​癌细胞内发现自杀开关 癌症治疗或开启新时代

Every cell in the human body contains a "kill code" which can be triggered to cause its own self-destruction.

人体的每个细胞中都包含一个“致死代码”，触发这一代码会使细胞自我毁灭。

That's the discovery made by researchers at Northwestern University, Illinois, who believe it could be utilized for the future fight against cancer.

这是伊利诺伊州西北大学的研究人员的发现，他们相信这一发现未来可以用于抗击癌症。

Specifically, they predict malignant cells could be encouraged to "commit suicide" without toxic chemicals pumped into the body.

具体而言，他们预测，恶性细胞将可以被诱惑“自杀”，而不必再将有毒化学药物注入患者体内。

It could mean an end to grueling rounds of chemotherapy.

这可能意味着给患者带来巨大痛苦的一轮轮化疗的终结。

Currently, as soon as the cell's inner bodyguards sense it is mutating into cancer, it self-activates the kill code to extinguish itself.

一旦细胞的内部保镖意识到它正在变异成癌症，它就会自动激活致死代码来消灭自己。

Embedded in ribonucleic acids, scientists estimate these evolved more than 800 million years ago in part to protect the body from diseases.

科学家们估计，这些嵌入核糖核酸的物质是在8亿年前进化而来的，部分是为了保护人体免受疾病的侵害。

'Now that we know the kill code, we can trigger the mechanism without having to use chemotherapy and without messing with the genome,' said lead author Marcus E. Peter, the Tomas D. Spies Professor of Cancer Metabolism at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

西北大学费恩伯格医学院Thomas D.Spies遗传代谢教授马库斯·E·彼得表示：“既然我们已经知道了致死代码，我们就可以触发这种机制，而不必使用化疗，也不用扰乱基因组。”

'We can use these small RNAs directly, introduce them into cells and trigger the kill switch.'

“我们可以直接使用这些小RNAs，将它们引入细胞并触发杀死开关。”

'My goal was not to come up with a new artificial toxic substance,' he added. 'I wanted to follow nature's lead. I want to utilize a mechanism that nature designed.'

他补充道：“我的目标不是想出一种新的人造有毒物质。我想跟随大自然的脚步。我想利用自然发展起来的机制。”