Scientists say they have made a leap in knowing why some people retain their youthful looks while others age badly.

　　科学家称他们已经在探究为什么有的人青春长驻而另一些人逐年老去这一问题上取得突破性进展。

　　They found the first part of human DNA - the genetic code - that seems to affect how old people look to others. The mutations, reported in the journal Current Biology, were in the genetic instructions for protecting the body from UV radiation. But these can also lead to red hair, and experts caution the findings may be confused by eye, skin or hair colour.

　　他们发现人类DNA——基因密码——的第一部分似乎会影响一个人在别人眼里看起来有多老。据《当代生物学》杂志报道，遗传指令会发生变化，保护身体免受紫外线辐射的伤害。但这些变化同时会导致头发变红，而且专家警告说研究结果会受到瞳色、肤色或发色的影响。

　　The study into "perceived age" was organised by the Erasmus University Medical Centre in the Netherlands and Unilever. Images of the make-up free "naked-face" of 2,693 people were independently assessed to see what age people thought they looked. This was compared with their true age. The next stage of the research was to scour the 2,693 people's DNA to find any differences or mutations that were more common in those who looked younger than they really were.

　　荷兰伊拉斯姆斯医学中心和联合利华共同组织了本次针对“外表年龄”的研究。试验中分别评估了2693位完全没有化妆的“裸脸”人员照片，看人们认为照片里的人有多大年龄，再将评估结果与他们的真实年龄进行比照。试验的下一个步骤是检测这2693个人的DNA，探究那些看起来比实际年龄更显年轻的人有什么共同之处，找到他们的基因与别人相比有什么不同特点或变异之处。

　　All the evidence pointed to the MC1R gene - it is critical for making melanin, which affects skinpigmentation and protects against UV radiation from the Sun. But the gene comes in many different forms, or variants, many of which cause red hair - hence the nickname "the ginger gene". The study suggested some variants of the gene led to people looking, on average, two years younger than those with other forms of MC1R.

　　所有的研究结果都指向了MC1R基因——这种基因在生成黑色素时非常关键，会影响皮肤的色素沉着，保护皮肤免遭阳光紫外线辐射的伤害。然而，这种基因有多种存在形式或者变体，其中许多变体还会导致头发变红——因此它又被称作“活力基因”。研究发现，这种基因的某些变体与其它存在形式的MC1R相比，能让人看上去平均年轻两岁。

　　Prof Ian Jackson, from the UK Medical Research Council's Human Genetics Unit, said the study was interesting, but had not found the fountain of youth. He said: "MC1R is the major gene involved in red hair and pale skin, and what they're trying to say is it's got an impact on making you look slightly younger that isn't to do with paler skin, but I'm not so sure."

　　来自英国医学研究委员会人类基因研究小组的伊恩·杰克逊教授说这份研究很有趣，但还没有找到青春之泉。他说：“MC1R是和红头发、浅肤色相关的主要基因，但研究想表明的是MC1R基因能让你看起来略微年轻一点，而不是让你的皮肤更白一点，但我对此不太确定。”

　　More research is planned, but Dr Gunn hopes the findings will eventually lead to a product to make people look younger. However, it is far from clear whether it will be possible to lower someone's "perceived age".

　　更多研究已纳入计划之中，但甘恩博士希望研究结果是最终能研制出一种让人们看起来更年轻的产品。然而，对于有没有可能降低一个人的“外表年龄”，一切尚不明了。

（编辑：何莹莹）