4-12 克隆创造人类胚胎

Cloning¹ Creates Human Embryos¹

 

Scientists in South Korea and America report that they have created human embryos through cloning and extracted embryonic²² stem cells³, the universal cells that hold great promise for medical research. Their goal, the scientists say, is not to clone humans but to advance understanding of the causes and treatment of disease.

　　

The experiment, the first reported cloning of human stem cells, means the so-called therapeutic³⁴ cloning is no longer a theory but a reality. “Our approach opens the door for the use of these specially⁴ developed cells in transplantation medicine,” Dr. Woo Suk Hwang of Seoul National University in Korea, who led the study, said in a statement.

　

Woo Suk Hwang and his colleagues took the genetic⁵⁵ material from normal cells in women donors⁶ and combined it with their eggs. The resulting embryos were then grown up to produce so-called stem cells that can divide into any tissue in the body. The aim is to use the cells to replace ones that have failed in patient’s body. It is what patients with diseases like Parkinson's⁶ and diabetes⁷⁷ have been waiting for, the start of so-called therapeutic cloning. The idea is to clone a patient’s cells to make embryonic stem cells that are an exact genetic match of the patient. Then those cells, patients hope, could be turned into replacement⁸ tissue to treat or cure their disease without provoking⁸ rejection⁹ from the body's immune⁹ system.

　　

Even though the new work clears a significant hurdle¹⁰¹⁰, scientists caution that it could take years of further research before stem cell science turns into actual therapies¹¹.

　　

Since British researchers in 1997 produced Dolly, the first cloned sheep in the world, the attempt of human cloning has been widely condemned¹¹ due to ethical¹² and biological concerns. However, the research of cloning for medical use has won worldwide recognition.

 

注释：

1.clone [klEJn] vt.＆vi.（使）无性繁殖，克隆

2.embryonic [7embri5Cnik] a. [生] 胚的，胚胎的

3.stem cell [生] 干细胞

4.therapeutic [7WerE5pju:tik] a. 治疗的；有疗效的

5.genetic [dVi5netik] a. [生] 基因的

6.Parkinson's即Parkinson's disease [医] 帕金森氏病

7.diabetes [7daiE5bi:ti:z] n. [医] 糖尿病

8.provoke [prEJ5vEJk] vt. 诱导，导致（身体或物质上的反应）

9.immune [i5mju:n] a. 免疫的；有免疫力的

10.hurdle [5hE:dl] n. 障碍；难关

11.therapy [5WerEpi] n. [医] 疗法；治疗

 

克隆创造人类胚胎

 

　　韩国和美国科学家报告称，他们已通过克隆创造出人类胚胎，并从中提取出胚胎干细胞。胚胎干细胞是在医学研究方面具有广阔前景的普适细胞。科学家们表示，他们的目标不是克隆人类，而是促进对疾病的起因和治疗的认识。

　　这是首次报告的克隆人类干细胞的试验，它意味着所谓的治疗性克隆已不再是一种理论，而是现实。领导这一研究的韩国汉城国立大学的黄禹石博士在一项声明中说：“我们的研究为在移植医学中运用这些专门培育的细胞打开了大门。”

　　黄禹石和他的同事从女性捐献者的正常细胞中提取出基因，并将其与她们的卵细胞结合，由此产生的胚胎随后发育产生可分化成人体内任何组织的所谓干细胞。这样做的目的是，利用培育的细胞取代病人体内已丧失功能的细胞。这就是所谓的治疗性克隆的开始，它正是诸如帕金森氏病和糖尿病患者一直期待的。科学家们的设想是，克隆病人的细胞，制造出与病人的基因绝对匹配的胚胎干细胞；随后，病人希望，这些细胞能被转变成替代组织治疗他们的疾病，而不会导致身体免疫系统产生排斥。

　　科学家们提醒说，虽然这项新工作消除了一个重要障碍，但要将干细胞技术运用到实际治疗中，可能还需要进行多年的进一步研究。

　　自1997年英国研究人员制造出世界上第一只克隆羊多莉后，由于伦理和生物学方面的担忧，克隆人类的试图一直受到广泛谴责。然而，将克隆技术用于医学的研究则得到了全世界的认可。

 

 

1 embryos   

n.晶胚；胚，胚胎( embryo的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Somatic cells of angiosperms enter a regenerative phase and behave like embryos. 被子植物体细胞进入一个生殖阶段，而且其行为象胚。 来自辞典例句
• Evolution can explain why human embryos look like gilled fishes. 进化论能够解释为什么人类的胚胎看起来象除去了内脏的鱼一样。 来自辞典例句

2 embryonic   

adj.胚胎的

参考例句：

• It is still in an embryonic stage.它还处于萌芽阶段。
• The plan,as yet,only exists in embryonic form.这个计划迄今为止还只是在酝酿之中。

3 therapeutic   

adj.治疗的，起治疗作用的；对身心健康有益的

参考例句：

• Therapeutic measures were selected to fit the patient.选择治疗措施以适应病人的需要。
• When I was sad,music had a therapeutic effect.我悲伤的时候，音乐有治疗效力。

4 specially   

adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地

参考例句：

• They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。

5 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。

6 donors   

n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 )；献血者；捐血者；器官捐献者

参考例句：

• Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去，请给我们发电子邮件。
• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

8 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

9 rejection   

n.拒绝，被拒，抛弃，被弃

参考例句：

• He decided not to approach her for fear of rejection.他因怕遭拒绝决定不再去找她。
• The rejection plunged her into the dark depths of despair.遭到拒绝使她陷入了绝望的深渊。

10 hurdle   

n.跳栏，栏架；障碍，困难；vi.进行跨栏赛

参考例句：

• The weather will be the biggest hurdle so I have to be ready.天气将会是最大的障碍，所以我必须要作好准备。
• She clocked 11.6 seconds for the 80 metre hurdle.八十米跳栏赛跑她跑了十一秒六。

11 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

12 ethical   

adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。