比尔盖茨：消灭蚊子最佳时机是它们正在交配时

IT之家8月23日消息 今天比尔盖茨发布新的盖茨笔记文章《″蚊子城″里，时刻嗡嗡作响》，讲述了科研人员在这里研究如何驱除、吸引和杀灭世界上最致命的动物。IT之家从文章了解到，何时是消灭蚊子的最佳时机？日落时分，当它们正在做爱时。这不是玩笑。

下面是文章内容：

When’s the best time to kill mosquitoes?

何时是消灭蚊子的最佳时机？

While they’re making love—at sunset.

日落时分，当它们正在做爱时。

No kidding.

这不是玩笑。

This is just one of many fascinating discoveries being made at a place called Mosquito City. Located in the swamplands of central Tanzania, the “city” is home to the world’s largest captive colony of mosquitoes used for researching ways to combat malaria and other mosquito-borne diseases. Day and night scientists work to better understand mosquito behavior (like when and where they enjoy having sex) as well as cutting-edge approaches to trap, repel, and most importantly, kill them.

在一个叫做 “蚊子城”的地方，这只是众多有意思的发现之一。该 “城市”位于坦桑尼亚中部的沼泽地，是世界上最大的蚊子人工栖息地，用于研究抗击疟疾和其他蚊媒疾病的方法。科学家们夜以继日地工作，致力于更好地了解蚊子的行为（例如它们喜欢在何时何地进行交配）和最前沿的方法来捕捉、驱赶及——最重要的是——杀灭它们。

I first learned about Mosquito City during a trip to Africa several years ago when I met scientists from Ifakara Health Institute, a Tanzanian health research organization which runs the site. While I haven’t had the opportunity to visit, Fredros Okumu, Ifakara’s chief scientist, offered a behind-the-scenes look at some of the research underway there in this video. If you’re wondering how they get enough blood to feed all the mosquitoes, watch for the moment when Fredros puts his arm in a cage containing more than 500 very hungry mosquitoes for a feed! (For larger mosquito colonies, too big for one human to feed, a cow is on the mosquitoes’ dinner menu.)

我第一次听说 “蚊子城”是在几年前的一次非洲之行，当时我会见了依法卡拉卫生研究所的科学家们——正是这个坦桑尼亚的卫生研究机构管理着 “蚊子城”。虽然我还没机会去参观，但在下面这条视频里，依法卡拉的首席科学家弗雷德･奥库姆提供了一些进行中研究的幕后花絮。如果你想知道他们如何获得足够的血液来喂养所有的蚊子，请看弗雷德将他的手臂放入笼子的那一幕，那个笼子里有 500 多只饿极了的蚊子！（对于更大一些的蚊子群，大到一个人不足以喂饱它们，那么一头牛将出现在蚊子们的菜单上。）

Mosquito City is located in a region of Tanzania that’s hot, humid, and swampy. In other words –perfect conditions for its primary residents. Malaria has been so widespread in this part of the country —once infecting 80 percent of the population—that one meaning of the name of the local town, Ifakara, is, “the place people go to die.”

“蚊子城”位于坦桑尼亚一个炎热、潮湿、多沼泽的区域。换句话说，这对于其主要居民来说具有完美的条件。疟疾一直在坦桑尼亚的这个地区广泛传播，曾经感染了 80% 的人口，以至于当地城镇依法卡拉名字的含义之一竟是 “人们去死的地方”。

Fortunately, malaria deaths are on the decline in recent years. One reason is the use of insecticide-treated bed nets, which remain one of the most effective means to control the disease. (New bed net distribution efforts like the one that just launched in Benin are helping to ensure every person at risk of malaria is protected by one.)

幸运的是，近年来疟疾死亡人数正在下降。其中一个原因是使用经杀虫剂处理的蚊帐，这仍是控制该疾病最有效的手段之一。（包括这个刚在贝宁启动的项目在内的一系列新的蚊帐分发工作，正在帮助确保每一个有感染疟疾风险的人都能得到蚊帐的保护。)

Still, much more needs to be done to fight the disease, especially as mosquitoes become resistant to some of the pesticides used to control them. That’s why scientists at Mosquito City are working to better understand mosquito behaviors and find ways to outsmart them.

然而，在对抗这种疾病方面还有很多工作要做，特别是当蚊子对一些用于防控它们的杀虫剂产生抗药性。这就是为什么 “蚊子城”的科学家们正在努力更好地了解蚊子的行为，并找到战胜它们的方法。

“It's kind of a love-hate relationship. If you can't beat them, you join them for now, but then you can kill them from the inside. And that's what we try to do here at the Mosquito City.” Fredros says.

“这是一种爱恨交加的关系。如果你无法击败它们，那么你就暂时加入它们，但随后你可以从内部瓦解它们。而这也是我们在‘蚊子城’努力做的事情。”弗雷德说道。

Fredros and his team are studying one of the deadliest mosquito species, Anopheles funestus. In southeastern Tanzania, it is responsible for nearly 9 out of every 10 cases of malaria even though other species of mosquito are far more common. And yet, it is one of the least understood species of mosquitoes because it is difficult to raise in a lab environment. Our foundation is supporting the Ifakara Health Institute’s research into its behavior so they can mount a targeted campaign against them.

弗雷德和他的团队正在研究一种最致命的蚊子——不吉按蚊。在坦桑尼亚东南部，每 10 个疟疾病例中就有近 9 个是由这种蚊子传播的，尽管其他种类的蚊子更为常见。不吉按蚊由于很难在实验室环境中饲养，因此是人类最不了解的蚊子种类之一。我们基金会正在支持依法卡拉卫生研究所关于不吉按蚊行为的研究，以便他们能开展针对这种蚊子的灭杀行动。

One promising approach may be killing them while they are mating. Ifakara scientists learned that mosquitoes, including Anopheles funestus, have favorite locations – like rice fields, trash heaps, and banana trees – to mate. The male mosquitoes appear at their favorite mating spots at sunset to begin a ritualistic flight dance, drawing in the females. Because these mating events occur at predictable times and locations, researchers are experimenting with regularly targeting these swarms with pesticides, dramatically reducing the mosquito populations and malaria transmission.

一种有希望的方法可能是在它们交配时杀死它们。依法卡拉科学家们了解到，包括不吉按蚊在内的蚊子都有最喜欢的交配地点——例如稻田、垃圾堆和香蕉树。雄蚊在日落时分出现在它们最喜欢的交配地点，开始一场仪式性的飞行舞蹈用以吸引雌蚊。由于这些交配活动发生在可预测的时间和地点，研究人员正在试验用杀虫剂定期、定向消灭这些蚊群，显著减少了蚊子的数量与疟疾的传播。

As the researchers dig deeper into the unique characteristics of different mosquito species, it’s become more important to be able to quickly identify them. Once they understand which species is posing the greatest threat, they can choose the best methods to eliminate them. But identifying mosquito species and other indicators, like age, can be a laborious process. At Mosquito City, scientists are working on some alternative identification approaches that would accelerate their research. One is to use their buzzing sound to identify them. Another option uses infrared spectroscopy. Mosquitoes have a unique electromagnetic signal. By crushing the abdomens of mosquitoes and analyzing them under a spectrometer, researchers can identify the species and age of the mosquito.

随着研究人员对不同种类蚊子独特特征的深入挖掘，能够快速识别它们变得越来越重要。一旦了解哪种蚊子正构成最大的威胁，他们就能选择最佳的方法来消灭它们。但识别蚊子种类与其他像年龄之类的指标，可能会是一个费力的过程。在 “蚊子城”，科学家们正在研究一些替代性的识别方法来加快他们的研究进度。一种是利用蚊子的嗡嗡声来识别它们，另一种则是使用红外光谱仪。蚊子有一种独特的电磁信号。通过压扁蚊子的腹部并在光谱仪下进行分析，研究人员可以确定蚊子的种类和年龄。

Many of the innovations coming out of Mosquito City are designed to meet the immediate needs of the local community, who work in small farming villages and spend most of their day outdoors. Researchers have developed a variety of mosquito traps, some mimicking the odor of sweaty feet, a smell that mosquitoes find irresistible. They’ve created a range of mosquito repellents too, including furniture treated with repellent that allows people to sit outside in the evening and stay protected. They’ve even developed a line of sandals which will keep mosquitoes at bay from the sweatiest feet, protecting their owner from bites.

“蚊子城”的许多创新都是为了满足当地社区人民的迫切需求，他们在小型农庄工作，每天大部分时间都在户外作业。研究人员已经开发出了多种捕蚊器，一些捕蚊器模仿了汗脚的气味，这种气味使蚊子难以抗拒。他们还制造了一系列驱蚊剂，包括经过驱蚊剂处理的家具，使人们得以在晚上坐在户外也得到保护。他们甚至还开发了一个凉鞋产品线，这些凉鞋让蚊子远离汗水最多的双脚，保护人们不被叮咬。

What will the team at Mosquito City think of next? I can’t wait to find out.

“蚊子城”的团队接下来会想些什么？我迫不及待地想要知道。

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