原文标题：Animal contraceptionDon’t have kittensA new vaccine suggests there’s more than one way to spay a cat动物避孕没有小猫一种新疫苗表明给猫绝育的方法不止一种A new vaccine could be a cheap, simple solution to a big problem一种新疫苗便宜又简单，可以解决大问题
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RUNNING A CITY can be an expensive business. There are potholesto fix, policemen and firefighters to fund, and mountains of refuseto collect. In many cases, the kitty is empty.管理城市可能是一件费钱费力的事情。如修复路面坑洼，资助警察和消防员，处理堆积如山的垃圾。在许多情况下，没有预算来管理城市小猫。
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Other sorts of kitties cause problems, too.
其他小猫也会造成问题。
Some 480m of the world’s 600m domesticated cats are thought to be free-roaming.
据估计世界上有6亿只家养猫，其中约有4.8亿只是自由活动的。
Strays can be unsightly and can spread diseases, either to each other or to people. Many endure short and uncomfortable lives.
流浪猫可能长得不好看，它们之间可能会相互传播疾病或传染给人类。许多猫生活条件差且一生短暂。
Even those that land on their feet can cause suffering elsewhere—more than 60 species of animals, ranging from mice to birds, have been hunted to extinction by predatory cats.即使猫咪脱离困境，它们也会造成其他方面的问题--从老鼠到鸟类，有 60 多种动物已被掠食性猫科动物猎杀至灭绝。
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Fixing the problem, as well as the cats, is not cheap.
解决猫相关的问题并不便宜。
Tel Aviv, which has tens of thousands of the animals, has spent over $100,000 a year on neuteringprogrammes alone.
以色列的特拉维夫城拥有数万只猫，每年仅在绝育计划上就花费了10多万美元。
Now, though, a paper in Nature Communications suggests a single jab could offer a cheap, safe and long-lasting way to sterilise a cat.现在有个好消息，《自然通讯》上的一篇论文表明，单次注射是一种廉价、安全且持久的猫咪绝育方法。
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The technology involved is gene therapy, in which a gene is carried into an organism’s body, usually by a modified virus, in order to fulfil some additional function.
所涉及的技术是基因疗法，一般是通过改造病毒将基因携带到生物体内，以产生一些额外的作用。
This has been gaining momentum in humans, with seven different gene therapies approved by America’s Food and Drug Administration as of this February.
基因疗法在人类中蓬勃发展，截至今年2月，美国食品和药物管理局已经批准了7种不同的基因疗法。
Most are designed to target rare genetic diseases, including haemophilia B, where mutation causes problems with blood clotting.大多数是针对罕见的遗传疾病，包括血友病B，因基因突变导致血液凝固问题。
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David Pépin, a molecular biologist at Harvard University, came to realise the same techniques could also be used to induce contraception.
哈佛大学的分子生物学家大卫.佩平意识到，同样的技术也可以用于避孕。
His laboratory was investigating a lesser-known reproductive hormone called AMH (anti-müllerian hormone), which is produced by the folliclesthat house immature egg cells in mammals.
他的实验室正在研究一种鲜为人知的生殖激素，称为AMH（抗缪勒管激素），这种激素是由哺乳动物体内未成熟卵细胞的卵泡产生的。
These follicles grow inside the ovaries until they burst, releasing their cargo into the fallopiantubes and towards potential fertilisation.
卵泡在卵巢内长大，直至破裂，然后把其中的物质释放到输卵管中并进行潜在的受精。
More mature follicles produce AMH in order to slow down the growth of those eggs remaining in the ovaries.
更成熟的卵泡产生AMH，以减缓留在卵巢中卵子的生长速度。
The hormone acts as a red traffic light, as it were, to ensure the flow of maturing eggs is not too rapid.这种激素就像一个红色交通灯，以确保成熟卵子的流动不会太快。
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Dr Pépin concluded that persuading a mammal to produce higher-than-usual amounts of AMH—by inserting the right type of gene—might strengthen this braking signal and halt follicle production altogether.
佩平博士得出结论，通过植入正确的基因，说服哺乳动物产生高于正常量的AMH，可能会加强这种抑制信号并完全停止卵泡的生产。
After initial successes in rodents, he joined forces with Bill Swanson at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens to test the idea on cats.在啮齿动物身上取得初步成功后，他与辛辛那提动植物园的比尔.斯旺森联手合作，在猫身上做实验。[Paragraph 7]In 2019 the researchers injected six cats with a harmless virus that contained a synthetic copy of a feline AMH gene, and three control cats with the virus alone. 2019年，研究人员给6只猫注射了一种无害病毒，该病毒含有猫科动物 AMH 基因的合成物质，并给3只对照猫只注射了无此基因的病毒。[Paragraph 8]All nine cats—which were named after the wives of American presidents—then had theirfaecesmonitored over the course of two years so that the levels of their reproductive hormones could be checked. 所有9只猫--均以美国总统夫人的名字命名--然后在2年内对它们的粪便进行监测，以便了解它们的生殖激素的水平。In order to ensure the right cats were being matched to the right scat, each was fed food with a different coloured dye or, for a few fabulous individuals, glitter. 为了确保猫与粪便匹配无误，研究人员给每只猫都喂食了不同颜色的染料，或者给少数独特猫咪喂食了发光物。After eight months, and then again after 20 months, male cats were introduced into the living quarters so that the females’ breeding patterns could be assessed.8个月后，重复操作，又过了20个月，将公猫引入实验生活区，以便评估母猫的繁殖情况。[Paragraph 9]Though the three control cats (Michelle, Nancy and Rosalyn) ovulated and got pregnant, the six injected with the gene-carrying virus (Betty, Dolly, Jacqueline, Abigail, Barbara and Mary) did not. 尽管3只对照组的猫（米歇尔、南希和罗莎琳）成功排卵并怀孕，但注射了携带基因病毒的6只猫（贝蒂、多莉、杰奎琳、阿比盖尔、芭芭拉和玛丽）没有排卵和怀孕。Each had levels of AMH up to a thousand times higher than before they were treated. Four refused to even try to breed, and the two that were still receptive to the idea had no pregnancies.每只猫的AMH水平都比实验前高出1000倍。有4只猫甚至拒绝交配繁衍，而另外2只交配的猫也没有怀孕。“These cats are not able to reproduce,” concludes Dr Swanson.斯旺森博士总结道："这些猫无法繁衍后代。"[Paragraph 10]While the precise mechanisms in cats and rodents are not identical, high levels of AMH seem to have a contraceptive effect in both species. 虽然猫和啮齿动物的机体运作机制不相同，但高水平的AMH似乎对这两个物种都有避孕作用。Dr Pépin hopes AMH could become a useful target in human contraception too—though as a pill with temporary effects rather than a permanent injection. 佩平博士希望AMH也能成为人类避孕的有用方法--尽管人类需要的是一种具有临时避孕效果的药片，而不是永久效果的注射剂。Presently, the most common kind of hormonal contraception is the combined pill, which contains oestrogen and progesterone. 目前，最常见的激素避孕药是混合型避孕药，它含有雌激素和孕激素。These limit the release of hormones which cause follicles to ripen, and thicken the mucusat the entrance of the womb, preventing the passage of sperm.激素使卵泡成熟，避孕药就是限制这种激素的释放，并使子宫入口处的粘液变稠，阻止精子通过。[Paragraph 11]But there are oestrogen and progesterone receptors all over the body, not just in the reproductive system. Synthetic hormones affect those as well. 但全身都有雌激素和孕激素受体，不只是生殖系统才有。合成荷尔蒙也会影响全身受体。That is one reason for the pill’s many side-effects, including mood swings, nauseaand headaches. 这是避孕药产生许多副作用的原因之一，包括情绪波动、恶心和头痛。AMH receptors in humans are much more specific, being found mostly in the reproductive system. 人类的 AMH 受体更具特异性，主要存在于生殖系统中。The hope is that a contraceptive that targets AMH may therefore be one with many fewer side-effects.因此，但愿AMH避孕药的副作用更少。（恭喜读完，本篇英语词汇量886左右，有删减）原文出自：2023年6月17日《The Economist》Science & technology版块
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本文翻译整理: Irene本文编辑校对: Irene仅供个人英语学习交流使用。
【补充资料】（来自于网络）特拉维夫Tel Aviv是以色列的第二大城市，位于地中海沿岸的特拉维夫都会区。它被誉为中东的“城市春天”和“白色城市”，因其现代化的建筑、开放的文化和丰富的夜生活而闻名。拥有许多艺术家、设计师和企业家。这里有许多时尚的艺术画廊、音乐会和戏剧表演，还有世界级的博物馆和美术馆。该市还拥有美丽的海滩，是许多人在夏天度假的热门目的地。这里也是水上运动爱好者的天堂，可以尽情享受冲浪、风帆和潜水等活动。这座城市是创新和科技的先驱，在高科技和创业领域具有重要地位。抗缪勒管激素AMH（Anti-Müllerian Hormone）是一种由卵巢产生的激素。它在女性身体中的主要作用是抑制卵泡的发育和成熟。AMH的测量可以帮助医生评估女性的卵子储备量和卵巢功能。通过检测AMH水平，医生可以判断女性的生殖年龄和卵子的数量，从而帮助预测她们的生育能力和卵子的质量。AMH的测量也常用于辅助不孕症的诊断和治疗。对于无法自然怀孕的女性，AMH的水平可以帮助医生决定最适合的生育辅助技术，如试管婴儿或卵巢刺激治疗。此外，AMH的测量还可以用于评估多囊卵巢综合征（PCOS）和卵巢早衰等与卵巢功能相关的疾病。PCOS是一种常见的女性生殖系统疾病，会导致卵巢多囊、排卵障碍和激素失调。AMH的水平在PCOS患者中通常较高。【重点句子】（3个）Strays can be unsightly and can spread diseases, either to each other or to people. Many endure short and uncomfortable lives.流浪猫可能长得不好看，它们之间可能会相互传播疾病或传染给人类。许多猫生活条件差且一生短暂。The hormone acts as a red traffic light, as it were, to ensure the flow of maturing eggs is not too rapid. 这种激素就像一个红色交通灯，以确保成熟卵子的流动不会太快。While the precise mechanisms in cats and rodents are not identical, high levels of AMH seem to have a contraceptive effect in both species. 虽然猫和啮齿动物的机体运作机制不相同，但高水平的AMH似乎对这两个物种都有避孕作用。
