They kept adding goldchloride to the water to see how much the bacteria could handle, eventually stopping at 25 times higher than previously researched concentrations.
He and Adam Brown, associate professor of electronic art and intermedia at Michigan State, found that the bacteria, Cupriavidus metallidurans, can withstand concentrations of goldchloride 25 times higher than previously reported by scientists.
By combining an artist and scientific quest, the two professors at Michigan State University found that a certain type of metal-loving bacteria can transform high amounts of the toxic chemical compound goldchloride from a liquid into solid 24-karat gold.