Chaiyut Suksombat

Chulalongkorn University / Agricultural Biotechnology

Advisor: Prof. Siripong Thammarat

Chaiyut Suksombat applies multiplex CRISPR-Cas12a editing to reprogram cassava's starch biosynthesis pathway at Chulalongkorn University's Biotechnology department, targeting the GBSSI and SBEIIb genes simultaneously to create a waxy cassava line with near-zero amylose content. Specialty waxy starches — used in food texturisers, paper coatings, and adhesives — currently command a 40–60% price premium over commodity cassava starch, but the plant genetics community has not yet produced a commercially viable waxy cassava variety. Supervised by Prof. Siripong Thammarat, Chaiyut has achieved biallelic editing of both target genes in 34% of regenerated plants across three Thai landrace backgrounds, confirmed by Sanger and Nanopore sequencing. Scanning electron microscopy of granule morphology and high-performance size-exclusion chromatography of the extracted starch show the characteristic rounded, heterogeneous granule shape and >98% amylopectin content of waxy starch phenotypes. A formal research partnership with the Thai Starch Industry Association provides field evaluation plots and downstream processing characterisation, ensuring that Chaiyut's laboratory genetics translate into agronomically and industrially validated varieties.