How we're using DNA tech to help farmers fight crop diseases | Laura Boykin

翻译人员: Yen Doran 校对人员: psjmz mz

I get out of bed for two reasons.

我早上起床为了两个原因。

One, small-scale family farmers need more food.

第一，小规模农民家庭 需要更多的粮食。

It's crazy that in 2019 farmers that feed us are hungry.

2019年，为我们供应粮食的农民们 还要忍饥受饿，简直不可思议。

And two, science needs to be more diverse and inclusive.

第二，科学需要更多元化，更包容。

If we're going to solve the toughest challenges on the planet,

如果我们要解决地球上 最艰难的挑战，

like food insecurity for the millions living in extreme poverty,

如拯救成千上万地瘠民贫 的粮食短缺，

it's going to take all of us.

就需要我们所有人的共同努力。

I want to use the latest technology

我要用最先进的科技，

with the most diverse and inclusive teams on the planet

和地球上最多元化 和包容的团队一起，

to help farmers have more food.

帮助农民们生产更多的粮食。

I'm a computational biologist.

我是一位计算生物学家。

I know -- what is that and how is it going to help end hunger?

你们可能会好奇，那是什么？ 它将如何杜绝饥饿？

Basically, I like computers and biology

这么说吧，我喜欢计算机和生物学，

and somehow, putting that together is a job.

于是它们以某种方式结合 在一起就成了一项工作。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I don't have a story

我没有从小

of wanting to be a biologist from a young age.

要成为一个生物学家的故事。

The truth is, I played basketball in college.

事实是，我在大学时是打篮球的。

And part of my financial aid package was I needed a work-study job.

我一部分的经济来源依赖半工半读。

So one random day,

突然有一天，

I wandered to the nearest building to my dorm room.

我漫步到了宿舍 旁边的建筑物，

And it just so happens it was the biology building.

那刚好是生物学系。

I went inside and looked at the job board.

我进去看到了招聘告示板。

Yes, this is pre-the-internet.

是的，那是在还没有互联网的时代。

And I saw a three-by-five card

我看到了一张明信片大小的卡片，

advertising a job to work in the herbarium.

招募人员到植物标本室工作。

I quickly took down the number,

我赶紧记下联络号码，

because it said "flexible hours,"

因为它说"工作时间灵活",

and I needed that to work around my basketball schedule.

我需要那个来配合 我的篮球时间表。

I ran to the library to figure out what an herbarium was.

然后我跑去图书馆查 什么是植物标本室。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

And it turns out

原来

an herbarium is where they store dead, dried plants.

植物标本室是来收藏 死了，干了的植物。

I was lucky to land the job.

我幸运地被录取了。

So my first scientific job

所以我的第一份科学工作

was gluing dead plants onto paper for hours on end.

就是花上几个小时 将枯死的植物粘在纸上。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

It's so glamorous.

它是如此的风光啊。

This is how I became a computational biologist.

这就是我如何成为了 计算生物学家。

During that time,

在那个时候，

genomics and computing were coming of age.

基因组学和计算学如日方升。

And I went on to do my masters

毕业后我开始攻读结合

combining biology and computers.

生物学和计算机的硕士。

During that time,

当时，

我在拉斯阿拉莫斯国家实验室

I worked at Los Alamos National Lab

in the theoretical biology and biophysics group.

理论生物学和生物物理学组工作。

And it was there I had my first encounter with the supercomputer,

就在那里，我初次见证了超级计算机，

and my mind was blown.

真是惊为天人。

With the power of supercomputing,

借助超级计算机，

which is basically thousands of connected PCs on steroids,

也就是数千台联网电脑的力量，

we were able to uncover the complexities of influenza and hepatitis C.

我们能够发现流感病毒 和丙性肝炎的复杂性。

And it was during this time that I saw the power

正是这时候我看到了利用计算机

of using computers and biology combined, for humanity.

和生物学相结合来造福人类的力量。

And I wanted this to be my career path.

我想把这当作终生事业。

So, since 1999,

所以，从1999年开始，

I've spent the majority of my scientific career

我大部分的科学生涯都在

in very high-tech labs,

非常高科技的实验室里度过，

surrounded by really expensive equipment.

周围都是非常昂贵的设备。

So many ask me

很多人问我，

how and why do I work for farmers in Africa.

我为什么，又是如何 为非洲的农民工作的。

Well, because of my computing skills,

由于我的计算技能，

in 2013, a team of East African scientists

在2013年，一个东非科学家小组

asked me to join the team in the plight to save cassava.

邀请我加入拯救木薯的队伍。

Cassava is a plant whose leaves and roots feed 800 million people globally.

木薯的叶子和根部 能养活全球8亿人，

And 500 million in East Africa.

有5亿人在东非。

So that's nearly a billion people

差不多有十亿人

relying on this plant for their daily calories.

依靠这种植物来供应 他们每天的卡路里。

If a small-scale family farmer has enough cassava,

如果一个小型家庭农场主 有足够的木薯，

she can feed her family

她就可以养活她的家人，

and she can sell it at the market for important things like school fees,

并在市场上售卖这些木薯， 换取重要的东西，如学费，

medical expenses and savings.

医疗费用和储蓄。

But cassava is under attack in Africa.

但是，木薯的种植在非洲受到了冲击。

Whiteflies and viruses are devastating cassava.

粉虱和病毒在摧毁着木薯。

Whiteflies are tiny insects

粉虱是体型微小的昆虫，

that feed on the leaves of over 600 plants.

以超过600种植物的树叶为食。

They are bad news.

它们不请自来，

There are many species;

有很多种类，

they become pesticide resistant;

具有抗药性，

and they transmit hundreds of plant viruses

还能传播数百种植物病毒，

that cause cassava brown streak disease

导致木薯患上棕色条纹病

and cassava mosaic disease.

和木薯马赛克病。

This completely kills the plant.

这会彻底杀死作物。

And if there's no cassava,

如果没有木薯，

there's no food or income for millions of people.

那数百万人就没有食物或收入。

It took me one trip to Tanzania

我去了一趟坦桑尼亚，

to realize that these women need some help.

意识到那里的妇女需要一些帮助。

These amazing, strong, small-scale family farmers,

这些了不起的，坚强的， 小型家庭农场主，

the majority women,

大多数是妇女，

are doing it rough.

他们的生活苦不堪言。

They don't have enough food to feed their families,

他们没有足够的食物来养活家人，

and it's a real crisis.

这是一场真正的危机。

What happens is

现实情况是，

they go out and plant fields of cassava when the rains come.

当雨季来临的时候，她 们到木薯田里耕种。

Nine months later,

九个月之后，

there's nothing, because of these pests and pathogens.

什么都没有，都是因为 这些害虫和病原体。

And I thought to myself,

我不禁心想，

how in the world can farmers be hungry?

这世界上怎么还有食不果腹的农民呢？

So I decided to spend some time on the ground

所以我决定花一段时间在田里，

with the farmers and the scientists

跟着农民和科学家们，

to see if I had any skills that could be helpful.

看看我是否有帮得上忙的技能。

The situation on the ground is shocking.

当地局势令人震惊。

The whiteflies have destroyed the leaves that are eaten for protein,

粉虱毁坏树叶为摄取蛋白质，

and the viruses have destroyed the roots that are eaten for starch.

病毒摧毁根部为摄取淀粉。

An entire growing season will pass,

在整个生长季节过去后，

and the farmer will lose an entire year of income and food,

农民将失去整整一年 的收入和食物，

and the family will suffer a long hunger season.

他们的家庭将遭受 一个漫长的饥饿季节。

This is completely preventable.

这完全是可以预防的。

If the farmer knew

如果农民知道

what variety of cassava to plant in her field,

在她的田里种植什么品种的木薯

that was resistant to those viruses and pathogens,

可以抵抗这些病毒和病原体，

they would have more food.

她们就会有更多的食物。

We have all the technology we need,

我们拥有我们需要的所有科技，

but the knowledge and the resources

但这些知识和资源

are not equally distributed around the globe.

在全球的分布非常不均衡。

So what I mean specifically is,

我想强调的是，

the older genomic technologies

传统的基因组技术

that have been required to uncover the complexities

被用于揭露这些害虫和病原体

in these pests and pathogens --

的复杂性——

these technologies were not made for sub-Saharan Africa.

这些技术不是为 南非撒哈拉地带而设的。

They cost upwards of a million dollars;

它们的花费在一百万美元以上，

they require constant power

需要不断的电力供应

and specialized human capacity.

和专门的技术人员操作。

These machines are few and far between on the continent,

这些机器在非洲大陆上寥寥无几，

which is leaving many scientists battling on the front lines no choice

让许多在前线战斗 的科学家不得不

but to send the samples overseas.

把样品送到海外。

And when you send the samples overseas,

当你把样品送到海外时，

samples degrade, it costs a lot of money,

样品会降解，花费很昂贵，

and trying to get the data back over weak internet

而且在糟糕的互联网中取回数据

is nearly impossible.

几乎是不可能的。

So sometimes it can take six months to get the results back to the farmer.

所以有时可能需要六个月 的时间把结果送回农民手里。

And by then, it's too late.

那时已经太晚了。

The crop is already gone,

作物已经被摧毁，

which results in further poverty and more hunger.

造成持续的贫困和更多的饥饿。

We knew we could fix this.

我们知道我们可以解决这个问题。

In 2017,

在2017年，

we had heard of this handheld, portable DNA sequencer

我们听说了这个叫做 Oxford Nanopore MinION 的

called an Oxford Nanopore MinION.

手持便携式DNA测序仪。

This was being used in West Africa to fight Ebola.

它曾在西非抗击埃博拉时功不可没。

So we thought:

因此，我们认为：

Why can't we use this in East Africa to help farmers?

为什么不用这个在东非帮助农民呢？

So, what we did was we set out to do that.

于是，我们要做的就是开始着手行动。

At the time, the technology was very new,

当时，这项科技非常新颖，

and many doubted we could replicate this on the farm.

许多人怀疑我们能否在 农地里复制相似的结果。

When we set out to do this,

当我们开始这样做时，

one of our "collaborators" in the UK

我们有个英国的"合作伙伴"

told us that we would never get that to work in East Africa,

告诉我们，这永远都不会发生在东非，

let alone on the farm.

更别说在农田里了。

So we accepted the challenge.

因此，我们接受了挑战。

This person even went so far as to bet us two of the best bottles of champagne

这个人甚至和我们打赌 两瓶最好的香槟，

that we would never get that to work.

说我们永远不会实现的。

Two words:

三个字：

pay up.

买单吧。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

(Applause)

（掌声）

Pay up, because we did it.

买单吧，因为我们做到了。

We took the entire high-tech molecular lab

我们把整个高科技分子实验室

to the farmers of Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda,

带给了坦桑尼亚，肯尼亚 和乌干达的农民们，

and we called it Tree Lab.

我们称它为"树实验室"。

So what did we do?

那我们做了什么？

Well, first of all, we gave ourselves a team name --

首先我们给自己取了一个队名——

it's called the Cassava Virus Action Project.

叫做木薯病毒行动项目。

We made a website,

我们制作了一个网站，

we gathered support from the genomics and computing communities,

从基因组学和计算社区中召集支持，

and away we went to the farmers.

然后去农民那里。

Everything that we need for our Tree Lab

"树实验室"所需的一切

is being carried by the team here.

由团队携带着来到这里。

All of the molecular and computational requirements needed

所有分子和计算学需要用来

to diagnose sick plants is there.

诊断植物病理的条件都准备就绪了。

And it's actually all on this stage here as well.

实际上，所有这些 全都在这个舞台上。

We figured if we could get the data closer to the problem,

我们认为，如果我们能 使数据更贴近问题，

and closer to the farmer,

更贴近农民，

the quicker we could tell her what was wrong with her plant.

我们就能更快地判断 她的植物出了什么问题。

And not only tell her what was wrong --

不仅能诊断出问题——

give her the solution.

还能给她解决方案。

And the solution is,

解决办法就是，

burn the field and plant varieties

烧掉那片田地，并种上

that are resistant to the pests and pathogens she has in her field.

对害虫和病原体具有 抵抗力的植物品种。

So the first thing that we did was we had to do a DNA extraction.

所以，我们必须做的第一件事 是进行DNA提取。

And we used this machine here.

我们在这里用的是这台机器，

It's called a PDQeX,

叫做"PDQeX"，

which stands for "Pretty Damn Quick Extraction."

代表“死快死快的提取"。

(Laughter)

(笑声)

I know.

有意思吧。

My friend Joe is really cool.

我的朋友乔真的很酷。

One of the biggest challenges in doing a DNA extraction

最大的挑战之一是进行DNA提取，

is it usually requires very expensive equipment,

它通常需要非常昂贵的设备，

and takes hours.

需要几个小时。

But with this machine,

但是有了这台机器，

we've been able to do it in 20 minutes,

我们在二十分钟内就能完成，

at a fraction of the cost.

而且成本低廉，

And this runs off of a motorcycle battery.

只需要摩托车的电池供电。

From there, we take the DNA extraction and prepare it into a library,

我们将提取的DNA存入序列库，

getting it ready to load on

准备加载到

to this portable, handheld genomic sequencer,

这个便携式手持基因组测序仪中，

which is here,

就是这个装置，

and then we plug this into a mini supercomputer,

然后我们将它连上一台 微型超级计算机，

which is called a MinIT.

称为" MinIT"。

And both of these things are plugged into a portable battery pack.

这两个装置由便携式电池供电。

So we were able to eliminate

这样一来，我们就能够排除

the requirements of main power and internet,

对主要电源和互联网的依赖，

which are two very limiting factors on a small-scale family farm.

这两者是一个小型家庭农场 运作的局限因素。

Analyzing the data quickly can also be a problem.

快速分析数据也可能是个问题。

But this is where me being a computational biologist came in handy.

但是，我这位计算生物学家 的存在派上了用场。

All that gluing of dead plants,

所有枯死植物的标本，

and all that measuring,

所有的测量，

and all that computing

和所有的计算，

finally came in handy in a real-world, real-time way.

终于在现实世界中 以实时方式派上用场了。

I was able to make customized databases

我能够定制数据库，

and we were able to give the farmers results in three hours

在三小时内给农民结果，

versus six months.

而不是六个月。

(Applause)

（掌声）

The farmers were overjoyed.

农民们欣喜若狂。

So how do we know that we're having impact?

那么我们又怎么知道 我们的策略产生了影响呢？

Nine moths after our Tree Lab,

"树实验室"之后的九个月，

Asha went from having zero tons per hectare

阿莎的收获从每公顷零吨木薯

to 40 tons per hectare.

上升到了每公顷40吨木薯。

She had enough to feed her family

她有足够的粮食养活她的家人，

and she was selling it at the market,

还有多余在市场上售卖，

and she's now building a house for her family.

现在，她已经能够为家人盖房子了。

Yeah, so cool.

是的，太酷了。

(Applause)

（掌声）

So how do we scale Tree Lab?

那么，我们如何扩展"树实验室"呢？

The thing is,

事实上，

farmers are scaled already in Africa.

农民在非洲已颇具规模。

These women work in farmer groups,

这些妇女以团体为单位进行劳作，

so helping Asha actually helped 3,000 people in her village,

所以帮助阿莎，实际上就 帮助了她村子里的3000人，

because she shared the results and also the solution.

因为她分享了结果以及解决方案。

I remember every single farmer I've ever met.

我记得我见过的每一个农民。

Their pain and their joy

他们的痛苦和喜悦

is engraved in my memories.

深深的刻在我的记忆中。

Our science is for them.

我们的科学是为他们而进行的。

Tree Lab is our best attempt to help them become more food secure.

"树实验室"是我们在帮助他们 提升食品安全方面最好的尝试。

I never dreamt

我从未梦想过

that the best science I would ever do in my life

我一生中做过最好的科学实验

would be on that blanket in East Africa,

会在东非的毯子上，

with the highest-tech genomic gadgets.

用最先进的基因组工具包。

But our team did dream

但我们的团队确实梦想过

that we could give farmers answers in three hours versus six months,

在三小时内给农民答案， 而不再需要六个月，

and then we did it.

然后我们做到了。

Because that's the power of diversity and inclusion in science.

因为那是科学多元化和包容性的力量。

Thank you.

谢谢。

(Applause)

（掌声）

(Cheers)

（欢呼声）