Vaccines(疫苗)maysoonmaketheirfirstfilmappearance.Ledbyex...

問題詳情：

Vaccines( 疫苗 ) may soon make their first film appearance. Led by expert Maria A ． Croyle, researchers have developed a thin sheet that preserves vaccines for long periods without refrigeration. This means the carefully cooled small bottles now used to ship vaccines could potentially be replaced by lightweight films that can be mailed in an envelope and stored on a shelf.

Croyle’s laboratory began developing the technology in 2007. Inspired by amber’s ability to preserve the DNA of insects, the researchers set out to create their own version of the substance by mixing “a lot of sugar and a little bit of salt, much like hard candy,” Croyle explains. The vaccine-containing film is administered by mouth—sweet news for many who dislike needles.

The film is tailored to suit each specific vaccine candidate and provide a protective coating. “We’ve learned over time that the key to really stabilizing whatever the film holds is to have it intermixed with all the components,” Croyle says, adding that the process is quick and uses affordable, standard equipment. “We really wanted to come up with something that would be transferable to developing countries.”

Immunization( 免疫 ) programs depend heavily on keeping vaccines cold(2℃-8℃) as they are transported, sometimes over thousands of kilometers to far-away locations. Delivery can be difficult and costly, and transport disruptions can cause the vaccines to be ineffective.

But this new product can store live viruses, bacteria and antibodies for several months at 20℃. In a paper published in Science Advances , the scientists show that the live viruses in one vaccine were preserved in the film even after 36 months. They also find that a flu vaccine suspended in their film compares favourably with a traditional flu shot( 流感預防針 ). “The study demonstrates early proof of concept for an exciting platform for vaccine product development,” says Lisa Rohan, a pharmacologist, who was not involved in the study. She also notes that each vaccine type would need a custom formulation( * ) for future stages of development.

Finding partners to mass-produce for clinical trials is the researchers’ most pressing problem, Croyle says. They are also exploring packaging methods to keep their films stable up to 40℃.

Size is a major advantage—a letter-sized sheet of the film can carry more than 500 doses( 劑 ) of vaccine, about 1⁄900 the weight of the same amount of traditional doses. By making it easier and cheaper to ship and preserve vaccines efficiently, Croyle says, the technology could vastly improve immunization rates the world over, particularly in middle- to low- income countries.

1 ． What can we learn about the film?

A ． It contains animal’s DNA ． B ． It will replace vaccines.

C ． It comes in different flavours. D ． It can hold bio-products.

2 ． According to Paragraph 3, we can learn about the film’s ________.

A ． key component B ． development schedule

C ． possible advantages D ． transportation requirements

3 ． The author mentions Lisa Rohan’s words to ________.

A ． advise personalizing vaccines

B ． suggest the product is promising

C ． prove the study is supported widely

D ． stress the functions of a new platform

4 ． What will be the next urgent task for Croyle’s team?

A ． Advertising the film worldwide. B ． Improving the film’s capacity.

C ． Reducing the shipping cost. D ． Seeking ideal manufacturers.

【回答】

1 ． D

2 ． C

3 ． B

4 ． D

【分析】

本文是一篇説明文。文章介紹了科研團隊研發出了一種可以長時間保存疫苗而無需冷藏的薄片，描述了它的功能和潛在價值。

1 ．細節理解題。根據第一段 “Led by expert Maria A. Croyle, researchers have developed a thin sheet that preserves vaccines for long periods without refrigeration.” （在專家 Maria A . Croyle 的帶領下，研究人員開發出了一種可以長時間保存疫苗而無需冷藏的薄片。）可知，這種薄膜可以裝生物製品。故選 D 項。

2 ．推理判斷題。根據第三段 “The film is tailored to suit each specific vaccine candidate and provide a protective coating.” （該薄膜是量身定製的，以適合每種特定的候選疫苗，提供一種保護塗層。） “the key to really stabilizing whatever the film holds is to have it intermixed with all the components” （真正使這種薄膜無論容納什麼都穩定的關鍵是將其與所有成分混合）以及 “the process is quick and uses affordable, standard equipment.” （這一過程是快速的，使用了負擔得起的標準設備。）可推斷，第三段主要講了薄膜的可能的優勢。故選 C 項。

3 ．推理判斷題。根據第五段 “‘The study demonstrates early proof of concept for an exciting platform for vaccine product development,’says Lisa Rohan( 麗莎羅翰説： “ 這項研究為一個令人興奮的疫苗產品開發平台提供了早期的概念* ”)” 可推斷，作者引用 Lisa Rohan 的話來暗示這個產品很有前途。故選 B 項。

4 ．細節理解題。根據倒數第二段 “Finding partners to mass-produce for clinical trials is the researchers’ most pressing problem, Croyle says.” （克羅伊爾説，尋找大規模生產用於臨牀試驗的合作伙伴是研究人員最緊迫的問題。）可知，克羅伊團隊的下一個緊急任務是尋求理想的製造商。故選 D 項。

知識點：科普知識與現代技術

題型：閲讀理解