Gerber et al. (2011) had their findings published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of the Science.

According to a precis of the research in science website PhysOrg, the researchers used a thin plastic sheet that they covered with Penicillium roqueforti.

They then covered this with a slightly porous plastic material that allowed liquids to pass through but kept the fungus out.

After applying a sugar solution to the material, the team said that after a two-week wait the fungus had completely eaten the sugar, leaving the newly created material sparkling clean.

Since the fungus returned to a dormant state after eating the sugar, the scientists said it could sit there indefinitely, only coming to life once food was dropped onto it, provided that it didn't dry out completely.

In the words of PhysOrg.com: "What if self-cleaning countertops were made of such material for example, keeping them forever free of dangerous bacteria, or thinking bigger, as the team suggests, what if the surface of skyscrapers were covered in such a sandwich, but instead of blue cheese fungus, algae could be used to convert carbon dioxide to oxygen?"

"Clearly, this simple idea could lead to truly revolutionary new types of material coverings."