to climatic refugia.The future survival of wide-ranging specialist species, such as the koala, may depend on identifying and protecting, future climatic refugia