每日一篇:《经济学人》读译参考 Day107

语言是一个长期积累的过程，英语同样是如此，想要学好它，速成是不可取的。跟着聚英考研信息网小编每天学一点英语，一起为考研筑起坚实的地基。坚持打卡，培养英语阅读能力及语感，了解文章一些经典词汇的用法。

经济学人:熊猫遗传学:熊猫的远亲是谁?(2)

Science and technology: Panda genetics

科技：熊猫遗传学

These common features led Hu Yibo of the Institute of Zoology, in Beijing, and his colleagues, to wonder if the two vegetarian carnivores also shared genetic modifications that might explain those features.And, as Dr Hu observes in a paper just published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, they do.

译文

基于这些共同特征，北京动物研究所的胡一波和他的同事们设想，这两种食肉目食草动物是否共有一种能解释这些特征的修饰基因。正如胡博士刚刚在《美国国家科学院院报》发表的论文中所说的，它们确实共有。

To search for such genetic commonalities, Dr Hu and his colleagues compared the DNA of the two pandas with that of four other members of the Carnivora:polar bears (close relatives of giant pandas), ferrets(close relatives of red pandas), and tigers and dogs (close relatives of neither).If pandas share features of their DNA with each other, but not with the four comparison species, he reasoned,then it is likely that those features encode recent adaptations common to the two of them.

译文

为了找到这样的遗传共性，胡博士团队将两只熊猫的DNA与另外4种食肉目动物：北极熊（大熊猫的近亲），白鼬（小熊猫的近亲），老虎和狗（非两者近亲）的DNA进行比较。如果熊猫们有相同的DNA特征，而四种对照物种没有熊猫所共有的DNA特征，他则推理很有可能这些DNA特征编码了它们两者间近代的共同特性。

Altogether, the team identified 70 genes (out of the 20,000 or so that mammals have) which sport bits of DNA that seemed to be shared.They also found ten genes which have been disabled by crippling mutations in both of the pandas, but not in the other four species.

译文

研究小组从哺乳动物约20000个基因中，确定了可以共有的70个DNA片段。他们也在两种熊猫中找到了十个因严重突变而丧失功能的基因，而其他四个物种中并未发现。

Not all of the shared genetic features obviously tied in with the shared peculiaritiesof pandas, but some did.These fell into three categories: genes affecting anatomy, genes affecting appetite and genes affecting the digestion and metabolism of nutrients.

译文

尽管哺乳动物共有遗传特征并不都与熊猫的特性一致，但有些确实具有一定的关系。这分为三类：影响动物体结构的基因，影响食欲的基因和影响营养物质消化和新陈代谢的基因。

注释

1.search for 寻找

例句:They drew a blank in their search for the driver.

他们四处寻找那个司机，但一无所获。

2.polar bears 北极熊

例句:For the first time they're finding polar bears that have actually drowned.

人们首次发现了淹死的北极熊。

3.common features 共同特征

例句:What are some common features of their work?

他们工作的一些共同特征是什么？

4.fell into 掉进

例句:Totally exhausted, he tore his clothes off and fell into bed.

他疲惫至极，扯下衣服，一头倒在床上。

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