Good news for cat lovers who can't stop sneezing around their furry friends: researchers have developed a potential new cat allergy vaccine.

喜欢“撸猫”却饱受过敏困扰的朋友们，好消息来啦！研究人员研发了一种新的疫苗，能够显著降低猫咪的致敏水平，让爱猫一族都能抱上毛茸茸的可爱猫咪。

The preliminary study showed that the vaccine called "HypoPet" is able to target and neutralize the major cat allergen "Fel d 1" — a cat protein that's secreted into a cat's saliva and tears, as well as found on the animal's pelt — that causes humans' allergic reactions. The researchers reported that the vaccine is "well-tolerated".

初步研究结果表明，这款名为“HypoPet”的疫苗能够中和宠物猫身上含有的过敏原“Fel d 1”蛋白。该蛋白存在于猫咪的唾液和泪液以及全身的毛发中，而此物质便是导致人类过敏的罪魁祸首。研究人员表示，该疫苗当前在猫咪身上“耐受良好”。

But unlike most vaccines, the shot is for the cat — not its human owners. In other words, the vaccine immunizes cats "against their own major allergen, Fel d 1," according to the study.

和大多数的疫苗不同，这款疫苗的接种对象不是猫的主人，而是猫咪。换句话说，该疫苗让猫咪具备“抵抗自身Fel d 1过敏原”的免疫能力。

The vaccine would help millions of pet owners who are allergic to their animals. The proteins found in a pet's dander, skin flakes, saliva and urine can cause an allergic reaction, like sniffling, sneezing, itchiness and watery eyes, or aggravate asthma symptoms in some people.

这款疫苗将使数百万对宠物过敏的主人受益。宠物的毛发、皮屑、唾液和尿液中含有的过敏原常常会导致易敏人群发生过敏反应，轻者会出现打喷嚏、皮肤瘙痒和眼睛流泪等症状，重者则会加重哮喘。

The vaccine has the potential to lead to a lower allergenic cat, and the benefits of that are two-fold. Both human subjects and animals could profit from this treatment because allergic cat owners would reduce their risk of developing chronic diseases, such as asthma, and become more tolerant of their cats, which therefore could stay in the households and not need to be relinquished to animal shelters.

这款疫苗能够降低猫的致敏性，带来双重好处：无论是猫的主人还是猫咪都能从中获益，猫主人患上诸如哮喘等慢性病的风险降低，从而增加对猫咪的容忍度，改变猫咪被遗弃或被送往动物收容所的命运。

However, more research is still needed — including with human subjects — and it will be a while before the vaccine is available. In the meantime, you can help keep sneezing and watery eyes at bay by keeping pets out of your bedroom. Professionals also recommend using a double or micro-filter bag in the vacuum to reduce the amount of pet allergen in carpeting, which can end up in the air you breathe, and use HEPA air cleaners, which help remove allergenic particles from the air so you can breathe easier.

然而，此疫苗上市仍需时日，在正式推出前还需要进一步研究，包括其对人类的潜在影响。在此期间，宠物主可以通过防止猫咪进入卧室活动来减少过敏反应。专家还推荐，在清洁地毯时，在吸尘器内安装双重尘袋或者微滤尘袋，从而减少空气中的宠物过敏原。此外，使用带有HEPA滤网的空气净化器，也能过滤空气中的致敏微粒，让呼吸更为通畅。

preliminary: adj. 初步的

allergen: n. 过敏原

pelt: n. （动物的）毛皮

relinquish: v. 放弃