细菌如何统治你的身体——微生物组：英语精读讲义

Microbes are everywhere.

微生物无处不在。

On your phone,

你的手机上，

in your water bottle,

你的水杯里，

on your hands before you wash them,

洗手前你的手上，

on your hands after you wash them,

洗手后你的手上，

and literally everywhere else on top of you too.

以及你身体上的任何地方。

Microbes are omnipresent at any moment

微生物随时随地都在，

and there is nothing we can do about it.

我们对此无能为力。

So millions of years ago,

所以在数百万年前，

we made a pact. 習語

我们达成了一项契约。

We give them shelter and food

我们为它们提供住所和食物，

and in turn they work for us. 短語搭配

作为回报，它们为我们工作。

But the more we learn about this partnership, 語法

但随着我们对这种合作关系了解得越多，

the more it looks like a Cold War. 文化背景

它就越像是一场冷战。

Inside our mother's womb,

在母亲的子宫里，

humans start out sterile. 短語動詞

人类起初是无菌的。

When we're born and traveling through the birth canal, 文化背景

当我们出生并穿过产道时，

billions of our mother's bacteria cover every single part of our bodies.

母亲体内数十亿的细菌覆盖了我们身体的每一个角落。

This is an essential part of human health.

这是人类健康的重要组成部分。

Children born via C-section have a higher rate of asthma,

通过剖腹产出生的孩子患哮喘、

immune diseases,

免疫系统疾病、

and even leukemia.

甚至白血病的比例更高。

So our bodies do not only accept the invasion of microorganisms, 表達脈絡

因此，我们的身体不仅接受微生物的入侵，

they welcome it.

甚至是欢迎它们的。

Over millions of years,

经过数百万年，

we co-evolved to make the best of our relationship. 習語

我们共同进化，以使这种关系发挥最大的作用。

Mother's milk, for example,

例如，母乳

contains special sugars that are meant to feed and support certain groups of microbes, 語法

含有特殊的糖分，旨在喂养和支持某些微生物群体，

work as a decoy for others, 短語搭配

充当其他微生物的诱饵，

and help to modulate the immune system.

并帮助调节免疫系统。

It takes up to 2 years until a healthy microbe community has formed.

形成一个健康的微生物群落可能需要长达两年的时间。

Every human has their own unique microbiome

每个人都有自己独特的微生物组，

made up of bacteria, 短語動詞

由细菌、

viruses, fungi, and other organisms.

病毒、真菌和其他生物组成。

We have three categories of guests on and in our bodies.

我们的体表和体内有三类“客人”。

One,

第一，

quiet passengers that do their own thing and are politely ignored. 習語

安静的乘客，它们做自己的事，并被礼貌地无视。

By being there,

仅仅是它们的存在，

they take up space and keep more aggressive intruders in check. 習語

就占据了空间，并抑制了更具侵略性的入侵者。

Two,

第二，

guests that harm us,

伤害我们的客人，

but with whom we've learned to live. 語法

但我们已经学会了与之共存。

For example,

例如，

bacteria that literally create acid that melts our teeth if we don't brush enough.

如果我们刷牙不够，就会产生酸液腐蚀我们牙齿的细菌。

They want to take up as much space as they can

它们想占据尽可能多的空间，

and we don't want them to.

而我们不希望它们这样做。

But we can't get rid of them entirely. 短語動詞

但我们无法完全摆脱它们。

Three,

第三，

friendly fellows that our bodies want to have around.

我们的身体希望拥有的友好伙伴。

Most of them are a community of 380,000 billion bacteria

它们中的大多数是一个由38万亿个细菌组成的群落，

from up to 5,000 different species that live in our gut.

来自多达5000种不同的种类，生活在我们的肠道中。

These gut microorganisms help us digest food and pull additional calories from things we can't digest ourselves.

这些肠道微生物帮助我们消化食物，并从我们自己无法消化的东西中提取额外的热量。

Unfortunately,

不幸的是，

our gut is also the perfect point of attack for intruders, 習語

我们的肠道也是入侵者完美的攻击点，

so it's guarded by an aggressive army,

因此它由一支好斗的军队守卫，

our immune system.

即我们的免疫系统。

To survive here,

为了在这里生存，

our microbiome co-evolved with us to be able to communicate with our body.

我们的微生物组与我们共同进化，以便能够与我们的身体进行交流。

The most important part of that is to ask the immune system to not kill them.

其中最重要的一点就是要求免疫系统不要杀死它们。

But they also have a real motivation to keep our gut healthy,

但它们也有真正的动机保持我们的肠道健康，

so some of them produce messenger substances that help to educate the immune system 表達脈絡

因此其中一些会产生有助于教育免疫系统的信使物质，

and others stimulate the gut cells to regenerate faster.

而另一些则刺激肠道细胞更快地再生。

But over the last few years,

但在过去几年里，

evidence has emerged that the influence of our gut microbiome goes much, 講解

已经有证据表明，我们的肠道微生物组的影响要深远得多，

much further.

深远得多。

It might even talk directly to our brain.

它甚至可能直接与我们的受脑对话。

We've observed a few curious things.

我们观察到了一些奇特的现象。

90% of our body's serotonin, 語法

我们体内90%的血清素，

an important messenger substance for nerve cells,

这是一种神经细胞的重要信使物质，

is produced in the gut.

是在肠道中产生的。

Some scientists think the microbiome does this to communicate with the vagus nerve,

一些科学家认为微生物组这样做是为了与迷走神经进行交流，

the information highway of our nervous system. 習語

即我们神经系统的信息高速公路。

Other examples are bacteria that stimulate immune cells in the gut,

其他例子包括刺激肠道内免疫细胞的细菌，

so they send a kind of alarm signal to the brain.

因此它们向大脑发送一种警报信号。

Here it activates immune cells that help the brain recover from injuries.

在这里，它激活了帮助大脑从损伤中恢复的免疫细胞。

Since the brain decides what we eat,

既然大脑决定我们吃什么，

the microbiome is interested in a healthy brain.

微生物组对拥有一个健康的大脑很感兴趣。

A new field of science is opening up here

一个新的科学领域正在这里开启，

and we're just on the verge of understanding how these complex systems inside our bodies interact. 習語

我们才刚刚开始理解我们体内这些复杂系统是如何相互作用的。

But we are starting to see how much our microbiome actually influences us and our behavior. 語法

但我们开始看到微生物组到底在多大程度上影响着我们和我们的行为。

Take depression, for example. 表達脈絡

以抑郁症为例。

Healthy rats fed microbes from the guts of depressed people

喂食抑郁症患者肠道微生物的健康老鼠

began showing anxiety-like behavior and symptoms that look like depression. 用詞

开始表现出类似焦虑的行为和看起来像抑郁症的症状。

And in early 2017,

在2017年初，

a study linked the microbiome to intelligence 短語搭配

一项研究将微生物组与智力联系起来，

by connecting a certain setup of bacteria in newborns

通过将新生儿中特定的细菌组合

with better motor and language skills.

与更好的运动和语言技能联系在一起。

But it might also influence our daily lives.

但它也可能影响我们的日常生活。

Tests with fruit flies showed that their microbiome influenced what kind of food they craved.

对果蝇的测试表明，它们的微生物组影响了它们对哪种食物的渴望。

This could mean your microbes are able to tell your brain which food it should get them,

这可能意味着你的微生物能够告诉你的大脑应该给它们提供什么食物，

although this is not a one-way street. 習語

尽管这不是单向的。

The seed for our microbiome comes from our mother, 習語

我们微生物组的种子来自我们的母亲，

but how it develops and changes is determined by what we eat.

但它是如何发展和变化的取决于我们吃什么。

The organisms in our gut feed on different things. 短語動詞

我们肠道中的生物以不同的东西为食。

Some like fibers and leafy greens,

有的喜欢纤维和绿叶蔬菜，

others go for sugars and starches, 短語動詞

有的偏好糖和淀粉，

and some love greasy fries and butter.

还有一些喜欢油腻的薯条和黄油。

Our gut is like a garden 習語

我们的肠道就像一个花园，

in which we constantly decide what will grow and blossom.

我们不断决定其中会有什么生长和开花。

If we eat healthily, 語法

如果我们吃得健康，

we breed bacteria that like healthy food.

我们就会培养出喜欢健康食物的细菌。

If we eat a lot of fast food,

如果我们吃很多快餐，

then we breed fast food-loving bacteria.

那么我们就会培养出喜欢快餐的细菌。

Life is hard,

生活很艰难，

so we can get trapped in a vicious circle. 習語

所以我们可能会陷入恶性循环。

You have a stressful time

你度过了一段充满压力的时间，

and eat lots of burgers and fries and pizza.

吃了很多汉堡、薯条和披萨。

This is awesome for fast food bacteria.

这对快餐细菌来说简直太棒了。

They multiply and multiply

它们不断繁殖，

and take up space from vegetable-loving bacteria.

并抢占了喜欢蔬菜的细菌的空间。

But even worse,

但更糟糕的是，

they send signals to the brain to continue what it's doing.

它们会向大脑发送信号，让它继续现在的行为。

This makes you want more fast food, 表達脈絡

这让你想吃更多的快餐，

which breeds more fast food bacteria,

从而培养出更多喜欢快餐的细菌，

which makes you crave fast food,

这又让你极度渴望快餐，

and so on.

如此循环往复。

This kind of self-reinforcing cycle could play a huge role in obesity. 講解

这种自我强化的循环可能在肥胖中起着巨大的作用。

But it's important to stress that you can fight this process 表達脈絡

但必须强调的是，你可以对抗这个过程，

and reverse it by eating healthily and breeding more good bacteria. 語法

并通过健康饮食和培养更多有益细菌来逆转它。

Beyond weight gain,

除了体重增加，

our microbiome has also been linked to other serious diseases like autism, schizophrenia, and cancer. 短語搭配

我们的微生物组也与其他严重疾病（如自闭症、精神分裂症和癌症）有关联。

One of the earliest symptoms of Parkinson's is actually gut problems.

实际上，帕金森病最早的症状之一就是肠道问题。

If your body is overrun with bacteria that harm you, 短語動詞

如果你的身体被伤害你的细菌所占据，

there is often only one solution.

通常只有一种解决方法。

You bring in an army of good guys.

引入一支好细菌组成的军队。

That's very easy.

这非常简单。

You just transplant some healthy poop. 文化背景

你只需移植一些健康的便便。

You do that by literally transferring poop from a healthy person 語法

你通过实实在在地把健康人的便便转移到

into your gut.

你的肠道中来实现。

This method is already used to cure diarrhea that's caused when C. difficile bacteria 文化背景

这种方法已经被用来治疗由艰难梭菌

take over a gut microbiome. 短語動詞

占领肠道微生物组时引起的腹泻。

But we just don't know enough about the complex interplay at work here yet. 短語搭配

但我们对这里起作用的复杂相互作用了解得还不够。

For example,

例如，

a transplant from an overweight donor cured a woman's diarrhea,

一次来自超重捐献者的移植治愈了一名妇女的腹泻，

but contributed to her obesity down the line. 習語

但随后导致了她的肥胖。

This caused some waves 習語

这引起了一些轰动，

and another study tried to reverse the effect.

另一项研究试图扭转这种效果。

Poop transplants from slim people to obese ones

从瘦子到胖子的便便移植

gave them a more diverse microbiome

给他们带来了更多样化的微生物组，

and made them less sensitive to insulin, 用詞

并使他们对胰岛素不那么敏感，

both things that also happen when people lose weight.

这两件事也是人们减肥时会发生的情况。

We need to do a lot more science

我们需要进行更多的科学研究，

to really understand how our microbes make us healthy or sick.

才能真正了解我们的微生物是如何让我们健康或生病的。

But whether we like it or not, 習語

但不管我们喜不喜欢，

we need our microbiome and it needs us.

我们需要我们的微生物组，而它也需要我们。

We'll never have our bodies to ourselves, 習語

我们永远无法独自拥有我们的身体，

but we have gained a powerful ally 表達脈絡

但我们获得了一个强大的盟友，

if we can just keep the peace.

只要我们能保持和平。