VOA慢速英语2010-Health Report - For Africa, a Possible Ne

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

Sleeping sickness is a deadly disease that infects about sixty thousand people in Africa each year. Now scientists in Scotland say they may have found a new treatment. Their findings are in the journal Science.

Sleeping sickness is spread by the bite of the tsetse fly. The insect can carry a parasite¹ that infects the central nervous system. First the infection causes fever, headache, itchy skin and weakness.

Then, when the parasite enters the brain, it causes more serious problems. People suffer seizures² and thinking problems, and they sleep for extended periods. If the disease is not treated, it almost always kills the victim.

Paul Wyatt at the Drug Discovery for Tropical Diseases program at the University of Dundee led the study. He says the research identified a weakness in the parasite. The weakness is an enzyme³ called N-myristoyl transferase, or NMT. The parasite needs NMT to survive.

The researchers developed a mixture of chemicals that interfered⁴ with the performance of the enzyme. They tried it in test tubes containing the parasites⁵. As a result, the parasites stopped reproducing.

The tsetse spreads sleeping sickness through its bite

The scientists also tested the treatment on laboratory mice with sleeping sickness. They gave them the chemical compound by mouth and say the infection disappeared.

Now, Paul Wyatt says a drug based on the research could be ready for testing in humans within eighteen months. Currently, medicine for sleeping sickness requires a series of injections that are costly⁶ and painful. Hospital stays are also needed. And the side effects of the treatment can be serious, sometimes even causing death.

Francois Chappuis is a specialist in neglected tropical diseases with the international group Doctors Without Borders. He says a less costly, easy-to-use medicine for sleeping sickness is badly needed.

FRANCOIS CHAPPUIS: "In areas where the sleeping sickness is still very prevalent, such as remote areas of some central African countries -- which are by the way very unstable⁷ areas -- it will be also crucial to have simpler treatment and obviously oral treatment would be the best.”

And that's the VOA Special English Health Report, written by Caty Weaver⁸. Transcripts⁹ and MP3s of our reports are at voaspecialenglish.com. You can also find us on Twitter and YouTube. And you can join the community at the new VOA Learning English fan page on Facebook. We're at VOA Learning English. I’m Steve Ember.

 

1 parasite   

n.寄生虫；寄生菌；食客

参考例句：

• The lazy man was a parasite on his family.那懒汉是家里的寄生虫。
• I don't want to be a parasite.I must earn my own way in life.我不想做寄生虫，我要自己养活自己。

2 seizures   

n.起获( seizure的名词复数 )；没收；充公；起获的赃物

参考例句：

• Seizures of illicit drugs have increased by 30% this year. 今年违禁药品的扣押增长了30%。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Other causes of unconsciousness predisposing to aspiration lung abscess are convulsive seizures. 造成吸入性肺脓肿昏迷的其他原因，有惊厥发作。 来自辞典例句

3 enzyme   

n.酵素，酶

参考例句：

• Above a certain temperature,the enzyme molecule will become unfolded.超过一定温度，酶分子将会展开。
• An enzyme that dissolves the fibrin of blood clots.能溶解血凝块中的纤维的酶。

4 interfered   

v.干预( interfere的过去式和过去分词 )；调停；妨碍；干涉

参考例句：

• Complete absorption in sports interfered with his studies. 专注于运动妨碍了他的学业。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I am not going to be interfered with. 我不想别人干扰我的事情。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 parasites   

寄生物( parasite的名词复数 )； 靠他人为生的人； 诸虫

参考例句：

• These symptoms may be referable to virus infection rather than parasites. 这些症状也许是由病毒感染引起的，而与寄生虫无关。
• Kangaroos harbor a vast range of parasites. 袋鼠身上有各种各样的寄生虫。

6 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

7 unstable   

adj.不稳定的，易变的

参考例句：

• This bookcase is too unstable to hold so many books.这书橱很不结实，装不了这么多书。
• The patient's condition was unstable.那患者的病情不稳定。

8 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。

9 transcripts   

n.抄本（ transcript的名词复数 ）；转写本；文字本；副本

参考例句：

• Like mRNA, both tRNA and rRNA are transcripts of chromosomal DNA. tRNA及rRNA同mRNA一样，都是染色体DNA的转录产物。 来自辞典例句
• You can't take the transfer students'exam without your transcripts. 没有成绩证明书，你就不能参加转学考试。 来自辞典例句