VOA慢速英语2014 Breast Cancer Drug Fights Infection in HIV/AIDS Patients 一种乳腺癌药物对艾滋病病毒也有一定的抗感染作用

 

Breast Cancer Drug Fights Infection in HIV/AIDS Patients 一种乳腺癌药物对艾滋病病毒也有一定的抗感染作用

From VOA Learning English, this is Science in the News.  I’m Faith Lapidus.

And I’m Steve Ember.  Today on the program, we tell about international efforts to fight a health threat in the West African nation of Guinea.  Then, we report on a finding that cold air might be good for your health.  But first, we report on a medical discovery.  American researchers say a drug used to treat breast cancer may help people who have AIDS or HIV, the virus that causes the disease.

Breast Cancer Drug May Help HIV/AIDS Patients

A drug used to treat breast cancer may soon have another use.  Researchers say the drug could be helpful as a weapon against a fungal infection that kills more HIV/AIDS patients than the disease tuberculosis¹.  The possible new use for tamoxifen was discovered as part of an investigation² of older, already approved drugs.  The makers³ of these drugs have sought and received approval from United States government agencies to sell their products to the public.

Health experts estimate that a fungus⁴ called Cryptococcus infects about one million people worldwide every year.  The fungal infection is called Cryptococcosis.  It is especially deadly for people living with AIDS, Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome⁵.  Most of the infections take place in African countries south of the Sahara Desert.  Ninety percent of the people who have AIDS live in those countries.

Damian Krysan is an infectious diseases specialist at the University of Rochester in New York State.  He says Cryptococcosis can lead to meningitis, a life-threatening infection of the covering of the brain and spinal⁶ cord. 

“It currently kills on the order of three-quarters of a million people a year, primarily again in resource-limited regions with high rates of HIV/AIDS.”

Two costly⁷ drugs are commonly used to treat the fungal infection.  But they are not commonly available in developing countries.  And they are difficult to give to patients, because they must be injected into a person’s blood.  Experts say that even under the best conditions, 10 to 20 percent of those who receive this treatment will die.  Another drug is often used in poor countries to fight Cryptococcosis.  But the drug only slows the growth of the infection. 

Some researchers are investigating whether drugs already approved for one condition might be useful against another.  Dr. Krysan and other researchers examined about 2,000 drugs and combinations of drugs for ones that could kill Cryptococcus.

They found one – tamoxifen, a drug that has been used for years to treat women with breast cancer.  Dr. Krysan says tamoxifen is not pricey and seems to help patients in a number of ways.

“Can be given orally to patients, which is what we needed.  And Cryptococcus causes a brain infection essentially⁸.  And so we needed that drug to get to the brain.  And tamoxifen actually crosses into the central nervous system very effectively and even accumulates to levels above what we see in the blood.”

Dr. Krysan published a report on his findings in the journal mBio.  He says tamoxifen is most effective against the fungal infection when it is combined with the drug that is already used to treat Cryptococcosis in poor countries.

More tests are still needed.  But because both drugs are already approved, human testing will follow soon.

Aid Groups in Guinea Fighting Measles⁹ Outbreak

Mass emergency vaccination¹⁰ programs were launched in Guinea recently to control a growing health threat -- measles.  Doctors Without Borders and the United Nations Children’s Fund announced the vaccination campaigns last month.  The two groups planned to work with Guinea’s Ministry¹¹ of Health to vaccinate¹² more than two million children against measles.  All the boys and girls are between the ages of six months and 10 years.

The World Health Organization warns that measles is one of the mostly highly-infectious diseases.  WHO experts say measles is a leading cause of death among children.  The cause is a fast-spreading virus. 

The measles outbreak in Guinea began in December.  A short time later, the government declared measles an epidemic¹³.  This means it has infected many people over a short period.  The last measles outbreak in Guinea was in 2009.  At that time, the disease infected more than 4,000 children and caused 10 deaths.

Most cases of measles are curable.  But health experts say vaccination is the best way to keep the number of deaths low.

In February, Doctors Without Borders reported that not enough children had received vaccinations¹⁴ that include protection against measles.  It said fewer than 80 percent of children living in the capital Conakry had received such vaccines¹⁶.  Only 37 percent of all children in Guinea were vaccinated¹⁷.

Dr. Renaldo Ortunio works for Doctors Without Borders.  He says even a single case of measles is one too many.

“Measles is a preventable disease by vaccine¹⁵, so you shouldn’t have an epidemic, an outbreak in this country.  But unfortunately, there are some weaknesses at the Ministry of Health, in the regular vaccinations and of course, with this lack of vaccination among children, we see an outbreak every three to four years, which is the case currently in Conakry.”

Health officials have been urging parents to watch their children for signs of measles: high body temperature, redness in the eyes, white areas on the mouth, and skin discoloration on the face and neck.

Shivering Could Help Burn Body Fat

North America was in a deep freeze this winter.  Cold air from the Arctic led to record low temperatures in some areas.  But now, a new study has found that all that cold air may actually be good for your health.

It was so cold in Chicago, Illinois last month that people were being warned to stay inside.  Paige Worthy¹⁸ was born and lives in the place that Americans call The Windy City.  She says this was the worst winter she can remember.   

“It actually hurt to breathe in because the air is so cold that I actually have to cover my mouth with a scarf to keep my lungs from actually hurting.” 

Shivering is an involuntary response to cold.  It is the subject of a new study published in the journal Cell Metabolism¹⁹.  Researchers say they found that shivering or shaking causes the body to release a natural hormone²⁰ called irisin.  The hormone activates²¹ brown fat -- the good fat in your body that burns calories and helps to support weight loss. 

Francesco Celi of Virginia Commonwealth²² University was the lead writer of a report about the study.  He says irisin has another important role. 

“Indeed the purpose of brown fat is maintaining the core temperature, so the temperature of the body whereby all the vital functions can be active and normal.” 

Dr. Celi worked with researchers at the US National Institutes of Health, in Bethesda, Maryland.  They already knew the body produces irisin when we do physical exercise.  When we exercise, our muscles contract, or change in size, like they do when we shiver.  The NIH researchers believe human ancestors developed the ability to shiver as a way to survive cold weather.

“This is the last ditch before going into hypothermia and having severe metabolic²³ and life-threatening consequences.”

The researchers studied hormonal²⁴ changes and how the body uses energy in a group of volunteers who exercised.  The volunteers were then asked to lie under cooling blankets -- where temperatures were slowly reduced to 12 degrees Celsius²⁵. 

“Most of our volunteers shivered at that time and the shivering was anywhere between five and 10 minutes, not more.  And, again we drew the blood before and after the study.” 

The volunteers’ bodies produced irisin, but with some surprises.  

“The amount of increase in irisin was almost identical to what we observed after one hour of exercise.  This first set of experiments validated²⁶ our initial hypothesis, whereby the maximum stimulation²⁷ of irisin is probably shivering.” 

Dr. Celi says understanding how irisin activates brown fat could lead to new drugs to fight diabetes²⁹ or help overweight individuals.

“It is a short-term effect.  We do not know yet the long term consequences of these interventions³¹.  So, studies need to be performed to address this very question.  We do not know if this is advantageous³², which individuals would be more able to gain from intervention³⁰.”

Back in Chicago, Paige Worthy is pleased to know that shivering may have a physical benefit.  Ms. Worthy works as a fitness trainer.  She helps people improve their physical condition.  She is not sure she will urge her fitness students to be cold and shiver.

“As a newly-minted spinning instructor³³, I guess I would say that there are risks that go along with every exercise and every weight loss regimen, but this seems like kind of a perilous³⁴ way to approach your weight loss, if it is going to be this cold.”

Dr. Celi agrees.  Just because shivering and exercise have similar effects on the body, he says, that does not mean standing²⁸ in the cold should replace physical activity.

This Science in the News was based on reports from VOA reporters Jessica Berman, Jennifer Lazuta and Rosanne Skirble.  The program was written by Christopher Cruise, and produced by June Simms.  I’m Faith Lapidus.

 

And I’m Steve Ember.  Join us again next week for more news about science on the Voice of America.

1 tuberculosis   

n.结核病，肺结核

参考例句：

• People used to go to special health spring to recover from tuberculosis.人们常去温泉疗养胜地治疗肺结核。
• Tuberculosis is a curable disease.肺结核是一种可治愈的病。

2 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

3 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 fungus   

n.真菌，真菌类植物

参考例句：

• Mushrooms are a type of fungus.蘑菇是一种真菌。
• This fungus can just be detected by the unaided eye.这种真菌只用肉眼就能检查出。

5 syndrome   

n.综合病症；并存特性

参考例句：

• The Institute says that an unidentified virus is to blame for the syndrome. 该研究所表示,引起这种综合症的是一种尚未确认的病毒。
• Results indicated that 11 fetuses had Down syndrome. 结果表明有11个胎儿患有唐氏综合征。

6 spinal   

adj.针的，尖刺的，尖刺状突起的；adj.脊骨的，脊髓的

参考例句：

• After three days in Japan,the spinal column becomes extraordinarily flexible.在日本三天，就已经使脊椎骨变得富有弹性了。
• Your spinal column is made up of 24 movable vertebrae.你的脊柱由24个活动的脊椎骨构成。

7 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

8 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

9 measles   

n.麻疹，风疹，包虫病，痧子

参考例句：

• The doctor is quite definite about Tom having measles.医生十分肯定汤姆得了麻疹。
• The doctor told her to watch out for symptoms of measles.医生叫她注意麻疹出现的症状。

10 vaccination   

n.接种疫苗，种痘

参考例句：

• Vaccination is a preventive against smallpox.种痘是预防天花的方法。
• Doctors suggest getting a tetanus vaccination every ten years.医生建议每十年注射一次破伤风疫苗。

11 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

12 vaccinate   

vt.给…接种疫苗；种牛痘

参考例句：

• Local health officials then can plan the best times to vaccinate people.这样，当地的卫生官员就可以安排最佳时间给人们接种疫苗。
• Doctors vaccinate us so that we do not catch smallpox.医生给我们打预防针使我们不会得天花。

13 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

14 vaccinations   

n.种痘，接种( vaccination的名词复数 )；牛痘疤

参考例句：

• Vaccinations ensure one against diseases. 接种疫苗可以预防疾病。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I read some publicity about vaccinations while waiting my turn at the doctor's. 在医生那儿候诊时，我读了一些关于接种疫苗的宣传。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。

16 vaccines   

疫苗，痘苗( vaccine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His team are at the forefront of scientific research into vaccines. 他的小组处于疫苗科研的最前沿。
• The vaccines were kept cool in refrigerators. 疫苗放在冰箱中冷藏。

17 vaccinated   

[医]已接种的，种痘的，接种过疫菌的

参考例句：

• I was vaccinated against tetanus. 我接种了破伤风疫苗。
• Were you vaccinated against smallpox as a child? 你小时候打过天花疫苗吗？

18 worthy   

adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。

19 metabolism   

n.新陈代谢

参考例句：

• After years of dieting,Carol's metabolism was completely out of whack.经过数年的节食，卡罗尔的新陈代谢完全紊乱了。
• All living matter undergoes a process of metabolism.生物都有新陈代谢。

20 hormone   

n.荷尔蒙，激素，内分泌

参考例句：

• Hormone implants are used as growth boosters.激素植入物被用作生长辅助剂。
• This hormone interacts closely with other hormones in the body.这种荷尔蒙与体內其他荷尔蒙紧密地相互作用。

21 activates   

使活动，起动，触发( activate的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Activates the window and displays it in its current size and position. 激活窗口，保持当前的大小及位置不变。
• Pulling out the alarm switch activates alarm and pushing it deactivates it. 闹钟的开和关是通过拔出和按入闹铃开关实现的。

22 commonwealth   

n.共和国，联邦，共同体

参考例句：

• He is the chairman of the commonwealth of artists.他是艺术家协会的主席。
• Most of the members of the Commonwealth are nonwhite.英联邦的许多成员国不是白人国家。

23 metabolic   

adj.新陈代谢的

参考例句：

• Impressive metabolic alternations have been undergone during embryogenesis.在胚胎发生期间经历了深刻的代谢变化。
• A number of intoxicants are associated with metabolic acidosis.许多毒性物质可引起代谢性酸中毒。

24 hormonal   

adj.激素的

参考例句：

• Some viral diseases are more severe during pregnancy, probably tecause of hormonal changes. 有些病毒病在妊娠期间比较严重，可能是由于激素变化引起的。
• She underwent surgical intervention and a subsequent short period of hormonal therapy. 他接受外科手术及随后短暂荷尔蒙治疗。

25 Celsius   

adj.摄氏温度计的，摄氏的

参考例句：

• The temperature tonight will fall to seven degrees Celsius.今晚气温将下降到七摄氏度。
• The maximum temperature in July may be 36 degrees Celsius.七月份最高温度可能达到36摄氏度。

26 validated   

v.证实( validate的过去式和过去分词 )；确证；使生效；使有法律效力

参考例句：

• Time validated our suspicion. 时间证实了我们的怀疑。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The decade of history since 1927 had richly validated their thesis. 1927年以来的十年的历史，充分证明了他们的论点。 来自辞典例句

27 stimulation   

n.刺激，激励，鼓舞

参考例句：

• The playgroup provides plenty of stimulation for the children.幼儿游戏组给孩子很多启发。
• You don't get any intellectual stimulation in this job.你不能从这份工作中获得任何智力启发。

28 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

29 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

30 intervention   

n.介入，干涉，干预

参考例句：

• The government's intervention in this dispute will not help.政府对这场争论的干预不会起作用。
• Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。

31 interventions   

n.介入，干涉，干预( intervention的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Economic analysis of government interventions deserves detailed discussion. 政府对经济的干预应该给予充分的论述。 来自辞典例句
• The judge's frequent interventions made a mockery of justice. 法官的屡屡干预是对正义的践踏。 来自互联网

32 advantageous   

adj.有利的；有帮助的

参考例句：

• Injections of vitamin C are obviously advantageous.注射维生素C显然是有利的。
• You're in a very advantageous position.你处于非常有利的地位。

33 instructor   

n.指导者，教员，教练

参考例句：

• The college jumped him from instructor to full professor.大学突然把他从讲师提升为正教授。
• The skiing instructor was a tall,sunburnt man.滑雪教练是一个高高个子晒得黑黑的男子。

34 perilous   

adj.危险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• The journey through the jungle was perilous.穿过丛林的旅行充满了危险。
• We have been carried in safety through a perilous crisis.历经一连串危机，我们如今已安然无恙。