Pollution is a big problem, particularly from industry which pumps unwanted metals into the soil just about everywhere in the world. Getting rid of this had been an issue looking for a solution for decades. The answer could be at hand from a very weird source.
Fish sperm has a property making it ideal for the purpose. It literally hoovers up the metal particles. The sperm contains high amounts of DNA. This contains phosphate which strongly attracts metals. The metal/phosphate compound can be taken out with neodymium magnets consisting of trivalent iron, dysprosium and neodymium.
In Italy herring sperm was first identified as being useful in cleaning up the environment. With salmon being bred commercially, it is seen as a better source of fish sperm. The substance has been thrown away as waste until now.
✴ Science by Ty Buchanan ✴
