The oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico has given researcher Antje Boetius a unique opportunity: the microbiologist from Bremen is studying a special kind of oil-eating bacteria that live on the sea bed and consume the crude oil that lands there.Boetius is trying to find out how these bacteria break down the oil - and whether she can increase their appetite. She hopes to use her research to clean bodies of water contaminated by man-made spills.