Jonathan Drori: Every pollen grain has a story

譯者: Marie Wu 審譯者: Terry Lin

Thank you. I have two missions here today.

謝謝，我今天有二個任務，

The first is to tell you something about pollen, I hope,

第一是要告訴各位有關花粉的一切，

and to convince you that it's more than just something that gets up your nose.

我希望我的演說能讓你不再認為花粉只是引起鼻子過敏的東西。

And, secondly, to convince you

第二，我希望能說服你們

that every home really ought to have a scanning electron microscope.

在家裡都放一台電子顯微鏡。

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

Pollen is a flower's way of making more flowers.

花粉是植物傳遞下一代的媒介，

It carries male sex cells

它能把雄性生殖細胞

from one flower to another.

從一株植物帶到另一株植物上。

This gives us genetic diversity,

這會讓我們看到多樣化的物種，

or at least it gives the plants genetic diversity.

至少會讓植物產生多元的下一代。

And it's really rather better not to mate with yourself.

而且植物知道最好不要和自己交配，

That's probably true of humans as well, mostly.

我想這也適用於人類。

Pollen is produced by the anthers of flowers.

花粉是由花粉囊所產生的，

Each anther can carry up to 100,000 grains of pollen,

每一個花粉囊裡最多可以儲存十萬個花粉，

so, it's quite prolific stuff.

所以還算是滿多產的。

And it isn't just bright flowers

而且不是只有看得見的花朵才會產生花粉，

that have pollen; it's also trees and grasses.

樹和禾本植物也會產生花粉。

And remember that all our cereal crops are grasses as well.

別忘了，所有的穀類農作物都是禾本植物。

Here is a scanning electron micrograph of a grain of pollen.

這是花粉在電子顯微鏡下的樣子，

The little hole in the middle, we'll come to a bit later,

我們待會兒會談到花粉中間的小洞，

but that's for the pollen tube

那是讓花粉管冒出來的地方，

to come out later on. A very tiny tube.

一條非常細的管子。

So, that's 20 micrometers across,

這個花粉的直徑

that pollen grain there.

大約只有20微米而已，

That's about a 50th of a millimeter.

也就是50分之一公釐那麼大。

But not all pollen is quite so simple looking.

每一種花粉的形狀都不一樣。

This is Morina. This is a plant --

這是莫琳娜，

which I've always thought to be rather tedious --

我一直覺得這種植物很乏味，

named after Morin,

它是以法國園藝企業家

who was an enterprising French gardener,

莫林之名來命名，

who issued the first seed catalog

他在1621年發行了

in 1621.

第一本種子目錄。

But anyway, take a look at its pollen.

不管怎樣，我們來看看它的花粉。

This is amazing, I think.

很驚人吧！

That little hole in the middle there is for the pollen tube,

中間的洞是讓花粉管冒出來的地方，

and when the pollen finds its special female spot

當花粉在另一株同樣品種的

in another Morina flower,

莫琳娜花上發現它的

just on the right species, what happens?

真命天女時，你猜會怎樣？

Like I said, pollen carries the male sex cells.

就像我說的，花粉會帶著自己的雄性生殖細胞，

If you actually didn't realize that plants have sex,

如果你以為植物沒有性交，那就錯了！

they have rampant, promiscuous

他們有雜交、亂交

and really quite interesting and curious sex. Really.

和其他各種稀奇古怪的性交方式。

(Laughter) A lot.

(笑聲)

My story is actually not about plant propagation,

今天的主題其實不是在談植物的繁殖，

but about pollen itself.

而是要談花粉。

"So, what are pollen's properties?" I hear you ask.

那麼花粉的功能是什麼？你一定想問吧？

First of all, pollen is tiny. Yes we know that.

首先，花粉很微小，大家都知道。

It's also very biologically active,

花粉同時也很活躍，

as anyone with hay fever will understand.

有花粉症的人就能瞭解。

Now, pollen from plants, which are wind-dispersed --

只要是藉由風力傳播花粉的植物，

like trees and grasses and so on --

像是樹木或是禾本植物，

tend to cause the most hay fever.

就很容易引起花粉症。

And the reason for that is they've got to chuck out

原因在於，這些植物會產生大量、

masses and masses of pollen to have any chance

無以計數的花粉，藉以提升花粉

of the pollen reaching another plant of the same species.

到達其他相同植物的機率。

Here are some examples --

讓我舉幾個例子。

they're very smooth if you look at them --

如果你觀察樹木的花粉，你會發現

of tree pollen that is meant to be carried by the wind.

他們的表面很光滑，因為這樣較容易被風吹送出去。

Again -- this time, sycamore -- wind-dispersed.

再來，西克莫無花果，也是靠風吹送花粉，

So, trees: very boring flowers,

這些樹木，沒有漂亮的花朵，

not really trying to attract insects.

吸引不到昆蟲，

Cool pollen, though.

但是他們有很酷的花粉。

This one I particularly like.

這個是我最喜歡的，

This is the Monterey Pine, which has little air sacks

這是蒙特利松，他的花粉上還有小小的風囊，

to make the pollen carry even further.

可以讓花粉被吹送得更遠。

Remember, that thing is just about 30 micrometers across.

要注意，這些花粉的直徑大約只有30微米而已。

Now, it's much more efficient if you can get insects to do your bidding.

如果可以讓昆蟲幫忙授粉就會更有效率多了。

This is a bee's leg

這是蜜蜂的腳，

with the pollen glommed onto it from a mallow plant.

在它飛進某株錦葵科植物時，花粉就附著在它身上。

And this is the outrageous and beautiful

這是紅樹林棕櫚

flower of the mangrove palm.

最光彩奪目的花朵，

Very showy, to attract lots of insects to do its bidding.

很顯眼，就為了吸引昆蟲來幫它授粉。

The pollen has little barbs on it,

如果我們細看這些花粉，

if we look.

會發現有些細小的芒刺在上面，

Now, those little barbs

這些芒刺很明顯是要

obviously stick to the insects well,

黏附在昆蟲身上。

but there is something else that we can tell from this photograph,

但這張照片還有其他值得細究的地方，

and that is that you might be able to see a fracture line

你會看到中間好像有一條裂痕，

across what would be the equator of this, if it was the Earth.

就像地球上的赤道一樣，

That tells me that it's actually been fossilized, this pollen.

這表示這個花粉其實是個化石。

And I'm rather proud to say

我可以很驕傲地說，

that this was found just near London, and that 55 million years ago

這個化石是在倫敦附近發現的，也就是在五千五百萬年前，

London was full of mangroves.

倫敦其實長滿了紅樹林棕櫚，

Isn't that cool?

很酷吧？

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

Okay, so this is another species evolved to be dispersed by insects.

好，這是另一種利用昆蟲散佈花粉的植物，

You can tell that from the little barbs on there.

你可以從上面的芒刺分辨出來。

All these pictures were taken with a scanning electron microscope,

這些照片都是利用電子顯微鏡拍出來的，

actually in the lab at Kew Laboratories.

就在Kew實驗中心的實驗室裡拍攝。

No coincidence that these were taken

攝影師是

by Rob Kesseler, who is an artist,

Rob Kessler，他是個藝術家，

and I think it's someone with a design and artistic eye

我想像他這樣一位具有設計及藝術眼光的人，

like him that has managed to bring out the best in pollen.

一定會把花粉的最好一面挖掘出來。

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

Now, all this diversity

花粉有各種不同的形狀，

means that you can look at a pollen grain

也就是說，你可以從花粉的形狀

and tell what species it came from,

判斷出產生這種花粉的植物。

and that's actually quite handy if you

如果你恰好拿到一個花粉樣本，

maybe have a sample and you want to see where it came from.

你就可以很容易地知道它的來源地在哪裡，

So, different species of plants

因為不同的植物

grow in different places,

生長在不同的地方。

and some pollen carries further than others.

雖然有些花粉會被傳送到較遠處，

So, if you have a pollen sample,

但只要你有花粉的樣本，

then in principle, you should be able to tell

理論上來說，就應該可以推論出

where that sample came from.

花粉的來源，

And this is where it gets interesting for forensics.

這讓科學鑑識變得有趣起來。

Pollen is tiny. It gets on to things, and it sticks to them.

花粉很小，它會附著在物品上，也會牢牢地吸附住。

So, not only does each type of pollen look different,

不只花粉有不同的形狀，

but each habitat has a different combination of plants.

每一個地方的植物組成也不同，

A different pollen signature, if you like,

這就形成了獨一無二的花粉印鑑，

or a different pollen fingerprint.

你也可以稱之為花粉指紋。

By looking at the proportions and combinations

你只要看一看某件物品上的花粉種類

of different kinds of pollen in a sample,

及各種花粉的數量，

you can tell very precisely where it came from.

你就可以精確地判斷出它的來源地。

This is some pollen embedded in a cotton shirt,

這是一些花粉附著在一件棉質襯衫上的照片，

similar to the one that I'm wearing now.

很像我現在穿在身上的這一件，

Now, much of the pollen will still be there

就算重複洗過幾次，

after repeated washings.

大部分的花粉還是會繼續附著在上面。

Where has it been?

這件襯衫的主人到過哪裡？

Four very different habitats might look similar,

這四個地方看起來都很像，

but they've got very different pollen signatures.

但是他們各自的花粉指紋都不同，

Actually this one is particularly easy, these pictures were all taken

要判斷出來源地還滿容易的，因為這四個地方

in different countries.

分處於不同的國家。

But pollen forensics can be very subtle.

利用花粉指紋來進行鑑識是非常精確的，

It's being used now to track

現在被用來追踨

where counterfeit drugs have been made,

偽藥的來源、

where banknotes have come from,

鈔票的來源、

to look at the provenance of antiques

古董的來源，

and see that they really did come from the place

以及古董是否真如賣家所宣稱

the seller said they did.

來自某地。

And murder suspects have been tracked

在英國，則利用謀殺案嫌犯

using their clothing,

的衣物進行追蹤，

certainly in the U.K., to within an area

就可將區域縮小到一定範圍，

that's small enough that you can send in tracker dogs

然後讓偵察犬去

to find the murder victim.

尋找受害者。

So, you can tell from a piece of clothing

所以，你可以利用一小片衣物，

to within about a kilometer or so,

鎖定某個一公里左右的範圍，

where that piece of clothing has been recently

確定那片衣物最近曾出現在那兒，

and then send in dogs.

然後再派出偵察犬。

And finally, in a rather grizzly way,

最後，花粉還被用在一種令人不甚愉快的鑑識上 --

the Bosnia war crimes;

波士尼亞戰爭。

some of the people brought to trial were brought to trial

有些人被起訴，

because of the evidence from pollen,

起訴的證據是花粉，

which showed that bodies had been buried,

因為花粉顯示出某些屍體曾被埋葬、

exhumed and then reburied somewhere else.

而後又被挖掘出來，然後又被埋到另一個地點。

I hope I've opened your eyes,

我希望今天能讓你們大眼界，

if you'll excuse the visual pun, (Laughter)

請原諒我開了一些玩笑，

to some of pollen's secrets.

希望你們都瞭解花粉的奧祕。

This is a horse chestnut.

順便提一下，這是七葉樹。

There is an invisible beauty all around us,

在我們週遭存在著許多我們看不見的美麗事物，

each grain with a story to tell ...

每一個花粉背後都有一個故事，

each of us, in fact, with a story to tell

事實上，我們身上所存在的花粉指紋

from the pollen fingerprint that's upon us.

也能告訴我們一些故事。

Thank you to the colleagues at Kew,

謝謝Kew實驗中心的同仁，

and thank you to palynologists everywhere.

也謝謝世界各地的花粉研究專家。

(Applause)

(掌聲)