VOA慢速英语 2008 0430a

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

Heparin is a blood-thinning medicine made from pig intestines¹, which often come from small farms in China. The drug is often used to prevent blockages² during kidney dialysis treatment and different operations.

But in February, a major producer, Baxter International, recalled almost all of its heparin. Tests showed the presence of a chemical called oversulfated chondroitin sulfate. This is chemically similar to heparin but should not have been used. Who added it, and why, remains³ unclear.
　

Leroy Hubley of Toledo, Ohio, lost his wife and son after they received heparin. He is shown at a hearing held Tuesday by a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee.

Officials in the United States have received hundreds of reports of severe reactions, including deaths.

On April twenty-first, the Food and Drug Administration released a warning letter to a Chinese supplier for the Baxter heparin. The letter said Changzhou SPL had received material from an unacceptable supplier, and could not purify the materials used to make the drug. F.D.A. inspectors⁴ found that the company did not follow good manufacturing practice.

Chinese officials have suggested that the contaminant entered the heparin during the finishing process in the United States. Baxter disagreed. A Chinese delegation⁵ visited a Baxter factory in New Jersey⁶ last week.

Scientists have offered explanations for how the chemical could have caused the allergic⁷ reactions and low blood pressure seen in patients.

Reports from two teams were published online last week in the New England Journal of Medicine and Nature Biotechnology. Both teams were led by Professor Ram⁸ Sasisekharan at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Officials in the United States are investigating eighty-one deaths in heparin patients with signs of allergic reactions or low blood pressure. Most of these deaths happened between November of last year and February of this year. But F.D.A. officials say the reactions may not have been the cause of death in all cases.

China says there is no proof of a connection between the contaminant and the deaths. The chemical has been found in heparin supplies in other countries. But Chinese officials note that the United States and Germany are the only countries that have reported any health problems.

The widespread use of foreign drug suppliers has led American lawmakers to call for at least five hundred additional F.D.A. inspectors. Also, a House subcommittee held a hearing Tuesday called "The Heparin Disaster: Chinese Counterfeits⁹ and American Failures."

And that’s the VOA Special English Health Report written by Caty Weaver¹⁰. I’m Barbara Klein.

1 intestines   

n.肠( intestine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Perhaps the most serious problems occur in the stomach and intestines. 最严重的问题或许出现在胃和肠里。 来自辞典例句
• The traps of carnivorous plants function a little like the stomachs and small intestines of animals. 食肉植物的捕蝇器起着动物的胃和小肠的作用。 来自辞典例句

2 blockages   

n.堵塞物( blockage的名词复数 )；堵塞，阻塞

参考例句：

• The storms could increase the risks posed by river blockages. 暴风雨会增加因河道堵塞所造成的危险。 来自互联网
• An angiogram shows the location and severity of blockages in blood vessels. 冠状动脉造影能够显示血管内的阻塞位置以及阻塞的严重程度。 来自互联网

3 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

4 inspectors   

n.检查员( inspector的名词复数 )；（英国公共汽车或火车上的）查票员；（警察）巡官；检阅官

参考例句：

• They got into the school in the guise of inspectors. 他们假装成视察员进了学校。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Inspectors checked that there was adequate ventilation. 检查员已检查过，通风良好。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

6 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

7 allergic   

adj.过敏的，变态的

参考例句：

• Alice is allergic to the fur of cats.艾丽斯对猫的皮毛过敏。
• Many people are allergic to airborne pollutants such as pollen.许多人对空气传播的污染物过敏，比如花粉。

8 ram   

(random access memory)随机存取存储器

参考例句：

• 512k RAM is recommended and 640k RAM is preferred.推荐配置为512K内存，640K内存则更佳。

9 counterfeits   

v.仿制，造假( counterfeit的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Objects and people looked like counterfeits of themselves. 各种人和事好象都给自己披上了伪装。 来自辞典例句
• We have seen many counterfeits, but we are born believers in great men. 我们见过许多骗子，但是我们天生信赖伟人。 来自辞典例句

10 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。