我国成功实现世界首次哺乳动物胚胎太空发育

Chinese scientists on last Sunday said they have successfully developed early-stage mouse embryos in space for the first time on a retrievable microgravity satellite.

我国科学家上周日表示，在返回式微重力科学实验卫星"实践十号"上首次成功实现了早期小鼠胚胎在太空中发育。

The SJ-10 research probe, launched on April 6, carried over 6,000 mouse embryos in a self-sufficient chamber the size of a microwave oven, according to Duan Enkui, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

据中科院研究员段恩奎介绍，4月6日"实践十号"卫星发射，将放在一个微波炉大小、自给自足的培养箱内的6000余枚小鼠胚胎带上了太空。

High-resolution photographs sent from SJ- 10 show that some embryos developed from the 2- cell stage to blastocyst around 72 hours after SJ- 10's launch, Duan said. The timing was largely in line with embryonic development on Earth, he added.

段恩奎表示，根据"实践十号"发回的高分辨率照片显示，在卫星发射后72小时左右，部分二细胞胚胎就发育到囊胚。段恩奎补充说道，这和地面上的胚胎发育时间基本一致。

This is the first reported successful development in mammalian embryos in space in human history.

这是人类历史上第一次成功实现哺乳动物胚胎在太空发育。

Scientists will compare the retrieved embryos with samples on Earth and perform further analyses on the profiles of early embryo development in space, once SJ-10 returns home.

当"实践十号"返回地球之后，科学家们将会把回收的胚胎和在地球上的样品进行比较，之后进一步分析在太空中发育的早期胚胎。