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ChristinaWarinner_2012U-_利用牙菌斑追踪古代疾病_
Have you ever wondered what is inside your dental plaque ? 各位是否想過 在各位的牙菌斑裡藏著什麼?
dental:n.牙医;[语]齿音;;adj.牙齿的;牙科的;齿音的; plaque:n.匾;血小板;饰板;
Probably not, but people like me do. 可能沒有,但像我一樣的人
I'm an archeological geneticist at the Center for Evolutionary Medicine at the University of Zurich, and I study the origins and evolution of human health and disease by conducting genetic research on the skeletal and mummified remains of ancient humans. 我是一位考古學遺傳學家 我任職於蘇黎世大學 醫藥發展中心 我針對古人類骨骼和木乃伊遺骸 進行基因研究 了解人類健康和疾病的起源和演化
archeological:adj.考古学的; geneticist:n.遗传学者; Evolutionary:adj.进化的;发展的;渐进的; origins:n.起源; (origin的复数) disease:n.病,[医]疾病;弊病;vt.传染;使…有病; conducting:v.组织;安排;实施;指挥;引导;导游(conduct的现在分词) skeletal:adj.骨骼的,像骨骼的;骸骨的;骨瘦如柴的; mummified:adj.木乃伊化的;v.木乃伊化(mummify的过去式);
And through this work, I hope to better understand the evolutionary vulnerabilities of our bodies, so that we can improve and better manage our health in the future. 透過此研究,我希望能更加了解 我們的身體在進化上缺陷 我們也得以改善 並在未來控管我們的健康狀況
vulnerabilities:n.缺陷(vulnerability的复数形式);脆弱点; improve:v.改进;改善;
There are different ways to approach evolutionary medicine, and one way is to extract human DNA from ancient bones. 要改進研發醫藥有各種不同的方法 其中一種就是從骨骼化石中 提取人類的DNA
approach:n.方法;路径;v.接近;建议;着手处理; extract:v.提取;取出;摘录;榨取;n.汁;摘录;榨出物;选粹;
And from these extracts , we can reconstruct the human genome at different points in time and look for changes that might be related to adaptations , risk factors and inherited diseases . 從這些提取出的DNA 我們可以重建不同時期的人類的基因組 尋找可能因適應而產生的變化 風險因素和遺傳疾病
extracts:n.提取物,[化学]萃取物(extract复数形式); v.[图情]摘录(extract的第三人称单数形式); reconstruct:vt.重建;改造;修复;重现; genome:n.基因组;染色体组; adaptations:n.适应;改编(adaptation的复数); factors:n.因素(factor的复数); v.做代理商; inherited:v.继承(金钱、财产等);接替(责任等);继任;(inherit的过去式和过去分词) diseases:n.[医]病(disease的复数);[医]疾病;[植保]病害;疾病种类;
But this is only one half of the story. 但這只是故事的其中一部份
The most important health challenges today are not caused by simple mutations in our genome, but rather result from a complex and dynamic interplay between genetic variation , diet, microbes and parasites and our immune response . 但今天對於健康最大的挑戰 並非我們基因組裡產生的簡單基因突變 而是遺傳變異,飲食 微生物,寄生蟲 和我們的免疫反應之間 造成的複雜和動態的相互作用
mutations:n.[遗]突变;变化;转变(mutation的复数形式); complex:adj.复杂的;合成的;n.复合体;综合设施; dynamic:n.动力; adj.充满活力的; interplay:n.相互影响,相互作用;vi.相互影响,相互作用; variation:n.变异;变体;变奏;变种; microbes:n.细菌,[微]微生物;微生物类(microbe的复数形式); parasites:n.[基医]寄生虫;[生物]寄生生物(parasite的复数); immune response:n.免疫应答(机体对抗原的应答);
All of these diseases have a strong evolutionary component that directly relates to the fact that we live today in a very different environment than the ones in which our bodies evolved . 這所有的疾病 有很強的進化因子 這直接和一個事實有關 就是我們生活在一個和我們身體相比 是一個更加不同的環境中
component:n.成分;部件;组成部分;adj.构成的; directly:adv.直接地;立即;马上;正好地;坦率地;conj.一…就; evolved:v.(使)逐渐形成;进化;进化形成;(evolve的过去分词和过去式)
And in order to understand these diseases, we need to move past studies of the human genome alone and towards a more holistic approach to human health in the past. 為了要了解這些疾病 我們需要將過去研究人類基因組 改成更加全方位的去研究 過去的人類健康情況
holistic:adj.整体的;全盘的;
But there are a lot of challenges for this. 但這是相當大的挑戰
And first of all , what do we even study? 首先,我們要研究什麼？
first of all:adv.首先;
Skeletons are ubiquitous; they're found all over the place. 骨頭無所不在,到處都能發現
Skeletons:n.骷髅;[解剖]骨骼(skeleton的复数);流言(歌曲名);
But of course, all of the soft tissue has decomposed , and the skeleton itself has limited health information. 當然,所有的軟組織都被分解掉了 而骨頭本身 健康的資訊有限
soft tissue:n.(皮肤、肌肉等)软组织; decomposed:adj.已腐烂的,已分解的; limited:adj.有限的; n.高级快车; v.限制; (limit的过去分词和过去式)
Mummies are a great source of information, except that they're really geographically limited and limited in time as well. 木乃伊是很好的資料來源 除了他們有地域限制外 還有時間上的限制
Mummies:木乃伊(mummy的名词复数); source:n.来源;水源;原始资料; geographically:adv.在地理上;地理学上;
Coprolites are fossilized human feces , and they're actually extremely interesting. 糞化石是人類糞便化石 它們實際上是非常有趣
Coprolites:n.粪化石;粪粒体; fossilized:adj.石化的;僵化的;老化的;v.石化(fossilize的过去式和过去分词); feces:n.排泄物;渣滓; extremely:adv.非常,极其;极端地;
You can learn a lot about ancient diet and intestinal disease, but they are very rare. 你可以學到很多關於古代飲食和腸道疾病 但他們非常罕見
intestinal:adj.肠的;
(Laughter) (笑聲)
So to address this problem, 為了解決此問題
I put together a team of international researchers in Switzerland, Denmark and the U.K. 我組了一個國際團隊 有來自瑞士、丹麥和英國的研究員
put together:..放在一起;组合;装配;
to study a very poorly studied, little known material that's found on people everywhere. 研究幾乎沒人研究,也鮮為人知的物質 此物質能在任何人身上找到
It's a type of fossilized dental plaque that is called officially dental calculus . 那是牙菌斑化石 正常也被稱為牙結石
calculus:n.[病理]结石;微积分学;
Many of you may know it by the term tartar . 很多人可能都知道那是長期牙垢
tartar:n.鞑靼人(蒙古人和突厥人);凶悍的人;难对付的人;adj.鞑靼的;
It's what the dentist cleans off your teeth every time that you go in for a visit. 那也是各位每次去看牙醫 牙醫師會幫各位清洗掉的東西
go in for:参加,从事;追求;赞成;
And in a typical dentistry visit, you may have about 15 to 30 milligrams removed. 在典型的牙醫診斷中 可能有大約15至30毫克的牙結石會被清理掉
typical:adj.典型的;特有的;象征性的; dentistry:n.牙科学;牙医业; milligrams:[计量]毫克;
But in ancient times before tooth brushing, up to 600 milligrams might have built up on the teeth over a lifetime. 但在古代有刷牙習慣之前 一個人一輩子,大約有高達600毫克 可能會附著在牙齒上
And what's really important about dental calculus is that it fossilizes just like the rest of the skeleton, it's abundant in quantity before the present day and it's ubiquitous worldwide . 而牙結石的重要性 在於它就像留下來的骨架化石的其餘部分 它是目前數量上最豐富的 而且無所不在
abundant in:富于;富有; quantity:n.量;数量;大量;数额; present day:adj.现代的;当今的;现在的;现时的; ubiquitous:adj.普遍存在的;无所不在的; worldwide:adj.全世界的;adv.在世界各地;
We find it in every population around the world at all time periods going back tens of thousands of years. 我們能在數萬年前的每一個時期 世界各地各種族群的人身上找到
And we even find it in neanderthals and animals. 我們甚至也在尼安德特人與動物身上找到
neanderthals:n.穴居人(Neanderthal的复数);尼安德塔人;
And so previous studies had only focused on microscopy . 先前的研究 只聚焦顯微鏡下的事物
previous:adj.以前的;早先的;过早的;adv.在先;在…以前; microscopy:n.显微镜检查;显微镜使用;显微镜学;
They'd looked at dental calculus under a microscope , and what they had found was things like pollen and plant starches , and they'd found muscle cells from animal meats and bacteria . 研究員透過顯微鏡觀看牙結石 他們發現了類似花粉的東西 和植物澱粉 他們也發現動物肉類中的肌肉細胞 還有細菌
microscope:n.显微镜; pollen:v.传授花粉给;n.[植]花粉; starches:n.淀粉质食品;v.给…上浆;使浆硬(starch的单三形式); muscle:n.肌肉;力量;v.加强;使劲搬动;使劲挤出; bacteria:n.[微]细菌;
And so what my team of researchers, what we wanted to do, is say, can we apply genetic and proteomic technology to go after DNA and proteins , and from this can we get better taxonomic resolution to really understand what's going on? 所以我的研究團隊,我們想做的事 是我們能否運用 基因和蛋白質技術 追蹤DNA和蛋白質 從結果中得出更好的分類方法 進而了解其中奧妙
apply:v.申请;涂,敷;应用;适用;请求; technology:n.技术;工艺;术语; proteins:n.[生化]蛋白质(protein复数); taxonomic:adj.[生物]分类的;[生物]分类学的; resolution:n.解决;分辨;解析;决议;
And what we found is that we can find many commensal and pathogenic bacteria that inhabited the nasal passages and mouth. 我們得到的結果是 找到許多共生和致病的細菌 生活在鼻腔和口腔
commensal:n.共餐者;[生态]共生体;adj.共生的;共餐的;同桌的; pathogenic:adj.致病的;病原的;发病的(等于pathogenetic); inhabited:adj.有人居住的;v.占据(inhabit的过去分词);居住于; nasal:adj.鼻的;鼻音的;n.鼻骨;鼻音;鼻音字;
We also have found immune proteins related to infection and inflammation and proteins and DNA related to diet. 我們還發現 和感染及發炎症狀有關的免疫蛋白 還有與飲食有關的蛋白質和DNA
infection:n.感染;传染;(身体某部位的)感染;传染病; inflammation:n.[病理]炎症;[医]发炎;燃烧;发火;
But what was surprising to us, and also quite exciting, is we also found bacteria that normally inhabit upper respiratory systems. 但令我們驚訝還有相當興奮的是 我們發現了 通常生活在上呼吸道系統的細菌
normally:adv.正常地;通常地,一般地; upper:adj.上面的;内陆的;n.靴面;兴奋剂; respiratory:adj.呼吸的;
So it gives us virtual access to the lungs, which is where many important diseases reside . 因此,這給了我們到肺部的模擬路徑 這是許多重要疾病的病源
virtual:adj.[计]虚拟的;实质上的,事实上的(但未在名义上或正式获承认); reside:vi.住,居住;属于;
And we also found bacteria that normally inhabit the gut . 我們也發現了 通常生活在腸道的細菌
gut:n.勇气;肠道;内脏;v.损毁内部;取出…的内脏;adj.非理性的;本能的
And so we can also now virtually gain access to this even more distant organ system that, from the skeleton alone, has long decomposed. 所以我們幾乎也可以了解 這更遙遠的器官系統 這和骨骼相比 是早已分解的部分
virtually:adv.事实上,几乎;实质上; distant:adj.遥远的;远处的;久远的; organ:n.[生物]器官;机构;风琴;管风琴;嗓音;
And so by applying ancient DNA sequencing and protein mass spectrometry technologies to ancient dental calculus, we can generate immense quantities of data 利用古代DNA測序 和蛋白質質譜技術 應用在研究古老的牙結石 我們可以得到大量的數據
applying:v.申请,请求;使用;应用;(apply的现在分词) sequencing:n.[计]排序; v.[计]定序(sequence的ing形式); mass:n.块,团; adj.群众的,民众的; v.聚集起来,聚集; spectrometry:n.[光][分化][物]光谱测定法,[光]度谱术; technologies:n.技术;科技(technology的复数); generate:v.产生;引起; immense:adj.巨大的,广大的;无边无际的;非常好的; quantities:n.数量;数目;大量;大宗;(quantity的复数)
that then we can use to begin to reconstruct a detailed picture of the dynamic interplay between diet, infection and immunity thousands of years ago. 然後我們就可以開始重建出 數千年前 飲食,感染和免疫 動態相互作用的詳細的圖片
immunity:n.免疫力;豁免权;免除;
So what started out as an idea, is now being implemented to churn out millions of sequences that we can use to investigate the long-term evolutionary history of human health and disease, right down to the genetic code of individual pathogens . 而我們的想法 目前是想要 理出可以用來探討 在長期的進化的過程中 人類健康和疾病 數百萬的個別病原體的遺傳序列代碼
implemented:v.使生效;贯彻;执行;实施;(implement的过去式和过去分词) churn:v.剧烈搅动;(使)猛烈翻腾;反胃,恶心;感到不安;n.搅乳器; sequences:n.[数][计]序列,顺序;继起的事(sequence的复数形式); investigate:v.调查;研究;审查; long-term:adj.长期的;从长远来看; genetic code:n.遗传密码; individual:n.个人;有个性的人;adj.单独的;个别的; pathogens:n.[基医]病原体;病原菌;[基医]致病菌;
And from this information we can learn about how pathogens evolve and also why they continue to make us sick. 從此份資料中 我們可以了解致病菌的進化方式 還有了解為何致病菌能持續讓我們產生疾病
And I hope I have convinced you of the value of dental calculus. 另外我也希望可以說服各位 關於牙結石的重要性
convinced:adj.坚信; v.使确信; (convince的过去分词和过去式)
And as a final parting thought, on behalf of future archeologists , 最後在此 我代表對未來的考古學家
on behalf of:代表;为了; archeologists:n.考古学家(archeologist的复数形式);
I would like to ask you to please think twice before you go home and brush your teeth. 和各位說在各位回家刷牙前 請先三思
think twice:再三考虑;重新考虑;
(Applause) (掌聲)
Thank you. 謝謝各位
(Applause) (掌聲)