3名科学家因发现丙型肝炎病毒而获得诺贝尔奖

3名科学家因发现丙型肝炎病毒而获得诺贝尔奖

A Nobel Prize gold medal seen during the manufacturing process in the Swedish Mint. The medals, presented to each laureate, are made of 18 karat recycled gold and weigh 175 grams (6.13 ounces). The Economics medal weighs 185 grams (6.48 ounces).

在瑞典造币厂制造过程中看到的诺贝尔奖金质奖章。颁发给每位获奖者的奖牌由18克拉的回收黄金制成，重175克(6.13盎司)。经济学奖章重185克(6.48盎司)。

Three scientists Monday won the 2020 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for discovering the hepatitis C virus, which led to the development of a test to prevent the spread of the virus and drugs that have saved millions of lives, the Nobel Assembly said.

诺贝尔大会说，三名科学家因发现丙型肝炎病毒，于周一获得2020年诺贝尔生理学或医学奖，这导致了一项防止病毒传播的试验的发展，以及挽救了数百万人生命的药物。

Harvey Alter of the National Institutes of Health; Michael Houghton, who is now at the University of Alberta in Canada; and Charles Rice, who is now at Rockefeller University in New York, will share the 10 million Swedish krona ($1.1 million) prize.

美国国立卫生研究院的哈维·奥尔特、现在在加拿大阿尔伯塔大学的迈克尔·霍顿和现在在纽约洛克菲勒大学的查尔斯·赖斯将分享1000万瑞典克朗(110万美元)的奖金。

Hepatitis C causes serious liver disease, which can be fatal. The virus is transmitted through contaminated water and bodily fluids, including blood. The discovery led to a test for the virus, which is now widely used to protect people from becoming infected through blood transfusions. The discovery also led to antiviral drugs to treat the infection.

丙型肝炎会导致严重的肝脏疾病，这可能是致命的。该病毒通过受污染的水和包括血液在内的体液传播。这一发现导致了对该病毒的测试，该病毒现在被广泛用于保护人们不被输血感染。这一发现还导致了治疗这种感染的抗病毒药物的出现。

"For the first time in history, the disease can now be cured, raising hopes of eradicating hepatitis C virus from the world population," the Nobel Committee said in a statement.

诺贝尔委员会在一份声明中说:“历史上第一次，这种疾病现在可以被治愈，为世界人口根除丙型肝炎病毒带来了希望。”

As is customary, the announcement was made at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm. The Nobels in physics, chemistry, literature and peace will be awarded this week, and the prize in economics will awarded next Monday.

按照惯例，这一通告是在斯德哥尔摩的卡罗林斯卡学院宣布的。物理学、化学、文学和和平奖将于本周颁发，经济学奖将于下周一颁发。

Since 1901, the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine has been awarded to 219 scientists, including 12 women. The youngest laureate was 32 years old; the oldest 87.

自1901年以来，诺贝尔生理学或医学奖颁发给了219位科学家，其中包括12位女性。最年轻的获奖者只有32岁;最年长的获奖者是87岁。

The World Health Organization estimates that 71 million people worldwide have chronic hepatitis C, which can lead to liver cancer and cirrhosis. There are approximately 400,000 deaths annually from the disease, according to WHO.

世界卫生组织估计，全世界有7100万人患有慢性丙型肝炎，可能导致肝癌和肝硬化。据世卫组织统计，每年约有40万人死于该病。

In the U.S., there are more than 50,000 cases of hepatitis C each year, a rate that continues to rise, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

美国疾病控制与预防中心的数据显示，美国每年有超过5万例丙肝病例，而且这一比例还在继续上升。

While the drugs for hepatitis C are effective, their high cost — at tens of thousands of dollars per course of treatment — has limited their use both in the U.S. and in the developing world. The price has come down as more drugs are developed, but cost remains a significant barrier to many people with the disease.

尽管治疗丙型肝炎的药物是有效的，但它们高昂的成本——每个疗程数万美元——限制了它们在美国和发展中国家的使用。随着研发出更多的药物，价格有所下降，但对许多患者来说，成本仍然是一个重大障碍。

"This has been a virus that has been a plague affecting millions of people, and still is unfortunately," Thomas Perlmann, secretary-general of the Nobel Assembly, said during an interview after the announcement.

诺贝尔委员会秘书长托马斯·佩尔曼在诺贝尔奖宣布后接受采访时表示:“这是一种病毒，一种影响数百万人的灾难，不幸的是，现在仍然如此。”

Houghton, who is in his 60s, was born in the United Kingdom. Alter was born in 1935 and Rice in 1952, both in the United States.

霍顿60多岁，出生在英国。奥尔特于1935年出生，赖斯于1952年出生，两人都出生于美国。

"The discovery of the hepatitis C virus revealed the cause of the remaining cases of chronic hepatitis and made possible blood tests and new medicines that have saved millions of lives," according to the announcement.

“丙型肝炎病毒的发现揭示了其余慢性肝炎病例的病因，使血液检测和新药成为可能，从而挽救了数百万人的生命，”公告称。