Japanese researchers have discovered why some flower species, like the rafflesia, smell like rotting meat and excrement.

Scientists from the National Museum of Nature and Science and other research institutes in Japan studied wild ginger, with an odorous substance called dimethyl disulfide, just like the rafflesia. They identified a selenium-binding protein gene as being behind the odorant’s synthesis process, The Asahi Shimbun reported.

Yudai Okuyama, a senior researcher of evolutionary biology at the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo, led the research and published his team’s findings in the American scientific journal Science.

Meanwhile, another group of Japanese researchers is studying the diet of residents in the town of Shonai in Yamagata Prefecture.

The researchers believe the rich dietary fiber of the Shonai residents could be the source of the beneficial bacteria they are looking for.

Part of the research involved constructing a facility in Tsuruoka City where locals can participate. Located in a science park and opened on 24 April, it is operated by Metagen Therapeutics Inc.

Shonai residents aged 18 to 65 can visit the facility and undergo an interview, blood testand stool exam to qualify and register as study subjects. If their stool shows “superb” intestinal flora, they will be paid 5,000 yen for every stool they regularly donate to Metagen.