And for researchers at the University of Queensland, this is a race against time. They need your help to save angle-stemmed myrtle, God’s own tree! Named after former Queensland premier Wayne Goss, this unique tree faces multiple threats, including the devastating fungal disease myrtle rust. Today, there are an estimated just 380 Gossia gonoclada trees left in the wild. This dire crisis requires all hands on deck to conserve and restore the species.
The native Gossia gonoclada trees form riparian and vine forest communities around Logan and in southern areas of the Gold Coast. Lee-Anne Veage, who has dedicated over a decade to conservation efforts for this species, has been instrumental in mobilizing resources and expertise. She playfully refers to her research colleague Jingyin Bao as the “Gossia guardian.” This nickname is a reflection of their deep dedication to making sure that we save this amazing tree…together.
The Role of Cryopreservation
Cryopreservation is quickly becoming a key method in protecting Gossia gonoclada. However, traditional seed storage techniques fall short for the majority of threatened plant species. In truth, 30 percent of tropical plants are unable to withstand this process. As a researcher and educator, Dr. Alice Hayward knows all too well how important cryopreservation is, as she explains.
“A lot of our threatened plants, especially tropical species, about 30 percent don’t survive seed storage, so that’s where cryopreservation is really important — just safeguarding and banking the genetic diversity.”
To combat the delicate nature of Gossia gonoclada, Jingyin Bao has spent the past three years perfecting a scientific protocol to propagate them. First, we remove small shoot tips from the tree. Then, we fix them with a cryoprotective solution and freeze them down in liquid nitrogen. Bao notes that while the technology was initially developed for procedures like IVF, it requires careful adjustment for different plant species.
“It’s a technology that’s been developed for quite a long time, initially for other things like IVF, but the challenge in part for cryopreservation is that you have to develop a protocol for different things every time differently,” – Jingyin Bao
This work is as painstakingly rewarding as it is demanding. This means that researchers have to more or less perfectly calibrate every single variable in the protocol to prepare for success.
“So you have to fine-tune everything in the protocol in order to make it work for different species,” – Jingyin Bao
Regeneration Success and Future Prospects
The team’s efforts have yielded promising results. Tissue culture specialist Lee-Anne Veage has been able to propagate new Gossia gonoclada trees from regenerated tissue. She garnered astounding regeneration rates of 40 to 70 percent. This success story represents an important milestone in the recovery efforts for this endangered bird.
“We’ve got about 300 trees in Logan and 80 or so elsewhere — including naturally occurring populations as well as planted ones,” – Lee-Anne Veage
Dr. Hayward highlights Jingyin Bao’s achievements with related species, indicating a potential pathway for Gossia gonoclada’s future survival.
“Jinying’s been successful in achieving 100 per cent regeneration rate for cryopreservation of Gossia fragrantissima, which is a related species to Gossia gonoclada,” – Dr. Alice Hayward
Such high success rates are a rarity, making these advancements especially laudable within the field.
The Vision Ahead
The broader objective of this collaborative research is to protect Gossia gonoclada by protecting healthy, regenerable plant tissues. This method ensures that we’re keeping the most functional genetic material available. Even if the species goes extinct in the wild, we can ensure that future planting efforts will be successful.
“The idea is to safeguard these species by storing the healthy regenerable plant tissues so that one day they can be used to grow new plants in case the species becomes extinct in the wild,” – Jingyin Bao
As restoration work progresses, researchers are hopeful that G. gonoclada may someday flourish again. State-of-the-art methods are now being employed to rescue this remarkable tree. These approaches might not be an exemplar for conservation procedures focused on other endangered plant taxa around the globe.
