Title: Scientists discover how mosquitoes detect human sweat
mosquito n.蚊子 复数 => mosquitoes
detect v.探测,检测,测出 近义词:discover
detect symptoms of the disease 检测倒疾病征兆
detect radiation 探测倒辐射
sweat n.汗; 出汗; 流汗; 一身汗; 繁重的工作; 艰苦的劳动; 累活儿; 艰苦努力;
v.出汗; 流汗; (物体表面) 渗出水分,结水珠; 艰苦努力; 辛苦地干;
human sweat 人体汗液
Scientists have known for decades(几十年来) that mosquitoes are attracted(吸引) to the lactic acid(乳酸) contained in human sweat, but in the era before advanced genetics(遗传学), the precise mechanism had remained a mystery.
lactic adj.乳汁的
acid n.酸; adj. 酸味的; 说话尖酸的
acid fruit 酸的水果 acid remark 尖酸刻薄的话语
contain v.包含; 含有; 容纳; 控制,克制,抑制(感情); 防止…蔓延(或恶化);
in the era 在…的时代 era 具有任何特点的时代、时期
mechanism n.机械零件;运行机制 相关词汇: machine
the mechanism of the brain 大脑的运行机制
the immune system's mechanism 免疫系统的运行原理
advanced adj.先进的; 高级的; 高等的; (发展) 晚期的,后期的;
v.为了进攻、威胁等) 前进,行进; (知识、技术等) 发展,进步; 促进; 推动;
precise adj.确的; 确切的; 精确的; 明确的; (强调时间或方式等) 就,恰好; 细致的; 精细的; 认真的; 一丝不苟的;
remain v.仍然是; 保持不变; 剩余; 遗留; 继续存在; 仍需去做(或说、处理);
mystery n.神秘的事物; 不可理解之事; 奥秘; 神秘的人(或事物); 陌生而有趣的人(或事物); 神秘; 不可思议;
Now, a team of researchers at Florida International University have discovered the olfactory receptor that allows the disease-carrying insects(携带疾病的昆虫,the 特质) to hone in on our odor — and how to switch it off.
olfactory adj.嗅觉的 the olfactory cells in the nose 鼻腔内的嗅觉细胞
receptor n.感受器;受体 receive v.接受
hone in on 聚焦、锁定在某物上 同义词:home in on; zero in on
The missile honed in on the ship 导弹瞄准了那艘船
odor n.气味 近义词:smell n.气味
the odor of rotting fruit 腐烂水果的气味
the odor of chocolate 巧克力的香味
switch off 关闭电灯/机器 在生物学中,可以用来表示关闭受体
They published their work on the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, known for spreading deadly(致命地) illnesses like Zika, dengue(登革热) and yellow fever(黄热病), in the journal Current Biology《当代生物学》 on Thursday.
on 涉及某个学科或主题,经常用于论文或书籍
Aedes aegypti 埃及伊蚊
Zika 寨卡(病毒)
journal n.(某学科或专业的) 报纸,刊物,杂志; (用于报纸名) …报; 日志; 日记;
The team, led by FIU biologist Matthew DeGennaro, identified(确认,鉴定) the guilty receptor as Ionotropic Receptor(亲离子受体) 8a, or simply(简称) IR8a, through a process of elimination that began in 2013 when DeGennaro was able to create the world's first mutant mosquito, removing(移除) a gene to investigate how its absence(缺席) affected the insect.
guilty adj.感到内疚的; 感到惭愧的; 犯了罪; 有过失的; 有罪责的;
identify A as B 确认 A 就是 B
ionotropic adj.离子转变的
process of elimination <固> 排除法
mutant adj.变体的,变异的 n.突变体;变种人
investigate v.侦查(某事); 调查(某人); 研究; 调查;
Tasked with investigating IR8a, DeGennaro's PhD student(博士生) Joshua Raji began by carrying out(开展) an exposure experiment(暴露实验) using his own arm, and found the mutant mosquitoes were significantly(显著地,明显地) less attracted to him than wild ones.
task sb. with sth 给…委派任务 一般用于被动语态 be tasked with sth
exposure n.面临,遭受(危险或不快); 揭露; (在电视、报纸等上的) 亮相,被报道;
experiment n.实验; 试验; 尝试; 实践;
wild adj.自然生长的; 野的; 野生的; 天然的; 荒凉的; 荒芜的; 缺乏管教的; 无法无天的; 放荡的;
n.自然环境; 野生状态; 偏远地区; 人烟稀少的地区;
The outcome(结论,结果) was confirmed(证实,证明) through testing on 14 additional subjects(n.接受试验者;实验对象).
test on… 在…上进行实验
additional adj.附加的; 额外的; 外加的;
"People have been looking for a receptor for lactic acid since the 1960s, " DeGennaro told AFP.
人们一直在寻找(蚊子的)乳酸受体
The findings could offer a roadmap for a new generation of attractants that lure adult specimens(成年的样本) into traps(陷阱) for population control, as well as advanced(高级的,先进的) repellants that make people invisible to mosquitoes — though that could be some way away.
roadmap n.路线图;计划,指导 同义词: road map
近义词 guideline
attractant n.引诱剂 attract v.吸引 -ant 用作…的东西
lure sth into sth 把某样东西引诱到某个地方
specimens 某一类动植物的个体,一般用于科研报告中
repellant n.驱虫剂,驱蚊剂 repel v.驱赶,击退 -ant
invisible adj.看不见的; 隐形的; 无形的(与服务而非商品有关);
some way away 一段距离,一段时间
though that could be some way away 尽管这可能还需要一段时间
"It'll take years, but we are definitely a step closer, " said DeGennaro.
take years 需要好几年的时间
but we are definitely a step closer 但毫无疑问我们离目标更近了一步