Unit 86

It was a big week for Alzheimer's disease, and not just because PBS aired The Forgetting, a first-rate documentary about Alzheimer's worth catching in reruns if you missed it the first time. There was also a flurry of scientific news that offered hope to the families already struggling with Alzheimer's, as well as to the baby-boom generation that's up next. Unless something dramatic happens, the number of Americans living with this terrifying brain disease could triple, to about 16 million, over the next 50 years. There's still no cure in sight, but there is progress on several fronts. Among them:

 

MEGADOSE VITAMINS Doctors knew vitamins E and C, both antioxidants, help stave off Alzheimer's, at least in folks who haven't already developed the disorder. What they didn't know--but a big study involving 4,740 participants published in the Archives of Neurology showed--was that the two vitamins taken together in huge daily doses (at least 400 IU of E and more than 500 mg of C) could reduce the risk of Alzheimer's a remarkable 78%.

 

COMBINATION THERAPY A yearlong study of more than 400 Alzheimer's patients showed that two drugs that work differently on the brain's chemistry act well together to help slow down the disease. Patients who were being treated with donepezil (sold as Aricept), an older drug that preserves the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, were also given memantine (Namenda), a new drug approved by the FDA last October that blocks overproduction of a harmful brain chemical called glutamate. The two drugs worked even better in combination than they did alone, providing substantial benefit for patients with moderate to severe Alzheimer's, according to a report in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

 

BRAIN IMAGING Finally, scientists at the University of Pittsburgh announced that they had successfully developed a procedure that allows them to peer into the brains of Alzheimer's patients with positron emission tomography (PET) scans to see telltale plaque deposits. Before now, doctors could not track the progress of these plaques until after the patient died, when the brain could be autopsied. Using the new technique, doctors may be able to begin treatment long before the first symptoms appear.

 

None of these advances is a magic bullet for Alzheimer's disease. If you or your loved ones are concerned, the first step is careful evaluation by your doctor. Not all memory lapses are Alzheimer's, and there are reversible causes of forgetfulness that can be treated if caught early. Also, remember the old adage "use it or lose it." Mental exercise--reading, doing crossword puzzles, playing chess or Scrabble--is as good for preserving your mind as physical exercise is for your body.

 

注（1）：本文选自Time; 2/2/2004, p78-78, 2/3p, 2c；  

注（2）：本文习题命题模仿对象第1题模仿2002年text 4第1题；第2题模仿1994年真题text 2 第3题；第3模仿2002年真题text 3 第3题，第4—5题模仿2004年text 3第4，5题；

 

1.       From the first paragraph, we learn that_________.  

 

[A] the baby-boom generation will not suffer from Alzhemer’s disease

[B] recent progress brings hope for Alzheimer victims

[C] the week was very important for Alzheimer’s because a documentary about it was shown on PBS

[D] the new achievements made on several fronts show that Alzheimer’s disease can be cured

 

2.       The phrase “stave off” (line 1, paragraph 2) most probably means “________”.

 

[A] getting

[B] treating

[C] curing

[D] preventing

 

3.       The report in the Journal of the American Medical Association shows that ____________.

 

[A] combination therapy refers to combining two different ways of treatment

[B] donepezil helps blocks overproduction of a harmful brain chemical called glutamate

[C] combination therapy is of great benefit to all patients with Alzheimer’s

[D] Aricept and Namenda have better effect when used together than used separately

 

4.       Why is brain imaging considered progress in treating Alzhemer’s?

 

[A] Because it helps doctors diagnose and treat the disease in an early phase by tracking the progress of plaques in the brain.

[B] Because it helps doctors autopsy the brains of the patients after they died.

[C] Because it helps doctors see the plaque desposits clearly so that they can operate on the brain.

[D] Because it helps doctors develop a new procedure of tracking the progress of the disease.

 

5.       To which of the following is the author likely to agree?

 

[A]. Alzhemer’s disease can be cured thanks to the new advances.

[B] Forgetfulness can be cured by doing mental exercise.

[C]. Careful evaluation is important because it can tell Alzheimer’s from curable memory lapses, which can be treated if found in an early phase.

[D]. Mental exercises do good only to forgetfulness caused by reversible causes.

 

答案：B D D A C

 

篇章剖析

本篇文章介绍了阿尔茨海默病研究领域取得的新成果。第一段，作者介绍了两件对阿尔茨海默病来说非常重要的事情：其一，纪录片《遗忘》播出；其二，对该疾病的研究取得新发现。第二段介绍了新发现之一： 大量服用维生素C和E有助于预防阿尔茨海默病。第三段介绍了药物治疗上的新发现：同时服用两种对大脑的化学特性起不同作用的药品有助于延缓病情。第四段介绍了新成果之三：大脑成像技术。用正电子放射X显断层摄影术自动程序控制技术检查大脑内的斑块，能够及早发现疾病隐患，及早治疗。第5段里，作者指出新的科研成果并不能治愈阿尔茨海默病。重要的是要多做脑力训练。

 

词汇注释

Alzheimer's disease 阿尔茨海默病，最常见的老年期痴呆类型。

PBS  Public Broadcasting Service （美国）公共广播公司

rerun: [5ri:5rQn] n. 重播

flurry: [5flQri] n.一阵，

baby-boom n. 生育高峰

megadose: [`me^EdEJs] v. 给予······大剂量

antioxidant: [5Anti5CksidEnt] n. （化）抗氧化剂

stave off 避开，延迟

chemistry: [5kemistri] n. 化学特性

neurotransmitter: [7njuErEtrAns5mitE] n. （生化）神经传递素

acetylcholine: [E7si:tEl5kEulin] n. 乙酰胆碱

FDA abbr. Food and Drug Administration （美国）食品及药物管理局

glutamate: [5^lu:tEmeit] n. 谷氨酸盐

substantial: [sEb5stAnFEl] adj. 巨大的

the American Medical Association 美国医学协会

imaging: [i5mAdViN] n. 成像

peer into 窥视

PET: positron emission tomography 正电子放射X线断层摄影术

scan: [skAn] n. 扫描

telltale:[ 5telteil] adj. 泄密的

plaque: [plB:k] n. 斑

deposit: [di5pCzit] n. 沉积物

autopsy:[5C:tEpsi] v. （为查明死因而做的）尸体解剖

lapse: [lAps]] n. 丧失

reversible: [ri5vE:sEbl] adj. 可逆的

adage:[5AdidV] n. 格言，谚语

scrabble:[5skrAbl] n. 一种拼字游戏

preserve: [pri5zE:v] v. 保护，保持，保存

 

难句突破  

1． What they didn't know--but a big study involving 4,740 participants published in the Archives of Neurology showed--was that the two vitamins taken together in huge daily doses (at least 400 IU of E and more than 500 mg of C) could reduce the risk of Alzheimer's a remarkable 78%.(line 2—5, paragraph 2)

主体句式：What … was that…

结构分析：本句的难点是句子长，结构复杂，不容易看出各句子成份之间的关系。“What they didn't know”是主语从句；“but a big study involving 4,740 participants published in the Archives of Neurology showed”是插入语，用于补充说明新发现的背景信息；“that the two vitamins taken together in huge daily doses (at least 400 IU of E and more than 500 mg of C) could reduce the risk of Alzheimer's a remarkable 78%.：”是系动词was 的表语从句，用于说明过去医生不知道的情况，即新发现的内容是：“每日大剂量服用维生素C和E能有效预防阿尔茨海默病。句子译文：发表在《神经病学档案Archives of Neurology》上的一项涉及4740名参加者的重大研究成果显示，每天同时大剂量服用这两种维生素（至少400国际单位维生素E和500毫克以上的维生素C）能大幅度降低阿尔茨海默病的患病几率，降低幅度为78%。”

2． Patients who were being treated with donepezil (sold as Aricept), an older drug that preserves the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, were also given memantine (Namenda), a new drug approved by the FDA last October that blocks overproduction of a harmful brain chemical called glutamate.

主体句式：Patient … were also given memantine…

结构分析：该句的难点有两个。其一是本句医学词汇多，影响理解。针对这一问题，重要的是不要勉强自己去理解每个单词的意思，而是要努力理解句子的主旨。其二是句子结构复杂而且句子长。“who were being treated with donepezil (sold as Aricept), an older drug that preserves the neurotransmitter acetylcholine,”修饰Patients，做它的定语从句，而其中的an older drug that preserves the neurotransmitter acetylcholine是donepezil (sold as Aricept)的同位语，解释其功能；后半句中关键词memantine (Namenda)也带有一个长长的同位语“a new drug approved by the FDA last October that blocks overproduction of a harmful brain chemical called glutamate.”介绍这种新药的基本情况。

句子译文：“据发表在美国医学协会杂志上的一篇研究报告介绍，让患者在服用保护神经传递乙酰胆碱的donepezil (药品销售名称为Aricept)的同时，服用用于抑制有害大脑化学物质谷氨酸盐过剩的药物memantine(药品销售名称是Namenda)，一种美国食品及药物管理局去年刚刚批准的新药疗效显著。”

 

题目分析

1．  答案是B，属推理判断题。该题主要考察对第一段主旨思想的理解。第一段主要是引入

下文的研究新成果，因此，主旨句是最后一句：There's still no cure in sight, but there is progress on several fronts.其他干扰相中，涉及本段其他句子的意义理解。

2．  答案是A，属猜词题。第二段第一句“MEGADOSE VITAMINS Doctors knew vitamins

E and C, both antioxidants, help stave off Alzheimer's, at least in folks who haven't already developed the disorder.”出现了“stave off”。从“at least in folks who haven't already developed the disorder”可见，该短语指的是“起到预防作用”。

3．  答案是D，属推理判断题。第三段第6行“The two drugs worked even better in combination

than they did alone, ”是理解本题的关键。首先需要根据上下文理解这两种药品指：Aricept and Namenda；其次，要理解in combination的意思，in combination 表示“结和”，在本句中指“同时使用两种药物”，再次要理解第三段第2行中的“help slow down the disease.”中的disease 在第二段中曾被指为“disorder”。

4．  答案是A，属推理判断题。从第四段最后一句“ Using the new technique, doctors may be

able to begin treatment long before the first symptoms appear.”可以推断出这种新技术能使医生及早诊断和治疗阿尔茨海默病。从第四段第3—4行“to see telltale plaque deposits. Before now, doctors could not track the progress of these plaques until after the patient died,”可以推断出通过大脑成像技术跟踪斑块的病变情况是早期诊断阿尔茨海默病的关键。

5．  答案是C，属推理判断题。从第5段第二句“If you or your loved ones are concerned, the first

step is careful evaluation by your doctor. ”可以推断出仔细的测评非常重要。第三句“Not all memory lapses are Alzheimer's, and there are reversible causes of forgetfulness that can be treated if caught early. ”解释了细致测评重要的原因：能根据测评判断出健忘是否是阿尔茨海默病，如果时刻逆行原因引起的健忘，发现及时，是可以治疗的。从以上两句可以推断出答案C是正确的。

 

参考译文:

对于阿尔茨海默病来说，那是个重要的星期。美国公共广播公司播出了非常值得一看的纪录片《遗忘》，一部有关阿尔茨海默病的优秀纪录片。如果第一次播出时，您没有收看，值得在重播时补看。此外，科学界喜讯频传，给众多与病魔做斗争的家庭以及即可能患病的生育高峰出生的一代带来了希望。除非有奇迹发生，否则在未来五十年，美国患这种严重大脑疾病的患者人数将达到一千六百万，是目前患者人数的三倍。虽然目前还没有治愈的办法，但科学家们在若干前沿领域的研究取得了新的成果。包括：

 

大剂量服用维生素：医生们过去就知道氧化剂维生素E和C有助于预防阿尔茨海默病，至少对于那些没有患上这种疾病的人们来说，是有预防作用的。可是他们不知道其预防作用到底有多大。发表在《神经病学档案》杂志上的一项涉及4740名参加者的重大研究成果显示，每天同时大剂量服用这两种维生素（至少400国际单位维生素E和500毫克以上的维生素C）能大幅度降低阿尔茨海默病的患病几率，降低幅度为78%。

 

联合治疗 对400多名阿尔茨海默病患者长达一年的研究表明，同时服用两种对大脑的化学特性起不同作用的药品有助于延缓病情。据发表在美国医学协会杂志上的一篇研究报告介绍，让患者在服用保护神经传递乙酰胆碱的donepezil (药品销售名称为Aricept)的同时，服用用于抑制有害大脑化学物质谷氨酸盐过剩的药物memantine(药品销售名称是Namenda)，一种美国食品及药物管理局去年刚刚批准的新药疗效显著。报告还指出，同时服用两种药品对延缓中度和重度患者病情起到很大作用，疗效好于单独使用其中任何一种药物。

 

大脑成像技术 最后一个好消息时匹兹堡大学的科学家新近宣布的。他们已经成功研发出察看大脑内部的技术。他们用正电子放射X显断层摄影术自动程序控制技术察看大脑内泄露疾病成因秘密的斑块。从前，医生只能在病人去世后解剖大脑时，才能研究斑块的形成。用新技术，医生们可以在病人出现症状之前就开始治疗。

 

以上提到的成果都不能治愈阿尔茨海默病。如果您本人或您的亲朋好友不幸患上了这种疾病，第一步就是让医生为做详细的测评。并不是所有的记忆力减退都意味着阿尔茨海默病，如果发现造，健忘症的可逆性病因是可以治疗的。此外，请牢记那句古老的格言：“不用就会失去它。”正如体育运动锻炼身体一样，阅读、纵横字谜、下棋、拼字游戏等脑力训练有助于保持您的脑力。