and is on track to become the dominant variant worldwide…

並有望成為全球的主導變量......

putting many countries, health officials, and medical experts on high alert.

使許多國家、衛生官員和醫學專家處於高度警惕狀態。

There's been a lot of potential variants of concern that have sprouted up around the world.

世界各地已經出現了很多令人關注的潛在變種。

And a lot of this is due to the fact that viruses mutate, that's what they do.

而這很大程度上是由於病毒變異的事實，這就是它們所做的。

But the big question is: Are these mutations resulting in the virus being more problematic?

但最大的問題是：這些變異是否導致病毒更有問題？

By now, you've probably heard about the Delta variant, but for the sake of getting us all on the same page, a little recap:

現在，你可能已經聽說了三角洲的變體，但為了讓我們都站在同一起跑線上，做個小回顧。

The COVID pandemic is caused by a virus called SARS-CoV-2, which is constantly changing as it replicates and spreads.

COVID大流行是由一種叫做SARS-CoV-2的病毒引起的，這種病毒在複製和傳播的過程中不斷變化。

These changes, or mutations, in the virus's genetic code result in new variants of the virus.

病毒遺傳密碼的這些變化，或突變，導致了病毒的新變種。

Most of these have been found to either be weaker or benign versions of the original strain,

其中大多數已被發現是原始菌株的弱化或良性版本。

meaning that the mutations didn't cause the virus to be more harmful in any way,

這意味著這些突變並沒有導致病毒在任何方面更加有害。

but a handful of variants carry mutations that are associated with increased transmissibility and more severe cases.

但少數變體攜帶的突變與傳播性增加和更嚴重的病例有關。

And those are the variants that experts are keeping close tabs on.

而這些是專家們正在密切關注的變種。

So far, four of these have been identified as “variants of concern” by the World Health Organization: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta,

到目前為止，其中四個已被世界衛生組織確定為 "令人擔憂的變種"。Alpha、Beta、Gamma和Delta。

which is the most recent addition to the list.

這是該名單中最近增加的內容。

Together, these variants are shown to be either more contagious, more deadly, or more resistant to current treatments.

這些變體加在一起，顯示出其傳染性更強、更致命，或者對目前的治療方法更有抵抗力。

But of the four, Delta is especially concerning.

但在這四個國家中，三角洲尤其令人擔憂。

According to the WHO, it's the “fastest and fittest” variant yet.

據世衛組織稱，這是迄今為止 "最快和最適合 "的變種。

Recent work out of Imperial College London suggests that it's actually up to 60% more transmissible than the Alpha variant

倫敦帝國學院最近的工作表明，它實際上比阿爾法變體的傳播性高達60%。

—which was already 50% more transmissible than the original strain—

-它的傳播性已經比原來的菌株高出50%。

and many scientists expect Delta will soon replace Alpha as the dominant variant worldwide.

許多科學家預計Delta將很快取代Alpha成為全世界的主導變體。

We're already feeling the effects, particularly with rates of infection steadily rising amongst unvaccinated populations.

我們已經感受到了這種影響，特別是在未接種疫苗的人群中感染率穩步上升。

Delta is also sometimes referred to as the “double mutant.

德爾塔有時也被稱為 "雙重突變體"。

This somewhat sinister moniker is based on the fact that two important mutations can be found in the variant's spike protein.

這個有點邪惡的名稱是基於這樣一個事實，即在該變體的穗狀蛋白中可以發現兩個重要的突變。

That's the protein on the virus's surface that allows it to gain entry into our cells.

那是病毒表面的蛋白質，使它能夠進入我們的細胞。

But there are these 11 other mutations, and we are systematically studying these mutations in isolation to try to get a better handle of...

但是還有這11個其他的突變，我們正在系統地研究這些突變，以試圖更好地掌握。

are these other mutations playing a role? And what role are they playing in terms of increased transmissibility that we're seeng with this Delta variant?

這些其他突變是否也在發揮作用？它們在我們所看到的Delta變異體的傳播性增加方面發揮了什麼作用？

Fortunately, past work by Dr. Krogan's team to study other variants is helping them better understand the mutations in Delta.

幸運的是，克羅根博士的團隊過去研究其他變體的工作正在幫助他們更好地瞭解三角洲的突變。

For the last year and a half, we've been...looking at how the host responds to the virus.

在過去的一年半里，我們一直在......研究宿主如何對病毒做出反應。

With respect to the Delta variant, compared to the other variants, there's about the same number of mutations, but they're more spread out in the genome.

關於Delta變體，與其他變體相比，突變的數量大致相同，但它們在基因組中的分佈更為分散。

In that way, maybe ultimately, more human proteins in our cells are being manipulated in adverse ways compared to earlier lineage viruses.

這樣一來，也許最終我們細胞中更多的人類蛋白質被以不利的方式操縱，與早期的線型病毒相比。

That's one hypothesis. But at the end of the day, we have to wait to see what the data looks like, and then go from there.

這是一個假說。但在一天結束時，我們必須等待，看看數據是什麼樣子的，然後再從那裡開始。

Questions abound, including whether the Delta variant impacts our health in different ways.

問題很多，包括三角洲變體是否以不同方式影響我們的健康。

There's been talk of it showing slightly different symptoms—ones typically associated with the common cold: runny nose, sore throat, headache...

有傳言說它表現出稍微不同的症狀--那些通常與普通感冒有關的症狀：流鼻涕、喉嚨痛、頭痛......。

but there's not enough data to confirm this just yet.

但目前還沒有足夠的數據來證實這一點。

As we wait for answers, the global pandemic response is on track to remain fundamentally the same: use all the available tools to combat the outbreak,

在我們等待答案的時候，全球大流行病的應對措施從根本上保持不變：使用所有可用的工具來打擊疫情。

which includes completing your vaccine course.

其中包括完成你的疫苗課程。

That is, if it's available to you—in some countries, there are still no vaccines available at all.

也就是說，如果你能得到的話--在一些國家，仍然根本沒有疫苗可用。

If you don't have the knowledge, then fear comes. So at the present time, I think you have to take a deep breath,

如果你沒有知識，那麼恐懼就會到來。所以在目前，我認為你必須深呼吸一下。

use the preventative measures we have in place, i.e. the vaccinations, and support the scientists doing the work and wait for the scientists to collect the data,

使用我們現有的預防措施，即接種疫苗，並支持科學家開展工作，等待科學家收集數據。

so that we can be in a better mindset going forward as new variants come along.

這樣，在新的變體出現時，我們可以以更好的心態向前邁進。

It's important to keep in mind that vaccines such as the ones developed by Moderna and Pfizer remain extremely effective

重要的是要牢記，諸如Moderna和輝瑞公司開發的疫苗仍然非常有效。

against severe disease caused by SARS-CoV-2— variants and all.

對抗由SARS-CoV-2變異體引起的嚴重疾病和所有。

And early results investigating their protection against the Delta variant specifically are encouraging:

而專門調查其對Delta變體的保護的早期結果是令人鼓舞的。

One UK study found Pfizer to be 88% effective against symptomatic disease caused by the Delta variant,

一項英國的研究發現，輝瑞公司對Delta變體引起的無症狀疾病有88%的效果。

while Moderna also found a “modest reduction” in neutralizing antibodies when their vaccine confronted the variant.

而Moderna公司也發現，當他們的疫苗與變體對抗時，中和抗體有 "適度減少"。

These variants are providing us with a very valuable lesson and right now the lesson is to get vaccinated as quickly as possible.

這些變種為我們提供了一個非常寶貴的教訓，現在的教訓是儘快接種疫苗。

While the coronavirus is a stand-out virus in many ways, it follows many of the same habits of other viruses.

雖然冠狀病毒在許多方面是一種突出的病毒，但它遵循其他病毒的許多相同習慣。

Namely, that it mutates.

即，它的變異。

We've covered mutation on the channel before, so if you want to dive into the science of how that (very natural, normal) process works,

我們以前在頻道上介紹過突變，所以如果你想深入瞭解這個（非常自然、正常）過程的科學原理。

check the video out here.

在這裡查看視頻。

Make sure to subscribe to Seeker for more COVID coverage, and as always, thanks so much for watching.

請務必訂閱Seeker以獲得更多的COVID報道，並一如既往地感謝您的觀看。

I'll see you next time.

下次見。