发现一种微生物能阻止蚊子传播疟疾
Although COVID-19 is dominating headlines, other diseases don't let up just because we have a pandemic - and malaria is still as dangerous as ever.
虽然新冠病毒一直是人们最关注的问题，但其他疾病也不会因为我们有疫情就停止传播。疟疾的危险性就丝毫没有降低。
In 2018, the World Health Organisation estimated 228 million cases of the mosquito-borne disease, and 405,000 deaths.
2018年，世界卫生组织估计有2.28亿例蚊媒疾病，造成405,000人死亡。
But a new study may have found a brand new, highly effective way to stop the spread – and it was inside the mosquito all along.
但一项新研究可能已经找到了一种全新的、高效的方法阻止疟疾传播，其关键就在蚊子体内。
The team discovered that a new type of spore-forming single-celled microbe found in mosquitoes, which they've called Microsporidia MB, has the amazing ability to stop the transmission of Plasmodium falciparum – the parasitic protozoan which causes most malaria cases.
研究团队在蚊子体内发现一种新型的孢子形成的单细胞微生物，称之为Microsporidia MB，它有阻止恶性疟原虫传播的惊人能力。疟原虫是引起大多数疟疾感染的寄生原生动物。
It also doesn't seem to hurt the mosquito, meaning that if we can increase the prevalence of Microsporidia MB in local mosquito populations, it could be a good way to stop malaria in its tracks without having to mess up the rest of the ecosystem.
它似乎对蚊子没有伤害，如果我们能在当地蚊子种群中提高Microsporidia MB的感染率，就会成为阻止疟疾蔓延的好方法，还不会破坏生态系统的其他部分。
"Here, we characterise an apparently non-pathogenic microsporidian from field populations of Anopheles arabiensis [a species of mosquito] in Kenya," the team writes in a new paper.
研究团队在新的论文中写道：“现在我们研究了肯尼亚的阿拉伯按蚊（一种蚊子）野外种群中一种明显的非致病性小孢子虫。”
"As a microbe that impairs Plasmodium transmission that is non-virulent and vertically transmitted, Microsporidia MB could be investigated as a strategy to limit malaria transmission."
“因为Microsporidia MB 是一种阻止疟原虫传播的微生物，它无毒而且垂直传播，所以可以用它来控制疟疾的传播。”
The idea that a mosquito microbe could be stopping the transmission of a disease isn't exactly new. Wolbachia, a genus of bacteria that naturally occurs in mosquito populations, has shown incredible potential for wiping out dengue and other mosquito-borne infections.
认为蚊子体内微生物能阻止疾病传播的想法并不新鲜。沃尔巴克氏菌属细菌就是蚊子种群内自然产生的细菌，在消灭登革热和其他蚊媒传染病方面有惊人的潜力。
"We are already using a transmission-blocking symbiont called Wolbachia to control dengue, a virus transmitted by mosquitoes," University of Glasgow microbiologist Steven Sinkins says.
格拉斯哥大学微生物学家Steven Sinkins说：“我们已经在利用沃尔巴克氏菌这种阻碍传播的共生菌来控制登革热，这也是蚊子传播的病毒。”
"The Microsporidia MB symbiont has some similar characteristics, making it an attractive prospect for developing comparable approaches for malaria control."
“Microsporidia MB共生菌有类似的特点，使我们很有信心地认为可以利用它研究控制疟疾的类似方法。”
This research is currently in its early stages – but the team found that when they analysed mosquitoes taken from field studies in Kenya, those with Microsporidia MB did not have the malaria parasite. Even when they let the mosquitoes drink infected blood, the mosquitoes with Microsporidia MB had reduced levels of infection and no signs of the malaria parasite's spores were detected.
这项研究目前处于初级阶段，但研究团队发现他们分析肯尼亚野外研究的蚊子时，带有Microsporidia MB的蚊子没有疟原虫。甚至在让它们吸食被感染的血液以后，带有Microsporidia MB的蚊子的感染风险也会下降，而且没有发现有疟原虫孢子虫的迹象。
Because Microsporidia MB is passed down the maternal line, once it's in the mosquito population, it's unlikely to be going anywhere. The team found that some areas they tested already had nine percent of the mosquito population with the malaria-busting microbe.
因为Microsporidia MB是母系遗传，所以一旦蚊子种群感染，也不可能传播给其他昆虫。研究团队发现有些测试过的地区已经有9%的蚊子体内有灭疟微生物了。
The team hopes that with more research we can find out if it's possible to increase the amount of Microsporidia MB in the mosquito population – with the eventual goal of lowering rates of malaria.
研究团队希望，通过更多研究我们可以了解是否有可能提高蚊子种群中的Microsporidia MB数量，从而最终降低疟疾感染率。
"Further studies will be needed to determine precisely how Microsporidia MB could be used to control malaria. The next phase of the research will investigate Microsporidia MB dynamics in large mosquito populations in screen house 'semi-field' facilities," says International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology microbiologist, Jeremy Herren.
国际昆虫生理学与生态学中心的微生物学家Jeremy Herren说：“需要进行进一步的研究来准确确定如何利用Microsporidia MB控制疟疾。下一阶段的研究将调查屏蔽屋‘半野外’设备中大量蚊子体内 Microsporidia MB的动态。”
"The results of these studies will give us key information that will be used to determine how we could then disseminate Microsporidia MB for malaria control."
“这些研究结果将为我们提供关键信息，我们能以此来确定如何传播Microsporidia MB来控制疟疾 。”
