Step aside mold, here comes gator blood

I'm sure when the doctors who discovered the healing qualities certain molds have people looked at them a bit askance. Really? Mold? Nowadays penicillin and its origins are well known. So I guess alligator blood isn't that unusual.

A researcher at McNeese State University noted that alligators rarely seem to acquire infections despite the numerous cuts and injuries they sustain and the bacteria-laden waters that they live in. Subsequently, researchers studied the effects of multiple bacteria species on serum from alligator blood. The gator blood destroyed every species of bacteria -- human blood can typically only suppress eight. In addition, alligators seem to be born with an innate immune system, not requiring exposure to the bug to develop the immunity like humans.

It's hoped that the findings from this study will lead doctors to new solutions for drug-resistant infections.