Platypus milk: medical miracle or just plain weird?

Today for your daily dose of strange, we’re discussing platypus milk: the hot new thing in the medical world.

Apparently, ten-odd years ago scientists found that platypus milk had incredible antibacterial properties. Enough so that it could be used in defense against superbugs aka antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

Why were scientists studying platypus milk in the first place? We’ll probably never know.

platypus milk

The Australian government has partnered up with some lucky individuals at Deakin University to study the unusual proteins found in platypus milk. The proteins look like perfectly spiraled ringlets, and are aptly named ‘Shirley Temple’.

platypus milk

Now, here’s where things get just a little bit weirder. Since platypuses aren’t actually mammals (they’re monotremes – science speak for a duck-reptile-otter hybrid) they don’t have nipples. No surprise there, anything that can be f**ked up about these guys, is. So their milk actually comes from their pores. It’s sweat-milk. It’s milk-sweat. It’s real, real weird.

So, ladies, gents and everyone in between, one day in the near future you could be sucking at the proverbial teat of modern-day science by ingesting platypus milk-sweat. Science!

For more weird, read up on this B&E committing party-possum.

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