新闻周刊:对抗耐药菌(6)

Given the enormous urgency of the problem, why is it taking so long to move promising¹ solutions toward trials and availability? Because there's little money in it, says Tufts' Boucher. The government is sinking billions into research, but the private investment to turn that research into manufactured drugs and devices has not materialized. Drug companies, says Boucher, have little prospect² of profiting off a drug that isn't likely to be taken by millions of people or fetch prices of tens of thousands of dollars per dose. “The economic model is broken,” she says.

考虑到这个问题的巨大紧迫性，为什么要花这么长时间才把有希望的解决方案推向试验和可用性？塔夫茨大学的鲍彻说，因为里面几乎没有利润。政府投入了数十亿美元用于研究，但将研究转化为制造药物和设备的私人投资尚未实现。鲍彻说，制药公司很难从一种不太可能被数百万人服用或每剂售价数万美元的药物中获利。“经济模式被打破了，”她说。

Managing the Bugs³

管理缺陷

Although antibiotics⁴ are truly miracle drugs when they work, our current problems have arisen in part because medicine has relied too heavily on them. Doctors prescribe them for ear infections, sore throats and urinary tract⁵ infections. Surgeons use them to prevent postoperative infections. Because bacteria can develop resistance, antibiotics make the most sense as part of a holistic⁶ approach to managing the spread of bacteria and dealing⁷ with infections. As antibiotics begin to lose their usefulness, medical experts are now coming around to emphasizing many-pronged strategies for keeping the bugs at bay.

尽管抗生素在发挥作用时确实是神奇的药物，但我们目前出现的问题，在一定程度上是因为药物过于依赖抗生素。医生开这种药是为了治疗耳部感染、喉咙痛和尿道感染。外科医生用它们来预防术后感染。由于细菌会产生耐药性，抗生素作为控制细菌传播和处理感染的整体方法的一部分最有意义。随着抗生素开始失去效用，医学专家现在开始强调控制细菌的多重策略。

Being quicker off the mark to identify and respond to potential outbreaks with extra precautions and targeted antibiotics could slow or prevent outbreaks. New tests under development would allow health workers to rapidly and cheaply identify the genes⁸ of any bacteria found on or near patients. “We can't do molecular⁹ screening on every patient who walks through the door for every organism. That would be looking for a needle in a haystack,” says Shenoy. “But if we can screen high-risk patients quickly enough, we can take appropriate actions.” It would certainly be an improvement over the standard techniques for identifying bacterial¹⁰ outbreaks, developed 150 years ago.

通过额外的预防措施和有针对性的抗生素，更快地识别和应对潜在的疫情，可以减缓或预防疫情的爆发。正在开发的新测试将使卫生工作者能够快速、低成本识别在患者身上或附近发现的任何细菌的基因。“我们不能对每一个进入门内的病人进行分子筛选。那是大海捞针，”谢诺伊说。“但如果我们能足够快地筛查高危患者，我们就能采取适当的行动。”与150年前发展起来的鉴定细菌爆发的标准技术相比，这无疑是一个进步。

1 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

2 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

3 bugs   

adj.疯狂的，发疯的n.窃听器( bug的名词复数 )；病菌；虫子；[计算机]（制作软件程序所产生的意料不到的）错误

参考例句：

• All programs have bugs and need endless refinement. 所有的程序都有漏洞，都需要不断改进。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The sacks of rice were swarming with bugs. 一袋袋的米里长满了虫子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 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。

5 tract   

n.传单，小册子，大片(土地或森林)

参考例句：

• He owns a large tract of forest.他拥有一大片森林。
• He wrote a tract on this subject.他曾对此写了一篇短文。

6 holistic   

adj.从整体着眼的，全面的

参考例句：

• There is a fundamental ambiguity in the use of word "whole" in recent holistic literature.在近代的整体主义著作中，“整体”这个词的用法极其含混。
• In so far as historicism is technological,its approach is not piecemeal,but "holistic".仅就历史决定论是一种技术而论，它的方法不是渐进的，而是“整体主义的”。

7 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

8 genes   

n.基因( gene的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因，所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪

9 molecular   

adj.分子的；克分子的

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。
• For the pressure to become zero, molecular bombardment must cease.当压强趋近于零时，分子的碰撞就停止了。

10 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。