The Saliva Solution in :60

By: alanwong () in staff

Last year, the sales of gluten-free products hit $4.2 billion and they're expected to top $6.1 [...]billion by 2018, the Boston Globe reported this summer. But if Eva Helmerhorst's research keeps going the way it has, she may soon cut into those sales.

While studying human saliva, the associate professor of molecular and cell biology discovered a handful of enzymes that can cleave, or digest, gluten, which is found primarily in wheat, rye, and barley. Great news for the estimated three million people who suffer from celiac disease and face nutritional deficiencies and osteoporosis in addition to lymphoma from chronic intestinal damage.

Read the story on the Annual Report:
http://www.bu.edu/ar

Tags: faculty, boston university, food, research, 2013, protein, gluten, annual report, ar13, saliva, celiac disease, cleave, allergy, eva helmerhorst

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