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Scientists in Spain have mapped the genetic code of a sea animal that is the only known creature able to go back in its life cycle.
西班牙科学家绘制了一种海洋动物的基因序列，这种海洋动物是已知的唯一一种能“返老还童”的生物。
The research involves a kind of jellyfish.
这项研究涉及一种水母。
The researchers' goals were to try to understand the secret of the jellyfish’s unusual long life and find new areas for future aging research.
研究人员的目的是试图了解这种水母异常长寿的秘密，并为未来的衰老研究找到新的研究领域。
The scientists published their study recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
科学家最近在《美国国家科学院院刊》上发表了他们的研究成果。
Maria Pascual-Torner, Victor Quesada and others at the University of Oviedo mapped the genetic code of Turritopsis dohrnii.
奥维耶多大学的玛丽亚·帕斯夸尔·托纳、维克多·奎萨达等人绘制了灯塔水母的基因序列。
It is the only known species of jellyfish able to repeatedly change back into a larval stage after sexual reproduction.
它是已知的唯一一种能够在有性繁殖后反复回到幼虫阶段的水母。
The scientists said that means it could be biologically immortal.
科学家表示，这意味着它可能是永生生物。
Like other jellyfish, T. dohrnii goes through a two-part life cycle.
像其他水母一样，灯塔水母的生命周期是由两部分组成的。
It lives on the sea floor during an early part of life where its main goal is to survive during times when there is not enough food.
它在生命的早期阶段生活在海底，在那里其主要目标是在食物不足的时候生存下来。
Then, when conditions are right, the jellyfish enters another part of its life to reproduce sexually.
然后，当条件合适时，水母进入生命的另一个阶段来进行有性繁殖。
Many kinds of jellyfish have some ability to reverse aging and go back to a larval form.
许多种类的水母都有一定的逆转衰老，回到幼虫状态的能力。
But most lose this ability once they reach sexual maturity, the scientists wrote.
但科学家写道，大多数水母一旦达到性成熟就会失去这种能力。
Not so for T. dohrnii.
但灯塔水母并非如此。
Monty Graham is a jellyfish expert and director of the Florida Institute of Oceanography.
蒙蒂·格雷厄姆是一位水母专家，也是佛罗里达海洋学研究所所长。
Graham was not involved in the research.
格雷厄姆没有参与这项研究。
"We've known about this species being able to do a little evolutionary trickery for maybe 15-20 years," he said.
他说：“我们知道这个物种在进化中‘耍这种花招’可能有15到20年了。”
In this case, trickery means an unusual behavior or manner.
在这种情况下，trickery的意思是不寻常的行为或方式。
This trick earned the species the nickname, the immortal jellyfish.
这一不寻常之处为该物种赢得了“永生水母”的绰号。
Graham admits the nickname is a little hyperbolic, meaning it overstates the truth.
格雷厄姆承认这个绰号有点夸张，hyperbolic的意思是它夸大了事实。
The study aimed to understand what made this jellyfish different.
这项研究旨在了解这种水母的不同之处。
It compared the genetic code of T. dohrnii to a close genetic relative that does not have the same ability.
该研究将灯塔水母的基因序列与其不具有相同能力的一种近亲水母进行了比较。
Researchers found that T. dohrnii has differences in its genes that may make it better at copying and repairing DNA.
研究人员发现，灯塔水母的基因差异可能会使它更善于复制和修复DNA。
Such differences, or variations, also appear to make the jellyfish better at taking care of the ends of chromosomes called telomeres.
这种差异似乎也使这种水母更擅长护理被称为端粒的染色体末端。
In humans and other species, telomere length has been shown to shorten with age.
在人类和其他物种中，端粒长度已被证明会随着年龄的增长而缩短。
Graham said the research has no immediate financial value.
格雷厄姆说，这项研究没有直接的经济价值。
"We can't look at it as, hey, we are going to harvest these jellyfish and turn it into a skin cream," he said.
他说：“我们不能把它看成，嘿，我们要捕获这些水母，然后把它变成护肤霜”。
The research has more to do with understanding the processes that help these jellyfish live so long.
这项研究更多的是为了了解帮助这种水母活得这么长的过程。
Graham explained, "It's one of those papers that I do think will open up a door to a new line of study that's worth pursuing."
格雷厄姆解释说：“我真的认为它会是打开一扇通往新研究方向大门的论文之一，那个研究方向值得人们探索。”
I’m John Russell.
约翰·拉塞尔为您播报。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
