Everything starts from Tian Long Ba Bu

Chapter 336 Shuiyue Sect
In the laboratory incubator, a mother mouse is suckling several newborn mice.

Zhang Wei stood in front of the incubator, staring at the mice that had not yet opened their eyes, with a look of anticipation on his face.

"Sir Zhang, this is the lab report you want." Sam walked over excitedly and handed a lab report to Zhang Wei.

As soon as Zhang Wei opened the experiment report, he read it carefully, breathed a sigh of relief, and then showed a relieved expression.

"Well done! Sam, you deserve most of the credit for the success of the experiment. This time, let's jointly sign as the first author!" Zhang Wei said with a smile.

"Really? Thank you so much, Sir Zhang!" Sam suddenly looked excited.

"As for how to distribute the other signatures, it's up to you to decide. After all, the whole process of the experiment was done by you." Zhang Wei also gave Sam the right to share the pie.

Hearing these words, Sam's eyes actually filled with tears of excitement. Immediately afterwards, Sam walked up directly and hugged Zhang Wei.

If co-signing as the first author is a sign of respect for the fruits of Sam’s labor, then giving the right to assign signatures to Sam is a sign of respect for Sam’s position as “assistant professor”.

If he doesn't even have the right to assign signatures, he is no more than an ordinary laboratory technician, so what kind of assistant professor is he?
Prior to this, Sam had experienced three failures in a row, and he was indeed an assistant professor in name only.

Later, Chinese scientists discovered that the use of vitamin C can also promote the induction of IPS cells.

Although the four genes Oct3/4, Sox2, Klf4 and c-Myc are still used during the induction process, due to different hosts, specific cell culture conditions are required to achieve success.

This conclusion is crucial for the study of IPS cells. IPS cells were originally used to replace embryonic stem cells. When the word "embryo" is mentioned, it must have germline reproductive capacity.

The second one to achieve results was to induce IPS cells from mouse liver cells and gastric cells. This project is led by an associate professor at Princeton University.

The associate professor and Professor Shi have a very good personal relationship, they are like good friends in the same unit who are close to you on weekdays. And this little friend is still your subordinate, so you can’t take care of him? If there are benefits, why don't you lean a little bit?
This associate professor happened to be accumulating scientific research results and preparing to be promoted to full professor, so Professor Shi assigned him to Zhang Wei to brush up on his achievements.

The gestation period of mice is about twenty days, so after Zhang Wei returned to Princeton University, the female mice gave birth only ten days later.

Sam finally got back everything he once had, and he couldn't help crying. At this moment, in his eyes, Zhang Wei is simply his reborn parent, even closer than his biological father!
The experiment that Sam was responsible for was arranged before Zhang Wei returned to China. The experiment content was to inject IPS cells into normal blastocysts. After developing into early embryos, they were then implanted into normal female mice.

Among them is the correct answer: hypoxia.

As a result, the source tissues of IPS cells and normal embryonic cells were detected in the postnatal mice, which also means that this mouse is a chimera embryo of IPS cells, thus proving that IPS cells have germline reproductive capacity.

In 2008, Japanese scholars discovered that a low-oxygen environment could improve the success rate of IPS cell induction. Then they used a low-oxygen environment to induce IPS cells using mouse liver cells and gastric cells.

This time, Zhang Wei conducted three follow-up studies on IPS cells at the same time. Sam's project was launched relatively early, so it was also the first to obtain experimental results. The progress of the other two projects is slightly slower.

The experimental plan proposed by Zhang Wei also focused on studying specific cell culture conditions. He also proposed several different cell culture conditions.

This scientific research result is also of great significance to the research of IPS cells, which means that even if fibroblasts are not used, other cells can be used to induce IPS cells.

Previously, Zhang Wei used mouse fibroblasts as the host for inducing IPS cells. Fibroblasts inherently have some characteristics of embryonic stem cells, so the difficulty of inducing IPS cells is relatively simple.

Since Zhang Wei has written the correct answer in the experimental plan, as long as he follows the plan and the experiment reaches a low-oxygen environment, he will naturally get the final result.

Using cells from other parts of the body to induce IPS cells is much more difficult than using fibroblasts.

Now that it has been proven that IPS cells have the same ability, it further proves that IPS cells have the characteristics of embryonic stem cells. Therefore, IPS cells can be used in experiments involving the germline reproductive capacity of cells.

This associate professor did not act evil. Even if he could not trust Zhang Wei, he could trust Professor Shi, so he directly followed the experimental plan provided by Zhang Wei. The results were very smooth, using mouse liver cells and gastric cells to induce IPS. cell.

If you can join it, you will be in a world-leading position in an important scientific research field, which will definitely be a bonus for promotion.

Now Zhang Wei has given Sam the right to assign signatures, which is equivalent to helping him regain his position as an assistant professor, and he also has the possibility of becoming an associate professor.

The potential of IPS cells is huge, and as the inventor of IPS cells, Zhang Wei must be the world's leader in subsequent research on IPS cells.

If mice are used for experiments, it doesn't matter where the cells are taken. However, if experiments are conducted on human cells, cells cannot be taken casually from organs.

Even a hemorrhoidectomy is considered an operation!

If other cells can be used to induce IPS cells, the access to host cells will be much greater. I can't take cells from your vital organs, but I can use blood cells!

It's okay to draw a tube of blood.

As for how to induce different cells into IPS cells, it is necessary to study specific cell culture conditions to improve the success rate of induction.

Both projects have achieved results one after another, and Zhang Wei immediately applied the data to the paper, forming two papers.

One article is "Generation of germline-competent induced pluripotent stem cells", which generates induced pluripotent stem cells with germline reproductive capacity.

The other article is "Generation of pluripotent stem cells from adult mouse liver and stomach cells", which generates pluripotent stem cells from adult mouse liver and stomach cells.

Next, only the project Stapp was responsible for remained.

Zhang Wei has also prepared this paper, titled "Generation of mouse induced pluripotent stem cells without viral vectors". Just wait for Stapp's experiment to be completed and fill in the data.

The scientific research plan Zhang Wei gave Stapp that day was to reduce the carcinogenicity of IPS cells. Since carcinogenicity is caused by the oncogene c-Myc, it is necessary to find a way from this aspect. The first step of this project is to use plasmids instead of viruses as vectors to reduce the risk of cancer, which is what Zhang Wei said in this paper, without the induction of viral vectors.

The next step is to replace the gene with a post-transcribed protein to achieve the induction effect. If it is just a piece of protein instead of an oncogene, the carcinogenicity will naturally be eliminated.

But this Professor Stapp had to pretend to be a high-end scholar, maintain the independence of scientific research, and come up with his own experimental plan. If the two plans are carried out at the same time, it is naturally not as efficient as focusing on one place, and as a result, the progress of the experiment will be delayed.

……

In the laboratory, Stapp did not do the experiments himself. Instead, he watched his students operate and gave a few words of advice from time to time.

He was wearing goggles and a mask, completely hiding his expression, but judging by luck, Professor Stapp was not in a good mood at this time.

Of the three follow-up studies related to IPS cells, the other two groups have achieved results. Only his group has not accomplished anything. Stapp is in a good mood. That's strange!

Moreover, the leaders of the other two projects, one is an associate professor and the other is only an assistant professor, are several grades behind Stapp in terms of academic status, and their team members and financial security are not as good as Stapp. Even if the opponent is playing at home, Stapp is not willing to lose to them because he really can't save face.

So in recent days, Stapp's students have all become overtime workers, spending more than fourteen hours a day in the laboratory, completely ignoring labor laws.

But scientific research is not something that can be achieved just by spending time. Sometimes it really requires a correct direction and a little bit of luck.

Stapp's experiment was actually in the right direction. If you give him enough time, he should be able to get the results. But it is a pity that he, a good student who normally follows the steps to solve the problem, met Zhang Wei, who directly copied the correct answer.

"Professor, the results of this group show that cell transformation is negative!" the student said, handing a copy of the experimental data to Stapp, his words full of disappointment.

Negative cell transformation means that no cell transformation has occurred at all. There is no transformation, let alone the induction of IPS cells. The experiment failed!

It was another failed experiment. Stapp took the experiment report and didn't bother to read it. Instead, he directly ordered: "Change to the next set of samples!"

At this moment, good news came from the experimental station behind: "Professor, it's positive! The cell transformation result of my sample is positive!"

Stapp immediately walked over and looked at the experimental data carefully. It was indeed positive.

"Immediately screen this group of samples for stem cell characteristics!" Stapp immediately ordered.

If the cell transformation is positive, it is considered a success in the first step. If it can pass the screening of stem cell characteristics, it is a success in the second step. Next, the cells are injected into mice and can differentiate into other tissues, which is considered a complete success. .

However, the next second, the joy in Stapp's heart was diluted a lot. Because this experimental bench uses plasmids as gene carriers, which is the experimental plan that Zhang Wei has proposed!
Zhang Wei's experimental plan, the cell transformation was positive, and the first step has been successful. However, the experimental plan I made showed negative cell transformation, and I didn’t even take the first step!
Thinking of this, Stapp's mood became bad again.

The progress of the other two projects is faster. You can say that they are playing at home, or you can say that the projects are different. In short, you can find many reasons to explain it.

However, this time, the same experimental project was being done, and it was all done by Stapp's project team. There was no argument that anyone was playing at home.

But Zhang Wei's experimental plan still achieved results first, which clearly shows that his skills are inferior to others!

The dignified Professor Stapp, the top expert in neurology in the United States, turned out to be inferior to others in skills. The dignity of a high-end scholar was instantly shattered!
Next, the screening for stem cell properties went smoothly, and this group of samples could survive in the stem cell environment.

This set of samples was then injected into mice, and cells from other tissues were indeed differentiated. This marked that the experiment of inducing IPS cells without virus vectors was also successful!

Looking at the scanned photos of mice that appeared on the monitor, fluorescence had appeared in the tissues of the mice. Cheers and applause immediately broke out around them, and everyone began to celebrate the success of the experiment.

However, there was no smile on Stapp's face, instead there was a sense of decadence.

Zhang Wei's plan and experiments have been successful, but the plan drawn up by Stapp has not even seen a positive cell transformation so far!

Everyone has already reached the finish line, but you are still figuring out how to start!
Stapp can accept the gap, but the gap is really too big!
For a scholar of Stapp's level, this blow is really big.

He has been doing scientific research all his life, and he is almost always ahead of others, constantly coming up with the latest scientific research results to crush other scholars.

However, this time, he was crushed by Zhang Wei without any suspense, and he couldn't even find an excuse.

The same project, the same project team, started at the same time, only the experimental plan is different. The result was that one was a success and the other had no results. This was entirely the difference in the experimental plan!
In other words, it is the difference between the people who formulated the experimental plan!
Stapp found it hard to accept that there was such a big gap between him and another scholar.

The key point is that the other party is still only a twenty-year-old young man.

After a lifetime of scientific research, he is still inferior to a twenty-year-old young man?

However, what really made Stapp feel desperate was that after he handed over the experimental data to Zhang Wei, Zhang Wei came to Stapp for advice only three days later with a paper.

Stapp originally thought it was a paper written by Zhang Wei before, but after looking at the title, "Generation of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells in Mice without Virus Vectors", wasn't this the same scientific research project that was just completed three days ago?
Wrote the paper in three days? Are you kidding me?
When I was teaching at Northwestern University, if I gave an assignment to an undergraduate student, I would give him a week!
Now I ask you to write a paper! It’s a paper about the latest cutting-edge technology! It’s going to be published in three major journals! You finished writing it in three days? There’s no way to fool people like this, right?
If you don’t want to write a paper, just say so! I'll write it. I have a bunch of doctoral students, each of whom is responsible for one paragraph, and they can still put together a high-level paper.

Anyway, you proposed the project, and your first author will definitely be indispensable when the time comes! Is there any need to fool me like this?

Stapp's mood became even worse. He even felt that Zhang Wei was looking down on him.

After Zhang Wei left, Stapp threw the paper directly to one of his students.

Any student would be able to find a lot of loopholes in a paper written in three days!
(End of this chapter)