The Hindu Editorial (Shot in the arm) – Oct 04, 2023

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The Hindu Editorial (Shot in the arm) – Oct 04, 2023:

a shot in the arm (phrase) – (figuratively) boost, fillip, stimulus, impetus, encouragement; (literally) an injection of medical drugs.
vaccine (noun) – a biological preparation that improves immunity to a particular disease.
mRNA vaccine (noun) – The vaccine is a messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine, which stands for “messenger ribonucleic acid”. Messenger RNA is essentially the blueprint that living cells use to turn gene sequences into the proteins that form their fundamental structures. Once injected, the mRNA in the vaccine is translated into a viral protein, which our immune systems detect. The body generates an immune response in reaction to these viral proteins, which can’t by themselves cause disease, and this provides protection against developing Covid-19.
m-RNA technology (noun) – messenger RNA technology; the set of instructions by which cells make all proteins and send them to various parts of the body. mRNA medicines take advantage of normal biological processes to express proteins and create a desired therapeutic effect.
nominee (noun) – candidate.
physiology (noun) – the branch of biology that deals with the functions and processes of living organisms, both animals and plants.
path-breaking (adjective) – pioneering; innovative.
to one’s credit (phrase) – used to mention that someone deserves praise/admiration.
have to do with (phrase) – be connected with something) to the extent mentioned.
context (noun) – circumstances, conditions, situations, factors.
safe bet (noun) – something that is almost certainly true; something that is surely to happen; something that is very likely to be successful.
enable (verb) – make (something) possible; prepare, facilitate.
development (noun) – progress, progression, advancement, improvement, growth.
come as no surprise (phrase) – something which is not surprising someone, but is as expected one.
given (preposition) – considering, taking into account, bearing in mind.
keep alive (phrase) – keep up, keep going, cause to continue, support, perpetuate, preserve, sustain, prolong.
tick all the boxes (phrase) – to fulfill all the requirements.
confer (verb) – grant, bestow, present/give.
mankind (noun) – humanity, humankind, the human race, human beings, humans, people.
recognise (verb) – admit, accept, appreciate, acknowledge, realize; reward, honour, acclaim, commend, give recognition to.
so far (phrase) – until now, up to the present, up to this point, thus far, hitherto.
inevitably (adverb) – unavoidably, certainly, definitely.
intersectoral (adjective) – between two/more sectors.
collaboration (noun) – cooperation, alliance, joint effort, partnership.
steadfast (adjective) – firm, resolute, determined, insistent, single-minded.
against all odds (phrase) – if yo do/achieve something against all odds, you do/achieve it despite (it) appeared impossible or very unlikely.
biochemist (noun) – a person who studies biochemistry (i.e., the chemical principles of living things and of biological processes).
fascinate (verb) – attract, spellbind, engage, delight, interest.
genetic (adjective) – relating to genes.
encode (verb) – to specify the genetic code (for a particular amino acid/a protein).
Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) (noun) – DNA is an important biological macromolecule (nucleic acid) that replicates and stores genetic information. It is a blueprint for all genetic information contained within an organism. DNA has two strand structure. DNA is found in the cell’s nucleus.
DNA (noun) – (figuratively) the basic/fundamental qualities/characteristics of someone/something.
template (noun) – the template strand is one of the DNA strands whose base sequence helps in building mRNA through complementary base sequencing. Both template and coding strand are the two distinct strand of the double-stranded DNA, in which the former works as a base to transcribe mRNA, and the latter determines the correct base sequence of the mRNA.
play a role or play a part (phrase) – contribute to, be instrumental in, be a factor in.
in vitro (adjective) – Latin, literally ‘in glass’; (relating to the process of fertilization in a test tube or outside the body, whereas “in vivo” literally means ‘in a living thing’).
vitro transcription (noun) – a widely used technique to produce RNA from DNA templates in the laboratory.
Transcription (noun) – as related to genomics, it is the process of making an RNA copy of a gene’s DNA sequence. This copy, called messenger RNA (mRNA), carries the gene’s protein information encoded in DNA. In humans and other complex organisms, mRNA moves from the cell nucleus to the cell cytoplasm (watery interior), where it is used for synthesizing the encoded protein.
take off (phrasal verb) – succeed, become successful, become popular, do well.
enthusiasm (noun) – zeal, energy, eagerness, keenness, willingness, readiness.
flag (verb) – indicate, point out, identify; draw attention to something.
hurdle (noun) – obstacle, difficulty, problem, barrier, impediment, obstruction, hindrance.
inflammatory (adjective) – relating to the body’s immune system’s response to an irritant. causing swelling, irritant.
undeterred (adjective) – not discouraged; determined, ambitious.
keep on the course (phrase) – stay the course; continue doing something in spite of difficulties; to continue doing something till the end even though it is tough/challenging; work hard till the end to accomplish the task.
immunologist (noun) – a specialist in immunology (the branch of medicine and biology relate to immunity).
Dendritic cells (DCs) (plural noun) – Dendritic cells (DCs) are professional antigen presenting cells that inform the fight against invasive pathogens while enforcing tolerance to self and harmless environmental antigens.
immune surveillance (noun) – immunosurveillance; the continuous monitoring process of the immune system whereby abnormal cells are recognized and destroyed.
surveillance (noun) – monitoring, observation, scrutiny, inspection.
vaccine-induced (adjective) – produced by vaccine.
ease (verb) – assist, make easy, facilitate.
get rid of (phrasal verb) – do away with, throw away, remove, dispense with, exclude, drop, abandon, forgo, discard.
inchoate (adjective) – unclear, confused; disordered.
tease (verb) – make fun of, laugh at, ridicule, deride.
fruition (noun) – realization, achievement, accomplishment/completion.
pandemic (noun) – the worldwide spread of a new disease; The illness spreads around the world and typically affects a large number of people across a wide area.
S-gene (noun) – the S-gene encodes a surface protein, the spike protein.
spike (S) protein (noun) – spike (S) protein is the sole viral membrane protein responsible for coronavirus entry into host cells.
antibody (noun) – it is also called ‘immunoglobulin’; a protective protein produced mainly by plasma (blood) cells in the immune system in response to the presence of antigens (disease causing organisms (bacteria & viruses) and other harmful/toxic foreign substances like insect venom).
contract (verb) – develop, catch, become infected with, fall ill with, be taken ill with (a disease).
of course (phrase) – certainly, obviously, definitely, needless to say, it goes without saying.
the rest is history (phrase) – an indication that you do not need to tell them what happened next because everyone knows about it already.