Your overall happiness may depend in part on whether you drew the long or short version of a gene, say researchers
研究人員稱，你總體的幸福感可能在一定程度上由你一個基因的“長”形式或“短”形式?jīng)Q定。
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Sally Hawkins as Poppy in Happy Go Lucky. The 5-HTT gene could help to explain why some people are naturally more cheerful than others. Photograph: PR
深紅色裝扮的莎莉·霍金斯是個樂天派。5-HTT基因能幫助解釋為什么一些人天生就比其他人更樂觀。照片：PR
In work that gives cranky teenagers another reason to blame their parents for all life's woes, researchers have uncovered a genetic link to happiness.研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn)遺傳與幸福感相關(guān)，這給了暴躁的青少年一個將生命的災(zāi)難都怪罪于父母的理由。
The study of more than 2,500 Americans revealed two variants of a gene that influenced how satisfied – or dissatisfied – people were with their lot.
這項調(diào)查對象超過2500名美國人的研究表明，一個基因的兩種形式會在很多程度上影響人們有多滿意或不滿意。
Those born with two long versions of the gene (one is passed down from each parent) were more likely to declare themselves "very satisfied" with life than those who inherited two short versions.那些出生就有兩個“長”形式基因（父母各傳遞一個）的人比遺傳了兩個“短”形式基因的人更多的認(rèn)為自己對生活“非常滿意”。
The study marks a tentative step towards explaining the mystery of why some people seem naturally happier than others.
這項研究對為什么有些人看起來天生就比其他人更幸福的奧秘做出了探索性的解答嘗試。
"This gives us more insight into the biological mechanisms that influence life satisfaction," said Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, a researcher at the London School of Economics and Political Science.
“這給予我們更多對影響人生幸福感的生物學(xué)機(jī)制的探察，”倫敦政治經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)院研究者揚-艾曼紐·德內(nèi)弗認(rèn)為。
"If you're feeling down, you can say it's your biology telling you life is less rosy that it is," he added.
“如果你情緒低落，可能是你自己的身體告訴你生活本身就并不如意，”他補充道。
A greater understanding of happiness genes might in future allow would-be parents to create a child who will be more satisfied with their life.對于幸福感基因的更深入研究可能在未來幫助那些想成為父母的人去設(shè)定他們的孩子，從而讓他們的孩子對生活更滿意。
Happiness is only partly influenced by genetic makeup. Studies in twins suggest that genes account for roughly a third to a half of the variation in happiness between people. It is not yet known how many genes affect how cheerful we are.當(dāng)然，基因組成只是部分影響幸福感。對于雙胞胎的研究表明，基因?qū)π腋８械挠绊懘蠹s占到三分之一到一半。迄今為止尚未知道具體有多少基因影響我們對生活的樂觀。
De Neve looked at the genetic makeup of 2,574 people selected to be representative of the general population, whose medical histories were recorded for the US National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Among the records were answers to a question participants were asked in their early 20s about life satisfaction.
德內(nèi)弗觀察2574名研究對象的基因組成，這些人員被選來代表總體人口，他們的病歷記錄被美國國家青少年健康縱向研究項目調(diào)用。在這些記錄中，參與調(diào)查的人員被詢問在他們20歲時對生活的滿意程度。
In response to the question, "How satisfied are you with your life as a whole", they answered either "very satisfied", "satisfied", "neither satisfied or dissatisfied", "dissatisfied" or "very dissatisfied".
在回答問題，“從整體來看，你對生活的滿意程度如何”，他們從以下答案中選擇一個：“非常滿意”、“滿意”、“一般”、“不滿意”、“非常不滿意”。
Writing in the Journal of Human Genetics, De Neve describes how roughly 40% said they were "very satisfied" with life, and among these, 35.4% had two long variants of the gene and only 19.1% had two short versions. Of those who were "dissatisfied" with life, 26.2% had two long variants of the gene, while 20% had two short versions. That indicates a slight over-representation of the long variants in happier people.
在人類遺傳學(xué)雜志的文章中，德內(nèi)弗描述大約40%的人回答對生活“非常滿意”，在這40%的人中，35.4%的人有兩個“長”形式基因，只有19.1%的人有兩個“短”形式基因。在回答對生活“不滿意”的人中，26.2%的人有兩個“長”形式基因，20%的人有兩個“短”形式基因。這揭示了幸福人群中“長”形式基因的輕微過表達(dá)現(xiàn)象。
The gene, known as 5-HTT, is involved with the transport of serotonin, a feelgood chemical, in the brain. The longer variant leads to more efficient release and recycling of the neurotransmitter.這個基因稱為5-HTT基因，涉及大腦中血清素的運輸，血清素是一種讓人感到愉悅的化學(xué)物質(zhì)。“長”形式基因在釋放和回收這種神經(jīng)傳遞素上更有效率。
De Neve calculated that, everything else being equal, having one long version of the gene increased the number of people claiming to be "very satisfied" with life by around 8.5%. Having two long versions raised the number by 17.3%.德內(nèi)弗通過統(tǒng)計發(fā)現(xiàn)，在其他條件相同的情況下，擁有一個“長”形式基因大約增加了8.5%的人聲稱“非常滿意”，而有兩條“長”形式基因增加了17.3%的人感覺“非常滿意”。
In unpublished work, De Neve and other researchers have since replicated the result in a separate group of people.
在尚未發(fā)表的工作中，德內(nèi)弗和其他研究人員在一個隔離人群組中得到了同樣的結(jié)果。
De Neve urged caution over the result, however, and emphasised that inheriting two short versions of the gene did not condemn a person to a life of misery any more than two long versions would make someone impervious to sadness.然而，德內(nèi)弗對研究結(jié)果十分謹(jǐn)慎，他強(qiáng)調(diào)繼承了兩個“短”形式基因的人并不意味著就會對生活感到十分的悲觀，同樣有兩個“長”形式基因的人也不是不會受憂郁的影響。
"This gene has an important influence, but you cannot say it causes happiness. Happiness is hugely complex and your experiences throughout the course of your life will remain the dominant force on that," he said.
“這個基因有重要的影響，但你不能說它本身就導(dǎo)致幸福感。幸福是非常復(fù)雜的，你人生過程中的體驗仍然是決定你是否感到幸福的關(guān)鍵。”他說道。
A 2009 study by Elaine Fox at the University of Essex suggested that people who carried long versions of the 5-HTT gene had a greater tendency to focus on the positives in life. The "bright side" version of the gene might bolster people's resilience to stressful events, and protect against anxiety, depression and other mental health problems.埃塞克斯大學(xué)的伊萊恩·?？怂乖?a target="_blank">2009年進(jìn)行的一項研究中發(fā)現(xiàn)，攜帶兩個“長”5-HTT基因的人更傾向于將注意力集中在生活的樂觀面。“光明面”的基因結(jié)構(gòu)可能支持人們對壓力事件的更具有忍耐力，同時增加對于焦慮、失望和其他心理健康問題的抵抗力。
Ed Diener, a psychologist at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and author of the 2008 book, Happiness: Unlocking the Mysteries of Psychological Wealth, said: "We are just beginning to understand the actual genetics of happiness, and how genes might influence brain hormones and other physiology that influence our well-being.
埃德·迪納，伊利諾大學(xué)香檳分校（美國）的一名心理學(xué)家同時也是2008年《幸福的奧秘：解鎖心理財富》的作者，說道：“我們剛剛開始探索遺傳對幸福感的實際、基因如何影響大腦激素以及其他影響幸福感的生理機(jī)能。”
"This exciting work offers insights that one day may help us counter disorders such as depression. Parents one day might have the choice of whether to choose genes that will create a child who is more satisfied with his or her life."
“這些激動人心的工作在將來的某一天可能會幫助我們對抗例如抑郁的心理疾病。終有一天父母也能為他們的孩子選擇基因，從而使孩子們在將來對生活更具滿意感。”
