Tracking Down HIV

　　In the summer of 1980, a patient had a strange purplish spot removedfrom below his ear. It was Kaposi’s sarcoma, a rarefm of skin cancer. This patient also had lymph node swelling exhaustion.In November 1980, a Los Angeles immunologist examined a young man who haddiseases linked to immune system malfunctions. The doct had a T-cell counttaken of the patient’s blood. T-cells are a type of white blood cell that playsa key role1 in immune responses. The patient had no helper T-cells.

　　By the end of 1980, 55 Americans were diagnosed with infectionsrelated to immune system breakdown; four had died. A year later the death tollwas 74. Intravenous drug users had T-cell abnmalities. People who hadreceived blood transfusions showed symptoms of immune system breakdown. By July1982, 471 cases of the disease, now called Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome(AIDS), had been repted; 184 people had died.

　　In April 1984, American virologist Dr. Robert Gallo isolated thepathogen, disease producer, responsible f2 AIDS. He called it HTLV-III. InParis, Dr. Luc Montagnier identified a virus he called LAV. An internationalpanel of scientists determined that both men had found the same virus. Itbecame known as Human Immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Blood banks began screeningf HTV in 1985, but by then about 29,000 people had been infected throughblood transfusions. Some 12,000 hemophiliacs had contracted HIV throughblood-clotting products. By 1995, 477,900 Americans had AIDS; 295,500 had died.

　　In 1996, researchers announced drugs that reduced HIV in infectedpeople. Today scientists are testing vaccines believe that if HIV can besuppressed, then perhaps it can be eradicated3, but it is still a race againsttime.

　　词汇：

　　spot n. 地点，斑点，斑块，青春痘

　　lymph n. 淋巴结

　　sarcoma n. 肿瘤，肉瘤，恶性毒瘤

　　exhaustion n. 衰竭，耗尽，精疲力竭

　　immunologist n. 免疫学家

　　malfunction n. 故障，失灵，疾病

　　count n. 计数，计算

　　infection n. 传染病，感染

　　breakdown n. 故障，衰弱，崩溃

　　toll n. 代价，死亡人数

　　intravenous drug n. 静脉注射药物

　　abnmalities n. (abnmality的复数形式)畸形，异常情况

　　blood transfusion n. 输血

　　symptom n. 症状

　　virologist n. 病毒学家

　　virus n. 病毒

　　panel n. 座谈小组，仪表板

　　hemophiliac n. 血友病患者

　　vaccine n. 疫苗

　　注释：

　　1.play a key role...扮演一个关键角色，有至关重要的作用

　　2.be responsible f...对……负责，是……的原因

　　3.can be eradicated可以被根除的

　　练习：
3.The final paragraph leads the reader to see that scientists ____.

　　A　have no hope in ever finding a cure fHIV

　　B　have hope that a cure f HIV will befound

　　C　have run out of time to find a cure fHIV

　　D　are in a contest against each other tofind a cure f HIV