Chapter 205 The War of Public Opinion Begins
In Science magazine, Zhang Wei’s paper was sent directly to the editor-in-chief, Donald Kennedy.
"Induced pluripotent stem cells?" Looking at this topic, Donald Kennedy's expression instantly became solemn.
He himself is a top biologist and medical scientist. With his academic level, just by seeing this phrase, he has already guessed what scientific research results Zhang Wei has made this time.
“Could it be said that he used some induction method to make stem cells from some other cells? In this case, wouldn’t it be possible to bypass the medical ethics issues of embryonic stem cells!”
Donald Kennedy immediately started flipping through the paper and soon read the entire paper.
"As I expected, he used fibroblast cells to induce stem cells. Since fibroblast cells can do it, can other cells also do it?"
Thought Here, Donald Kennedy took a breath of air. He had fully realized the greatness of this scientific research result.
In Zhang Wei's experiment, he used fibroblast cells, but if he continues his research, he can definitely use other cells to induce stem cells.
Imagine, I can use blood cells and epidermal cells to induce stem cells, and then conduct experiments. Stem cells can generate various tissue cells, which means that blood cells and epidermal cells, It can also generate various tissue cells.
For example, if there is a problem with one of your organs, then you only need to draw a little blood, induce it into stem cells, regenerate the tissues and organs you need, and directly replace it. This is originally generated by your genes, and there is no rejection reaction!
And these are stem cells that can generate any organ, including the nervous system. It is no exaggeration to say that if you are not afraid of losing all your memories, I can give you a new one!
Of course, the creation of IPS cells is still far from being replaced. For medicine, this is simply an epic achievement!
Such as discovering a new treatment method, inventing a new examination equipment, or overcoming a certain difficult and complicated disease, these achievements can only be regarded as pediatrics in front of these achievements.
"This Zhang Wei invented genetic scissors not long ago, and then made IPS cells. Is he really a human? Does Zhang Wei represent a scientific research team or research institute? No, All the scientific research teams and research institutes around the world can’t do it this fast!”
Donald Kennedy sighed. Once a scientific research result of this level is published, it will definitely cause a sensation in the entire scientific community!
……
Northwestern University, Professor Stapp’s team has been committed to the research of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases, and their latest research direction is neuron therapy. If a patient's damaged neuron cells can be replaced, there is hope of overcoming both diseases.
However, how to cultivate substitutes for neuronal cells has become the biggest difficulty for Stapp’s team. From a scientific perspective, they can use embryonic stem cells to culture neuronal cells. But from a medical ethics perspective, this cannot be done.
At this time, Professor Stapp, holding the latest issue of the journal "Science", really felt like a treasure!
"Induced pluripotent stem cells! And as mentioned in this paper, they can differentiate into mouse nerve cells! In other words, the neuronal cells I need can also be differentiated!"
Thinking of this Professor Stapp's hands couldn't help but tremble. With this IPS cell, his research could finally continue.
......
Professor Johnson of the University of Cambridge in the UK, who has been dedicated to the research of ALS, is also holding the latest issue of "Science" and reading it over and over again.
Especially the photo of fluorescent mouse nerve tissue, which he observed carefully with a magnifying glass.
"The clinical manifestation of ALS is that neurons will continue to degenerate. With these IPS cells, neuronal cells can be generated to replace or regenerate the original neurons.
Neural progenitors can also be directly differentiated Cells use neurotrophic molecules derived from glial cells to conduct transduction, so that neurons no longer degenerate and gradually restore their functions!"
For a moment, Professor Johnson felt that the two things he had imagined! All plans for treating ALS can be implemented!
Johnson suddenly beamed. He stood up, took the paper and ran out the door. He even couldn't help but jump up and down, like a happy child.
“Such good news must be told to him!”
Johnson ran all the way and rushed into an office. At this time, he was sweating profusely, but he was still breathing heavily and shouted inside:
"Stephen, good news, Someone has made a substitute for embryonic stem cells, your ALS can be saved!”
In the office, a thin man was sitting in a wheelchair, staring at the computer screen with his head tilted. Due to ALS, I can no longer move, and I can't even use a mouse. I can only use my fingers and a special device to operate computer pages.
This thin man is Stephen William Hawking!
Hawking had lost the ability to speak when he underwent pneumonia surgery in 1985, so at this time he could only use a speech synthesizer to ask what happened.
Professor Johnson quickly described everything about the paper and the treatment plan for ALS. Worried that Hawking would not understand, he brought the paper to Hawking and explained it in detail at the same time.
Although Hawking could not speak, his eyes suddenly lit up after listening to Johnson's explanation.
Years of ALS have left him with only three fingers left to move. Under the ruthless destruction of the disease, he seemed to be trapped in an invisible cage, and his body gradually lost its freedom. At this time, every time he moved his fingers, he seemed to be fighting against fate.
Desperate? Definitely desperate. This kind of despair is not a temporary depression, but a pain that goes deep into the bone marrow. This pain made him feel that the whole world had abandoned him.
But he never gave up. There was always a tenacious flame burning in his heart, which was the desire for health and the persistence for life!
Even if he goes to find Epstein, he is just using his insignificant power of action to maintain his final dignity. (Dog Head)
The appearance of this paper undoubtedly made him feel that after struggling painfully in the abyss of despair for a long time, there was finally a glimmer of light!
Hawking operated the speech synthesizer and uttered one word: "The author..."
Professor Johnson understood instantly, perhaps asking who the author of this paper was.
"The author's name is Zhang Wei, a Chinese scientist. Before this, he has published two important scientific research results..." Professor Johnson started to introduce.
Hawking blinked and silently repeated the name several times in his mind.
He wants to engrave this person who brings him hope in his heart.
……
Zhang Wei’s paper on IPS cells appeared in the latest issue of the journal Science.
Just as Donald Kennedy expected, this paper immediately caused a sensation in the scientific community.
There are too many research projects that require the use of embryonic stem cells, but due to medical ethical constraints, other methods can only be found.
Now that there are substitutes for embryonic stem cells, it means that we no longer have to worry about medical ethics issues. Research that was once restricted can now continue.
For scientific researchers, this is like the road where they used to live suddenly opened, and the end of the road is fame and money!
......
In an era when newspapers were the mainstream media, the newspaper with the largest circulation in the country was definitely not someone else.
It is not the famous "People's Daily", nor the "Global Times", nor local newspapers such as "Yangtze Evening News", "Guangzhou Daily", "Southern Metropolis Daily", etc., but "Reference News".
The reason why "Reference News" had high sales was mainly because it was the only newspaper at that time that could legally directly publish foreign news. In "Reference News", you can see the latest news and news comments from all over the world. For a long time, it was the only window for Chinese people to understand foreign time.
The readers of "Reference News" are mainly men with high education. Young and middle-aged men account for about 60% of the readers, and more than half of the readers have received a college education, and another quarter One is high school students.
Before the rise of online media, "Reference News" actually had reporters stationed in more than 100 countries and regions, and a huge amount of news information was transmitted back to China every day.
Therefore, news screening has become one of the important tasks of the editorial department.
On this day, Editor Wang was sitting in front of the computer, looking at the news information submitted by the heads of each section, and was doing the final screening work.
The content of the first few pages, the first page of headlines, the second page of news commentary, the third page of current affairs, the fourth page of world economy, and the fifth page of military sports, have all been finalized, and the remaining parts , relatively less important.
The sixth page is social culture and education, which mainly publishes social phenomena in various countries, such as monkeys fighting in Thailand, canned herrings in Sweden are particularly smelly, German bread can kill people, etc.
There will also be several short philosophical essays, including short stories such as "Reader" and "Yilin", which describe Einstein as an idiot when he was a child.
The seventh edition is about science and technology, mainly publishing the latest scientific developments.
Unknowingly, Editor Wang reviewed the content of the seventh page. A title suddenly caught his eye and caught his attention instantly.
"The latest scientific research breakthrough, will humans live to be 200 years old?"
Who would think that life is long, just for this "live to 200 years old", it is worth clicking in to take a look. !
Editor Wang clicked on the title and found that this was not an article published in a foreign scientific magazine, but a domestic submission, and the source was the Tsinghua University Journal.
Although Tsinghua University Journal is sponsored and published by Tsinghua University, it is also an academic journal and publishes scientific articles, which is understandable.
"How dare you brag like this! It's still alive to be 200 years old. It turns out to be a publication in our own country."
Editor Wang sighed lightly, but still read the article patiently.
The article introduces the results of IPS cells and the impact this result may have on the medical field. The article mentioned that with the advancement of scientific research, IPS cells can be used to overcome all human diseases, and humans will really be able to live 200 years by then. "This scientific research result sounds very good, but this title is a bit sensational." Editor Wang hesitated for a few seconds, but still put this news on the seventh page and made it the headline.
Mainly in the second half of the article, there is an interview with Meng Heming, director of the Department of Biology at Tsinghua University. In the interview, Meng Heming affirmed that it is possible for humans to live to 200 years old. theoretically based.
Since it is endorsed by experts, it is not considered fake news.
The key is that the title of Live 200 is indeed very attractive. From the perspective of reporting news, the more content that can attract readers, the better.
......
The readership of "Reference News" is already relatively highly educated, and scientific news like this can easily arouse widespread discussion among readers.
We are all people with a certain cultural background. Although most readers do not understand molecular biology, they are definitely not ignorant.
And this kind of situation where you seem to understand something but not understand it is actually the most likely to trigger discussion.
If an expert really knows what IPS cells can do at a glance, they will not discuss it. They can directly come up with scientifically based conclusions.
But people who seem to understand but not understand are different. They obviously don’t understand very well, but they still pretend to understand. Then they listen to some information from other places, and piece together their own version. , I feel very reasonable.
Then everyone comes up with different versions. You say your version, and I say my version. No one accepts the other's, and everyone thinks they are right. Isn't this a conflict? Isn’t there a discussion? Didn’t the topic arise?
The same is true in today's Internet age. Two people who seem to understand but not understand argue with each other, and in the end no one can convince the other. But when a bully tries to argue with an expert, he will find that no matter how hard he tries, he can't make up the slightest bit of truth. The insider can easily talk the bully into pieces.
This is actually caused by information asymmetry. They are experts, and they have more and more comprehensive information than you. You seem to understand but not fully, and the little information they have is incomplete. No matter how you argue, you can't argue with them.
So don’t argue with experts on professional issues. If you are wrong, you can't win; if you are right, an expert can use the information gap to say you are wrong, but you still can't win.
"Reference News" is also very influential, not only on readers, but also on the media. Since other media cannot directly publish foreign news, they have to reprint foreign current affairs news from "Reference News".
This news about living to be 200 years old is obviously the type that is very suitable for reprinting.
First of all, the title is so attractive. Everyone wants to live for two more years. When I see this title, I can’t help but take a closer look at the content.
Secondly, this is a piece of science and technology news that does not involve politics or economics. This type of news has no censorship threshold and does not involve public opinion-oriented issues.
The third thing is that it says that humans will live to be 200 years old, which is a future technological outlook. Since it is a technological outlook, you cannot judge it by right or wrong. It is the kind of content where you can brag without paying taxes.
What’s more, there is expert endorsement in the article. The chairman of the biology department of Tsinghua University is professional and qualified, right? Even if it is a mistake, it is because the experts are wrong and it has nothing to do with me!
In 2005, after all, there were only a few experts who were sensationalists, and most experts were reliable. What’s more, scientific research is inherently an academic issue, so in the eyes of readers, the chairman of the Department of Biology at Tsinghua University is trustworthy.
As a result, other newspapers and periodicals also began to reprint this news.
Everyone wants to live a few more years, even if they don't live to be 200 years old, if they can get a 50% discount and live to be 100 years old, they will be satisfied.
After all, Kangxi, as the emperor, could only borrow another five hundred years from heaven. We ordinary people should borrow less and make do with what we have.
Overnight, the topic of humans living to be 200 years old has become a hot topic.
At the same time, the Publicity Department of Tsinghua University also began to take action, submitting articles to various media to introduce the uses of IPS cells in the medical field.
For example, IPS cells can be used to generate pancreatic islet tissue, restore pancreatic islet function, and treat diabetes.
For example, IPS cells can be used to generate bone marrow cells to replace aging bone marrow and treat cervical spondylosis and lumbar disc herniation.
Another example is that IPS cells can be used to culture organs. Hearts, livers, spleens, lungs and kidneys can all be replaced.
In short, which disease is more common, I will write an article on the treatment of that disease.
When the media saw these articles, they found that they were all about living to be 200 years old, so they were naturally happy to accept them.
Those who work in the media and don’t take advantage of hot topics are bastards!
What's more, the content of these articles is indeed of high quality. Not only are the articles well written, they are also very novel and contain content that I have never seen before. The most important thing is that the content of these articles is related to the treatment of diseases.
Even now, topics related to medical treatment are the traffic password of the media. Those who work in self-media, as long as they shout about free medical care, even if it is only an argument without evidence, a group of people will discuss it, which can be said to be a hot topic.
The same was true in 2005. At that time, Chinese people had just begun to pay attention to the quality of life. People were no longer satisfied with eating and drinking well, but their requirements for health were also increasing day by day.
Diabetes, high blood pressure, hyperlipidemia, and lumbar disc herniation all entered a period of high incidence from that era.
What about foot patches to treat diabetes, acupuncture to treat diabetes, drinking hypoglycemic tea to treat diabetes, and the so-called magic medicine that can cure diseases? All kinds of IQ tax products were sold so fast at that time, it was so popular. Lots of leeks.
Those IQ taxes can cut leeks, and IPS cells, a therapy endorsed by professors from Tsinghua University, can naturally make people believe it.
So these articles related to disease treatment are very popular, and the sales of newspapers and periodicals have also increased.
This wave of public opinion has directly promoted the achievement of IPS cells as a cure-all for all diseases.
Of course, many media reporters were skeptical, so they interviewed experts in biology and medicine.
As a result, none of the experts interviewed said that this IPS cell is really so awesome!
Scholars in the fields of biology and medicine are well aware of what it means to replace embryonic stem cells. It is no exaggeration to say that these scholars are also the beneficiaries of the emergence of a substitute for embryonic stem cells. If they speak ill of IPS cells, wouldn't they be ruining their own jobs?
It stands to reason that the emergence of a new thing will inevitably replace the old thing, thereby damaging many interests.
For example, the emergence of automobiles will inevitably make carriage drivers unemployed; the popularity of mobile phones has also caused the girls at the paging station to lose their jobs; the rise of online shopping has made landlords and middlemen clamor to ban online shopping.
However, this is not the case with IPS cells, because the embryonic stem cells they replace are inherently prohibited.
So the existence of this new technology does not offend the old vested interests, because there are no vested interests at all.
As a result, a situation has formed. In academia, everyone is praising the new technology of IPS cells, because everyone is a beneficiary.
……
After the first round of campaigning ended, the second round of public opinion offensive began immediately.
An article appeared in a well-known media with the title "IPS cells that can cure all diseases were developed by the Chinese!" 》
Previous reports about human life span of 200 years all said that IPS cells were the research results of Princeton University in the United States. At that time, readers took it for granted. Americans have a high level of science and technology, so they should develop this kind of high technology.
However, now it is said that this was done by the Chinese. This reversal immediately attracted the attention of countless readers.
Next, other media also rushed to report that the inventor of IPS cells was named Zhang Wei, a Chinese from Tsinghua University.
The name Zhang Wei is too common to be unusual, but precisely because it is so common, when you hear this name, you know that he is Chinese.
Not long ago, the media was boasting about how powerful this IPS cell is, which can cure all diseases and enable people to live to 200 years. At that time, many people lamented that the level of American technology is amazing.
Now that they know that this achievement was actually made by the Chinese, many people feel proud and proud, and their national self-confidence has been greatly satisfied.
The thinking of Chinese people in this era is a bit like that of Indians.
Indians brag all day about how many CEOs in the United States are of Indian origin, how many Indian programmers there are in Silicon Valley, and how many Indian engineers there are at NASA. As if this is such an honor for India.
But in fact, these are the brain drain of India. The outstanding talents have gone to serve the Americans instead of building their own country. What else is left in India? This is not the pride of the nation, it is the shame of the nation!
The Chinese people at that time also had this mentality. Those Chinese without Chinese nationality would feel very proud if they achieved something, as if it was an achievement achieved by the Chinese.
The country is weak in strength and has strong self-esteem, so this is inevitable. Because there is really nothing to show off, so being able to strengthen the country and being recognized is something to be proud of.
To put it bluntly, I just want to show off my skills.
In today's China, in various fields, there are many achievements that can be shown off. In the end, I get tired of showing off and no longer care about such things.
I am the best in the world, why do I care what you little bastards think?
While countless readers are proud that the inventor of IPS cells is Chinese, another report has poured cold water on everyone.
This media originally planned to go to Tsing University to interview Zhang Wei, but it turned out that Zhang Wei had left Tsing University and went to the United States!
Immediately afterwards, the media published an article like this: "Why can't we retain talents!" 》
This article immediately aroused a wave of excitement!
(End of this chapter)