VOA标准英语2012--Animal-to-Human Disease Cycle Widening

 

Animal-to-Human Disease Cycle Widening

Nearly two-and-a-half billion people become ill every year from diseases transmitted from animals. Most are in low- and middle-income countries. A new study lists the top geographical¹ hotspots for these diseases, including the United States.

Of the billions infected every year, more than two million die from diseases called zoonoses.

“Zoonoses are diseases which are transmitted between animals and people. A majority of human diseases are actually zoonotic. More than 60 percent of human diseases are transmitted from other vertebrate animals,” said Delia Grace, a veterinary epidemiologist and food safety expert at the International Livestock² Research Institute in Nairobi.

“Some of these diseases are pretty common. Some of the food- borne diseases and also diseases such as tuberculosis³, leptospirosis are not uncommon⁴. Others are quite rare. So it depends a little bit on the disease,” she said.

There are many different infection pathways.

“In terms of human infections, probably the most common transmission pathway is food. People getting sick from food they eat. But other transmission pathways include direct contact with animals. And also some of these can be transmitted via the water, through water, and others can be transmitted through the air,” she said.

Grace is the lead author of the report called "Mapping of Poverty and Likely Zoonosis Hotspots."

“Most of these diseases are of pretty low impact. Diseases like avian influenza⁵ or mad cow disease have actually killed very few people. But they are of interest because some of them have the potential to kill a lot of people – diseases like the Spanish flu after the First World War or HIV/AIDS, both of which were originally zoonosis,” she said.

The report includes information on both old and new diseases.

“So in terms of the hotspots of the zoonosis which are there all the time – not the new zoonosis, but what we call the endemic zoonosis – we identified three countries, which bear the greatest burden of these diseases. And those are India, Ethiopia and Nigeria. But in terms of the new diseases – the diseases which haven’t been there, but are emerging – the hotspots are very different. They appear to be western United States and Western Europe,” she said.

The report is based on an analysis of over 1,000 surveys. Grace describes the findings as alarming, creating major problems for both people and animals.

Also, things could get worse in the coming years as meat production sharply increases to feed a rapidly growing world population. The U.N. predicts a population of nine billion by 2050, up from the current level of seven billion. High production farms often raise animals in very tight quarters. That can allow diseases to spread quickly. Another potential problem is the use of antibiotics⁶ in animals that can mask disease symptoms.

“What our study found,” she said, “is that for the pigs and poultry⁷, which are most rapidly increasing – because these are the systems which can quickly gear-up to meet the needs of rapidly expanding human populations – that they are associated with a far higher level of food-borne disease than the sheep and cattle and buffalos, the more kind of slowly growing systems. So the alarming thing here is that unless we better manage zoonosis we can expect to see a lot more food-borne diseases.”

Grace said the know-how⁸ exists to build barriers to reduce disease transmission to both people and wildlife. However, putting it into practice can be a challenge. Rather than increasing food inspections⁹, the report recommends an “incentive¹⁰-based” system to encourage safer methods of raising animals. One incentive is to provide training and branding for small farmers leading to official certification that their products are safe. Another is to develop home testing kits¹¹ that would allow consumers to learn whether their food is contaminated.

Grace said poverty and disease are closely linked, adding preventing animal disease transmission can help alleviate¹² poverty.

1 geographical   

adj.地理的；地区(性)的

参考例句：

• The current survey will have a wider geographical spread.当前的调查将在更广泛的地域范围內进行。
• These birds have a wide geographical distribution.这些鸟的地理分布很广。

2 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。

3 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。

4 uncommon   

adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的

参考例句：

• Such attitudes were not at all uncommon thirty years ago.这些看法在30年前很常见。
• Phil has uncommon intelligence.菲尔智力超群。

5 influenza   

n.流行性感冒，流感

参考例句：

• They took steps to prevent the spread of influenza.他们采取措施
• Influenza is an infectious disease.流感是一种传染病。

6 antibiotics   

n.（用作复数）抗生素；（用作单数）抗生物质的研究；抗生素，抗菌素( antibiotic的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• the discovery of antibiotics in the 20th century 20世纪抗生素的发现
• The doctor gave me a prescription for antibiotics. 医生给我开了抗生素。

7 poultry   

n.家禽，禽肉

参考例句：

• There is not much poultry in the shops. 商店里禽肉不太多。
• What do you feed the poultry on? 你们用什么饲料喂养家禽?

8 know-how   

n.知识；技术；诀窍

参考例句：

• He hasn't got the know-how to run a farm.他没有经营农场的专业知识。
• I don't have much know-how about engines.发动机方面的技术知识我知之甚少。

9 inspections   

n.检查( inspection的名词复数 )；检验；视察；检阅

参考例句：

• Regular inspections are carried out at the prison. 经常有人来视察这座监狱。
• Government inspections ensure a high degree of uniformity in the standard of service. 政府检查确保了在服务标准方面的高度一致。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 incentive   

n.刺激；动力；鼓励；诱因；动机

参考例句：

• Money is still a major incentive in most occupations.在许多职业中，钱仍是主要的鼓励因素。
• He hasn't much incentive to work hard.他没有努力工作的动机。

11 kits   

衣物和装备( kit的名词复数 )； 成套用品； 配套元件

参考例句：

• Keep your kits closed and locked when not in use. 不用的话把你的装备都锁好放好。
• Gifts Articles, Toy and Games, Wooden Toys, Puzzles, Craft Kits. 采购产品礼品，玩具和游戏，木制的玩具，智力玩具，手艺装备。

12 alleviate   

v.减轻，缓和，缓解(痛苦等)

参考例句：

• The doctor gave her an injection to alleviate the pain.医生给她注射以减轻疼痛。
• Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。