Bacteria That Make Gold Discovered By Scientists

Bacteria that make gold (Photo: Youtube)

American researchers have discovered that the ability of the Cupriavidus metallidurans bacteria to withstand incredible amounts of toxicity is key to creating 24-karat gold.

Michigan State University (MSU) professors Kazem Kashefi and Adam of Brown found that the bacteria can grow on massive concentrations of gold chloride – or liquid gold, a toxic chemical compound found in nature.

Thus, they experimented on feeding the bacteria with unprecedented amounts of gold chloride, mimicking the process they believe happens in nature. In about a week, the bacteria transformed the toxins and produced a gold nugget.

"Microbial alchemy is what we’re doing – transforming gold from something that has no value into a solid, precious metal that’s valuable," Kashefi was quoted as saying.

However, the scientists admit that it would not be cost effective enough to reproduce their experiment on a larger scale. But MSU notes that their success in creating gold raises questions about greed, economy and environmental impact, focusing on the ethics related to science and the engineering of nature.