VOA科学技术2023 澳大利亚科学家为考拉接种疫苗预防致命疾病（在线收听）

Scientists have started vaccinating wild koalas against chlamydia in New South Wales, Australia. The disease causes blindness, infertility and death.

科学家已经开始给澳大利亚新南威尔士州的野生考拉接种衣原体疫苗。这种疾病会导致失明、不育和死亡。

Samuel Phillips is a microbiologist at the University of the Sunshine Coast. He helped develop the vaccine. He said the disease is "killing koalas because they become so sick they can't climb trees to get food, or escape predators, and females can become infertile." An infertile koala cannot reproduce.

塞缪尔·菲利普斯是阳光海岸大学的微生物学家。他帮助开发了该疫苗。他说，这种疾病正在“杀死考拉，因为它们病得太重，无法爬树觅食，也无法躲避捕食者，雌性考拉可能会不育。”不育的考拉无法繁殖后代。

The scientists' first goal is to catch, vaccinate and carefully follow around half of the koala population in the Northern Rivers area of New South Wales. That means vaccinating around 50 animals.

科学家们的首要目标是在新南威尔士州北部河流地区捕获约一半的考拉种群，为其接种疫苗并仔细追踪后续情况。这意味着要为大约50只考拉接种疫苗。

Researchers have already tested the vaccine on koalas in wildlife rescue centers. Those tests confirmed that the vaccine works and is safe to use.

研究人员已经在野生动物救援中心的考拉身上对这种疫苗进行了测试。这些测试证实了疫苗的有效性和使用安全性。

To reduce infections and disease, scientists want to learn what percentage of the wild population needs vaccinating.

为了减少感染和疾病，科学家们想了解野生种群需要接种疫苗的比例。

Scientists caught and vaccinated the first koalas in March. The effort is expected to last about three months.

科学家在三月份捕获了第一只考拉并为其接种了疫苗。这项工作预计将持续约三个月。

Koalas in other parts of Australia are also infected with chlamydia. In Queensland, scientists estimate about half of the animals already have the disease.

澳大利亚其他地区的考拉也感染了衣原体。在昆士兰，科学家估计大约有一半的考拉已经感染了这种疾病。

To give the vaccine, the scientists put circular fences around the bottom of the trees in which the koalas feed. After a few hours or days, the koalas climb down from one tree to look for tasty leaves on another. Then they will wander into traps placed on the ground. The traps do not hurt the animals.

为了接种疫苗，科学家们在考拉觅食的树底部周围设置了圆形围栏。几小时或几天后，考拉会从一棵树上爬下来，去另一棵树寻找美味的叶子。然后，它们会误入地面的陷阱。这些陷阱不会伤害到考拉。

Next, the scientists check the animals, give them medicine to prevent pain from vaccination, and give the vaccine. They watch the animals closely for 24 hours to check for problems. They also put a pink spot on the backs of the animals. This lets the scientists know which animals have already been vaccinated.

接下来，科学家们会给考拉做检查，给它们服用预防疫苗引起疼痛的药物，并接种疫苗。他们会对考拉进行24小时地密切观察，以检查是否有问题。他们还会在动物的背上画了一个粉红色的斑点。这让科学家们知道哪些考拉已经接种了疫苗。

Most of the time, koalas eat and sleep in eucalyptus trees. Their population has greatly decreased during the past 20 years. Last February, Australia's government put koalas in the eastern regions of New South Wales, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory on a list of endangered species.

大多数时候，考拉在桉树上吃东西和睡觉。在过去的20年里，他们的种群已经大大减少了。去年2月，澳大利亚政府将新南威尔士州东部、昆士兰和澳大利亚首都地区的考拉列入濒危物种名单。

Disease, loss of areas to live, and road crashes are all making it more difficult for koalas to survive. A 2020 study from the New South Wales government found that koalas could become extinct by the year 2050.

疾病、丧生生存区域和道路交通事故都使考拉的生存更加困难。新南威尔士州政府2020年的一项研究发现，考拉可能会在2050年前灭绝。

Scientists think koalas may have gotten chlamydia from contact with feces from infected sheep or cattle. Doctors use antibiotics to treat the disease in humans. But koalas have a special enzyme in their stomachs that prevents the antibiotics from working.

科学家认为，考拉可能是由于接触到已经受感染的绵羊或牛的粪便而感染衣原体的。医生使用抗生素来治疗人类的这种疾病。但考拉的胃中有一种特殊的酶，可以阻止抗生素发挥作用。

Mathew Crowther is a conservation biologist at the University of Sydney. He has been observing koalas in New South Wales for over 10 years. In 2008, 10 percent of animals tested there were infected with chlamydia. Today that rate is 80 percent.

马修·克劳瑟是悉尼大学的保育生物学家。他在新南威尔士州观察考拉已经超过10年了。2008年，在当地检测的动物中，有10%感染了衣原体。如今，这一比例为80%。

He said it is rare to see any baby koalas in the area.

他说，这个地区很少看到考拉宝宝。

Around the world, there have been very few other projects to give vaccines to wild animals.

在世界各地，很少有其他项目为野生动物打疫苗。

"Vaccination for wildlife is certainly not routine yet," said Jacob Negrey, a biologist at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. He added that biologists are trying to learn if vaccination of wild animals should increase.

维克森林大学医学院的生物学家雅各布·内格雷说：“为野生动物接种疫苗肯定还不是常规的。”他补充说，生物学家正在努力了解是否应该提高为野生动物接种疫苗。