Source: Global Times-Global Network
[Global Times-Global Network Report Reporter Bai Yunyi Hu Yuwei] Former US President Trump has repeatedly boasted about the development of new coronavirus vaccines such as Pfizer as his "achievements", and has once again incited anti-China sentiment in American society - "Those so-called great historians, you must remember that these great discoveries that will end the 'China plague' are all produced under my supervision," he once wrote on Twitter. However, a truth that many people don’t know is: without the efforts of a Chinese scientist, the research and development of new crown vaccines such as Pfizer and Moderna might not be so smooth.
years of "unpopular" research lays the foundation for the development of the new crown vaccine
This Chinese scientist is named Wang Nianshuang, who is currently engaged in research in the United States. His design has provided an important structural biological basis for the precise design of the mRNA vaccine by adding two proline mutations to stabilize the coronavirus spike protein (S-2P), and this technology is now widely used in the development of new crown vaccines by many companies including Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson , Moderna, Novavax, etc., and may be used in the development of more vaccines in the future.
"Simply put, this design can successfully stabilize the S protein conformation on the surface of the coronavirus. Then more useful antibody proteins can be bound to the S protein, and the vaccine will be more effective." Wang Nianshuang introduced this in an interview with a reporter from the Global Times. This technology has also been praised by many vaccine industry insiders as an important "black technology" that has decided to succeed in the research and development of many new crown vaccines.
Wang Nianshuang first started studying coronavirus in 2013, when he was still pursuing his doctorate at Tsinghua University . In September 2012, the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) epidemic broke out, with a mortality rate of more than 50%, which attracted widespread attention worldwide.
"This aroused the strong interest of me and my then tutor Professor Wang Xinquan, so we began to study the mechanism of MERS virus invading cells and screened out antibodies against MERS virus RBD with efficient neutralization ability." Wang Nianshuang told reporters, which also laid the foundation for his subsequent research in the United States.
In 2014, Wang Nianshuang, who graduated from Tsinghua University, joined the newly established laboratory of American scientist Jason McClellan at Dartmouth College. An important project of the laboratory is to cooperate with the Vaccine R&D Center of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop vaccines against the new coronavirus. Wang Nianshuang’s task is to find a way to stabilize the spike protein of the coronavirus, which is also a key target for vaccine development. The process of research on
is not easy, and it can even be said to be full of hardships: because there was no relevant research to refer to before, Wang Nianshuang didn't even know which direction to go at the beginning. "At that time, the world did not attach great importance to coronavirus, the research was not in-depth, and many key issues were not explained. Because everyone generally believed that drugs and vaccine development for AIDS and influenza were of higher value, my choice was a very unpopular direction."
Wang Nianshuang told the Global Times that the entire research process was a process of continuous "trial and error". He explored and tried the construction and expression of more than 500 plasmids, and used all kinds of means. But despite the huge pressure, he never wanted to give up for a moment.
However, what he did not expect was that after experiencing the success of the experiment, this extremely foundational achievement did not receive the favor of expectations in advance at that time - five world-class authoritative journals actually rejected the publication of his paper. The reason is that both SARS and MERS viruses disappeared at that time, and this direction is too unpopular. But Wang Nianshuang still believes that since the coronavirus has exploded twice in the past decade, it may still break out again in the future. It may become a long-term threat to human reality. "We need a foundational technology that can effectively prevent the re-explosion of this virus. This is what I have always wanted to do since 2013."
The outbreak of the new crown epidemic at the end of 2019 confirmed Wang Nianshuang's previous concerns and considerations.After obtaining the new coronavirus sequence in January 2020, Wang Nianshuang and his colleagues quickly conducted further research based on previous research, and in February it analyzed the stable S protein structure of the new coronavirus at the fastest speed, which also provided key information for the subsequent development of new coronavirus diagnostic reagents, vaccines and drugs, and was quickly applied to vaccine trials of pharmaceutical companies such as Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson.
is very angry at Trump's actions of inciting hatred by the epidemic
In other words, the reason why the vaccines of pharmaceutical companies such as Pfizer can be successfully developed and approved within one year is also based on the hard research by scientists such as Wang Nianshuang in the previous years. However, in the past year, in the United States where McCarthyism is rising, former President Trump has received more than once the epidemic has incited hatred against China and Chinese, and accused "Chinese spies steal key data on the development of the US COVID-19 vaccine." This politicized move once made Wang Nianshuang very angry.
"I remember for a while, the US government kept slandering China's stealing technology through the consulate in Houston. At that time, I was in Austin and was very close to it. The university where I was also sent an email saying that the FBI was investigating this matter. I think these accusations were simply incredible and were completely false charges, but I was still under pressure at that time because the Chinese who were doing vaccines in Texas at that time were the most famous in the industry, and I had no idea what the Trump administration could do without a limit." Wang Nianshuang recalled to reporters that several Chinese professors had called him at that time and suggested that he find a lawyer in advance in case. Fortunately, the so-called "investigation" was incomplete in the end. There should be no doubts and confrontation in the development of
vaccines. I hope I will have the opportunity to return to China in the future to participate in the industrialization process of biomedicine
In my research career, Wang Nianshuang has worked closely with scientists from all over the world. In his eyes, there should be no doubt or confrontation in the field of vaccine research and development. International cooperation is the necessary path, "only strong alliances are the best." He believes that China is a major vaccine country and the fastest-growing country in the industry. Although there is still a certain gap with the most developed countries such as the United States and Germany in new technology vaccines, new technology routes for vaccines such as mRNA and viral vector have also been established. If we can continue to invest in basic research and development in the future, China's overall vaccine technology is expected to be upgraded to a higher level and we will be more confident in participating in international competition.
In Wang Nianshuang's view, after this COVID-19 epidemic, China's vaccine may be further recognized by the international community, especially in developing countries, and the trust will be greatly improved. He also hopes that there will be a suitable opportunity in the future to return to China when he has better accumulation and participate in the process of industrialization of China's biomedicine.
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