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2017考研英语拓展阅读：一种“超级细菌”正在全球传播
LONDON (Reuters) - A multidrug-resistant superbug infection that can cause life-threatening illness in people with cystic fibrosis (CF) has spread globally and is becoming increasingly virulent, British researchers said on Thursday.
路透社伦敦报道——英国科学家周四表示，一种具有多种抗药性的“超级细菌”感染会威胁到囊肿性纤维化患者的生命，这种细菌正在全球传播，而且变得越来越有致命性。
In a study published in the journal Science, the researchers said the bug, a species of multidrug-resistant bacteria called Mycobacterium abscessus (M. abscessus), can cause severe pneumonia and is particularly dangerous for patients with CF and other lung diseases.
研究结果发表在了《科学》期刊上。研究人员说，这种具有多种抗药性的细菌叫作脓肿分枝杆菌(M. abscessus)，会引发严重的肺炎，对囊肿性纤维化和其他肺病患者尤其危险。
“The bug initially seems to have entered the patient population from the environment, but we think it has recently evolved to become capable of jumping from patient to patient, getting more virulent as it does so,” said Andres Floto, a Cambridge University professor who co-led the study.
“这种细菌起初是从环境中进入到病患族群，但是我们认为它最近已经能够在人与人之间传播，而且致命性越来越强。”这项研究的负责人、剑桥大学教授安德烈斯·弗洛托说。
Cystic fibrosis is a relatively rare genetic disorder that affects the respiratory, digestive and reproductive systems. It causes patients’ lungs to become clogged up with thick, sticky mucus and makes them vulnerable to respiratory infections.
囊肿性纤维化是一种相当罕见的基因疾病，会影响人体呼吸、消化和生殖系统。这种病会使患者的肺部被厚重的黏液堵住，使患者极容易受到呼吸系统感染。
In this study, researchers from Cambridge and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute sequenced the genomes of more than 1,000 samples of mycobacteria from 517 CF patients at specialist clinics in Europe, the United States and Australia.
在研究中，来自剑桥大学和维康信托基金会桑格研究院的研究人员测定了来自欧洲、美国和澳大利亚专科诊所的517名囊肿性纤维化患者的1000多个分枝杆菌基因组序列样本。
They found that the majority of patients had picked up transmissible forms of M. abscessus that had spread globally.
他们发现，大多数患者都检出了遍布全球的脓肿分枝杆菌遗传形态。
Further analysis suggested the infection may be transmitted within hospitals via contaminated surfaces and through the air, the researchers said - presenting a serious challenge to infection control practices in hospitals.
研究人员说，进一步的分析显示，感染有可能是通过医院里受感染表面或者通过空气传播的——这意味着医院的感染防控工作面临巨大挑战。
Because the superbug has already become resistant to many antibiotics, it is also extremely difficult to treat successfully, Floto said. Patients infected with it need 18 months or more of treatment with a combination of powerful antibiotics, and fewer than one in three cases is cured.
弗洛托说，因为“超级细菌”对很多抗菌药都具有耐药性，它也是极难治愈的。感染了它的患者需要18个多月、通过强有力的抗菌药组合才有可能治好，而治愈率还不到三分之一。
Julian Parkhill of the Sanger Institute, who worked on this study, said that while its findings were alarming for CF patients, they did also provide a degree of hope.
研究人员之一、桑格研究院的朱利安·帕克希尔说这个发现可能会警示囊肿性纤维化患者，也给出了一线希望。
“Now that we know the extent of the problem and are beginning to understand how the infection spreads, we can start to respond,” he said.
“既然我们知道了问题的严重性，就可以开始理解感染是怎么蔓延的，可以开始应对。”他说。
The sequencing data has thrown up potential new drug targets, he explained, and the researchers now plan to focus on seeking to develop new medicines to beat the bug.
他解释说，基因体序列数据已经显示出潜在的新药目标，研究人员现在已经计划致力于开发新药来击败这种细菌。