一種新的“黃金大米”將很快在孟加拉國種植

一種新的“黃金大米”將很快在孟加拉國種植

Golden rice: It sounds like something far too valuable to eat, or maybe like some mythical food consumed by the gods. But it could soon make its way into the world's food supply by the year 2021, reports Science Magazine.

黃金大米:聽起來好像是太貴重而不能吃的東西，或者可能是神吃的神秘食物。但據(jù)《科學》雜志報道，到2021年，它可能很快就會進入世界糧食供應(yīng)市場。

Grains of golden rice compared to white rice. (Photo: International Rice Research Institute/CC by 2.0)

Golden rice was actually first developed back in the 1990s by German scientists who were looking for inventive ways to reduce rates of vitamin A (beta carotene) deficiency, which continues to be a major nutritional concern throughout the developing world. The beta carotene that this rice is infused with, which comes from the maize genome, is actually what gives it that distinctive golden color. Developing it was filled with noble intent, but as with all genetically modified crops, it also has its fair share of critics.

事實上，黃金大米最早是在上世紀90年代由德國科學家開發(fā)出來的，當時他們正在尋找創(chuàng)新的方法來降低維生素A(-胡蘿卜素)缺乏癥的發(fā)病率，而維生素A缺乏癥在整個發(fā)展中國家仍然是一個主要的營養(yǎng)問題。這種大米中含有來自玉米基因組的-胡蘿卜素，正是它賦予了大米獨特的金色。開發(fā)它充滿了崇高的意圖，但就像所有轉(zhuǎn)基因作物一樣，它也遭到了不少批評。

Those critics warn that genetic modification is an unnecessary and potentially dangerous way of solving malnutrition around the world. Until now, those voices have prevented golden rice from being cultivated anywhere, but that's about to change. Bangladesh is now poised to become the first country to approve golden rice for planting, which means we could soon see it flooding the market, especially across Asia where rice consumption and vitamin A deficiency are both prolific.

這些批評人士警告說，基因改造是解決全世界營養(yǎng)不良問題的一種不必要的、有潛在危險的方法。到目前為止，這些聲音阻止了黃金大米在任何地方的種植，但這種情況即將改變。孟加拉國現(xiàn)在有望成為第一個批準種植黃金大米的國家，這意味著我們可能很快就會看到黃金大米充斥市場，尤其是在大米消費和維生素A缺乏癥都很嚴重的亞洲。

"It is really important to say we got this over the line," said Johnathan Napier, a plant biotechnologist at Rothamsted Research in Harpenden, United Kingdom.

英國哈彭登羅瑟斯特德研究所的植物生物技術(shù)專家喬納森·納皮爾說:“說我們做到了這一點真的很重要。”

While golden rice has already been approved for consumption by regulators in some key markets in the developed world, including within the United States, there haven't been any plans to actually cultivate the crop, which is why you can't find it at the supermarket. Bangladesh might be a better market for growing and distributing the crop, however, because vitamin A deficiency there remains a major concern, where it affects about 21% of children.

盡管包括美國在內(nèi)的發(fā)達國家一些主要市場的監(jiān)管機構(gòu)已經(jīng)批準了黃金大米的消費，但還沒有任何實際種植黃金大米的計劃，這就是為什么你在超市找不到黃金大米的原因。不過，孟加拉國可能是種植和分配這種作物的更好市場，因為該國仍存在維生素a缺乏癥這一主要問題，該國約有21%的兒童受到維生素a缺乏癥的影響。

Despite panic from critics, early testing of golden rice has been promising. For instance, researchers at the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI) found no new farming challenges with the crop and no significant differences in quality, with the exception that golden rice was more nutritious than traditional varieties. Officials are still running projections about the environmental impacts of this crop, such as its potential to become an invasive weed, but if those results are also encouraging, then golden rice will have received all the approval it needs to move forward with planting.

盡管受到了批評人士的恐慌，但黃金大米的早期試驗還是很有希望的。例如，孟加拉國水稻研究所(BRRI)的研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn)，除了黃金大米比傳統(tǒng)品種更有營養(yǎng)外，這種作物沒有新的農(nóng)業(yè)挑戰(zhàn)，在質(zhì)量上也沒有顯著差異。官員們?nèi)栽趯@種作物的環(huán)境影響進行預(yù)測，比如它有可能成為一種入侵性雜草，但如果這些結(jié)果也令人鼓舞，那么黃金大米將獲得推進種植所需的所有批準。

Whether or not there will be a voracious market for the crop remains to be seen. It will need to gain the public's trust, and it's uncertain whether golden rice will offer a better nutritional bang for the buck compared to other sources of vitamin A, such as other vegetables where it occurs naturally. Still, it's a major step forward for proponents of genetic modification, such as scientists at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which is an important part of the funding arm of this movement.

這種作物是否會有一個巨大的市場還有待觀察。黃金大米需要獲得公眾的信任，而且目前還不確定黃金大米是否會比其他來源的維生素a提供更好的營養(yǎng)，比如其他天然來源的蔬菜。盡管如此，這對基因改造的支持者來說還是向前邁出了一大步，比如比爾和梅琳達·蓋茨基金會的科學家，該基金會是這場運動的一個重要資助機構(gòu)。

If golden rice does prove to be successful in Bangladesh, then it could open the flood gates for GM crops worldwide. Additional varieties are already in development, such as varieties better adapted to other seasons or locations.

如果黃金大米在孟加拉國被證明是成功的，那么它將為全世界的轉(zhuǎn)基因作物打開大門。其他品種已經(jīng)在開發(fā)中，例如更適合其他季節(jié)或地點的品種。

"It would be great to see it approved," said Napier. "It's been a long time coming."

納皮爾說:“如果能得到批準，那就太好了。”“這是一個漫長的過程。”