Spanish laboratory fights dengue with mosquito sterilization initiative

admin 2024年8月25日

Beginner

Health & Lifestyle, Health & Lifestyle - Beginner

Pre-reading questions:

I will read each question. Then, please answer them.

講師がそれぞれの質問を読むので答えましょう。

Have you ever heard of using insects to control health problems?
Can climate change affect how often some diseases happen?

Vocabulary:

I will read the words, meanings, and sample sentences. Then, repeat after me.

単語、意味、例文を読みます。講師に続いて音読しましょう。

laboratory /LAB-ruh-tawr-ee/

[noun] – a room or building with scientific equipment for doing scientific tests or for teaching science, or a place where chemicals or medicines are produced
The chemistry students spent hours in the laboratory working on their experiments.

fever /FEE-ver/

[noun] – a medical condition in which the body temperature is higher than usual
She had a high fever and needed to see a doctor immediately.

mosquito /muh-SKEE-toh/

[noun] – a small flying insect that bites people and animals and feeds on their blood
The mosquitoes were very active in the evening, making it difficult to enjoy the outdoors.

bite /bahyt/

[verb] – to cut, wound, or sting with the teeth or mouth
She felt a sharp pain when the mosquito bit her on the arm.

rise /rahyz/

[noun] – an increase in the amount, level, or intensity of something
There was a noticeable rise in temperatures during the summer.

Article reading:

Please read the whole article. Then, I will check your pronunciation and intonation.

記事を音読しましょう。講師はあなたの発音とイントネーションを確認します。

In Valencia, Spain, a laboratory is working to control dengue fever and other diseases by breeding and sterilizing tiger mosquitoes. These mosquitoes are spreading more due to warmer temperatures. The Biological Pest Control Centre, funded by the local government, has a program to sterilize about 45,000 male mosquitoes each week using an electron accelerator. They then release these mosquitoes into the wild. The goal is for the sterilized males to mate with female mosquitoes, which bite people and spread diseases. By stopping the females from having babies, the program hopes to reduce the number of mosquitoes and lower the spread of diseases. This European project, run by a laboratory skilled in controlling fruit flies, is crucial as diseases like dengue, Zika, and chikungunya become more common. The laboratory uses local mosquitoes, separating and sterilizing males with radiation. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control has reported more dengue cases and local outbreaks of diseases like West Nile virus. The tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus, is now present in 13 European countries, including Spain. The World Health Organization noted that global dengue cases have increased eightfold since 2000, reaching 4.2 million in 2022, a rise linked to climate change.

True or False:

Read the sentences and identify if they are true or false based on the article.

文章を読んで、記事に基づいて正誤を答えましょう。

Warmer temperatures are contributing to the spread of tiger mosquitoes across Europe.
The laboratory managing this program has experience with fruit fly control.
The goal of sterilizing male mosquitoes is to reduce the mosquito population by preventing reproduction.
The World Health Organization reported that global dengue cases have decreased since 2000.
Climate change is linked to the increase in global dengue cases and the expansion of mosquito populations.

Fill in the blanks:

Choose the correct word from the table, then fill in the blanks.

適切な言葉を選んで空欄を埋めましょう。

laboratory

fever

mosquitoes

bite

rise

The __________ in sea levels is a major concern for coastal communities.
__________ are known to carry diseases such as malaria and dengue fever.
Bees __________ when threatened.
He was diagnosed with a __________ after feeling unwell for several days.
The new __________ was equipped with state-of-the-art technology for medical research.