VOA标准英语2011--Study: Neglected Tropical Diseases Surfa

Study: Neglected Tropical Diseases Surfacing in Central Asia

Many of the bacterial¹ and parasitic² worm infections commonly associated with the tropics are becoming rampant³ in some Central Asian countries in the former Soviet⁴ Union. That's the finding of a new study of that region's worsening public health problem.
Neglected tropical diseases threaten the lives of a billion people worldwide, mostly in Africa, Latin America and South Asia. But a recent study shows the scourge⁵ spreading in the Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
Doctors say victims with chronic⁶ parasitic and bacterial infections are left blind, disabled and disfigured - trapped in a cycle of poverty and disease. Children are the hardest hit. They experience developmental and cognitive⁷ delays that can interfere⁸ with school work, and their ability as adults to find productive employment.
Dr. Peter Hotez, the dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine in Houston, Texas, said, “Beyond the parasitic and worm infections, we are finding bacterial infections, such as brucellosis and leptospirosis, parasitic protozoan infections, such as toxoplasmosis. You are probably looking at me saying, 'Gee⁹ I have never heard of these diseases.' That’s part of the problem."
Hotez said many policy makers¹⁰ and health professionals do not even know about these infections - hook worm, tape worm, brucellosis. They are spread by livestock¹¹, and can be transmitted through soil, salted fish and meat from unregulated slaughterhouses.
“We need to have a program to really look at what are the mechanisms¹² by which these diseases are transmitted," said Hotez. "And then we have to develop strategies for controlling these diseases. And finally, we often don’t have tools to adequately diagnose these diseases or treat them or prevent them. So it means building in a research program for new diagnostics, new drugs or new vaccines¹³.”
Health officials say despite this new study, the suspect neglected tropical diseases are vastly under-reported in Central Asia, and could be even more widespread than now is believed.

1 bacterial   

a.细菌的

参考例句：

• Bacterial reproduction is accelerated in weightless space. 在失重的空间，细菌繁殖加快了。
• Brain lesions can be caused by bacterial infections. 大脑损伤可能由细菌感染引起。

2 parasitic   

adj.寄生的

参考例句：

• Will global warming mean the spread of tropical parasitic diseases?全球变暖是否意味着热带寄生虫病会蔓延呢？
• By definition,this way of life is parasitic.从其含义来说，这是种寄生虫的生活方式。

3 rampant   

adj.(植物)蔓生的；狂暴的，无约束的

参考例句：

• Sickness was rampant in the area.该地区疾病蔓延。
• You cannot allow children to rampant through the museum.你不能任由小孩子在博物馆里乱跑。

4 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

5 scourge   

n.灾难，祸害；v.蹂躏

参考例句：

• Smallpox was once the scourge of the world.天花曾是世界的大患。
• The new boss was the scourge of the inefficient.新老板来了以后，不称职的人就遭殃了。

6 chronic   

adj.(疾病)长期未愈的，慢性的；极坏的

参考例句：

• Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
• Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。

7 cognitive   

adj.认知的，认识的，有感知的

参考例句：

• As children grow older,their cognitive processes become sharper.孩子们越长越大，他们的认知过程变得更为敏锐。
• The cognitive psychologist is like the tinker who wants to know how a clock works.认知心理学者倒很像一个需要通晓钟表如何运转的钟表修理匠。

8 interfere   

v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰

参考例句：

• If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。
• When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。

9 gee   

n.马；int.向右！前进！，惊讶时所发声音；v.向右转

参考例句：

• Their success last week will gee the team up.上星期的胜利将激励这支队伍继续前进。
• Gee,We're going to make a lot of money.哇！我们会赚好多钱啦！

10 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》

11 livestock   

n.家畜，牲畜

参考例句：

• Both men and livestock are flourishing.人畜两旺。
• The heavy rains and flooding killed scores of livestock.暴雨和大水淹死了许多牲口。

12 mechanisms   

n.机械( mechanism的名词复数 )；机械装置；[生物学] 机制；机械作用

参考例句：

• The research will provide direct insight into molecular mechanisms. 这项研究将使人能够直接地了解分子的机理。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He explained how the two mechanisms worked. 他解释这两台机械装置是如何工作的。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 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。