Chapter 155 Is there anyone doing scientific research like this?
Zhang Wei was in the room where he was, and once again read the paper "Inhibition of RNA Recognition by Toll-Like Receptors: The Impact of Nucleoside Modifications and the Evolutionary Origin of RNA."
All the data in the paper can be replaced. As for the text content, there is no need to modify it at all and it can be sent directly.
However, Zhang Wei feels that the last part about the evolutionary origin of RNA is completely unnecessary and can be deleted and replaced with an introduction to the application prospects of mRNA technology.
So Zhang Wei found antipyretics and called the devil: "Brother Devil, I need to find a paper introducing the application prospects of mRNA technology."
""Thebillion-dollarbiotech", published in "Nature" in 2015, the author is Nuba Afyan." The devil said.
""Ten Billion Dollar Biotechnology"? The name is straightforward enough, but the numbers are still too conservative. Since it can be published in "Nature", there should be no problem, so just redeem it! "Zhang Wei said.
After feeling dizzy for a while, this article appeared in Zhang Wei's hand. He quickly took the fever-reducing tablets, took it easy, and then began to read the content of the article.
As mentioned before, the three major scientific journals not only contain papers, but also introduce scientific and technological achievements and evaluate the papers. This article is an introduction to scientific and technological achievements, and it introduces the application of mRNA technology to vaccine development.
The author of this article, Nuba Afyan, is one of the co-founders of Moderna and also served as the chairman of Moderna.
Looking back at the publication date of this article in 2015, Zhang Wei instantly understood that this was an advertising soft article.
“I remember that in 2015, Moderna developed the first mRNA vaccine, which seemed to be against avian influenza. Nuba Afyan published a paper in the same year and said that it would be worth tens of billions U.S. dollar biotech is clearly trying to attract investment in mRNA vaccine technology!
Considering that Moderna has really developed and become a vaccine giant with a market value of hundreds of billions of dollars, let’s see. The effect of using this paper to advertise and attract investment is quite good.”
Thinking of this, Zhang Wei began to select paragraphs from this advertising soft article and put them in his own paper to replace the original part about it. Contents of the evolutionary origins of RNA.
Historically, no one paid much attention to the nucleoside-modified mRNA technology after it was published, because everyone did not know how to apply this technology.
The original paper introduces the historical origin of RNA, but who cares about such a thing? What everyone is focusing on is what this technology can be used for and how much benefit it can bring!
If they knew that this technology could be used to make mRNA vaccines, how could the major vaccine companies around the world remain indifferent!
If they knew that this technology would bring hundreds of billions of dollars in value, major vaccine companies around the world would have gone crazy!
So Zhang Wei decided to let the whole world know when publishing the paper that nucleoside-modified mRNA technology can be used to make mRNA vaccines.
The application of scientific research results is sometimes just a layer of window paper. When this layer of window paper is not broken, the scientific research results seem useless. Once this layer of window paper is broken, it is likely to be useless. Bring unexpected huge benefits.
The most direct example is Pfizer's little blue pill. This drug was originally developed to treat cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. However, it was later discovered that the effect of treating cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases was not as ideal as imagined. On the contrary, it was effective in treating male dysfunction. Significant efficacy. Once this window is opened, a new world is created directly.
The same is true for nucleoside-modified mRNA technology. After the breakthrough of nucleoside-modified mRNA technology in 2005, no one thought that this technology could be used to create vaccines. Scientists at that time were still obsessed with the unreachable mRNA therapy.
Until 2007, a Harvard scientist named Rossi believed that this technology could be used to re-edit cells to replace embryonic stem cells.
Because there have always been medical ethical issues in embryonic stem cell research, if a substitute can be found, this problem can be solved.
Compared with the creation of mRNA vaccines, research on replacing embryonic stem cells is simply not worth mentioning. It is equivalent to shooting mosquitoes with a cannon.
After more than two years of research, Rossi finally had results, so he contacted Robert Lange, a professor of biomedicine at MIT, hoping to get funding investment.
In addition to being a scientist, Robert Lange is also a successful businessman. He often invests in scientific research projects and then uses his patents to make money. Therefore, he is also known as the "most knowledgeable person" in American academic circles. Scientists who make money”.
Robert Lange has a much sharper vision than Rossi. He sees that the real value of nucleoside-modified mRNA technology lies in the development of mRNA vaccines, rather than the replacement of embryonic stem cells.
Later, Rossi and Robert Lange found a venture capital company hoping to get investment. The boss of this venture capital company was Nuba Afyan, who wrote advertising soft articles.
Three people formed a partnership called Moderna Medical, which was the Moderna that later made the coronavirus mRNA vaccine.
But it is a pity that Rossi left Moderna in 2014 due to different ideas. He was not interested in making vaccines, but still wanted to develop projects to replace embryonic stem cells. The scientist also successfully missed the opportunity to get rich suddenly.
The following year, in 2015, Moderna produced an avian influenza mRNA vaccine, so it obtained financing and established its own vaccine production line.
In 2017, Moderna developed an influenza mRNA vaccine. In 2018, Moderna was listed on Nasdaq. The US$500 million IPO was already the largest IPO case for a biotechnology company at that time.
At this time, mRNA vaccines are considered a more valuable technology.
Then in 2021, Moderna’s coronavirus mRNA vaccine received emergency approval from the United States and was allowed to be marketed. Moderna also successfully joined the 100 billion market capitalization club and became a giant in the vaccine industry.
The technology of nucleoside modification of mRNA also won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2023. In other words, nucleoside-modified mRNA technology appeared in 2005, but it was only 2010 that people realized it could be used to make vaccines, which took five years.
Moderna made the first human mRNA vaccine in 2015, and it took another five years. After that, it took another three years to get noticed by investors and conduct an IPO.
Is the mRNA vaccine really entering large-scale application because of masks? The world is in urgent need of vaccines. If there were no masks, Moderna might still be making flu vaccines!
Zhang Weike did not intend to wait for such a long time, so he decided to directly explain in the paper that this technology is used to make vaccines when he published the paper!
Whether and how long it will take to win the Nobel Prize is directly related to the application of scientific research results. Zhang Wei certainly hopes that the nucleoside-modified mRNA technology will be applied as soon as possible, so that the Nobel Prize will come faster.
......
After modifying the data in the original paper and changing the origin of RNA evolution to the application of nucleoside modifications, Zhang Wei's paper is now complete.
The original title of "Inhibition of RNA Recognition by Toll-like Receptors: The Impact of Nucleoside Modifications and the Evolutionary Origin of RNA" was modified by Zhang Wei to "Inhibition of RNA Recognition by Toll-like Receptors: Nucleus Effects of glycoside modification and future application directions".
After checking many times and finding that there was indeed no problem, Zhang Wei found a time and knocked on Meng Heming's office with the written documents and papers of the experiment.
"Director Meng, you are busy! Didn't I disturb you?" Zhang Wei walked in with a smile.
"You're already here. Even if I don't want you to disturb me, I'm still disturbed by you!" Meng Heming said angrily.
“I can go out again!” Zhang Wei said this, but walked forward and came directly to Meng Heming.
"Tell me, what's the matter?" Meng Heming asked.
"Director Meng, I would like to ask about the project funding. When will the funding for my project come?" Zhang Wei asked with a smile.
"Didn't I tell you before? It will arrive around New Year's Day. This is soon!" Meng Heming looked at Zhang Wei and felt more and more that Zhang Wei's smile was malicious.
An unpleasant thought flashed through Meng Heming's mind, and he immediately asked: "The experimental funds that the school advanced to you in advance have not been used up, right?"
"That's true. No, my experiment is just a guinea pig, it doesn’t cost much!" Zhang Wei quickly denied.
Meng Heming breathed a sigh of relief, and then said: "I'm talking about Zhang Wei, you'd better say it directly! You're smiling like this, I feel guilty. Could it be that I really met a liar? Right?
Didn’t I say it last time, I don’t know any psychiatrists, and you shouldn’t believe the sons of Qin Shihuang and Bill Gates, they are all fake!”
"Director Meng, in your eyes, am I so unbearable!" Zhang Wei shook his head helplessly, and then said: "Then I have something to say directly.
This is my first time to preside over scientific research. I don’t understand many things about the project. I came to you this time just to ask, if the national funds haven’t arrived yet, but I have already produced results, will the funds be returned?”
"What is going on in your mind? How could you think of such a weird problem? The scientific research project has just been established and the results have been produced before the funds have been allocated. How could this be possible?" Meng Heming shook his head. He said with his head.
"What if! In the early stage of preparing for the experiment, I suddenly discovered, hey! The results have been produced! Do you want to give the experiment funds or not?" Zhang Wei then asked.
Seeing that Zhang Wei was so entangled with this issue, Meng Heming had no choice but to explain: "Since the experimental funds have been allocated, according to regulations, they should be earmarked for special use. This is the most basic principle.
Therefore, even if the project is completed before the experimental funds are allocated, the experimental funds still belong to this project. In this case, this part of the experimental funds will be treated as a balance of funds.
There are generally four ways to deal with fund balances. The first is to retain funds. You can write an application and submit it to the project authority to use this part of the funds for subsequent research, experiments or equipment purchase.
The second type is for research on other projects. These other projects can be different projects by the same researcher, or they can be different scientific research projects within the same institution. The process is also to write an application and submit it to the project. Approval from competent authorities.
The third method is to directly return the funds to the funding agency. I don’t need to explain this. The fourth way is to donate the remaining funds, but the prerequisite must be a charity act, but it cannot be donated into your own pocket. "
"Where are you thinking? I am short of money! Zhang Wei was still smiling and continued: "Now that the project is completed, the funds will still be approved, so I will report to you!" This project of mine has been completed! ”
"What? Say it again!"
"I mean, my project has been completed!" Zhang Wei repeated.
Meng Heming immediately showed an expression of "You're kidding me."
"Director Meng, don't believe it. What I said is true. The project is really completed! This is the project report I wrote because it was written overnight last night. The content is somewhat sloppy. Please don't If it’s inappropriate, I’ll change it later!”
Zhang Wei said, taking out the project report and handing it to Meng Heming.
Meng Heming looked at the project report, and his whole body seemed to have turned into a statue, completely stunned.
"The funds haven't been received yet! Have you produced the results first? Is there anyone who does scientific research like this?"
(End of this chapter)