Seam specialises in metabolic engineering and adaptive laboratory evolution of Yarrowia lipolytica, using CRISPR-based genome editing and molecular cloning to optimise yeast strains for lipid production from acetate.
Seam is a Master of Biotechnology candidate at the University of Queensland and a Student Researcher at AIBN working under Dr Huadong Peng. Her research focuses on engineering the oleaginous yeast Yarrowia lipolytica to better tolerate and utilise acetate as a carbon source, to increase lipid production from a low-cost, scalable feedstock. A key target is producing 1,3-dioleoyl-2-palmitoyl-glycerol (OPO), a structured triacylglycerol designed to resemble aspects of human milk fat. She applies molecular cloning and CRISPR/Cas9-based genome engineering for strain construction and optimisation, alongside lipid profiling to connect strain performance on acetate to lipid yield and composition.