New Tech, Sharp Docs Made Fast ID of Wuhan Coronavirus Possible
VOA News｜Science & Health
January 19, 2020 12:22 AM (source)
New Tech, Sharp Docs Made Fast ID of Wuhan Coronavirus Possible
精明的醫生運用新技術快速辨識出武漢冠狀病毒
January 19, 2020 12:22 AM
Steve Baragona
The new virus emerging from a live animal market in southern China has worrisome echoes of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, which killed 774 people worldwide in 2002 and 2003.
Two people have died from the new virus, which is closely related to the SARS virus. Sixty-two people have become ill. Three travelers have carried it to Thailand and Japan.
Georgetown University infectious diseases physician Daniel Lucey worked on SARS in 2003 in China, Hong Kong and Toronto.
He says this outbreak is different in three ways.
Chinese scientists have tools that were not available in 2002. They had the acumen to look for something new. And they had something else that was missing during SARS: the transparency to warn the world.
Quick ID
The world first heard about a new disease coming out of Wuhan, China, Dec. 31.
A week later, Chinese researchers announced they had identified the culprit. The following week, German researchers developed the first diagnostic test.
That's fast. "It's truly an incredible accomplishment," Lucey said.
In the early 2000s, scientists looking for a virus had to grow it in animal cells in petri dishes.
The problem with SARS was "it didn't grow in any of the usual cell lines. One of the University of Hong Kong scientists had the idea, 'Well, let's just try some other cell lines. Why not? What's to lose?' And it grew in one that nobody expected it to grow in," Lucey said.
Then the researchers had to grow enough of the virus to isolate its DNA and read its genetic code, a process known as sequencing.
The technology has advanced tremendously in the past decade and a half.
"Back then, it took days to sequence," Lucey said. "Now, it can take hours."
Scientists don't even need to grow the virus in cells anymore. They can directly detect extremely small amounts of viral DNA in a patient's spit or blood.
Pneumonia in pneumonia season
Having the right tool is important, but what's more important, Lucey added, is thinking to use it at a time when it's not obvious.
It's winter in China, he said, and "it's a tribute to the insight of the Chinese clinicians to recognize that there's a new infectious disease causing pneumonia in the middle of pneumonia (or flu) season."
Lucey said that didn't happen in the first outbreak of Middle East respiratory syndrome, or MERS, which has killed more than 850 people.
In April 2012, 13 health care workers at a hospital in Zarqa, Jordan, came down with pneumonia. Two died. Tests for known viruses, including SARS, came up negative.
Later, in September, a Saudi man died of pneumonia, and scientists determined that a novel virus was causing what was dubbed MERS. Only then did researchers go back and find the MERS virus in samples from the Jordanian patients.
Lucey also credits the Chinese scientists for getting the word out quickly. China drew criticism for covering up the spread of SARS in 2002.
"You need to have the frame of mind and the political will and the scientific wherewithal to share the information with the world immediately so that diagnostics can be developed immediately," he said. "And that's what's happened. China has done all those things."
However, some information is still missing.
The three patients who carried the virus outside China came from Wuhan but have no known link to the animal market identified as the source of the other infections.
"It just suggests to me that there are other people in Wuhan that are infected, and/or other animal markets," Lucey said. "The virus is out of the bag," he added. "I'm afraid we're at the beginning of the beginning, and a long way to go."
從中國（China）南方活體動物市場現蹤的新型病毒(virus)令人擔憂地回想起當年的嚴重急性(acute)呼吸道症候群（Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome，簡稱「SARS」）。SARS 在 2002 年和 2003 年間導致全球 774 人死亡。
與 SARS 病毒密切相關的新病毒已導致 2 人死亡和62 人感染，另有 3 名帶有該病毒的旅客從中國飛往泰國（Thailand）和日本（Japan）。
美國喬治城大學（Georgetown University）感染科醫師丹尼爾．露西（Daniel Lucey）2003 年時曾在中國、香港和加拿大多倫多（Toronto）從事與 SARS 相關的研究。
他說這次的疫情爆發(outbreak，註 1)與 SARS 疫情相比，在 3 方面有所不同。
第一，中國科學家目前使用的儀器在 2002 年還未被發明。第二，他們在發掘新事物方面的洞察力相當敏銳(acumen，註 2)。第三，他們還提出了在 SARS 疫情期間未曾見過的新作為：以透明的方式把疫情公諸於世並提出警告。
迅速判斷
去年（編按：2019 年）12 月 31 日，有關新型疾病的消息首次從中國武漢（Wuhan）傳出。
一週後（編按：2019 年 12 月 31 日至 2020 年 1 月 6 日），中國研究人員宣稱他們已找到新病毒的罪魁禍首(culprit)。接下來的一週（編按：2020 年 1 月 7 日至 13 日），德國研究人員率先研發出診斷病毒的檢驗方法。
醫界很迅速地找到這次肺炎的診斷方法。「這確實是令人難以置信的成就。」露西表示。
2000 年代初期，尋找病毒的科學家必須透過皮氏培養皿(petri dish，註 3)在動物細胞中繁殖病毒。
SARS 事件的問題在於「病毒未在任何常見的細胞株中生長。香港大學（University of Hong Kong）其中一位科學家於是想到：『既然如此，我們嘗試其他的細胞株好了。有何不可呢？會損失什麼嗎？』接著 SARS 病毒就在某個沒有人預料到的細胞株開始生長。」露西描述著。
然後研究人員必須培養足夠的病毒才能分離它的 DNA 並讀取其遺傳密碼(genetic code)，這一過程稱為測序(sequencing，註 4)。
這項技術在過去的 15 年中出現極大地(tremendously，註 5) 進展。
「那時，完成測序需要花幾天的時間。」露西說。「現在花幾個小時就好了。」
科學家甚至不再需要在細胞中繁殖病毒。他們可以在患者的唾液或血液中直接檢測出極少量的病毒 DNA。
發生在肺炎流行季節的肺炎
露西補充說明，擁有合適的儀器很重要，但更重要的是，能在情況不明朗的時候考慮使用它。
他表示，目前是中國的冬季，而「中國臨床醫師(clinician)的見解(insight，註 6)值得讚揚(tribute)。因為他們辨識到在肺炎（或流感）季節中，有一種新的傳染(infectious，註 7)病會引起肺炎(pneumonia)。」
露西提到，中東呼吸症候群（Middle East Respiratory Syndrome，MERS）首次爆發時，醫生並沒有類似的覺察。該疾病已導致超過 850 人死亡。
2012 年 4 月，約旦（Jordan）扎爾卡（Zarqa）一家醫院的 13 名醫護人員罹患了肺炎，其中兩人因此死亡。儘管患者接受 SARS 等已知病毒的測試，檢驗結果皆呈現陰性。
後來，同年（編按：2012 年）9月，一名沙烏地阿拉伯男子死於肺炎。科學家於是確定(determine)一種新型(novel，註 8)病毒正引起被定名為(dub，註 9)MERS 的疾病。直到那時，研究人員才回過頭來檢視約旦患者的樣本，並在其中發現 MERS 病毒。
露西還稱讚中國科學家很快就把疫情公諸於世(get the word out)。中國在 2002 年因封鎖 SARS疫情傳播的消息而引起(draw，註 10)各界的批評。
他指出：「國家需要具備思維能力、政治意願及科學必備資源(wherewithal)才能馬上與全世界分享訊息，診斷方法也才能很快地開發出來。」「目前就是這樣。這幾件事情中國都做了。」
不過，目前仍然缺少某些訊息。
將病毒帶往中國境外的 3 名患者來自武漢，但據悉，他們與動物市場沒有任何接觸，而動物市場被確認是其他感染案例(infection)的源頭。
露西表示：「這似乎意味著，武漢還有其他人被感染，並且（或者）還有其他動物市場。」他進一步說道：「病毒已散播開來。恐怕我們才剛剛起步，而且還有很漫長的路要走(a long way to go)。」
Language Notes
註 1： outbreak 為名詞，於本文指「疫情爆發」；本字也常指「發作，暴發，突然發生」；注意重音在第 1 音節；相關動詞片語為 “break out”「突然發生；爆發」
註 2： acumen 指「敏銳」；注意重音在第 2 音節
註 3： petri dish 指「皮氏培養皿」
註 4： sequencing 為名詞，於本文指「（為 DNA）測序」；本字也常指「排序，定序」；注意重音在第 1 音節；相關動詞為 “sequence”「測定 DNA 的序列」
註 5： tremendously 由形容詞 "tremendous"「巨大的，極大的；極好的」與副詞字尾 "-ly"「以所述的方式」組成；注意重音在第 2 音節
註 6： insight 於本文指「見解」，本字另常見意思為「洞察力」；注意重音在第 1 音節
註 7： infectious 為形容詞，於本文指「傳染性的」；本字也常指「有感染力的；有影響力的」；注意重音在第 2 音節；相關動詞為 infect「傳染；感染」，相關名詞為 infection「傳染；傳染病」
註 8： novel 於本文為形容詞，指「新的；新型的；新穎的」；本字也可作名詞，意指「小說」
註 9： dub 於本文作動詞，指「給予 . . . 稱號」，以被動語態 "be dubbed"「被定名為 . . . . . .」呈現；本字另常見意思為「（尤指用另一種語言）為（影視節目）配音」
註 10： draw 於本文指「吸引，引起」；本字亦常指「畫，繪畫」
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Check your comprehension!
Choose the BEST answer to each of the questions below. After you finish, highlight the parentheses to reveal the hidden answers.
1. ( B ) According to the article, what can be inferred about the novel coronavirus from the section Quick ID?
(A) Researchers are not required to sequence the DNA of the coronavirus.
(B) The time to research into the coronavirus is faster than the one in the early 2000s because of advanced technology.
(C) Chinese researchers have identified the virus and developed its first diagnostic test.
(D) Researchers grow the virus in animal cells in petri dishes to study the coronavirus.
2. ( C ) According to the article, what did Daniel Lucey mention regarding the outbreak of Wuhan coronavirus?
(A) Chinese researchers still haven't found the tools to identify the virus.
(B) Chinese scientists warned the world about SARS.
(C) Chinese researchers had the acuity to probe for something new.
(D) Chinese scientists announced that the outbreak has spread to Toronto.
3. ( C ) Which of the following statements is INCORRECT about the section Pneumonia in pneumonia season?
(A) China has the frame of mind and scientific resources to share the information with the world.
(B) In April 2012, nearly a sixth of pneumonia infected healthcare workers in Jordan died.
(C) According to Lucey, having the right tool is important rather than thinking when to use the tool at a time when it's not obvious. (D) Scientists find the MERS virus in samples from the Jordanian patients.
編譯：外語教學暨資源中心 編輯小組
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