Medicine from the Sea

Medicine from the Sea

2

Bioprospecting the seas

 

Researchers largely overlooked the oceans as a source of pharmaceuticals² until scuba³ technology was first tested in 1943. Among the pioneers of marine⁴ bioprospecting was organic chemist Paul Scheuer. In 1950, he began to collect and study an array of underwater organisms—in particular, soft, stationary⁵ creatures. Scheuer was intrigued⁶ that these thrived, though they lacked obvious defense⁷ mechanisms⁸. He assumed the organisms had potent⁹ chemical defenses that might prove useful to people. So he began searching for and testing compounds.

 

Discovering a pain reliever

 

Prialt is a marine-derived, chronic¹⁰ painrelieving drug based on venom¹¹ from a species of Pacific cone¹² snail¹³, whose poisonous harpoonlike stingers can paralyze and kill fish and humans. Biochemist Baldomero Olivera and his colleagues extracted a peptide from the venom of the cone snail, Conus magus (the magician’s cone). “I thought that if these snails¹⁴ were so powerful that they could paralyze the nervous system, smaller doses of the compounds from the venoms¹⁵ might have beneficial effects,” Olivera said. “Cone snails are of exceptional interest because the molecules¹⁶ they make are very small and simple, easily reproducible.”

 

In 2004, the pharmaceutical¹ firm Élan announced that it had completed advanced trials on Prialt. The drug, acting¹⁷ on nerve pathways to block pain more effectively than traditional opiates, appears to be 1,000 times more potent than morphine. Researchers say it lacks morphine’s addictive¹⁸ potential and exhibits a reduced risk of mind-altering side effects.

 

New breed of scientist needed

 

The arduous¹⁹ process of identifying and testing marine compounds will soon accelerate , some scientists say. Automated²⁰ chemical probes will seek out promising²¹ genetic²² material in a batch²³ of seawater or ground-up sponge; then gene-copying techniques will enable researchers to reproduce the genetic compound. With the field of marine products chemistry showing such promise, a new breed of hybrid²⁴ scientist has emerged: scuba-diving chemists.

Vocabulary Focus

array (n) [E5rei] a large group of things or people, especially one which causes admiration²⁵

stationary (adj) [5steiF(E)nEri] not moving, or not changing

arduous (adj) [5B:djuEs] difficult, tiring and needing a lot of effort

probe (n) [prEub] a device put inside something to test or record information

 

Specialized²⁶ Terms

pharmaceutical (n) 药剂 a substance used to treat disease; a drug or medicine

peptide (n) 缩氨酸 a chemical compound made by the linking of amino acids; similar in makeup²⁷ to protein, but smaller

来自海洋的医病良药

2

在各海域进行生物勘探

研究人员大多忽略海洋可以成为药品原料的一个来源，直到水肺技术在1943年首次被人试验后，情况才有所改善。有机化学家保罗·邵伊尔是海洋生物勘探的先驱之一，他于1950年开始收集并研究一群海底有机体，尤其是软体、不会移动的生物。这些生物纵然缺乏明显的自我保卫机制，却仍然茂盛地生长，邵伊尔对此深感好奇。他假设这些生物拥有强而有效的化学防卫，对人体可能有所助益，于是开始从中寻找并试验各种化合物。

 

发现一种镇痛剂

Prialt是一种萃取自海洋、用以遣解慢性疼痛的药物，系由太平洋海蜗牛的毒液制造而成。这种海蜗牛鱼叉般的毒刺可令鱼类或人类麻痹或丧命。生物化学家巴度梅罗·奥利维拉与同事从名为Conus magus（直译为：魔术师的锥形筒）的海蜗牛毒液中萃取缩氨酸。奥利维拉说：“我认为若这些海蜗牛的毒素强烈到能令神经系统麻痹的程度，那么减少剂量后毒液中的化合物或许能提供正面功效。海蜗牛之所以备受瞩目，原因是它们产生的毒素分子很小、很简单，因此很容易复制。”

制药公司Élan于2004年宣布已经完成针对Prialt的探索性试验。相比传统的麻醉剂，这种药能在神经元信道阻断疼痛讯息，镇痛效力似乎是吗啡的1000倍。研究人员说，Prialt不像吗啡一样可能令人上瘾，同时大大减少了妨碍神志清醒的不良反应的危险。

 

需要新类型的科学家   

一些科学家认为，辨认与试验海洋化合物的艰苦过程很快就可缩短。自动化的化学探测器将可于一片海域或磨烂的海绵堆里找到基因类物质。之后，研究人员可利用基因复制技术来复制基因化合物。由于海洋产物化学的前景看好，一种新的跨领域科学家因此应运而生：水肺潜水化学家。

1 pharmaceutical   

adj.药学的，药物的；药用的，药剂师的

参考例句：

• She has donated money to establish a pharmaceutical laboratory.她捐款成立了一个药剂实验室。
• We are engaged in a legal tussle with a large pharmaceutical company.我们正同一家大制药公司闹法律纠纷。

2 pharmaceuticals   

n.医药品；药物( pharmaceutical的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• the development of new pharmaceuticals 新药的开发
• The companies are pouring trillions of yen into biotechnology research,especially for pharmaceuticals and new seeds. 这些公司将大量资金投入生物工艺学研究，尤其是药品和新种子方面。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 scuba   

n.水中呼吸器

参考例句：

• I first got hooked on scuba diving when I was twelve.12岁时我开始迷上了带水中呼吸器潜水。
• While on honeymoon in Bali,she learned to scuba dive.她在巴厘岛度蜜月时学会了带水肺潜水。

4 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

5 stationary   

adj.固定的，静止不动的

参考例句：

• A stationary object is easy to be aimed at.一个静止不动的物体是容易瞄准的。
• Wait until the bus is stationary before you get off.你要等公共汽车停稳了再下车。

6 intrigued   

adj.好奇的，被迷住了的v.搞阴谋诡计(intrigue的过去式)；激起…的兴趣或好奇心；“intrigue”的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• You've really intrigued me—tell me more! 你说的真有意思—再给我讲一些吧！
• He was intrigued by her story. 他被她的故事迷住了。

7 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

8 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》

9 potent   

adj.强有力的，有权势的；有效力的

参考例句：

• The medicine had a potent effect on your disease.这药物对你的病疗效很大。
• We must account of his potent influence.我们必须考虑他的强有力的影响。

10 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。

11 venom   

n.毒液，恶毒，痛恨

参考例句：

• The snake injects the venom immediately after biting its prey.毒蛇咬住猎物之后马上注入毒液。
• In fact,some components of the venom may benefit human health.事实上，毒液的某些成分可能有益于人类健康。

12 cone   

n.圆锥体，圆锥形东西，球果

参考例句：

• Saw-dust piled up in a great cone.锯屑堆积如山。
• The police have sectioned off part of the road with traffic cone.警察用锥形路标把部分路面分隔开来。

13 snail   

n.蜗牛

参考例句：

• Snail is a small plant-eating creature with a soft body.蜗牛是一种软体草食动物。
• Time moved at a snail's pace before the holidays.放假前的时间过得很慢。

14 snails   

n.蜗牛；迟钝的人；蜗牛( snail的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I think I'll try the snails for lunch—I'm feeling adventurous today. 我想我午餐要尝一下蜗牛——我今天很想冒险。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Most snails have shells on their backs. 大多数蜗牛背上有壳。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 venoms   

n.（某些蛇、蝎子等分泌的）毒液( venom的名词复数 )；愤恨的感情或语言；毒物

参考例句：

• Spider venoms are exquisitely refined to interfere with the nervous systems of insects. 蜘蛛的毒液非常微妙，专门损坏昆虫的神经系统。 来自百科语句
• Venoms (especially upgraded) are the ideal unit for taking out husks. 毒液（特别是升级后的）是消灭外壳的理想单位。 来自互联网

16 molecules   

分子( molecule的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The structure of molecules can be seen under an electron microscope. 分子的结构可在电子显微镜下观察到。
• Inside the reactor the large molecules are cracked into smaller molecules. 在反应堆里，大分子裂变为小分子。

17 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

18 addictive   

adj.(吸毒等)使成瘾的，成为习惯的

参考例句：

• The problem with video game is that they're addictive.电子游戏机的问题在于它们会使人上瘾。
• Cigarettes are highly addictive.香烟很容易使人上瘾。

19 arduous   

adj.艰苦的，费力的，陡峭的

参考例句：

• We must have patience in doing arduous work.我们做艰苦的工作要有耐性。
• The task was more arduous than he had calculated.这项任务比他所估计的要艰巨得多。

20 automated   

a.自动化的

参考例句：

• The entire manufacturing process has been automated. 整个生产过程已自动化。
• Automated Highway System (AHS) is recently regarded as one subsystem of Intelligent Transport System (ITS). 近年来自动公路系统(Automated Highway System,AHS)，作为智能运输系统的子系统之一越来越受到重视。

21 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。

22 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。

23 batch   

n.一批(组，群)；一批生产量

参考例句：

• The first batch of cakes was burnt.第一炉蛋糕烤焦了。
• I have a batch of letters to answer.我有一批信要回复。

24 hybrid   

n.(动，植）杂种，混合物

参考例句：

• That is a hybrid perpetual rose.那是一株杂交的四季开花的蔷薇。
• The hybrid was tall,handsome,and intelligent.那混血儿高大、英俊、又聪明。

25 admiration   

n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕

参考例句：

• He was lost in admiration of the beauty of the scene.他对风景之美赞不绝口。
• We have a great admiration for the gold medalists.我们对金牌获得者极为敬佩。

26 specialized   

adj.专门的，专业化的

参考例句：

• There are many specialized agencies in the United Nations.联合国有许多专门机构。
• These tools are very specialized.这些是专用工具。

27 makeup   

n.组织；性格；化装品

参考例句：

• Those who failed the exam take a makeup exam.这次考试不及格的人必须参加补考。
• Do you think her beauty could makeup for her stupidity?你认为她的美丽能弥补她的愚蠢吗？