August 17/Minneapolis/PhysOrg.com -- In one of those freak accidents that sometimes occur in science, where someone is looking at something for one purpose and finds another for it, Dr. Dan O'Sullivan has found a use for a byproduct of harmless bacteria commonly found in the human gut, Called bisin, it appears to work as a sort of super-preservative for meat, dairy and eggs, allowing them to go unspoiled for perhaps years.
O'Sullivan, a microbiologist working at the University of Minnesota claims to have found the bacteria-killing properties of bisin, while doing basic research on bacteria that live in the intestine.