Headlines Speaking
Debate/토론 Essay/영작
인강과정 Misc
자료실
WTS 시험보기
[Headlines] (HL-의학/건강/운동) Regrowth of Heart Muscle May Be Possible
최고관리자  |  17-01-17 23:11

It may seem like a moment in a science fiction movie. In a fierce battle, a creature loses an arm but, then, grows another one to take its place. However, this is not science fiction. It is scientific fact. Some fish and amphibians, such as salamanders, can regrow lost limbs and organs. As mammals evolved they lost the ability to regrow, or regenerate, parts of their body. However, experiments show that it may be possible to regain that ability. Tropical freshwater zebrafish are popular pets. They are also popular as lab animals. Their embryos are clear, or translucent. They can regrow damaged fins, skin and hearts. Zebrafish are also genetically similar to humans. In 2013, the website Sci-News reported that researchers had found that 70 per cent of “protein-coding human genes” are related to genes found in the zebrafish. The report also said that researchers at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in Britain also found that 84 per cent of genes known to be connected to human disease have a zebrafish counterpart. These researchers published their findings in the scientific journal Nature. Sanger is a non-profit British genomics and genetics research institute.
* science fiction movie = 공상 과학 영화/ fierce = 격렬한, 맹렬한; 사나운/ take one's place = 대체하다/ amphibian = 양서류/ salamander = 도롱뇽/ limb = (하나의) 팔[다리]; (새의) 날개/ mammal = 포유동물/ evolve = 진화하다/ regenerate = (손상된 생물체의 일부분이[을]) 재생되다[재생시키다]/ regain = (특히 능력・특질 등을) 되찾다[회복하다]/ lab animal = 실험용 동물/ embryo = 배아/ translucent = 반투명한/ counterpart = (다른 장소나 상황에서 어떤 사람・사물과 동일한 지위나 기능을 갖는) 상대, 대응 관계에 있는 사람[것]/ genomics = 유전체학           

So, it is no surprise that scientists at the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania are using tiny zebrafish to regenerate severely damaged mouse hearts. Scientist Wang Yadong is one of the Pittsburg researchers. He and his team are studying the ability of zebrafish to regenerate limbs and organs. Wang says you can cut away about 20 per cent of the zebrafish heart and it will regenerate. He adds that same process may be able to help humans. "So that amazing ability make(s) us think it's possible to borrow some of that repair regeneration mechanism and use that to help us to regenerate our heart." Scientists injected an “extracellular matrix,” or ECM, from the heart of a zebrafish into a severely damaged mouse heart. In biology, an extracellular matrix is a substance produced and released by cells that gives structural and biochemical support to surrounding cells. Think of ECM as cellular stuff that gives room and board to surrounding cells. So, what did the researchers find? They found that the heart muscle regenerated in days. They found something else. The healing was even faster when the ECM was taken from zebrafish that was itself in the process of re-growing damaged tissue.
* severely damaged = 심하게 손상된/ cut sth away (from ~) = (~로 부터) ~을 잘라 내다/ extracellular matrix = 세포외 기질 (細胞外基質)/ healing = 치유[치료]