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Medical devices like implanted arteries or external dialysis machines keep people alive. But persistent problems exist. Blood flowing through the tubes can form dangerous clots. And bacteria that stick to surfaces could start infections.
像动脉植入机及外部透析机这样的医疗器械，能使病人存活下来。但一些老问题仍未解决。从管子中流出的血液可能会形成危险的血凝块。黏在输血管表面的细菌可能会引发感染性疾病。
Treatment for patients using such devices thus often includes anti-clotting agents such as heparin. But such substances have their own risk: by interfering with clotting, they can cause potentially deadly bleeding.
使用这些器械治疗病人时，通常还包括肝素等抗凝剂的使用。但使用这种物质本身就存在风险：干扰凝血，这会导致潜在的致命性出血。
Recently, researchers at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University looked to the carnivorous pitcher plant for guidance. The plant’s structure includes wells with surfaces too slippery for insects to crawl out of. Those surfaces inspired the development of a coating so slippery that it prevents blood and bacteria from sticking.
近日，哈佛大学威斯生物启发工程研究中心的科学家们在肉食性植物猪笼草的身上寻求启发。该植物的构造中有个瓶状体，瓶表面非常光滑，以致于落在瓶中的昆虫无法爬出。它的表面启发了科学家发明一种涂层，该涂层极其光滑，能够防止血液凝固，以及细菌黏附。
The team tested the coating on the interiors of tubes and catheters attached to pigs. They demonstrated that the coating did not degrade, and that blood kept flowing without clotting, for eight hours. Blood usually starts to clot in tubes in an hour. The study is in the journal Nature Biotechnology.
研究团队对该涂层进行了检测，将涂层管和导管连接到猪的身上。结果表明，该涂层不会被降解，且在八小时内，血液能够保持流动而不会出现凝血现象。通常，血液在输血管中停留一小时就会出现凝血。该研究发表在《自然生物技术》杂志上。
The researchers also tested whether a gecko could latch onto the coating with its notoriously sticky footpads. But not even the gecko could get a grip.
科学家还做了一项测验，看壁虎是否能够凭借它那著名的粘脚垫行走在上述涂层上。但结果显示，碰上了该涂层，即使是壁虎也寸步难行啊！
