Ancient yeast from Iceman's remains baked into modern bread

Scientists have isolated yeast living in the preserved remains of Ötzi the Iceman, the 5,300-year-old mummy discovered in 1991 on a glacier in the Schnal Valley on the border between Austria and Italy, and used the microbes to bake sourdough bread. According to Phys.org and the Jerusalem Post, the yeast has been growing in Ötzi's gut for millennia, preserved in the frozen conditions of the high Alps until his recovery and subsequent study.

Ötzi's remains are now housed at the Archaeological Museum of Bolzano, where they remain one of Europe's most significant Bronze Age finds. The mummy was discovered with clothing, tools and weapons intact, offering an unparalleled window into Alpine life before recorded history. The recent cultivation of the yeast represents a novel use of the body's biological material for scientific and culinary experiment.