NO. 4 We are 食科 3B 吳詩英 楊子靚 標淑媛 黃素真 Our news is New monkey gene map may hold human clues

Researchers decipher rhesus macaque's DNA, compare with human, chimp DNA Some genetic mutations that make people ill seems normal for macaques. Rhesus macaque is third primate genome to be completed decipher 解釋 chimp 黑猩猩 ( 口語上的 )

Scientists have unraveled the DNA of another of our primate relatives, this time a monkey named the rhesus macaque -- and the work has far more immediate impact than just to study evolution. These fuzzy ， animals are key to testing the safety of many medicines, and understanding such diseases as AIDS, and the new research will help scientists finally be sure when they're a good stand-in for humans. Unraveled 不能明白的 evolution 演化 Fuzzy 有茸毛的 stand-in 參加

" The thing we're all fascinated with is what makes us different from these animals who are so close to us," said Dr. Richard Gibbs of the Baylor College of Medicine, who led a team of more than 170 scientists, including some in Oregon, that collaborated on the project. fascinated 迷住 Oregon 俄勒岡人 ( 俄勒岡是美國的ㄧ州 ) collaborate 合作

Among the most intriguing discoveries so far: a list of diseases where the same genetic mutation that makes people ill seems normal for the macaques. "That is really quite a stunner," said Dr. Francis Collins, genetics chief at the National Institutes of Health, which funded the research. "It gives you a glimmer of how subtle changes in DNA cause big trouble.“ intriguing 引起興趣的，有魅力的 list 目錄 stunner 驚人的東西 ; 震撼 Institutes 協會 a glimmer of 少許 subtle 精細的

The mapping of the human genome in 2001 sparked an explosion of work to similarly decipher the DNA of other animals, so scientists could compare species in the effort to understand the functions of various genes. Sparked 點燃火花 explosion 爆炸 effort 努力，嘗試

The rhesus macaque is the third primate genome to be completed, work that promises to greatly enhance understanding of primate evolution, perhaps even to help explain what makes us human. primate n. 靈長類 A mammal of the order Primates, which includes the anthropoids and prosimians, characterized by refined development of the hands and feet, a shortened snout, and a large brain.

Not surprisingly, the DNA of humans, chimps and macaques are highly similar. Humans and chimps have evolved separately since splitting from a common ancestor about 6 million years ago, but still have almost 99 percent of their gene sequences in common. chimp n. 黑猩猩 A chimpanzee.

Macaques branched off from the ape family tree far earlier, about 25 million years ago -- yet still share about 93 percent of their DNA with humans, the new work shows. Ape n. ( 無尾 ) 猿 Any of various large, tailless Old World primates of the family Pongidae, including the chimpanzee, gorilla, gibbon, and orangutan.

Here's the key: Six million years isn't long in evolutionary history. So if a particular gene is different in the human and the chimp, it's impossible to know which version came first.

Add these more ancient Old World monkeys into the mix, however, and it may be possible to tease out genetic changes that were important for key traits of modern humans, such as higher brain power and walking upright.

rhesus macaques are ubiquitous in medical research. Most vaccines and many drugs are tested in the monkeys before ever reaching people. And they're used as models of many human diseases, most notably the AIDS virus. "As models, we expect them to behave like us," noted Baylor's Gibbs. ubiquitous 到處存在的, 普遍存在的

Yet consider some of the differences found so far: About one in 14,000 babies is born with PKU, or phenylketonuria, meaning their bodies can't process a protein found in most foods called phenylalanine.

Without treatment, PKU causes mental retardation. But in macaques, the gene defect that causes PKU seems to cause no harm, suggesting they may somehow compensate in a way people can't. Phenylketonuria (PKU) n. 苯酮尿症 A genetic disorder Phenylalanine n. 氨基苯基丙酸 An essential amino acid, C9H11NO2. It is necessary for growth in infants and for nitrogen equilibrium in adults. Retardation n. 遲延 Something that retards; a delay or hindrance.

The researchers found a list of such mutations, from ones linked with cystic fibrosis to blood diseases, that are bad news for people but seem normal in the monkeys. Most involved metabolic disorders that in turn can harm the brain, a link Gibbs found particularly compelling. cystic fibrosis ：囊胞性纖維症 metabolic ：新陳代謝 disorder ：混亂 in turn ：依次

The monkeys had triple the number of genes as people do to run one arm of the immune system. That raises immediate questions about how they react in vaccine or AIDS research. "It would make sense that a comprehensive knowledge of their immune machinery should be a part of those studies," Gibbs said. immune system ：生體內的免疫系統 vaccine ：疫苗 AIDS ：後天性免疫不全症候群 make sense ：有意義 comprehensive ：廣泛的、綜合的

On the other hand, macaques had far fewer of a family of cancer-related genes than either humans or chimps. macaques ：獼猴、恆河猴 Gibbs said the work has importance for the animals, too _ because knowing their genetic makeup should cut the number of monkeys needed in many biomedical experiments. genetic ：起源的 makeup ：構成 biomedical experiments ：生物醫學實驗

"It's really about experimenting less and being able to learn more," he said. Stay tuned: More primate gene maps are on the way, including blueprints for orangutans, gorillas and gibbons. primate gene ：首要的基因 blueprint ：藍圖 orangutan ：猩猩 (= orangoutang) gorillas ：大猩猩 gibbons ：長臂猿

The research project involved 35 institutions and 170 researchers, including scientists at the Oregon National Primate Research Center. Scientists there provided DNA samples from monkeys at the Hillsboro center and helped analyze those samples to decode the rhesus genome. Of the approximately 4,000 monkeys at the Oregon National Primate Research Center, 3,600 are rhesus macaque monkeys. institution ：制度、習俗、機構 provided ：以 … 為條件 analyze ：分析 decode ：解碼 rhesus genome ： ( 北印度產的 ) 恆河猴 的基因組 approximately ：大概、近乎

The mapping of the rhesus macaque genome promises to enhance understanding of primate evolution, perhaps help explain what makes us human, researchers say.

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