It has been favoured as a meat substitute by vegetarians for decades, but tofu has now emerged as the latest alternative for mending broken bones and damaged tissue.

Researchers from the University of Brighton uncovered the hidden properties of soya bean curd after reheating slices of the food and discovering its use in dental and reconstructive surgery.

Senior lecturer Matteo Santin said: "We cut tofu into slices and warmed it up to eliminate all the water.

"We ended up with a type of plastic and found this material sucks in water and bodily fluids, like blood, and becomes very elastic.

"It acts as a physical support for new tissue to grow in the body but also stimulates cells inside the bone to grow relatively quickly."

Teams from the university's school of pharmacy and biomolecular sciences in Lewes Road, Brighton, have received £149,000 toward their research from the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (Nesta).

The money will be used to carry out tests on the tofu-based biomaterial, with the help of specialist medical staff to develop its use for surgical procedures.

Dr Santin's research into biomaterials first got underway in 1991, after increasing frustration at the obstacles presented by existing materials for regenerating tissue.

Most are derived from animals and carry high costs and the risk of transmitting disease.

But tofu remains a cheaper alternative and experts first stumbled upon it when they witnessed the low rates of osteoporosis among people who eat a lot of the product.

Dr Santin, 41, said: "This new material is a completely natural product, which degrades in the body without causing any adverse affects.

"It is less expensive than the products currently available on the market, which provide a physical support for damaged tissue in the body but do not stimulate growth in the bone.

"The cost of the products on the market limits the number of people who can have access to this type of surgery but we are hoping to have this new treatment widely available in the next three years."

Nesta director Mark White said: "Cheap and simple to manufacture, the tofu-based biomaterial is the first to integrate quickly with a patient's own tissues and encourage re-growth of the surrounding tissue.

"We are confident Matteo and his team will be able to progress the material to a real commercial opportunity."