英发明神奇"胶水" 可粘合建筑物缝隙

　　Researchers have created a new kind of concrete glue - a bacteria - that can patch up the cracks in concrete structures, restoring buildings that have been damaged by seismic events or deteriorated over time.

　　研究人员日前研发出了一种新型混凝土胶水（实为一种细菌）。该新型胶水可修补混凝土建筑物上的裂缝，帮助因地震或因长期风化而受损的建筑物们恢复“昔日光彩”。

　　Custom-designed by the researchers at the University of Newcastle in the UK, the bacteria, called "BacillaFilla," could burrow deep into the cracks in concrete where they produce a mix of calcium carbonate and a special bacteria glue that hardens to the same strength of the surrounding concrete.

　　这种由英国纽卡斯尔大学的研究人员培育而成的“特制”细菌名为“修补杆菌”，可以深入混凝土缝隙，并分泌出碳酸钙和特殊细菌胶的混合物，而后者在干燥后和混凝土一样坚硬。

　　"BacillaFilla" is a genetically modified version of Bacillus subtilis, a bacteria commonly found in common soil. Once the cells germinate, "BacillaFilla" are programmed to crawl as deep as they can into cracks in the concrete, where quorum sensing lets them know when enough bacteria have accumulated.

　　“修补杆菌”实为常见土壤细菌——枯草芽孢杆菌——的基因变种，其在细胞繁殖期间会深入混凝土缝隙，而“法定数量感觉器”会告诉它们是否以及在缝隙处积聚了足够多的同类。

资料图:英发明神奇"胶水" 可粘合建筑物缝隙

　　That accumulation lets the bacteria know they've reached the deepest part of the crack, at which point the cells begin to develop into bacterial filaments, cells that produce calcium carbonate, and cells that secrete a kind of bacterial glue that binds everything together. Once hardened, the bacteria is essentially as strong as the concrete itself.

　　大量的“修补杆菌”积聚意味着这些细菌已到达缝隙的最深处，于是细胞开始生产菌丝，后者分泌碳酸钙、以及可粘合任何事物的细菌胶。这些分泌物一旦干燥，便会和周围的混凝土结构一样坚硬。

　　The researchers hope their “BacillaFilla” will improve the longevity of concrete structures, which can be environmentally costly to erect. It could also be deployed in earthquake stricken zones to quickly reinforce damaged buildings and reduce the number of structures that have to be razed after a disaster.

　　研究人员希望借助“修补杆菌”延长混凝土结构建筑的“寿命”，因为建造这些建筑物的环境成本并不低。该发明也可用于地震多发地区，帮助快速修复受损建筑物，减少因自然灾害受到损坏而不得不在后期被人为摧毁的建筑物的数目。