新奇事件簿 增加作物產(chǎn)量植物也要防曬

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Plant biologists have thought of a clever new way to increase the size of crops by as much as 20 per cent. They have genetically modified part of the mechanism in plants that is responsible for photosynthesis. Of course, photosynthesis is the most important chemical reaction in the world. It is the process where plants use sunlight to change carbon dioxide into oxygen. This means we can all breathe. The scientists have found a way for plants to use the energy they get from sunlight better, so they grow bigger and produce more food. Lead researcher Professor Stephen Long said his team is genetically modifying staple crops such as rice, wheat, maize and soybean – the world's biggest crops.

植物生物學家想到了一個聰明的新方法，可以讓作物的尺寸增加20%。他們對植物中負責光合作用的部分機制進行了基因改造。當然，光合作用是世界上最重要的化學反應。在這個過程中，植物利用陽光將二氧化碳轉化為氧氣。這樣我們才能呼吸。科學家發(fā)現(xiàn)了更好地利用從陽光中獲得的能量的方法，所以植物可以長得更大，可以生產(chǎn)更多食物。首席研究員Stephen Long教授表示，他的研究團隊正在對主要作物進行基因改造，比如稻米，小麥，玉米和大豆，這是世界上最主要的作物。

The scientists targeted the mechanism that plants use to protect themselves from damage when the Sun's rays are too strong. To prevent damage, plants turn their energy into heat, which disappears into the air. However, this heat-loss process continues even when clouds block the Sun. The scientists put extra copies of the heat-loss genes into modified plants. These additional copies speed up the heat-loss process so the plants can more quickly return to using energy to grow. Professor Long believes this could help the world's food needs. He said if he could get 20 per cent more food from crops, "that would greatly [reduce] what we see as the future pressure on food supply".

科學家改造的是當陽光太強烈的時候植物用來保護自己免受傷害的機制。為了防止傷害，植物將能量轉化為熱量，在空氣中消失。然而，當云層遮擋了太陽時，這種熱消失過程仍在繼續(xù)?？茖W家向轉基因的植物中加入了額外的熱消失基因片段。增加的基因片段加速了熱消失的過程，這樣植物就能更快地回到利用能量來生長的過程。Long教授相信這樣有助于滿足全世界的糧食需求。他表示，如果作物產(chǎn)量能夠增加20%，這將極大地緩解未來食物供應方面的壓力。