celiac
dr. dolittle | February 20, 2017 Enzyme from pitcher plant helps mice digest gluten. Image by Mokkie - Praca własna, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Pitcher plants are a known enemy of insects, but perhaps beneficial for people suffering from celiac disease. Chemist Dr. David Schriemer at the University of Calgary was studying the pitcher plant Nepenthes x ventrata (shown above) in his search for an enzyme similar to pepsin for use in his experiments. Pitcher plants secrete digestive fluids with a pH similar to own digestive juices. Through his research he found the enzyme from pitcher plants could break down the…