I completed a Bachelor of Biotechnology (First Class Honours) in 2012 at the Austral National University (ANU). I then obtained a PhD in Plant Science at ANU in 2018 investigating chloroplast signalling, gene regulation, and plant epigenetics with Prof. Barry Pogson. I was subsequently awarded a Future Science Fellowship in Synthetic Biology from CSIRO, which I used to investigate the regulation of mRNA stability between 2019-2022. This was followed by a postdoctoral position with Prof. Brian Gregory at the University of Pennsylvania (2022-2025) studying mRNA modifications after which I returned to ANU in 2025 as an ARC DECRA Fellow to investigate population epigenomic variation in wild plants.

Awards

I am fascinated by the mechanisms that fine-tune plant cell performance under environmental pressures, especially those exacerbated by climate change (e.g. heat, drought). Specifically, my research studies how the ‘epigenome’—chemical tags added to DNA—could facilitate adaptation to diverse environments over generations; and how the ‘epitranscriptome’—chemical tags added to mRNA—can be dynamically remodelled for acclimation within an individual’s lifetime. To explore these questions, I employ a genomics-centred strategy that incorporates genetics, RNA biology, molecular/synthetic biology, plant physiology and biochemistry, and bioinformatics.

Projects

• Epigenomics on Australia's alpine plants to discover novel adaptive regulatory variation.
• Thermal acclimation of native plants through mRNA modification and processing dynamics.
• Functional analysis of conserved and lineage-specific genes correlated with heat tolerance in Australian waxy bluebells.
• Harnessing regulatory variation from wild plants to develop climate-resilient crops.

Research opportunities are available ranging from bioinformatics, molecular benchwork, to plant physiology. Check out any of the relevant publications and contact me if interested.

• Notarnicola et al (2026) Molecular signatures of heat tolerance and sensitivity in the alpine plant Wahlenbergia ceracea during moderate warming. bioRxiv. 10.1101/2023.09.27.559694
• Ganguly DR et al (2025) mRNA ADENOSINE METHYLASE promotes drought tolerance through N6-methyladenosine-dependent and independent impacts on mRNA regulation in Arabidopsis. New Phytologist. 10.1111/nph.20227
• Prall W et al (2023) The covalent nucleotide modifications within plant mRNAs: What we know, how we find them, and what should be done in the future. The Plant Cell. 10.1093/plcell/koad044.
• Ganguly DR et al (2022) Harnessing genetic variation at regulatory regions to fine-tune traits for climate resilient crops. Molecular Plant. 10.1016/j.molp.2021.12.011
• Eichten SR et al (2020) Extending the Genotype in Brachypodium by Including DNA Methylation Reveals a Joint Contribution with Genetics on Adaptive Traits. G3 Genes, Genomes, Genet. 10.1534/g3.120.401189
• Ganguly DR et al (2017) The Arabidopsis DNA methylome is stable under transgenerational drought stress. Plant Physiology. 10.1104/pp.17.00744