Each person has their own unique set of fingerprints. TUCHONG
Fingerprints have been used to identify individuals for centuries. But now scientists may have finally figured out how these patterns are formed, according to a paper published in the journal Cell.
几个世纪以来，人们一直用指纹识别不同的个体。但根据发表在《细胞》杂志上的一篇论文，现在科学家们可能终于弄清楚了指纹形成的机制。
Previous studies have shown that fingerprints can be influenced by how fast the different layers of skin grow. Denis Headon at the University of Edinburgh, UK, and his colleagues started their study from a new perspective: how genes affect fingerprint patterns. They identified the genes related to limb development, which could serve as the groundwork for print formation, according to their work published in 2022.
先前的研究表明，不同皮肤层生长速度各异会影响指纹形成。英国爱丁堡大学的Denis Headon和团队成员从一个新的角度展开研究：基因是如何影响指纹图案的。根据该研究团队在2022年发表的研究成果，他们确定了人类肢体发育相关基因，而这些基因可以成为指纹形成的基础。
However, many genes are not involved during this formation process. “[The key is] how they are deployed on the anatomy of the hand,” Headon told Nature, a science journal. The team studied the ridges on mouse toes and human cells grown artificially.
然而，许多基因并没有参与指纹形成的过程。Headon在接受科学杂志《自然》采访时表示，“（关键是）这些基因如何作用于手的构造。”研究团队研习了小鼠脚趾上的脊，以及人工培养的人类细胞。
They found two kinds of elements work against each other. A protein called WNT, which is important in skin development, stimulates ridge formation. Another molecule, called BMP, inhibits the ridges. With the two elements “fighting” each other, they create the patterns of waves.
研究人员发现了两种相互作用的元素。一种名为WNT的蛋白质在皮肤发育中很重要，能刺激脊状凸起的形成，而另一种名为BMP的蛋白质会抑制脊状凸起，产生凹槽。当这两种元素相互“战斗”时，就形成了波浪图案。
The team also changed the timing and the location of the origins of the waves in simulations. They discovered that the waves collide in different ways, which helps to create the diversity of print patterns.
研究团队还在模拟中改变了脊状波形成的时间和位置，并发现脊状波会以不同方式碰撞，这有助于形成不同的纹路图案。
Interestingly, the analysis of the fingerprint patterns supported the Turing reaction-diffusion system. It was first proposed by UK scientist Alan Turing in 1952 to describe a self-organizing system that creates patterns in nature, such as the feather patterns in birds and stripes on zebra.
有趣的是，对指纹图案的分析支持了“图灵反应-扩散系统”。该机制最初由英国科学家艾伦·图灵于1952年提出，用来描述诸如鸟类羽毛花纹、斑马条纹等在自然界中形成图案的自组织系统。
Based on the new study, it may be possible that the structures of human skin might be all generated by the same mechanism, Sarah Millar, a US biologist, told the website Science News. However, more studies on how the skin matures are needed to solve the mystery.
美国生物学家Sarah Millar在接受《科学新闻》网站采访时表示，根据这项新研究，人类皮肤的构造可能都是由相同机制形成。然而，要解开皮肤形成机制之谜，还需要进行更多有关皮肤如何发育成熟的研究。
以上文章内容选自《21世纪学生英文报》高二904期
