许国璋英语-新闻英语精解【42】非典药物研制跟踪

German scientists detect weak point in SARS virus

【参考译文】德研究人员发现萨斯病毒弱点

【讲解】detect的意思是发觉; 侦查，常常与一起使用，比如说detect sb. in (doing)...

发觉某人在做(坏事)。例句：He was detected in the act of stealing.他在偷窃时被当场发觉。

weak point:弱点。None is prefect in the world, everyone has his own weak point.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - German scientists announced that they have discovered a weakness in the SARS virus which could help speed up the development of a treatment to counter the infection.

【参考译文】华盛顿，法新社－德国科学家5月13日宣布他们发现了非典病毒的弱点，这将有助于快速开发抗非典感染的治疗药品。

【讲解】speed up是加速的意思。verb＋up很常见，象hurry up, come up,类似词组在不同的语境有不同的意思，用的频率业比较高，值得用心整理。口语中有两个和speed 有关的祝福语：God speed you!愿上帝助你成功! 祝你一路顺风!Good speed!祝你成功! 祝你好运! 祝你一路顺风!

The scientists said they had tracked down an enzyme that helps the spread of the virus that has killed about 560 people around the world and infected more than 7,400.

【参考译文】非典病毒已经夺去了全世界560人的生命，并使约有7400人受其感染。科学家们说他们已经发现是一种生化霉在促使病毒传播。

【讲解】track down的意思是追捕到，追捕，跟踪。在本文中的意思就是密接关注情况，掌握了资料。

Enzyme：Any of numerous proteins or conjugated proteins produced by living organisms and functioning as biochemical catalysts.酶，由活的有机体产生的各种蛋白质或蛋白质结合体的一种，起生物催化剂的作用

The breakthrough has started a race against time to develop a protease inhibitor -- a treatment that could block enzymes from the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus and keep it from strengthening and infecting other cells in the human body.

【参考译文】尽快开发出一种蛋白酶成了科学家们的时间赛，这种蛋白酶能够阻止非典病毒的在人体内的变异和其他细胞的感染。

【讲解】Breakthrough在我们前一次讲解中碰到是意思是军事突破，本文中它的意思是突破性的发现，成就，如：a scientific breakthrough.

Inhibitor:[化]抑制剂, 抑制者。protease inhibitor: 蛋白酶抑制剂。

severe acute respiratory syndrome的首字母缩写形式就是SARS,急性呼吸道综合症。

The research was led by Rolf Hilgenfeld of the University of Lubeck's Institute of Biochemistry. Hilgenfeld said a good inhibitor could be developed in a few months but that did not mean a treatment would be ready so quickly.

【参考译文】德国吕贝克生物化学院的罗尔夫．希尔根菲尔德为该研究的负责人。希尔根菲尔德说蛋白酶的开发指日可待，但这并不意味着治疗药物也会很快面世。

Therefore we concluded that a drug that was originated to target a rhinovirus might be a good starting point for the development of drugs against corona viruses, including the SARS virus, said Rolf Hilgenfeld.

【参考译文】罗尔夫．希尔根菲尔德还说：“因此我们可以的出结论，由抗病毒药物研制出药物有可能成为抗冠状病毒药物（包括非典病毒）的良好开端。

【讲解】starting point：出发点, 起跑点。在本文中意思可以翻译成开端。

关键字:新闻英语