Your body needs fiber, a nutrient found in vegetables, whole grains, and legumes that helps regulate your gut and lower blood cholesterol and blood sugar levels.just about 5 percent of Americans Consume the recommended amount of dietary fiber per day (approximately 30 grams per day).
The enzymes Zya is developing are from a family called inulosucrases, which are naturally produced by bacterial strains present in the human microbiome that can convert sugars into fiber in the intestinal environment. This enzyme acts on sugars before they are broken down and absorbed into the body. It works by rearranging sugar molecules into inulin fibers. Inulin fiber is a type of soluble fiber found in plants such as chicory root that promotes the growth of beneficial gut bacteria.
In the human intestine, this enzyme is not expressed in useful amounts. In addition to scaling up its production, Zya has modified the enzyme to improve its stability and performance in the gastrointestinal tract.
In laboratory experiments, the researchers added enzymes to sugar in models of the human gut and also tested real foods containing enzymes in these systems. They found that this enzyme can convert up to 30 percent of the sugars present into fiber. They also mixed enzymes into food and fed them to pigs, which have the same digestive tract as humans.
The researchers used a small tube called a cannula to take samples from the pig’s small intestine. Professor Sauer said they observed “significant and meaningful levels of sugar to fiber conversion” compared to diets fed to pigs without enzymes, but to quantify the exact amount Tests are still being conducted. The company also plans to test the enzyme in humans.
To date, Zya has raised £4.1 million (just over $5 million) in venture capital across two funding rounds. The seed round was led by Astanor Ventures in 2022, with subsequent rounds conducted by Better Ventures in 2023.
Sauer hopes to launch its product, called Convero, in the U.S. in 2026, with the goal of moving into dry food products first. He says food manufacturers are already interested in using it as an ingredient. But first, Zya needs approval for the enzyme from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Wendelyn Jones, executive director of the Institute for the Advancement of Food and Nutrition Science, a public health nonprofit based in Washington, D.C., said enzymes are not listed on the Food Nutrient Review Board, so the companies that develop them are He said there is a need to cooperate with regulators. Experts on how to label foods containing them and how to list them as ingredients.
“Before this product gets from the lab to your plate, companies need to define what they want to label the product,” she says. For example, if Zya wants to make her health claims about her enzymes, she must provide her FDA with evidence to support her claims.
Zya is not alone in pursuing this type of technology. Kraft Heinz is an American food company known for its macaroni and cheese and various seasonings. Cooperation with the Wyss Institute of Harvard University To develop similar enzymes.
Taylor Wallace, CEO of food science consulting firm Think Healthy Group, sees great potential for this type of enzyme. “That’s a great idea,” he says. “We’re not going to stop people from eating cookies. We can encourage them to be in moderation, but basically we’ve been preaching the same dietary guidelines since the early ’80s, and we’re not going to stop people from eating cookies.” hasn’t changed. We’re just getting fatter. Our health has only gotten worse.”
Wallace says pigs are a good place to start testing, but results in animals don’t necessarily translate to humans.
Although he doesn’t believe that any particular product will be a silver bullet for the obesity problem, he believes Zya enzymes are one of many technologies that can lead people to a healthier state.
Mark Haub, professor of food, nutrition, dietetics, and health at Kansas State University, agrees. “This could be a viable means of helping people with their food choices,” he says. “It would be great if there was a healthier way for people to take what they normally eat.”
