Researchers have found nearly 1,400 strains of bacteria in the human navel. The North Carolina State University's ‘Belly Button Biodiversity Study’ found 662 unrecognized strains - which could be unique new species.
The team had asked 95 volunteers to permit microbiologists to take navel swabs. The team asked volunteers to place long cotton swabs in their navels and twist them around three times. They then placed the swabs in bottles and grew the bacteria in cultures. Once the cultures grew big enough, they were photographed and their DNA was extracted for comparison to known bacteria.
Although researchers found some 1,400 strains, 80 percent were identified as 40 fairly common species of bacteria - mainly harmless skin dwellers. The numbers depended on the personal hygiene of the participants.
The team said they wanted to investigate navels because “everybody has one, it's what once connected us to our past”. “Yet, we barely notice it in our daily lives, to the point that few people actually wash theirs, which is great f or the bacteria,” they added. “We're probably the only ones studying human belly buttons on such a large scale,” said project leader Jiri Hulcr of North Carolina State University.
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