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There is bad news for banana lovers. The most common banana in the world is in danger of becoming extinct. It is called the Cavendish banana and people eat it all over the world. A fungus called Tropical Race 4 (TP4) is killing millions of banana plants. The fungus blocks small tubes that absorb water inside the plant. This means the plant cannot get the water it needs and so it dies. Scientists first discovered TP4 in Malaysia in 1990. It quickly spread to other parts of South-East Asia and then to Australia and Africa. TP4 is spread in dirt that is carried by the wind, water, cars and even people's boots. A tiny amount of TP4 can spread across large areas very quickly. Some scientists believe TP4 could kill the banana industry.

香蕉迷要伤心了。普通香蕉有绝种危险。“卡文迪什香蕉”销往全球各地。全球数百万香蕉树种均遭到Tropical Race 4病毒侵害。这种病菌阻碍植物吸收水分，阻塞根茎。植物无法获取水分，不久就会死亡。1990年，科学家首次在马来西亚发现Tropical Race 4。并迅速蔓延至其它东南亚国家，澳大利亚和非洲等国也遭到侵害。Tropical Race 4通过土壤传播，土壤通过风、水、汽车甚至是靴子进行媒介传播。微量Tropical Race 4就可以迅速蔓延至大片区域。许多科学家相信，香蕉产业会因Tropical Race 4而遭受灭顶之灾。

This is not the first time that a variety of banana has become extinct. Before we started eating the Cavendish banana, we ate a variety called the Gros Michel. Fifty years ago, the Gros Michel banana was the main banana grown around the world. However, it was hit by a fungus called Panama Disease. The Gros Michel banana became extinct in 1965 and banana growers switched to the Cavendish banana. The problem for the banana industry is that even if they burn all their banana plants, the fungus stays in the soil. This means new plants cannot be grown. Scientists say one option is genetically modified (GM) bananas that are resistant to diseases like TP4 and Panama Disease.

香蕉绝种已不是第一次。在”卡文迪什香蕉”之前，我们食用“大麦克”香蕉。50年前，“大麦克”香蕉是全球主要香蕉品种。然而，“大麦克”遭到“巴拿马病”侵害。1965年，“大麦克”绝种，农民们又选择了”卡文迪什”。对于香蕉产业来说，即使将香蕉树种全部烧毁，病菌仍会留在土壤中。这说明新品种无法继续耕种。科学家认为，一种方法就是转基因香蕉，这种香蕉不会遭到像TP4 、“巴拿马病”等疾病威胁。