How we could teach our bodies to heal faster | Kaitlyn Sadtler

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: SF Huang

What if you could take a pill or a vaccine

如果你能吃一顆藥或打一劑疫苗，

and, just like getting over a cold,

就能像治癒感冒一樣，

you could heal your wounds faster?

或傷口會癒合得更快，如何？

Today, if we have an operation or an accident,

現今，如果我們動了手術 或是出了意外，

we're in the hospital for weeks,

我們就要住院好幾週， 還會留下傷疤，

and often left with scars and painful side effects

以及無法再生或重新長出

of our inability to regenerate or regrow healthy, uninjured organs.

健康、完好無損的器官的 痛苦副作用。

I work to create materials

我的工作是在創造材料， 來指示我們的免疫系統

that instruct our immune system to give us the signals to grow new tissues.

對身體傳達生成新組織的訊號。

Just like vaccines instruct our body to fight disease,

就像疫苗會指示我們的 身體來對抗疾病一樣，

we could instead instruct our immune system

我們也可以指示我們的免疫系統

to build tissues and more quickly heal wounds.

修建組織並更快地治癒傷口。

Now, regrowing body parts out of nowhere might seem like magic,

讓身體無中生有地長出新器官， 似乎像變魔法一樣，

but there are several organisms that can achieve this feat.

但有好幾種生物能做到這項壯舉。

Some lizards can regrow their tails,

有些蜥蜴可以重新長出牠們的尾巴，

the humble salamander can completely regenerate their arm,

謙遜的蠑螈可以完整再生牠們的手臂，

and even us mere humans can regrow our liver

即使我們人類，

在肝臟失去一半以上的情況下， 也可以再增生回來。

after losing more than half of its original mass.

To make this magic a bit closer to reality,

為了讓這項魔法更接近現實，

I'm investigating how our body can heal wounds and build tissue

我在研究我們的身體如何能 透過免疫系統的指示，

through instructions from the immune system.

來治癒傷口和修建組織。

From a scrape on your knee to that annoying sinus infection,

從你膝蓋上的擦傷到惱人的鼻竇炎，

our immune system defends our body from danger.

我們的免疫系統 為我們的身體抵禦危險。

I'm an immunologist,

我是免疫學家，

and by using what I know about our body's defense system,

透過我對人體防禦系統的所學所知，

I was able to identify key players

在我們努力治癒割、瘀傷的過程中，

in our fight to build back our cuts and bruises.

我得以辨識出關鍵性的要素。

When looking at materials that are currently being tested

我們團隊在觀察目前用來測試

協助肌肉再生能力的材料時，

for their abilities to help regrow muscle,

our team noticed that after treating an injured muscle with these materials,

注意到在用這些材料 治療受傷的肌肉之後，

there was a large number of immune cells

在那材料內以及其周圍的肌肉中，

in that material and the surrounding muscle.

出現了大量的免疫細胞。

So in this case,

所以，在這個情況中， 免疫細胞並不是

instead of the immune cells rushing off towards infection to fight bacteria,

朝感染的傷口蜂湧而上去對抗細菌，

they're rushing toward an injury.

反之，它們朝受傷處聚集。

I discovered a specific type of immune cell,

我發現了一種特定的免疫細胞，

the helper T cell,

輔助型 T 細胞，

was present inside that material that I implanted

會出現在我植入的材料當中，

and absolutely critical for wound healing.

是癒合傷口的關鍵角色。

Now, just like when you were a kid and you'd break your pencil

就像你小時候不小心把鉛筆弄斷，

and try and tape it back together again,

會試著用膠帶把它纏回去。

we can heal,

我們也能癒合，但用的 可能不是最有效的方式，

but it might not be in the most functional way,

and we'll get a scar.

且我們會留下傷疤。

So if we don't have these helper T cells,

所以，如果我們沒有 這些輔助型 T 細胞，

instead of healthy muscle,

我們的肌肉在傷口處 就會生成脂肪細胞，

our muscle develops fat cells inside of it,

而不是健康的肌肉，

and if there's fat in our muscle, it isn't as strong.

若肌肉中有脂肪， 它就不會那麼強壯。

Now, using our immune system,

利用我們的免疫系統，

our body could grow back without these scars

我們的身體就能夠不留疤痕地康復。

and look like what it was before we were even injured.

甚至看起來和受傷之前一模一樣。

I'm working to create materials

我在努力創造的材料，

that give us the signals to build new tissue

是能夠透過改變免疫的反應，

來發出再生新組織的訊號。

by changing the immune response.

We know that any time a material is implanted in our body,

我們知道，任何時候只要 有一種材料植入我們的身體，

the immune system will respond to it.

免疫系統就會對它產生反應。

This ranges from pacemakers to insulin pumps

範圍從心律調節器， 到胰島素幫浦，

to the materials that engineers are using to try and build new tissue.

到工程師用來嘗試 建立新組織的材料。

So when I place that material, or scaffold, in the body,

所以，當我把那材料 或支架放入體內時，

the immune system creates a small environment of cells and proteins

免疫系統會建構出 具有細胞和蛋白質的小環境，

that can change the way that our stem cells behave.

它能夠改變我們幹細胞的行為模式。

Now, just like the weather affects our daily activities,

就像天氣會影響我們的日常活動，

like going for a run

比如要出去跑步，

or staying inside and binge-watching an entire TV show on Netflix,

或是待在家裡在網飛上瘋狂追劇。

the immune environment of a scaffold

同樣的，支架的免疫環境

affects the way that our stem cells grow and develop.

也會影響我們的幹細胞生長和發展。

If we have the wrong signals,

如果我們給錯訊號，

say the Netflix signals,

比如網飛的訊號，

we get fat cells instead of muscle.

我們就會長出脂肪細胞而不是肌肉。

These scaffolds are made of a variety of different things,

這些支架是由各種不同東西做成的，

from plastics to naturally derived materials,

從塑膠到天然衍生性材料、

nanofibers of varying thicknesses,

各種厚度的奈米纖維、

sponges that are more or less porous,

多孔或少孔的海綿、

gels of different stiffnesses.

不同硬度的凝膠。

And researchers can even make the materials

研究人員甚至可以讓這些材料

release different signals over time.

隨時間發出不同的訊號。

So in other words, we can orchestrate this Broadway show of cells

換言之，我們可以精心安排

這場細胞的百老匯演出，

by giving them the correct stage, cues and props

做法是給它們正確的 舞台、提示和道具，

that can be changed for different tissues,

而這些都可根據不同的組織來調整，

just like a producer would change the set

就像製片人可能會針對《悲慘世界》

for "Les Mis" versus "Little Shop of Horrors."

和《異形奇花》用不同的場景。

I'm combining specific types of signals

我把特定幾類訊號組合起來，

that mimic how our body responds to injury to help us regenerate.

來模擬我們身體對於受傷的 反應以協助我們再生。

In the future, we could see a scar-proof band-aid,

未來，我們會有無疤 OK 繃、

a moldable muscle filler or even a wound-healing vaccine.

可塑型的肌肉填充物， 或甚至讓傷口癒合的疫苗。

Now, we aren't going to wake up tomorrow and be able to heal like Wolverine.

我們不可能明天起床就像 金剛狼一樣什麼都能治癒。

Probably not next Tuesday, either.

大概下週二也不可能。

But with these advances,

但有這些進展， 再配合我們的免疫系統

and working with our immune system to help build tissue and heal wounds,

來協助修建組織及治癒傷口，

we could begin seeing products on the market

我們會開始看到市場上 出現一些產品，

that work with our body's defense system to help us regenerate,

配合我們身體的防禦系統 協助我們再生，

and maybe one day be able to keep pace with a salamander.

也許有一天， 我們的速度還能趕上蠑螈。

Thank you.

謝謝。

(Applause)

（掌聲）