Inclusivity

The current state-of-the-art treatment for EPI is pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy (PERT), which uses enzymes sourced from porcine pancreases [1]. However, these enzymes can only be extracted after the pig is killed [2]. There is no alternative free of animal product, so patients who have religious or ethical objections to consuming porcine-derived products must decide between upholding their beliefs or protecting their own health. We talked to several healthcare experts who expressed concern about their patients expressing this exact dilemma. Additionally, patients can have medical restrictions that prevent them from consuming animal-derived medications. For example, patients with pork or meat allergies and specifically, patients with alpha-gal syndrome, which is characterized by severe allergic reactions to red meat and other products from mammals, can react negatively to PERT [8].

Our solution addresses the inclusivity gaps in current treatments with a synthetic, pig-free alternative that uses human and bacterial enzymes. We don’t want to replace PERT; rather, we want to give patients more autonomy by providing choices that better align with their existing lifestyles.

We aimed for our handbook to be user-friendly and easy to read for any interested students, not overwhelming or confusing to navigate. With this in mind, we adhered to design guidelines for people with autism and dyslexia so that the handbook layout was not a barrier to accessibility [6]. To make the text more legible, the handbook has a high contrast ratio between the text and background, a minimum of 14-point font, sans-serif text, and large spacing between lines. Additionally, to increase ease of understanding, each page is formatted in a logical, consistent manner with relevant flowcharts and diagrams. To ensure that the specificity of the content is not a barrier, the handbook starts with a broad overview of biology before zooming into specific synthetic biology principles.

Similar accessibility guidelines were followed for the website design [7]. Screen-reader support, which is used by people with low vision, dyslexia, or who prefer listening to content, was facilitated by standard HTML formatting and alternative text for images. The website is also easy to navigate, with sub-headings, descriptive links, and multiple ways to reach each page. The table below illustrates the design principles we followed.