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Original title: Two years after winning the Nobel Prize, Tu Youyou The team has made breakthrough discoveries, and will "hold back big moves" in 2018
★ Tu Youyou was born in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province in 1930. In October 2015, Tu Youyou became the first Chinese native scientist to win the Nobel Prize in Science in history because his discovery of artemisinin can effectively reduce the mortality of malaria patients.
★ In the two years since winning the Nobel Prize, Tu Youyou's team has officially published 15 scientific research papers, including two important papers with an impact factor of more than 10, and three patents are under application. Research on the possible drug resistance mechanism of artemisinin has also been started.
★ Tu Youyou's team found that dihydroartemisinin has a unique effect on lupus erythematosus through in-depth research. According to the existing clinical trials, the effective rate of artemisinin for discoid lupus erythematosus is more than 90%, and for systemic lupus erythematosus is more than 80%.
★ Researchers have also proved that artemisinin has some effects in the treatment of tumors, leukemia, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, allergic diseases, etc.
A。 Tu Youyou's team's expectations for 2018 New Year
"Winning prizes and becoming famous are all things of the past, and we should work hard." Tu Youyou, born in 1930, was slightly anxious in early 2018.
In the eyes of the winner of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine and the National Highest Science and Technology Prize, "New Year" is more than a concept of time, reminding her that "there is still much to do".
Tu Youyou talked with the Xinhua Daily Telegraph about her New Year's expectations.
 Tu Youyou received an exclusive interview from the Xinhua Daily Telegraph. Photographed by Zhou Ning, a reporter from Xinhua News Agency ★ Expect to discover more "secrets" of artemisinin and "turn papers into drugs"
In the past 50 years since she was officially exposed to antimalarial drugs in 1969, Tu Youyou has forged an indissoluble bond with artemisinin.
She and the research team went deep into the micro world from the "holding artemisinin, wringing juice with two liters of water, and serving it" in Ge Hong's "Emergency Prescription for Elbow" in the Eastern Jin Dynasty to reveal more "secrets" of artemisinin.
For ordinary people, from artemisia annua to artemisinin and dihydroartemisinin, scientific progress has benefited more people; However, for scientists, every small step forward seems difficult.
"The efficacy of artemisinin against malaria is relatively objective, but what is the mechanism of how artemisinin can achieve anti malaria and play a medicinal role in human body? We didn't do enough before, and now we need to do in-depth research." Tu Youyou told reporters that in the future, this is the key point for her and the research team to tackle.
"If we understand the antimalarial mechanism of artemisinin, we can give full play to its efficacy and better use this drug, which is an important part of artemisinin research." To clarify the "secret" of artemisinin, it is likely not only to play its antimalarial role. Tu Youyou told reporters that she has seen artemisinin "hope in expanding the indications".
"Science needs to be practical and realistic. The key to medicine is efficacy. Now we need to turn the paper into medicine, so that the medicine can cure the disease and artemisinin can better benefit mankind," said Tu Youyou.
 On January 9, Xi Jinping presented an award to Tu Youyou, a researcher from the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine who won the 2016 National Highest Science and Technology Award. Photographed by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Xueren ★ Expect the Second Construction of the National Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine to attract talents at home and abroad
"Several decades ago, when artemisinin was first discovered, some other units were also carrying out research, but because they did not receive enough attention, many things were discovered but did not go deep into doing." Tu Youyou recalled, "We had the subsequent success only with the attention and support of the party and the government."
It is precisely because of this experience that Tu Youyou cherishes the research platform of Artemisinin Research Center of Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine more and hopes that it can "upgrade" to become a national laboratory in the field of traditional Chinese medicine research:
"Now that the Party and the state attach so much importance to the cause of traditional Chinese medicine, we need to establish a high-level platform for traditional Chinese medicine research, use the most cutting-edge modern science and technology to make artemisinin research 'thorough', and achieve the true meaning of the combination of Chinese and Western medicine."
At the same time, a high-level research platform can naturally attract more high-level scientific research talents at home and abroad. "We have introduced some young talents who have made a lot of contributions to promoting artemisinin research, but we still feel that there are not enough talents. We also want to introduce more talents at home and abroad."
Tu Youyou looked at Jiang Tingliang (born in 1933) and Liao Fulong (born in 1942), who had worked together for decades in the team, with complicated eyes
When talking about future research, Tu Youyou instantly regained confidence and determination: "We didn't win the prize for the sake of winning the prize, nor did we end up winning the prize. Now that we have started research, we need to produce more and more practical results."
 Researchers of Tu Youyou's team are conducting the mechanism test of artemisinin related drugs. Photographed by Meng Jing, a reporter from Xinhua News Agency ★ Expect to research and develop traditional Chinese medicine with three modern technologies, and innovate, inherit and develop ways
According to the statistics of the World Health Organization, by the end of 2016, about half of the population in 91 countries and regions around the world was still threatened by malaria. There were 212 million malaria cases that year, and more than 400000 people died. Malaria is still one of the three major deadly diseases in the world.
But it is precisely because Chinese scientists have gained inspiration from Chinese medical classics and discovered artemisinin, which has robbed more people from death.
"The tangible effect of artemisinin has internationally recognized the efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine." Tu Youyou said, "It is difficult to find artemisinin from Artemisia annua, but the national '523' team has proved that 'as long as you work hard, you will reap' truth."
Tu Youyou believes that the R&D process from Artemisia annua to artemisinin is just a way of TCM innovation, and there are many ways and possibilities for the inheritance and development of TCM.
"How to use modern science and technology to inherit, develop and make good use of TCM is a problem that Chinese scientists need to solve at present."
Tu Youyou said, "Health is the prerequisite for a better life. 'Healthy China' needs us to 'do' in a down-to-earth manner, so that more medical research achievements can be applied to people, so that more patients can stay away from pain, which is the pursuit and responsibility of every Chinese medicine worker."
Video: What's the New Year's expectation of Tu Youyou, Nobel Prize winner? Duration 5 ′ 28 ″
B. Two years after winning the Nobel Prize: from several people to the "national team"
Time passed quickly. In a twinkling of an eye, it was more than two years since Tu Youyou won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
What did Tu Youyou and her team do in the past two years? Did they make new breakthroughs in scientific research? What does the Nobel Prize mean for Chinese medicine people represented by Tu Youyou's team?
With these questions in mind, the reporter from Xinhua Daily Telegraph went to the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine to visit Tu Youyou's team.
1. "National team" of artemisinin research: from "a few people" to "a group of people"
"Youyou deer chirp and eat wild artemisia." The wild deer described in the Book of Songs called their companions to find and share artemisia in the wild.
"I met Mr. Tu when I was studying for a master's degree in Chinese medicine a few years ago. I felt that she was a kind old lady. Later, she won the Nobel Prize and became more and more famous. Only then did I know that the old lady living beside me had such high academic achievements. So when I applied for the doctor's degree, I went to Mr. Tu without hesitation."
Like Ma Yue, a doctoral student, more and more young talents have entered the gate of the Artemisinin Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine in the past two years.
 Liao Fulong, Researcher of Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and Vice Chairman of Academic Committee of Artemisinin Research Center. Photographed by Peng Jiajing Liao Fulong, a researcher of the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine and deputy director of the Academic Committee of the Artemisinin Research Center, remembers the "Tu Youyou Team": "In fact, Professor Tu led two scientific researchers doing chemistry work, and the team was very small."
Now, the Artemisinin Research Center has been upgraded to the "Artemisinin Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine", which is not just a change of name, but means that the center is increasingly developing into a "national team" of artemisinin research.
 Zhang Boli, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and president of the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Photographed by reporter Meng Jing "We have given strong support to the equipment, staffing, funding and other aspects of the artemisinin research center." Zhang Boli, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and president of the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, told reporters that the Academy has included the clarification of the drug resistance mechanism and control methods of artemisinin drugs, as well as clinical application expansion, biosynthesis research, etc. in the "13th Five Year Plan" Plan key tasks, and recommend to apply for relevant national innovation projects.
"We can't do things behind closed doors. The research on the mechanism of artemisinin requires the thinking of 'great collaboration'." Jiang Tingliang, a researcher of the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine and director of the Academic Committee of Artemisinin Research Center, said that under this thinking, the composition of Tu Youyou's team is also undergoing tremendous changes.
"At present, Tu Youyou's team has more than 20 people. These researchers are not limited to the chemical field, but expand to pharmacology, biomedicine research and other disciplines, forming a multidisciplinary collaborative research model," said Liao Fulong.
 Jiang Tingliang, Chief Researcher of the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Chairman of the Academic Committee of Artemisinin Research Center. Photographed by Peng Jiajing Artemisinin Research Center is gradually building a research platform covering relevant scientific research institutions at home and abroad.
Liao Fulong introduced: "We have cooperated with scientific research institutions such as the National Nanotechnology Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, universities such as the National University of Singapore, Capital Medical University, large listed pharmaceutical enterprises and other domestic and foreign institutions in various fields to carry out special research and development, and jointly hosted academic forums, so as to achieve the integration and sharing of global artemisinin research resources and forces."
"Some domestic units are even more in-depth in artemisinin research in some specific fields than we are." Tu Youyou, a researcher of the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine and director of the Artemisinin Research Center, hopes to build a new platform for artemisinin research and development, bring together relevant researchers at home and abroad, and integrate various scientific and technological means.
 Researchers of Tu Youyou's team are conducting the mechanism test of malaria related drugs. Photographed by Meng Jing, a reporter from Xinhua News Agency 2. "Surprise" of artemisinin research and development: breakthrough in antimalarial mechanism and indications
Artemisinin has been discovered for 40 years, but Tu Youyou told reporters: "Up to now, I still don't fully understand the 'panorama' of Artemisia annua."
It is generally recognized by the scientific community that artemisinin has the highest concentration in the red blood cells infected with plasmodium after it enters the patients' bodies - 40 years after the consensus was reached, but there is still no answer to why this is the case.
Similarly, artemisinin will become dihydroartemisinin after metabolism in the human body, and its efficacy is even stronger than that of artemisinin. "This is also a problem worth studying," said Jiang Tingliang.
With the initial formation of a multidisciplinary and extensive collaboration model, the breadth and depth of research on artemisinin are also expanding, and scientists are getting closer to the "answer" step by step.
"In terms of the research on the antimalarial mechanism of artemisinin, we are currently more inclined to the 'multi target theory' and have made some research progress." Liao Fulong told reporters that researchers also found that although some ingredients in artemisinin other than artemisinin have no antimalarial effect, they can promote the antimalarial effect of artemisinin and improve the utilization of artemisinin.
"In the research and development of artemisinin combined with other antimalarial drugs, we also use the theory of traditional Chinese medicine for reference, and take a multi drug and multi target approach to find better efficacy and overcome drug resistance," said Xiang Li, a doctor from the Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine of the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
More importantly, through scientific researchers constantly cracking the "code" of artemisinin, this drug, which has been discovered for 40 years, is showing its wider role:
In the in-depth study of dihydroartemisinin, Tu Youyou's team found the unique effect of this substance against lupus erythematosus. "Lupus erythematosus is an abnormal immune system caused by multiple factors, which is highly variable. Traditional treatment methods can only use immune agents for conservative treatment, which is difficult to cure, and long-term drug use will cause infection, tumor and other risks."
The interviewed expert told the reporter that according to the existing clinical trials, the effective rate of artemisinin for discoid lupus erythematosus was more than 90% and for systemic lupus erythematosus was more than 80%, and it had obvious curative effects throughout the whole pathological process of occurrence, development and end.
At present, "Dihydroartemisinin for treatment of lupus erythematosus" has been approved by the State Food and Drug Administration to carry out clinical verification. This is also the first application for adding new indications after dihydroartemisinin was approved as a new drug.
 Researchers of Tu Youyou's team stored the blood with malaria parasites in the refrigerator. Photographed by Meng Jing, a reporter from Xinhua News Agency At the same time, research data show that artemisinin can play an anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory role in all stages of innate and acquired immune diseases. Researchers have proved that artemisinin has some effects in the treatment of tumors, leukemia, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, allergic diseases, etc.
"At present, topics such as artemisinin treatment of tumors are being tackled in depth, and at the same time, we are formulating the process optimization standards for the preparation of artemisinin."
Liao Fulong said that in the past two years, Tu Youyou's team has officially published 15 scientific research papers, including two important papers with an impact factor of more than 10, and three patents are under application. Research on the possible drug resistance mechanism of artemisinin has also been started.
At the same time, Tu Youyou's team's "Research on the Anti malaria Mechanism of Artemisinin Compounds" project has won 5 million yuan of support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China; The major new drug projects related to artemisinin indications of the Ministry of Science and Technology have been approved; Many pharmaceutical enterprises have applied for cooperation
"The times have given us a good opportunity to dispel the fallacy of 'Western medicine makes you die plainly and Chinese medicine makes you live in a muddle'," said Tu Youyou.
 In December 2015, the King of Sweden awarded the Nobel Prize to Tu Youyou. 3. Looking forward to 2018: let Chinese medicine enter the "hall of elegance"
"Artemisinin - a gift of traditional Chinese medicine to the world", as Tu Youyou won the Nobel Prize, this sentence quickly became known around the world.
After winning the Nobel Prize, many well-known western universities invited Tu Youyou to participate in scientific research, awarded him various titles such as "honorary doctor", and even the content of traditional Chinese medicine may appear for the first time in classic western medicine textbooks.
In Zhang Boli's view, the "Tu Youyou Effect" is a "shot in the arm" for Chinese scientific and technological circles, especially for researchers of traditional Chinese medicine - "It proves that the original scientific research achievements of Chinese scientific and technological workers in China can also win the Nobel Prize, which is a great inspiration for scientific and technological self-confidence."
But at the same time, in front of the leader of the "national team" of Chinese medicine research, there are also problems and embarrassment that cannot be concealed: "From the academic point of view, Chinese medicine is not like Western medicine, which can be quantified through instruments and equipment. Many things can only be understood but not explained, which has also become an obstacle to the progress of Chinese medicine."
What's more embarrassing is that up to now, there are nearly 100 national laboratories related to western medicine, while traditional Chinese medicine is still blank.
"The National Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine is not designed to be a good name, but without such a higher standard platform, it is difficult to attract high-level top talents." Like Tu Youyou, Zhang Boli is very worried about this. "Our Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine has about 140 SCI papers every year. Who says that traditional Chinese medicine cannot be refined?"
"Whether traditional Chinese medicine or western medicine, the fundamental purpose is to serve human health. The inheritance, research and development models of traditional Chinese medicine can be varied, and artemisinin research is only one of them, but multidisciplinary research should be the future development trend." Liao Fulong said.
In Zhang Boli's view, the "artemisinin spirit", which is guided by the major needs of the people, the country and the world, and combines the "original experience" of thousands of years with modern science and technology, is undoubtedly the right direction to inherit, develop and make good use of traditional Chinese medicine.
 Tu Youyou (right) introduced artemisinin related literature to our reporter. Photographed by Meng Jing, a reporter from Xinhua News Agency C. Reporter's notes: "Artemisinin spirit" in my eyes
How difficult is it to interview Tu Youyou? I believe everyone who tries will have a deep understanding. "Winning a prize is a thing of the past, and many interviews have been made. Our main work is to do research, not to accept interviews." The old man's rejection is often firm and unkind.
The same is true of our interview.
On the display board of Artemisinin Research Center of Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, we saw pictures and descriptions of Artemisia annua. For the purpose of interview, we also consulted a lot of data about Artemisia annua and artemisinin.
During the interaction and communication with Tu Youyou team, we gradually got a deeper understanding of Artemisia annua, Tu Youyou, Artemisinin, Tu Youyou team and artemisinin spirit, and a feeling of reverence rose from the bottom of our hearts.
Artemisia annua is an annual herb. This plant, which has saved millions of lives, is distributed in almost half of China. Riverside, valleys, roadsides, forest edges... even in dangerous rock gaps, it can grow stubbornly.
Artemisia annua does not have beautiful flowers and pungent flower gas. If not observed deliberately, most people would even ignore this ubiquitous plant; It has no desire to compete for novelty and beauty. In the season when flowers are in full bloom, it keeps a low profile and does not ask for praise.
However, no matter how complex and difficult the environment, Artemisia annua only absorbs nutrition silently, and then grows wonderfully in clumps.
Not afraid of hardship, willing to be lonely, down-to-earth, willing to contribute... This is like Tu Youyou, Tu Youyou team, and the scientific researchers they represent. It is their quiet efforts year after year, day after day, that enable us to experience a better life.
Video: Tu Youyou's 2015 Nobel Prize in Medicine awarding speech "Artemisinin: a gift of traditional Chinese medicine to the world", duration 26 ′ 33 ″
We understand the rejection of scientists. Tu Youyou once said that "in recent years, they have also been praised and shown their face, and now they have to work" - they focus on their own research topics and project progress, and make more contributions to human survival and development.
Ma Yue, a doctoral student led by Tu Youyou, said, "Teacher Tu has never been distracted by the changes in the surrounding environment in her life. Her steadfastness and dedication to scientific research have moved us."
"Science needs to be practical and realistic. The key to medicine is efficacy. What we need to do now is to turn the paper into medicine, so that medicine can cure the disease and artemisinin can better benefit mankind." Tu Youyou said, "We are not winning the prize for the sake of winning, nor is winning the prize finished. Now that we have started research, we need to produce more and more practical results."
Still, we seem to see clumps of Artemisia annua growing stubbornly in the wind and rain, and feel the "artemisinin spirit" of traditional Chinese medicine workers "willing to sit on the bench and forge a sword in ten years". The opinion of this article only represents the author himself. If the source of the article is a network reprint, this website is an information publishing platform. If there is infringement, please contact this website to delete it in time.
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