第1965期:Scientists Recover Genetic RNA from Extinct Tasmanian Tiger

Researchers say they have recovered genetic material from the Tasmanian tiger, an Australian animal that has long been extinct. The discovery could help scientists learn more about these creatures before they disappeared from Earth.

研究人员表示，他们已经从塔斯马尼亚虎身上找到了遗传物质，塔斯马尼亚虎是一种早已灭绝的澳大利亚动物。 这一发现可以帮助科学家在这些生物从地球上消失之前更多地了解它们。

The recovered material is called ribonucleic acid, or RNA. RNA is a group of molecules present in all living cells that is important for genetic activity. It is similar to DNA, the molecules that contain an organism's genetic instructions.

回收的物质称为核糖核酸或RNA。 RNA 是存在于所有活细胞中的一组分子，对遗传活动非常重要。 它类似于 DNA，即包含有机体遗传指令的分子。

RNA carries genetic information it receives from DNA. RNA combines groups of proteins that organisms require to live and works to control cell metabolism.

RNA携带从DNA接收的遗传信息。 RNA结合了生物体生存所需的蛋白质组并控制细胞代谢。

The researchers said the recovered RNA came from skin and muscle from the remains of a Tasmanian tiger stored since 1891 in a museum in Stockholm, Sweden.

研究人员表示，回收的 RNA 来自自 1891 年以来存放在瑞典斯德哥尔摩博物馆的一只塔斯马尼亚虎遗骸的皮肤和肌肉。

Scientists have in recent years taken DNA from different ancient animals and plants. But the team said it was the first time RNA has been recovered from an extinct animal.

近年来，科学家们从不同的古代动物和植物中提取了 DNA。 但研究小组表示，这是第一次从灭绝的动物身上回收RNA。

Scientists believe the Tasmanian tiger once lived on the Australian continent and surrounding islands. It was a top predator at the time, hunting kangaroos and other animals. The last known Tasmanian tiger is believed to have died in a Tasmanian zoo in 1936.

科学家认为塔斯马尼亚虎曾经生活在澳大利亚大陆和周围的岛屿上。 它是当时的顶级掠食者，捕猎袋鼠和其他动物。 据信最后一只已知的塔斯马尼亚虎于 1936 年在塔斯马尼亚动物园死亡。

Emilio Mármol Sánchez is with the Centre for Palaeogenetics in Stockholm. He was the lead writer of a study describing the research results. The study recently appeared in the publication Genome Research.

埃米利奥·马尔莫尔·桑切斯 (Emilio Mármol Sánchez) 在斯德哥尔摩古遗传学中心工作。 他是一项描述研究结果的研究的主要作者。 该研究最近发表在《基因组研究》杂志上。

Sánchez told Reuters news service RNA material gives scientists "a taste of the real biology” involving the cells and tissues of the Tasmanian tigers before they went extinct.

桑切斯告诉路透社新闻社，RNA材料让科学家“尝到了真正的生物学”，涉及塔斯马尼亚虎灭绝前的细胞和组织。

Marc Friedländer of Stockholm University was a co-writer of the study. He said, “If we want to understand extinct species, we need to understand what gene complements they have and also what the genes were doing, and which were active."

斯德哥尔摩大学的马克·弗里德兰德 (Marc Friedländer) 是该研究的合著者。 他说：“如果我们想了解灭绝的物种，我们需要了解它们有哪些基因互补，以及这些基因在做什么，哪些基因是活跃的。”

Researchers have questioned how long RNA could survive at room temperature. The remains stored at the Swedish Natural History Museum were in a state of semi-mummification. This meansskin, muscles and bones remained, but inside organs were lost.

研究人员质疑 RNA 在室温下能存活多久。 瑞典自然历史博物馆保存的遗骸处于半木乃伊状态。 这意味着皮肤、肌肉和骨骼得以保留，但内部器官却消失了。

"Most researchers thought that RNA would only survive for a very short time - like days or weeks - at room temperature,” said evolutionary geneticist Love Dalén. He is with the Centre for Palaeogenetics. Dalén added that while this might be the case when remains are wet, it does not appear to be so when they are dried.

古遗传学中心的进化遗传学家 Love Dalén 表示：“大多数研究人员认为 RNA 在室温下只能存活很短的时间，比如几天或几周。” 是湿的，当它们干燥时，看起来就不是这样了。

The Tasmanian tiger looked similar to a wolf, except for the tiger-like lines appearing on its back. When people arrived in Australia about 50,000 years ago, large animal population losses followed. The arrival of European colonizers in the 18th century destroyed the remaining populations around the island of Tasmania.

塔斯马尼亚虎看起来与狼很相似，只是背上有老虎一样的纹路。 大约五万年前，当人类抵达澳大利亚时，动物数量随之大量减少。 18 世纪欧洲殖民者的到来消灭了塔斯马尼亚岛周围剩余的人口。

Private "de-extinction" programs have been launched with the aim of bringing back some extinct animals. These include the Tasmanian tiger, flightless dodo bird and wooly mammoth.

私人“反灭绝”计划已经启动，旨在复活一些灭绝的动物。 其中包括塔斯马尼亚虎、不会飞的渡渡鸟和长毛猛犸象。

However, many researchers have warned about the difficulties of using genetic processes to actually recreate an extinct species. While Sánchez of the Centre for Palaeogenetics said he too has concerns about such processes, he noted that he does "advocate for more research on the biology of these extinct animals."

然而，许多研究人员警告说，利用遗传过程来实际重建灭绝物种是困难的。 虽然古遗传学中心的桑切斯表示他也对此类过程感到担忧，但他指出，他确实“主张对这些灭绝动物的生物学进行更多研究”。