Text | "China Science News" reporter Zhang Shuanghu
In 2000, Fan Chunhai, who had just received a doctoral degree in biochemistry and molecular biology from Nanjing University, accidentally read about Alan Haig in " Advanced Materials" Featured reports.
Haig is a professor of physics at the University of California, Santa Barbara, but he won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry that year. After
won the award, he actually announced that he would enter the field of biology, and specifically mentioned that biosensing research is a very important matter.
This greatly encouraged Fan Chunhai, who was very interested in biosensor .
He plucked up the courage to apply to Haig. Unexpectedly, he was quickly recognized and successfully entered Haig's laboratory to carry out postdoctoral research.
Similar to his mentor Haige who is good at "breaking circles", Fan Chunhai is also constantly "crossing boundaries" among multiple disciplines.
He is involved in the fields of biosensors, translational medicine , nanotechnology, biomedicine and biocomputing . He has published more than 500 papers in academic journals such as " Nature " and has been cited more than 50,000 times for many years. Selected as "Global Highly Cited Scientists".
Fan Chunhai is in the laboratory. Photo provided by the interviewee
From biosensing to nanotechnology
In August 2001, Fan Chunhai came to the Institute of Polymers and Organic Solids at the University of California, Santa Barbara, as he wished, to carry out research on new biosensors under the guidance of Haig.
Haig highly advocates cross-disciplinary research and practices it, and he “has the best of both worlds” in the fields of physics, chemistry and biology. In the Haig Laboratory, Fan Chunhai had to carry out multiple scientific researches at the same time, which once overwhelmed him.
"Just pick the most important thing to do." These words of the instructor gave Fan Chunhai an enlightenment and still guide him to make judgments to this day.
’s research experience in the Haig Laboratory brought Fan Chunhai, a fledgling “green pepper”, to the forefront of international academic circles.
Under Haig's guidance, Fan Chunhai successively made some research progress, and related research work was published in the United States' Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, "Journal of the American Chemical Society" and other magazines.
They developed a new electrochemical DNA biosensor named E-DNA, which has received widespread attention and praise from international peers.
In 2003, the University of California, Santa Barbara, joined several universities in the United States to establish the California Nanosystems Institute to promote nanoscience research.
This made Fan Chunhai interested in nanometer research, and he successfully became one of the earliest postdoctoral fellows in the institute.
"As the name suggests, nanoscience conducts research at the nanometer scale, which is a typical comprehensive and cross-research field." Fan Chunhai explained.
In 2004, 30-year-old Fan Chunhai returned to China to join Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Coincidentally, on the day of his entrance defense, the Shanghai synchrotron radiation light source project undertaken by the institute was approved after ten years of arduous preparations. This largest scientific research facility in China at the time attracted worldwide attention.
Shanghai Light Source is known for its "spirit of innovation, science and dedication", and these spirits coincide with Fan Chunhai's ideas.
Since then, Fan Chunhai started from scratch, built a laboratory from scratch, and made research work with international influence.
In 2006, Fan Chunhai and Hu Jun, a researcher at the Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, collaborated with academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, professor of Shanghai Jiao Tong University He Lin, and others to create a nanoscale "Map of China" assembled from DNA molecules. And published in " Scientific Bulletin ".
This has become a very meaningful work in the cutting-edge cross-field field of "DNA origami ", and it has appeared on the international academic stage as the image of with Chinese characteristics.
After years of hard work and accumulation, Fan Chunhai's team has developed a new method for inducing precise mineralization at the nanoscale through the self-assembly structure of DNA. This method significantly improves the mechanical properties of DNA nanostructures while maintaining the exquisite design, and provides a basis for the construction and analysis of bionic nanopores. Applications open new doors. The relevant research results of
were published in "Nature", achieving the first breakthrough of Chinese researchers in the field of DNA nanotechnology.
Fan Chunhai is not satisfied with just using DNA to create beautiful "nano patterns". He has been thinking about how to introduce nano thinking into biosensing research, hoping to improve biodetection performance through DNA nanotechnology.
To this end, Fan Chunhai proposed a unique approach to use the DNA tetrahedral structure to regulate the electrochemical sensing interface, and established a new nucleic acid sensing method based on the framework of "assembly first, detection later", breaking through the interface-limited assembly and recognition difficult problems and made significant contributions to promoting the development of life analytical chemistry.
"We hope to use some advanced physical means in the nanoworld to allow DNA and other biomolecules to accumulate and weave according to our wishes to form nanodevices." Fan Chunhai said, "This may lead to the development of new nanotechnology in the future."
Interest promotes "cross-over"
Multi-disciplinary cross-integration has always been the characteristic of Fan Chunhai's research team.
The collision of physics, chemistry, biology, medicine and computer science focused his attention on the field of translational medicine.
In 2018, Fan Chunhai came to work at Shanghai Jiao Tong University as the Wang Kuancheng Chair Professor, which coincided with the completion and commissioning of the National Major Science and Technology Infrastructure for Translational Medicine, my country's first national scientific facility in the medical field.
How to quickly and accurately carry out early detection of various genetic diseases, infectious diseases, tumors, neurodegenerative diseases and other important diseases is a hot topic but also a difficulty.
By chance, Fan Chunhai joined the construction of the Translational Medicine Center.
"Translational medicine is to build a two-way bridge between basic medicine and clinical application." Fan Chunhai said, "Like Shanghai Light Source , it gives scientists 'wings to take off.'"
Since then, He leads the team to make continuous breakthroughs, building nucleic acid molecular machines and nanorobots based on nucleic acid molecule self-assembly, logic programming, material composites, high spatial and temporal resolution microscopic imaging and other technologies to provide early detection, diagnosis and treatment of malignant tumors and other major diseases, as well as nucleic acid Standard material testing provides new smart tools.
In Fan Chunhai's view, the word "crossover" runs through his entire scientific research process. He said that he is an " cross-disciplinary researcher".
"Many of my papers are co-published, which is related to my broad personal interests and cross-disciplinary fields."
Fan Chunhai, He Lin and others used DNA nanotechnology to develop DNA nanogene chips for detection disease, greatly improving the efficiency of gene detection .
"The DNA nanogene chip reflects the intersectionality of modern technology." Fan Chunhai said, "Our team has scholars from many fields such as physics, chemistry, biology, etc., and the chip developed includes multiple disciplines. The benefits of cross-disciplinary cooperation have enabled the intersection of nanotechnology, biomedicine and computing science. "
always maintains a sense of responsibility and original intention.
has worked hard in multiple fields, and has also earned Fan Chunhai many awards. He was elected as a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the American Academy of Medicine and Biological Engineering (AIMBE), the International Society for Electrochemistry (ISE) and the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC); in 2019, he was elected as a Fellow of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Chemistry Academician of the Ministry of Science, he also won the most influential award in the field of life sciences in China - the "Tan Jiazhen Life Science Innovation Award", and also won the Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation Science and Technology Innovation Award, and the American Chemical Society's "Measurement Science Progress Lecture Award" "In the bag; in 2020, he was named "National Advanced Worker"; in 2022, he became Shanghai's "Most Beautiful Science and Technology Worker"...
In Fan Chunhai's dictionary, there is no word holiday.In addition to his busy scientific research work, he is also committed to improving the scientific and cultural literacy of the entire population, especially young students.
"Science popularization work is a kind of inheritance. Whether it is exploring the unknown world or promoting the country's scientific and technological development, we need to maintain our original aspirations and make unremitting efforts from generation to generation." Fan Chunhai said.
Since training graduate students in 2004, Fan Chunhai has continuously encouraged students: "To do scientific research, you must have the courage to step out of your comfort zone and challenge new things."
His graduate students and postdoctoral fellows come from different majors, including chemistry, physics, biology and mechanics. project. According to the characteristics of different students, he teaches students in accordance with their aptitude and provides effective guidance.
He believes that "students grow up freely under appropriate guidance." The mentor's task is to explore students' interest in scientific research, help students establish correct values and lofty aspirations, and become a firm supporter of students.
Despite his busy work schedule, Fan Chunhai still takes time to communicate with students face to face.
is not a serious sermon, but a communication full of relaxation and pleasure.
He hopes that he will always maintain his curiosity, responsibility and original intention for scientific research and pass it on.
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