(CNN)Fans of the "Avatar" movie will have long dreamed of lush jungles teeming with glowing plants.
(CNN)《阿凡達》的粉絲們一直夢想著一個神奇的世界，茂密的叢林裡長滿了發光植物。
But fluorescent foliage may no longer be the stuff of science fiction, as scientists have found a way to grow glow-in-the-dark plants, which radiate and maintain a mysterious green gleam for their whole life cycle.
但是讓植物發光可能不再是科幻小說裡的東西了，科學家們已經找到了一種方法來種植可以在黑暗中發光的植物，這種植物在整個生命周期中都能持續發出一種神秘的綠色光芒。
Bioluminescence - the emission of light by an organism - occurs in a wide range of animals and microorganisms, including some fungi, insects, fish, marine invertebrates and bacteria.
生物螢光，也就是生物體發光的現象，廣泛存在於動物和微生物中，包括一些真菌、昆蟲、魚、海洋無脊椎動物和細菌。
Some of the most famous examples of the phenomena include the flickering of fireflies, or the crashing of electric blue waves in tropical seas.
這些現象中最著名的例子莫過於閃爍的螢火蟲，以及熱帶海洋中的電藍色海浪。
After discovering that the bioluminescence found in some mushrooms was metabolically similar to some of the natural processes found in plants, scientists were able transfer DNA sequences into tobacco plants, causing them to give off a bright green glow. Researchers found that this glow lasted for the whole of the plant's life cycle, from seedling to maturity.
在發現一些蘑菇中的生物螢光在新陳代謝上與植物中常見的自然過程相似後，科學家們將DNA序列轉移到菸草植物中，使它們發出明亮的綠光。研究人員發現，植物從幼苗到成長成熟的整個生命周期都能夠持續發光。
"We show that you can transfer four genes from these glowing mushrooms into the plants -- and wire them into plant metabolisms -- so that the plants start to glow in the dark," Karen Sarkisyan, one of the lead authors of a study published in the journal Nature Biotechnology on Monday, told CNN.
「我們證明，你可以把這些發光蘑菇的四種基因轉移到植物中，並將它們與植物的新陳代謝聯繫起來，讓植物在黑暗中開始發光，」周一發表在《自然生物技術》雜誌上的一項生物研究的主要作者之一凱倫·薩基斯楊告訴CNN。
Unlike other luminescence technologies, he told CNN, the team's recent discovery would allow plants to glow in the dark without having to use external chemicals.
他告訴CNN，與其他發光技術不同，該團隊最近的發現可以讓植物在黑暗中發光，而不需要使用外部化學物質。
The technology could be used for a variety of purposes, including the creation of decorative glowing plants and flowers, researchers said.
研究人員說，這項技術可以用於多種用途，包括創造發光的花和其他觀賞植物。
Light radiating from the plants could also be used to study their inner workings -- researchers noticed flickering patterns and waves of light in the organisms, revealing plant behavior not usually seen.
植物發出的光也可以用來研究它們的內部活動，研究人員注意到生物體中光的閃爍的模式和光波，揭示了通常無法看見的植物行為。
While bioluminescence occurs across the natural world, Sarkisyan told CNN that plants have not previously exhibited the phenomena.
薩基斯楊告訴CNN，雖然生物性發光在自然界中普遍存在，但植物以前從未出現過這種現象。
"We tend to overlook plants, we tend to not appreciate how complex or how alive they are. They send a lot of different signals, they integrate and make a lot of developmental decisions, and we don't really appreciate them," he said.
「我們往往會忽略植物，沒有意識到它們是多麼複雜，多麼有生命力。它們發出許多不同的信號，整合併做出許多決策，而我們並未真正欣賞它們，」他說。
"Making them glow somehow builds a new relationship with the plants, and you can appreciate much easier how alive they are," he added.
他補充說:「讓它們發光在某種程度上與植物建立了一種新的關係，你可以更容易地體會到它們是多麼的鮮活。」
In collaborative research, the scientists say they have been able to create plants that glow "ten-fold" brighter, without harming the foliage.
在合作研究中，科學家們表示，他們已經能夠在不傷害葉子的情況下，創造出比原來「亮十倍」的植物。
They say that other plants -- including petunias, roses and periwinkles -- could be adapted to make them glow, and that in future, plants could even be adapted to change their color, brightness, or even to respond to their surroundings.
他們說，這項技術也可以使其他植物發光，括矮牽牛、玫瑰和長春花。在未來，植物甚至可以改變它們的顏色、亮度，甚至對周圍環境做出反應。
原文連結：
https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/27/world/glowing-plants-intl-scli-scn/index.html
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