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Genetic Doping Next Athletic Cheat

基因兴奋剂 违禁无止境

The Vancouver Olympics begin February 12th. And scientists are on high alert. Not just for well-known ways to gain an advantage, like steroids or blood doping. The researchers are also worried about what's called genetic doping. It's the latest in elite athletic cheating.

温哥华冬奥会将于2月12日开幕，科学家们已处于高度警戒状态。不仅仅是因为运动员们有可能使用类固醇或血液兴奋剂这类众所周知的方法获取优势。研究人员们还担心基因兴奋剂在赛场上作乱--这是顶尖运动员们在比赛中舞弊的最新法宝。

Researchers writing in the journal Science point to a few different types of gene therapy that could get hijacked for athletics instead of medical uses, like the treatment of obesity, diabetes or muscle disease. For example, genes for insulin-like growth factor could enhance muscle mass. And molecules that regulate the expression of genes may make athletes more energy efficient, or help create more slow-twitch muscle fibers.

研究人员在《科学》杂志上撰文指出了几种不同类型的基因治疗，如对抗肥胖症、糖尿病或肌肉疾病的基因疗法，这些方法会被运动员利用在非医疗用途上。例如，胰岛素样生长因子基因可增强肌群。一些控制基因表达的分子可以使运动员更有效的节省体能，或者帮助运动员生成更多慢肌纤维。

It's known that in the past few years, a coach in Germany tried to get these kinds of therapies into the hands of competitors. So the scientific community wants to get ahead of this by figuring out what molecular signatures might be left in cheaters' bodies after genetic doping.

据了解，过去数年间，一名德国教练试图在一些参赛运动员身上使用基因疗法。因此，科学界希望通过弄清楚使用了基因兴奋剂之后的运动员体内会残留哪些分子特征，从而遏制这类舞弊行为。

The researchers do point out that these treatments have so far only been able to produce "faster or stronger mice." But that doesn't mean somebody getting an Olympic medal isn't a rat.

研究人员确实指出了这些疗法到目前为止仅仅可以造就出"更快、更强的老鼠"。但是这并不意味着获得奥林匹克奖牌的人就不是一个无耻的舞弊者。

-Cynthia Graber

 

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