Modern technology has put men on the moon and deciphered the human genome (基因组). But when it comes to brewing up flu to make vaccines, science still turns to the incredible edible egg. Ever since the 1940s, vaccine makers have grown large batches of virus inside chicken eggs. But given that some 36,000 Americans die of flu each year, it’s remarkable that our first line of defense is still what Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson calls “the cumbersome and archaic egg-based production.” New cell-based technologies are in the pipeline, however, and may finally get the support they need now that the United States is faced with a critical shortage of flu vaccine. Although experts disagree on whether new ways of producing vaccine could have prevented a shortage like the one happening today, there is no doubt that the existing system has serious flaws.
Each year, vaccine manufacturers place advance orders for millions of specially grown chicken eggs. Meanwhile, public-health officials monitor circulating strains of flu, and each March they recommend three strains—two influenza A strains and one B strain—for manufacturers to include in vaccines. In the late spring and summer, automated machines inject virus into eggs and later suck out the influenza-rich goop. Virus from the eggs’ innards gets killed and processed to remove egg proteins and other contaminants before being packaged into vials for fall shipment.
Why has this egg method persisted for six decades? The main reason is that it’s reliable. But even though the eggs are reliable, they have serious drawbacks. One is the long lead time needed to order the eggs. That means it’s hard to make more vaccine in a hurry, in case of a shortage or unexpected outbreak. And eggs may simply be too cumbersome to keep up with the hundreds of millions of doses required to handle the demand for flu vaccine.
What’s more, some flu strains don’t grow well in eggs. Last year, scientists were unable to include the Fujian strain in the vaccine formulation. It was a relatively new strain, and manufacturers simply couldn’t find a quick way to adapt it so that it grew well in eggs. “We knew the strain was out there,” recalls Theodore Eickhoff of the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, “but public-health officials were left without a vaccine—and, consequently, a more severe flu season.”
Worse, the viruses that pose the greatest threat might be hardest to grow in eggs. That’s because global pandemics like the one that killed over 50 million people between 1918 and 1920 are thought to occur when a bird influenza changes in a way that lets it cross the species barrier and infect humans. Since humans haven’t encountered the new virus before, they have little protective immunity. The deadly bird flu circulating in Asia in 1997 and 1998, for example, worried public-health officials because it spread to some people who handled birds and killed them—although the bug never circulated among humans. But when scientists tried to make vaccine the old-fashioned way, the bird flu quickly killed the eggs.
1. The moon-landing is mentioned in the first paragraph to illustrate ______.
2. What step is essential to the traditional production of flu vaccine?
3. The foremost reason why the egg-based method is defective lies in ______.
4. Which of the following is true according to the passage?
5. In the author’s view, the new vaccine production method seems to be ______.
问题1选项
A.technology cannot solve all of our human problems
B.progress in vaccine research for influenza has lagged behind
C.great achievements have been made by men in exploring the unknown
D.the development of vaccine production methods cannot be stopped
问题2选项
A.Manufacturers implant the vaccine into ordered chicken eggs.
B.Scientists identify the exact strain soon after a flu pandemic starts.
C.Public health measures are taken as an important pandemic-fighting tool.
D.Viruses are deadened and made clean before being put into vaccine use.
问题3选项
A.the complex process of vaccine production
B.its potential threat to human being
C.the low survival rate for new flu vaccines
D.its contribution to the flu vaccine shortage
问题4选项
A.Flu vaccines now mainly use egg-based technology.
B.A bird influenza has once circulated among humans.
C.Safety can be greatly improved with cell-culture vaccines.
D.Modern vaccine production methods are to replace egg-based methods.
问题5选项
A.remarkable
B.criticized
C.efficient
D.accepted
第1题:B
第2题:D
第3题:C
第4题:A
第5题:D
第1题:
【选项释义】
The moon-landing is mentioned in the first paragraph to illustrate ______. 在第一段中提到了登陆月球来说明______。
A. technology cannot solve all of our human problems A. 技术不能解决所有的人类问题
B. progress in vaccine research for influenza has lagged behind B. 流感疫苗研究进展落后
C. great achievements have been made by men in exploring the unknown C. 人类在探索未知领域中取得了巨大的成就
D. the development of vaccine production methods cannot be stopped D. 疫苗生产方法的发展不能停止
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】根据题干定位至第一段前两句“现代技术已经把人类送上了月球,也破解了人类的基因组。但是当涉及培养流感病毒生产疫苗时,令人难以置信的是科学家依然在使用可食用鸡蛋(science still turns to the incredible edible egg)。”可知,在第一段中提到了登陆月球,是为了对比引出下文对培养流感病毒的话题,说明流感疫苗研究进展落后,B项“流感疫苗研究进展落后”符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
A项“技术不能解决所有的人类问题”文中没有提及,该项属于无中生有;
C项“人类在探索未知领域中取得了巨大的成就”根据解题思路可知,原文并不是要突出人类在未知领域取得的成就,该项属于本末倒置;
D项“疫苗生产方法的发展不能停止”文中没有提到疫苗生产方法停止了,该项属于无中生有。
第2题:
【选项释义】
What step is essential to the traditional production of flu vaccine? 对传统的流感疫苗生产来说,什么步骤是至关重要的?
A. Manufacturers implant the vaccine into ordered chicken eggs. A. 制造商将疫苗植入订购的鸡蛋中。
B. Scientists identify the exact strain soon after a flu pandemic starts. B. 科学家们在流感大流行开始后不久就确定了确切的毒株。
C. Public health measures are taken as an important pandemic-fighting tool. C. 采取公共卫生措施是抗击流行病的重要工具。
D. Viruses are deadened and made clean before being put into vaccine use. D. 在投入疫苗使用之前,病毒要经过消毒处理。
【考查点】细节事实题。
【解题思路】根据关键词traditional production(传统生产)定位至第三段第一句“为什么这种鸡蛋方法持续了60年?”可知,持续60年的方法就是题干所提的传统的流感疫苗生产,结合上一段最后两句内容“在春末和夏季,由自动的机器将病毒注射到鸡蛋中,然后将充满流感病毒的粘性物质从中吸出。将鸡蛋内部中的病毒杀死后加工,取出鸡蛋蛋白和其他的杂质,然后装入小瓶,用于秋季时的运输。”,综合理解可知,对传统的流感疫苗生产来说,在疫苗投入使用之前,将病毒杀死加工是最重要的,D项“在投入疫苗使用之前,病毒要经过消毒处理”符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
A项“制造商将疫苗植入订购的鸡蛋中”根据解题思路可知,疫苗是从鸡蛋中处理加工出来的,而不是植入鸡蛋中,该项属于反向干扰;
B项“科学家们在流感大流行开始后不久就确定了确切的毒株”和C项“采取公共卫生措施是抗击流行病的重要工具”没有提及,这两项属于无中生有。
第3题:
【选项释义】
The foremost reason why the egg-based method is defective lies in ______. 基于鸡蛋的方法存在缺陷的最主要原因在于______。
A. the complex process of vaccine production A. 疫苗生产的复杂过程
B. its potential threat to human being B. 它对人类的潜在威胁
C. the low survival rate for new flu vaccines C. 新流感疫苗的低存活率
D. its contribution to the flu vaccine shortage D. 它导致了流感疫苗的短缺
【考查点】细节事实题。
【解题思路】根据题干定位至第三段,该段提到鸡蛋法制作疫苗存在严重的缺陷,然后在第四段第一句提到“更重要的是(What’s more),一些流感病毒在鸡蛋中不能很好地生长”,理解可知,基于鸡蛋的方法存在缺陷的最主要原因在于流感病毒的低存活率,C项“新流感疫苗的低存活率”符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
A项“疫苗生产的复杂过程”和D项“它导致了流感疫苗的短缺”虽然也是缺陷之一,但不是最重要的原因,这两项属于本末倒置;
B项“它对人类的潜在威胁”没有提及,该项属于无中生有。
第4题:
【选项释义】
Which of the following is true according to the passage? 根据文章,下列哪项是正确的?
A. Flu vaccines now mainly use egg-based technology. A. 流感疫苗现在主要使用基于鸡蛋的技术。
B. A bird influenza has once circulated among humans. B. 禽流感曾在人类之间传播。
C. Safety can be greatly improved with cell-culture vaccines. C. 细胞培养疫苗可大大提高安全性。
D. Modern vaccine production methods are to replace egg-based methods. D. 现代疫苗生产方法将取代以鸡蛋为基础的方法。
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】根据第一段第二句“但是当涉及培养流感病毒生产疫苗时,令人难以置信的是科学家依然(still)在使用可食用鸡蛋”,从still可以看出,现在的流感疫苗还是主要是用鸡蛋的方法来研制,A项“流感疫苗现在主要使用基于鸡蛋的技术”符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
B项“禽流感曾在人类之间传播”根据文章最后一段倒数第二句“比如,虽然这种病菌还没有在人类中传播过,但是1997年和1998年在亚洲流行的致命的禽流感使公共健康官员很担忧……”可知,禽流感没有在人类之间传播,该项属于反向干扰;
C项“细胞培养疫苗可大大提高安全性”和D项“现代疫苗生产方法将取代以鸡蛋为基础的方法”原文没有提及,这两项属于无中生有。
第5题:
【选项释义】
In the author’s view, the new vaccine production method seems to be ______. 在作者看来,新的疫苗生产方法似乎是______。
A. remarkable A. 显著的
B. criticized B. 受批评的
C. efficient C. 效率高的
D. accepted D. 能接受的
【考查点】观点态度题。
【解题思路】根据第一段最后两句“但是,新的细胞生产技术已经投入使用,并且由于美国现在面临的流感疫苗的严重短缺而可能最终得到他们所需要的支持。虽然专家就生产疫苗的新方法能否阻止现在出现的这种短缺现象无法达成共识,但是可以肯定的是现有的系统有严重的(serious flaws)缺陷。”可知,新的细胞生产技术最终会得到支持,因为现有的系统有严重的缺陷,作者在描述现有的疫苗生产技术用到了serious flaws一词,足以看出作者认为新的疫苗生产方法是可以接受的,D项“能接受的”符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
A项“显著的”和C项“效率高的”,原文没有描述这项新的疫苗生产技术的效果和特点,这两项属于无中生有;
B项“受批评的”根据解题思路可知,该项属于曲解原文。