美国国家公共电台 NPR Scientists Modify Viruses With CRISPR To Create New Weapon Against Superbugs

 

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Scientists think they have a way to fight infections when antibiotics² fail. Doctors report increasing danger from drug-resistant³ infections, and they're hoping a gene⁴ editing technique offers a solution. The technique known as CRISPR may help to create super predators⁵ to go after superbugs. Here's NPR health correspondent Rob Stein.

ROB STEIN, BYLINE⁶: Superbugs are bacteria that can beat modern medicine's most powerful weapons - antibiotics. So doctors are racing⁷ to find new ways to fight back, doctors like Michael Priebe at the VA Medical Center in Augusta, Ga.

MICHAEL PRIEBE: Morning, Mr. Evans.

ALPHONSO EVANS: How are you doing, Dr. Priebe?

PRIEBE: All right. How are you?

EVANS: Fine, fine.

STEIN: That's where I met Dr. Priebe and one of his patients, Alphonso Evans.

PRIEBE: You look good this morning.

EVANS: Thank you. I feel good, too.

STEIN: Evans is a retired⁸ Army master sergeant⁹. He's paralyzed from the chest down, but not from his service overseas.

EVANS: That's what's ironic¹⁰ - 25 years in the Army and never got injured. I was in Vietnam, and I was in Korea. My first tour in Germany, Baader–Meinhof Gang was blowing up things around where I was stationed - nothing. Two days before retirement¹¹, I was driving down the street; this kid was shooting at cars, and he shot me through the back.

STEIN: That was in Wichita, Kan. Ever since, Evans - who's 67 - has been struggling with lots of medical problems. Two years ago, he went to the VA for what he thought was just another bladder infection and ended up in intensive care.

EVANS: I went to ICU and had to be invaded (ph). Yeah.

STEIN: Wow. That's terrifying.

EVANS: Yes, sir. Yes, sir. It - I thought - it scared me, and I don't scare easy.

STEIN: Now, it's unclear exactly why Evans got so sick - turns out he had a bone infection, too, then got pneumonia¹² - and he's doing well now. But urinary tract¹³ infections are a huge problem for paralyzed people like Evans, and Dr. Priebe says those infections are getting harder and harder to cure.

PRIEBE: We are getting to the point where there are organisms that are resistant to every known antibiotic¹. My fear is that as we are in this arms race, there gets to a point where we are not able to keep up with the enemy, the resistant bacteria. The superbugs take over, and we have nothing to defend against it.

STEIN: So Priebe is leading the first attempt to test an entirely¹⁴ new way to fight superbugs - a new kind of antibiotic, a living antibiotic, made out of live viruses that have been genetically¹⁵ modified using the gene editing tool CRISPR.

PRIEBE: If we're successful with this, this revolutionizes the treatment of infections in the world today. This can be the game-changer that takes us out of this arms race with the resistant bacteria and allows us to use a totally different mechanism¹⁶ to fight the pathogenic bacteria that are infecting us.

Good morning, sir.

RICKY MCNEIL: Good morning, sir.

PRIEBE: How are you today?

MCNEIL: I'm good. How are you doing?

STEIN: In another part of the hospital, I meet another paralyzed vet¹⁷, Ricky McNeil (ph). He's also been plagued by antibiotic-resistant bladder infections. Dr. Priebe and one of his colleagues, Chris Myers, are explaining the studies they're launching to test this new kind of antibiotic.

CHRIS MYERS: The study sponsor is Locus¹⁸ Bioscience (ph), and this company is going to use what's called a - it's a bacterial¹⁹ phage, which is a type of virus that attacks specific types of bacteria.

MCNEIL: Yes, sir.

STEIN: Bacteriophages are the natural enemies of bacteria. The scientists are trying to turn them into superbug killers²⁰ by using CRISPR to hijack²¹ the bacteria's own immune systems, which is where scientists discovered CRISPR in the first place, and turn that against the bacteria to literally²² shred²³ their DNA²⁴.

PRIEBE: What CRISPR is able to do is something that we've not been able to do before, and that is very selectively modify genes²⁵ to target the bacteria. This provides us with a new weapon that we can target against the enemy.

MCNEIL: OK.

STEIN: The company sponsoring the study is one of several trying to use CRISPR like this - to fight lots of health problems by targeting only bad bacteria in the body and leaving the good ones alone. Stephanie Straftey (ph) is at the University of California, San Diego.

STEPHANIE STRAFTEY: Well, I think it's really exciting because we've been using antibiotics, which really have a scorched-earth approach to the treatment of infections. So they don't just kill the bacteria that we want to kill; they kill friendly bacteria in our microbiome, as well.

STEIN: The microbiome is the trillions of friendly microbes that inhabit the human body.

STRAFTEY: The potential is to groom²⁶ the microbiome to weed out unhealthy bacteria and to promote the growth of healthy bacteria in our microbiome.

STEIN: Other scientists agree the approach is promising²⁷, especially given the threat posed by superbugs. Graham Hatfull studies bacteriophages at the University of Pittsburgh.

GRAHAM HATFULL: So I think it's a really intriguing²⁸ approach. It's kind of a smart approach.

STEIN: But Hatfull worries not enough research has been done first to really understand bacteriophages, known as phages for short.

HATFULL: In some sense, using engineered phages is going to be a bit like running before you can walk; it's hard to improve something without knowing about how the thing you're trying to improve works.

STEIN: There's always a chance it could backfire.

HATFULL: The concern is, is that you could essentially²⁹ end up converting harmless bacteria into potentially dangerous ones.

STEIN: Dr. Priebe acknowledges there could be dangers; that's why the first tests are aimed primarily at making sure CRISPR-modified phages are safe.

PRIEBE: We have to take things slowly. We don't know how things are going to evolve.

STEIN: But one of the vets³⁰ we met at the beginning of this story, Alphonso Evans, is ready to volunteer. I caught up with him again at the VA hospital gym, where he was lifting weights from his wheelchair.

EVANS: ...Eighteen, 19, 20.

I'm not so much worried about dying from a heart attack or diabetes³¹ because I'm active. I know what I need to do to work against it - you know, watch what I eat, exercise. But what do I do about an infection or fighting off a bacteria, something inside me that I don't see until it's too late? Just the fact that the research is going on gives us hope.

STEIN: Later this year, Priebe and his colleagues plan to start infusing billions of phage viruses that have been genetically modified with CRISPR into patients like Evans.

Rob Stein, NPR News, Augusta, Ga.

(SOUNDBITE OF RIVAL CONSOLES' "RECOVERY")

1 antibiotic   

adj.抗菌的；n.抗生素

参考例句：

• The doctor said that I should take some antibiotic.医生说我应该服些用抗生素。
• Antibiotic can be used against infection.抗菌素可以用来防止感染。

2 antibiotics   

n.（用作复数）抗生素；（用作单数）抗生物质的研究；抗生素，抗菌素( antibiotic的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• the discovery of antibiotics in the 20th century 20世纪抗生素的发现
• The doctor gave me a prescription for antibiotics. 医生给我开了抗生素。

3 resistant   

adj.(to)抵抗的，有抵抗力的

参考例句：

• Many pests are resistant to the insecticide.许多害虫对这种杀虫剂有抵抗力。
• They imposed their government by force on the resistant population.他们以武力把自己的统治强加在持反抗态度的人民头上。

4 gene   

n.遗传因子，基因

参考例句：

• A single gene may have many effects.单一基因可能具有很多种效应。
• The targeting of gene therapy has been paid close attention.其中基因治疗的靶向性是值得密切关注的问题之一。

5 predators   

n.食肉动物( predator的名词复数 )；奴役他人者（尤指在财务或性关系方面）

参考例句：

• birds and their earthbound predators 鸟和地面上捕食它们的动物
• The eyes of predators are highly sensitive to the slightest movement. 捕食性动物的眼睛能感觉到最细小的动静。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

7 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

8 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

9 sergeant   

n.警官，中士

参考例句：

• His elder brother is a sergeant.他哥哥是个警官。
• How many stripes are there on the sleeve of a sergeant?陆军中士的袖子上有多少条纹？

10 ironic   

adj.讽刺的，有讽刺意味的，出乎意料的

参考例句：

• That is a summary and ironic end.那是一个具有概括性和讽刺意味的结局。
• People used to call me Mr Popularity at high school,but they were being ironic.人们中学时常把我称作“万人迷先生”，但他们是在挖苦我。

11 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

12 pneumonia   

n.肺炎

参考例句：

• Cage was struck with pneumonia in her youth.凯奇年轻时得过肺炎。
• Pneumonia carried him off last week.肺炎上星期夺去了他的生命。

13 tract   

n.传单，小册子，大片(土地或森林)

参考例句：

• He owns a large tract of forest.他拥有一大片森林。
• He wrote a tract on this subject.他曾对此写了一篇短文。

14 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

15 genetically   

adv.遗传上

参考例句：

• All the bees in the colony are genetically related. 同一群体的蜜蜂都有亲缘关系。
• Genetically modified foods have already arrived on American dinner tables. 经基因改造加工过的食物已端上了美国人的餐桌。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 基因与食物

16 mechanism   

n.机械装置；机构，结构

参考例句：

• The bones and muscles are parts of the mechanism of the body.骨骼和肌肉是人体的组成部件。
• The mechanism of the machine is very complicated.这台机器的结构是非常复杂的。

17 vet   

n.兽医，退役军人；vt.检查

参考例句：

• I took my dog to the vet.我把狗带到兽医诊所看病。
• Someone should vet this report before it goes out.这篇报道发表之前应该有人对它进行详查。

18 locus   

n.中心

参考例句：

• Barcelona is the locus of Spanish industry.巴塞罗那是西班牙工业中心。
• Thereafter,the military remained the locus of real power.自此之后，军方一直掌握着实权。

19 bacterial   

a.细菌的

参考例句：

• Bacterial reproduction is accelerated in weightless space. 在失重的空间，细菌繁殖加快了。
• Brain lesions can be caused by bacterial infections. 大脑损伤可能由细菌感染引起。

20 killers   

凶手( killer的名词复数 )； 消灭…者； 致命物； 极难的事

参考例句：

• He remained steadfast in his determination to bring the killers to justice. 他要将杀人凶手绳之以法的决心一直没有动摇。
• They were professional killers who did in John. 杀死约翰的这些人是职业杀手。

21 hijack   

v.劫持，劫机，拦路抢劫

参考例句：

• Most countries refuse to give sanctuary to people who hijack aeroplanes.大多数国家拒绝对劫机者提供庇护。
• The hijack take place just after the plane take off.劫持是飞机刚起飞后发生的。

22 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

23 shred   

v.撕成碎片，变成碎片；n.碎布条，细片，些少

参考例句：

• There is not a shred of truth in what he says.他说的全是骗人的鬼话。
• The food processor can shred all kinds of vegetables.这架食品加工机可将各种蔬菜切丝切条。

24 DNA   

(缩)deoxyribonucleic acid 脱氧核糖核酸

参考例句：

• DNA is stored in the nucleus of a cell.脱氧核糖核酸储存于细胞的细胞核里。
• Gene mutations are alterations in the DNA code.基因突变是指DNA密码的改变。

25 genes   

n.基因( gene的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因，所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪

26 groom   

vt.给（马、狗等）梳毛，照料，使...整洁

参考例句：

• His father was a groom.他父亲曾是个马夫。
• George was already being groomed for the top job.为承担这份高级工作，乔治已在接受专门的培训。

27 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。

28 intriguing   

adj.有趣的；迷人的v.搞阴谋诡计(intrigue的现在分词)；激起…的好奇心

参考例句：

• These discoveries raise intriguing questions. 这些发现带来了非常有趣的问题。
• It all sounds very intriguing. 这些听起来都很有趣。 来自《简明英汉词典》

29 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

30 vets   

abbr.veterans （复数）老手，退伍军人；veterinaries （复数）兽医n.兽医( vet的名词复数 )；老兵；退伍军人；兽医诊所v.审查（某人过去的记录、资格等）( vet的第三人称单数 )；调查；检查；诊疗

参考例句：

• I helped train many young vets and veterinary nurses too. 我还帮助培训了许多年青的兽医和护士。 来自互联网
• In fact, we've expanded mental health counseling and services for our vets. 实际上，我们已经扩大了退伍军人的心理健康咨询和服务。 来自互联网

31 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。