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2021年11月8号的清晨，来杯“经济学人浓香咖啡”，提神解困。 Old meets new: ancient 'cupping’ method boosts covid vaccines Pressing a suction cup to the skin to boost health may sound like pseudoscience. And to some scientists, “cupping” is just that: a form of quackery akin to acupuncture and bloodletting. But researchers reporting in the journal Science Advances have applied the ancient technique to covid-19 vaccine delivery with success. In experiments, rats were injected with pure SARS-CoV-2 DNA, which on its own quickly degrades in the body. But following up the injection with moderate suction through a plastic cup induced the skin cells to absorb the DNA, triggering an immune response 100 times stronger than injection alone. Based on these results, cupping has been incorporated into DNA-vaccine clinical trials. These matter hugely because DNA vaccines, such as India’s ZyCoV-D, do not require constant refrigeration, and so are easier to roll out in poor countries. This goes to show that scientists should take inspiration wherever they can get it; public health is no place for squeamishness. Old meets new: ancient 'cupping’ method boosts covid vaccines 古法新用：“拔罐”提升新冠疫苗效力 Pressing a suction cup to the skin to boost health may sound like pseudoscience. And to some scientists, “cupping” is just that: a form of quackery akin to acupuncture and bloodletting. But researchers reporting in the journal Science Advances have applied the ancient technique to covid-19 vaccine delivery with success. 将吸盘按在皮肤上有助于健康听起来像是伪科学。对一些科学家来说，“拔罐”只是类似针灸和放血这样的一种江湖医术。但《科学进展》（Science Advances）杂志发表的文章报道，研究人员已成功将这种古老的技术应用于新冠疫苗的接种。
In experiments, rats were injected with pure SARS-CoV-2 DNA, which on its own quickly degrades in the body. But following up the injection with moderate suction through a plastic cup induced the skin cells to absorb the DNA, triggering an immune response 100 times stronger than injection alone. Based on these results, cupping has been incorporated into DNA-vaccine clinical trials. These matter hugely because DNA vaccines, such as India’s ZyCoV-D, do not require constant refrigeration, and so are easier to roll out in poor countries. This goes to show that scientists should take inspiration wherever they can get it; public health is no place for squeamishness. 在实验中，大鼠被注入纯SARS-CoV-2病毒的DNA，该DNA会在大鼠体内迅速降解。但注入之后，通过塑料杯适度的抽吸，促使皮肤细胞吸收病毒的DNA，可以触发比单独注射强一百倍的免疫反应。基于这些结果，拔罐已被纳入DNA疫苗的临床试验。这些研究非常重要，因为DNA疫苗，如印度的ZyCov-D，不需要持续冷藏，更容易在贫穷国家推广。这表明科学家们应该敢想敢做，积极探索，找寻灵感；迂腐守旧的做法（指“将拔罐这样的事情视作伪科学，进而全盘否定、不予接受”）不应在公共卫生领域存在。
王不留(wbliu85)注： 1. 科学实验中，小鼠、大鼠属于不同的品种，承担的实验也不大相同。一般根据实验类型具体选择。 mouse、mice 指的是小鼠（mice是mouse的复数形式），学名Mus musculus。 rat 指的是大鼠，学名Rattus norvegicus。 大鼠在一月龄的时候和成熟的小鼠体型接近。它们不是一个品种。 喏，这个是大鼠…… 注意：大鼠是害虫！不是都那么可爱！看到野生大鼠请勿靠近，它们攻击性很强！野生成年大鼠5只可以完全剿灭一只家猫。 2. Follow up 类似译文： They follow up their March show with four UK dates next month. 他们在三月演出以后，就是下个月在英国的四场演出。《牛津高阶英汉双解词典》 3. 拔火罐是一种传统的疗法，将加热的杯子放在皮肤上以产生负压，增加该部位的血液循环以促进痊愈。 核酸医学是使用DNA、RNA和其他控制遗传信息的生物分子下一代技术。 当合成或工程化的核酸进入宿主细胞时，核酸药物就会起作用，并利用细胞机制引导编码蛋白的产生，从而在疫苗接种的情况下引发免疫反应。该过程中的一个关键步骤是转染，即通过细胞膜屏障将纯化的核酸运送到宿主细胞里。 如果DNA和RNA分子被注射到组织中，它们不会自动进入宿主细胞，除非受到保护，否则它们大多数会迅速降解。 但在这项新研究中，在注射纯化DNA后，研究人员直接对皮肤部位施加吸力，在皮肤外层产生负压。吸力在皮肤各层产生张力和松弛，触发皮肤细胞吸收DNA分子。 这种新的方法简单、无痛，没有已知的副作用。其优势还包括设备的成本效益和制造的可扩展性，以及对用户培训的最低要求。由于DNA疫苗的固有优势，尤其是无需冷链，这项技术有助于将疫苗接种计划推向世界上资源有限的偏远地区。” 今天的经济学人全英文早报请看 ->> “The Economist Espresso 20211108” 。 注：早报精选每周一到周五更新。周六提供当日刊《经济学人》内容精华及下载链接。 王不留(微信: wbliu85)，混迹上海，常读外刊的打工人 公众号“考研英语笔记”持续分享外刊及精读文章 帮点个“在看”，为作者加油↓↓ |
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