 Can you imagine not being allowed to eat pizza or any kind of dairy or food nuts soy meat or many other foods? Because if you did it would cause damage to your brain This is reality to one in 10,000 that are PKU or phenylketonuria patients Who are living on a strict diet for life because there's no cure or other efficient treatment So how can Pac-Man help out here? Let me take you on a journey through the human gut When food is digested there are a lot of different enzymes involved, which are just like little Pac-Man Digesting the foods breaking it down into pieces and making the nutrients available to the body and PKU however one of these enzymes has defects so everyday food becomes toxic in In my research, I am working on an oral therapy to replace this non-functional enzyme with a functional one But the human digestive tract is a very hostile world, which is actually great For a healthy digestion and to combat any viruses or bacteria that are invading It is not so great for an oral medication though So what is needed as the replacement here is a very robust and resistant super enzyme and where would we find something like that if not in one of the most extreme environments on the planet Volcanoes are such places with hostile surroundings and often very acidic conditions just in back in our stomach We have identified an enzyme that is originating from a natural volcanic steam vent And it is able to withstand the harsh nature of the stomach without losing its function to join the digestive machinery But this is not enough The super enzyme also needs to avoid being seen as normal food or parts of a pizza So that it won't be broken down into pieces and digested with the rest of the food So in terms of the video game, it is important not to be recognized by any of the ghosts So which is another superpower for super enzyme that I am working on So the next time you are eating something or maybe you're having a snack right now Think about how all these enzymes need to be functioning properly So that you get the nutrients you need and that not one of them is telling you game over Thank you for listening