1. World War I, more than 10 million dead, many from the infection of their wounds.

第一次世界大战中超过1千万人死亡，许多人死于伤口感染。

2. After the war, research intensified to find safe methods of repelling bacteria or invaders.

一战以后，对寻找驱除细菌和病虫入侵的安全方法加强了研究。

3. Among those on the case was Scottish physician Alexander Fleming.

在此方面的研究者中有苏格兰人亚历山大•弗莱明医生。

4. While studying Staphylococcus bacteria, Fleming noticed something unusual growing in the culture dish: a mold—Penicillium notatum.

在研究葡萄球菌时，弗莱明注意到一样不同寻常的东西生长在培养皿里：一种真菌，叫青霉菌。

5. He saw that the bacteria surrounding the mold had died off, which led him to speculate the mold-producing substance that was lethal to the bacteria. He named the substance Penicillin.

他看到在真菌周围的细菌都死了，于是他推测到产生真菌的物质对细菌是致命的。他把这种物质取名为“青霉素”。

6. For the next several years, Fleming tried extracting penicillin and applied it to treat infections. But he was unsuccessful and eventually gave up.

在以后的几年里，弗莱明尝试着提取青霉素，应用它来治疗感染。但是他未成功而最终放弃了。

7. Fleming's work, however, proved invaluable. In 1935, scientist Howard Florey and Ernst  Chain of Oxford University came across a record of Fleming's curious but incomplete work of penicillin, and decided to investigate. 

然而，弗莱明的研究证明是极有价值的。在1935年，牛津大学的科学家霍华德•弗洛里与厄恩斯特•钱恩偶然发现了弗莱明奇妙的但不完全的青霉素研究，于是决定调查研究。

8. This time they successfully extracted and purified penicillin. And in 1940, they tested it.

这一次，他们成功地提取了青霉素，并加以纯化。在1940年，他们进行青霉素试验。

9. They injected 8 mice with lethal doses of bacteria Staphylococci. Then they injected 4 of the mice with penicillin.

他们给8只小鼠注射了致命剂量的葡萄球菌，然后又给其中4只小鼠注射了青霉素。

10. Within hours they beheld the results: the 4 mice not treated with penicillin were dead, but 3 of the 4 that had been given penicillin were alive.

在几小时内他们看到了意想不到的结果：没有注射青霉素的4只小鼠死了，而注射青霉素的4只小鼠有3只还活着。

11. From Fleming to Florey and Chain, the world's first antibiotic was born.

从弗莱明到弗洛里和钱恩的研究，世界上首个抗生素诞生了。 

12. It was a miracle drug, it cured so many diseases that had caused so much pain and  suffering. 

青霉素是特效药，治愈了造成那么多痛苦的大量疾病。

责任编辑：admin