Tasmanian tiger: Scientists hope to revive marsupial from extinction
图片来源，盖蒂图片社 A Tasmanian tiger photographed in Australia's Hobart Zoo (undated)
上图：在澳大利亚霍巴特动物园拍摄的塔斯马尼亚虎（未注明日期）
澳大利亚和美国的研究人员正在着手一项耗资数百万美元的项目，以使塔斯马尼亚虎从灭绝中复活过来。
Researchers in Australia and the US are embarking on a multi-million dollar project to bring the Tasmanian tiger back from extinction.
最后一个已知的，正式称为袋狼，死于20世纪30年代。
The last known one, officially called a thylacine, died in the 1930s.
竞标背后的团队表示，它可以使用干细胞和基因编辑技术进行重建，并且第一个袋狼可以在10年内重新引入野外。
The team behind the bid say it can be recreated using stem cells and gene-editing technology, and the first thylacine could be reintroduced to the wild in 10 years' time.
其他专家对此表示怀疑，认为对抗灭绝只能出现在科幻小说中。
Other experts are sceptical and suggest de-extinction is just science fiction.
袋狼因其背部的条纹而获得了塔斯马尼亚虎的绰号-但它实际上是一种有袋动物，一种澳大利亚哺乳动物，在袋子里抚养幼崽。
The thylacine earned its nickname of Tasmanian tiger for the stripes along its back - but it was actually a marsupial, the type of Australian mammal that raises its young in a pouch.
上图：塔斯马尼亚虎是世界上最大的肉食性有袋动物 图片来源，约翰·古尔德
澳大利亚和美国的科学家小组计划从具有相似DNA的活有袋动物物种中提取干细胞，然后使用基因编辑技术“带回”灭绝的物种 - 或者非常接近它的近似物种。
The group of Australian and US scientists plan to take stem cells from a living marsupial species with similar DNA, and then use gene-editing technology to "bring back" the extinct species - or an extremely close approximation of it.
对于准备尝试的研究人员来说，这将是一项了不起的成就，并且需要一些科学突破。
It would represent a remarkable achievement for the researchers attempting it, and require a number of scientific breakthroughs.
“我现在相信，在10年后，我们可以拥有第一个活着的袋狼婴儿，因为它们在近一个世纪前被猎杀灭绝，”墨尔本大学领导这项研究的Andrew Pask教授说。
"I now believe that in 10 years' time we could have our first living baby thylacine since they were hunted to extinction close to a century ago," said Professor Andrew Pask, who is leading the research from the University of Melbourne.
当数万年前人类到达澳大利亚时，塔斯马尼亚虎的数量下降，当dingoes（一种野狗）出现时，塔斯马尼亚虎的数量再次下降。
The population of Tasmanian tigers declined when humans arrived in Australia tens of thousands of years ago, and again when dingoes - a species of wild dog - appeared.
最终，有袋动物只在塔斯马尼亚岛上自由生活，最终被猎杀灭绝。
Eventually, the marsupial only roamed free on the island of Tasmania, and was ultimately hunted to extinction.
最后一只圈养的塔斯马尼亚虎于1936年在霍巴特动物园死亡。
The last captive Tasmanian tiger died at Hobart Zoo in 1936.
最后一只圈养的塔斯马尼亚虎于1936年在霍巴特动物园死亡 图片来源，盖蒂图片社
如果科学家成功地复活了这种动物，这将是历史上第一次“反灭绝”事件，但许多外部专家对其背后的科学持怀疑态度。
If scientists were to succeed in reviving the animal it would mark the first "de-extinction" event in history, but many outside experts are doubtful of the science behind it.
“复活是一门童话般的科学，”澳大利亚古代DNA中心的副教授Jeremy Austin告诉悉尼先驱晨报，并补充说，该项目“更多地是吸引媒体关注科学，而不是关于做严肃的科学”。
"De-extinction is a fairytale science," Associate Professor Jeremy Austin from the Australian Centre for Ancient DNA told the Sydney Morning Herald, adding that the project is "more about media attention for the scientists and less about doing serious science".
复活塔斯马尼亚虎的想法已经存在了20多年。1999年，澳大利亚博物馆开始实施克隆动物的项目，此后每隔一段时间就进行了各种尝试，从样本中提取或重建可行的DNA。
The idea of bringing back the Tasmanian tiger has been around for more than 20 years. In 1999, the Australian Museum started to pursue a project to clone the animal, and various attempts have been made at intervals ever since to extract or rebuild viable DNA from samples.
这个新项目是墨尔本大学和德克萨斯州公司Colossal的科学家之间的合作项目。
This latest project is a partnership between scientists at the University of Melbourne and Texas-based company Colossal.
这家美国公司去年成为新闻头条，计划使用类似的基因编辑技术使猛犸象复活 - 这是一项尚未实现的技术壮举。
The US firm made headlines last year with its plans to use similar gene editing technology to bring the woolly mammoth back to life - a technological feat yet to be pulled off.
塔斯马尼亚虎是人类的警示故事 图片来源，约翰·古尔德
--------------------- 完 --------------------
本号致力于打造双语阅读平台, 英语母语人士原版文章中英对照,易于理解,帮助提高英语读写能力,拓宽眼界,收获满满正能量.
喜欢请点赞关注和分享,您的支持是我们前进的动力!