医学部学士編入受験指導例(2)

次の英文を読んで、ここで述べられているinflammation(文全体で)について、４００字程度でまとめなさい。［＊印のついた語句は注を参照にしなさい。］

   What does an injured toe or a splinter* in a finger have to do with your risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, suffering a heart attack or dying from colon cancer*? More than you might think. As scientists look deeper into the fundamental causes of those and other illnesses, they are starting to see links to an age-old immunological defense mechanism called inflammation --- the same biological process that turns the tissue around a splinter red and causes swelling in an injured toe. If they are right --- and the evidence is starting to look pretty good --- it could radically change doctors' concept of what makes us sick. It could also prove a great source of profit to drug companies looking for new ways to keep us well.

[同志社大学（法・工）2005年]　全文（設問設定は当RJ-Netschool）　

→for_m-2.pdfをダウンロード

これに関連して、_Nature Medicine_の今月号（10月）に以下の記事があります。

・    Controlling immune response may cut bird flu death rate p1105　Helen Pearson

・    Fatal outcome of human influenza A (H5N1) is associated with high viral load and hypercytokinemia pp1203 – 1207

[Abstract]

Avian influenza A (H5N1) viruses cause severe disease in humans^{1, 2}, but the basis for their virulence remains unclear. In vitro and animal studies indicate that high and disseminated viral replication is important for disease pathogenesis^{3, 4, 5}. Laboratory experiments suggest that virus-induced cytokine dysregulation may contribute to disease severity^{6, 7, 8, 9}. To assess the relevance of these findings for human disease, we performed virological and immunological studies in 18 individuals with H5N1 and 8 individuals infected with human influenza virus subtypes. Influenza H5N1 infection in humans is characterized by high pharyngeal virus loads and frequent detection of viral RNA in rectum and blood. Viral RNA in blood was present only in fatal H5N1 cases and was associated with higher pharyngeal viral loads. We observed low peripheral blood T-lymphocyte counts and high chemokine and cytokine levels in H5N1-infected individuals, particularly in those who died, and these correlated with pharyngeal viral loads. Genetic characterization of H5N1 viruses revealed mutations in the viral polymerase complex associated with mammalian adaptation and virulence. Our observations indicate that high viral load, and the resulting intense inflammatory responses, are central to influenza H5N1 pathogenesis. The focus of clinical management should be on preventing this intense cytokine response, by early diagnosis and effective antiviral treatment.

[参考] (Nature 3 August 2006)

Bird flu not set for pandemic, says US team p490　H5N1 virus fails to cause epidemic in ferret experiment. Erika Check