[Edit this paragraph] 1. Chinese American chemist

One of the winners of the 2008 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

Personal profile

Name: Qian Yongjian English: Roger Qian Yongjian. Roger Qian.

Gender: male

Date of birth:1May 952

Born in new york and raised in Livingston, New Jersey, nationality: American ancestral home: Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.

Father: Qian Xuexiu, an engineer of Boeing Company in the United States (with Qian Xuesen, the 34th grandson of Qian Wang) Mother: Li Yiying.

Uncle: an engineering professor at MIT.

Brother: Richard Tsien, neurobiologist, academician of American Academy of Sciences, professor of Stanford University, former head of the Department of Physiology.

Cousin: Qian Yonggang (the eldest son of Qian Xuesen), a senior engineer in a research institute of the People's Liberation Army, and an adjunct professor at Shanghai Jiaotong University.

Honor:

1968 won the Westinghouse scientific talent for the topic of how metals combine with thiocyanate.

1972, he entered Harvard University with the national excellent scholarship.

1977, Ph.D. and postdoctoral fellow (Physiology), Cambridge University.

198 1 year, Qian Yongjian came to the university of California, Berkeley, where he worked for 8 years and became a university professor.

From 65438 to 0989, Qian Yongjian moved his laboratory to the University of California, San Diego, where he is now a professor of pharmacology and a professor of chemistry and biochemistry.

1995 was elected as an academician of the American Academy of Medical Sciences.

1998 was elected as a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Important awards

1968 was awarded the scientific talent of Westinghouse for the topic of how to combine metal with thiocyanate.

199 1 year, Young Scientist Award of Pasanau Fund;

1995, Belgian Theus-beye-latour health prize;

1995, Gairdner Fund International Award;

1995, American heart association basic research award;

In 2002, American Chemical Society Innovation Award;

In 2002, the Royal Dutch Academy of Sciences won the prize of biochemistry and biophysics;

In 2004, one of the highest achievement awards in the world was wolf prize in medicine.

In 2004, he won many awards from wolf prize in medicine, American National Chemical Society and protein Society.

In 2008, American biologist martin chalfie and Japanese organic chemist and marine biologist Shimomura Xiu won the Nobel Prize in chemistry for their research on green fluorescent protein.

Study on bioluminescence phenomenon

From 65438 to 0994, Qian Yongjian, a Chinese-American scientist, began to transform green fluorescent protein and made many discoveries. Most of the products used in the world are varieties modified by Qian Yongjian laboratory, some have stronger fluorescence, some are yellow and blue, and some can be activated to change color. It has become a hobby for some people to look for colored protein in some creatures that are not often used as research models. This phenomenon is like a wave of polymerase used for PCR widely used in thermophiles in the past. But I didn't really find many useful things. A successful example is the discovery of other fluorescent proteins, including red fluorescent proteins, from corals by Sergey A. Lukyanov laboratory of bioorganic chemistry Institute of Russian Academy of Sciences.

Bioluminescence has been studied before Shimomura and Johnson. Fireflies glow. Luciferase, as a substrate molecule fluorescein, produces fluorescence after chemical reactions such as oxidation. Protein itself emits light without substrate, which originated from the research of Shimomura and Johnson.

Shimomura and Johnson used several experimental animals. Related to this story is a jellyfish called Victoria jellyfish. 1962, Shimomura Xiu and Johansen reported in the Journal of Cell and Comparative Physiology that they isolated and purified the luminescent protein aequorin from jellyfish. It is said that Shimomura was preparing to go home one day when extracting luminescent protein from jellyfish. He poured the product into the pool, turned off the light before going out, and reluctantly looked back at the pool, and the pool was bright. Because the pool also received water from the aquarium, he suspected that the composition of the aquarium affected the jellyfish, and soon he determined that calcium ions enhanced the jellyfish's luminescence. 1963 They reported the relationship between calcium and jellyfish luminescence in the journal Science. Later, Ridgway and Ashley proposed that jellyfish could be used to detect calcium concentration, creating a new method for detecting calcium. Calcium ion is an important signal molecule in organisms. Jellyfish became the first method to detect calcium with spatial resolution, and it is also one of the methods still in use.

1955 Davenport and Nicole found that jellyfish can emit green light, but they don't know why. 1962, Shimomura and Johnson wrote a footnote in the article "Purification of Jellyfish", saying that another kind of protein was discovered, which was green in sunlight, yellow on tungsten wire and strong green under ultraviolet light. Later, they carefully studied its luminous characteristics. 1974, they purified this protein, which was later called green protein and later called green fluorescent protein GFP. Moran and Hastings suggest that energy transfer may occur between jellyfish and green fluorescent protein. Jellyfish will emit light when stimulated by calcium, and its energy can be transferred to GFP to stimulate GFP to emit light. This is the discovery of fluorescence vibrational energy transfer (FRET) in biology, which is known in physical chemistry.

Shimomura himself is not interested in the application prospect of GFP, nor does he realize the importance of application. After he left Princeton for Woodhole Oceanographic Institute, his colleague Douglas Pracher was very interested in inventing biological tracer molecules. 1985, Prashi and Japanese scientist Satoshi Inouye independently obtained the gene (cDNA) of jellyfish according to the protein sequence. 1992, pula obtained GFP gene. With cDNA, ordinary biological researchers can make good use of it, which is much more convenient than using protein.

After the cDNA of GFP was published in Prashi 1992, the research stopped. When he applied to the National Science Foundation of the United States, the judges said that there was no precedent for protein to shine, and even if he found it, it would be of little value. In a rage, he left academia and went to the Massachusetts Air National Guard Base to work for the Department of Animal and Plant Services of the Ministry of Agriculture. At that time, if he spent a few dollars, he could do a very beautiful job that ordinary graduate students could do: put the GFP gene of jellyfish into other organisms, such as bacteria, and when he saw fluorescence, it completely proved that GFP itself could emit light without other substrates or auxiliary molecules.

Two laboratories in 1994 independently completed the work of expressing GFP into other organisms: the nematode laboratory of Marty Chalfie of Columbia University, and two Japanese scientists Inouye and Tsuji of University of California, San Diego and Scripps Institute of Oceanography.

Both jellyfish and green fluorescent protein have important applications. But jellyfish is also a kind of luciferase, and it needs fluorescein. The GFP protein itself can emit light, which has made a major breakthrough in principle.

Chalfie's article immediately caused a sensation, and many biological researchers introduced GFP into their own systems. Using the new system to express GFP, you can publish articles in Nature and Science, but only follow the trend, not original.

Throughout the whole process, from 196 1 to 1974, the research on Shimomura Xiu and Johnson is far ahead, but few people pay attention to it. If other biochemists want to, they can also get jellyfish and GFP, and the technology is not particularly difficult. After 1974, especially after 80, many graduate students do the follow-up work easily. The exception is the new color of the variety found in Qian Yongjian laboratory, which is not obvious.

research contents

Qian Yongjian is an important scientist related to the study of Shimomura. In his imaging technology, there are two important jobs related to Xiacun.

The first item is calcium dye.

1980, Qian Yongjian invented dye molecules for detecting calcium ion concentration, 198 1 year. He improved the method of introducing dyes into cells, and later invented more and better dyes, which were widely used. There are three methods to detect calcium: selective electrode method, jellyfish method and calcium dye method. Before the appearance of calcium dyes in Qian Yongjian, only jellyfish had the ability of space detection, but at that time jellyfish needed to be injected into cells, which was inconvenient to use, while dyes in Qian Yongjian could penetrate into cells. Jellyfish and calcium dyes have their own advantages and disadvantages, and many people are using dyes at present. Qian Yongjian also invented various dyes to study other molecules.

The second item is GFP.

Starting from 1994, Qian Yongjian began to study GFP, improved its luminous intensity and color (invented variants and many different colors), invented more application methods, and clarified its luminous principle. Most FP used in the world are variations of his invention. His patent was used by many people and sold by the company.

Since 1980s, Qian Yongjian's works have attracted people's attention. He is probably the scientist who has been invited to give the most academic reports in the world, because both chemistry and biology have to listen to his reports, which have both technical applications and some interesting phenomena. He was born in 1952, and his age allowed him to wait for many years (while 80-year-old Shimomura Xiu did not have this advantage). Therefore, for many years, many people thought that Qian Yongjian would win the Nobel Prize in chemistry or physiology. It must be pointed out that the work of Shimomura is very positive, and Qian also publicly introduced Shimomura's findings earlier.

The two brothers won Rhodes and Marshall Scholarships respectively (generally considered to be the two most competitive scholarships for American college students, and President Clinton won Rhodes).

Qian Xuesen's nephew and two American scientists won the Nobel Prize in chemistry.

BEIJING, June 8 (Xinhua)-The Nobel Prize Committee of the Science Committee of the Royal Swedish Academy announced that it will award the 2008 Nobel Prize in Chemistry to Japanese-American scientists at about 1 1: 45 local time (about 17: 45 Beijing time). The three of them have made outstanding achievements in the discovery of green fluorescent protein. The three of them will share the Nobel Prize.

Shimomura Xiu and martin chalfie were born in 1928 and 1947 respectively. He invented multicolor fluorescent protein labeling technology, which brought a revolution to the development of cell biology and neurobiology.

Traditionally, the 2008 Nobel Prize awarding ceremony will be held on 65438+February 10 this year. The prize in physiology or medicine, physics, chemistry, literature and economics will all be held in Stockholm, Sweden. Each award of this year's Nobel Prize is still 6.5438+million Swedish kronor (about 6.5438+0.4 million US dollars).

Grand occasion of awarding prizes

Honnore, Permanent Secretary of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences? Oehquist first read out the list of winners. He said that the three scientists won prizes for their contributions to the discovery and research of green fluorescent protein. They will share the Nobel Prize in Chemistry of 6,543,800,000 Swedish kronor (about 6,543,800 US dollars). Subsequently, gunnar, Chairman of the Chemistry Prize Selection Committee? Feng? Judge Heine and Judge Mogens? Allen Berry introduced the achievements of the three winners. They said that green fluorescent protein is an important tool for studying contemporary biology. With this "road sign", scientists have developed a method to monitor the growth process of brain nerve cells, which was impossible before.

They said that in 1962, Shimomura Xiu first discovered a kind of protein, namely green fluorescent protein, which glows green under ultraviolet light in the jellyfish of protein on the west coast of North America. So, Martin? Charfe has contributed to the use of green fluorescent protein as a biological tracer molecule; Qian Yongjian made the scientific community have a more comprehensive understanding of the luminescent mechanism of green fluorescent protein, and he also expanded other color fluorescent proteins besides green, which laid the foundation for the study of tracking the changes of various biological cells at the same time.

At the press conference, Oehquist called Qian Yongjian to congratulate him. In response to a Xinhua News Agency reporter's question, Qian Yongjian said that winning the Nobel Prize for scientists in China will make China people proud and inspire more young people in China to devote themselves to scientific research. Qian Yongjian also told the media present that he was very happy to be the winner this year. Although there were rumors before, it was really unexpected.

Qian Yongjian's Research Course

Have "the most beautiful brain in the world"

On the eve of the announcement of the winners' list, Qian Yongjian was informed by telephone that he had won the 2008 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and was invited to attend the prize-giving ceremony to be held in Stockholm in February. This is undoubtedly the most important award that Qian Yongjian has won so far.

Previously, Qian Yongjian had won many professional awards with "gold content", including wolf prize in medicine, who was honored as the "Nobel Pointer" in 2004. In addition, he has no less than 60 American patent inventions.

With the talent of chemistry and biology, Qian Yongjian found a way to make green fluorescent protein brighter and more durable, and created a wider range of fluorescent protein colors, including yellow, blue, orange and other colors. "I'm always attracted by colors," Qian Yongjian said. It is the color that makes his works more interesting. "When the work is not smooth, I can go on because of the color. If I was born color blind, I don't think I would have achieved today. "

Qian Yongjian's talent and achievements have been recognized by people in the industry. Qian Yongjian's longtime collaborator, Mark Elsmann, director of the National Center for Microscopic Imaging and Research at the University of California, San Diego, said that Qian Yongjian was the smartest person he had ever met.

In an interview with the San Diego Tribune, he said of Qian Yongjian: "He has the most beautiful brain in the world, not only because he can think deeply about how to fill the gaps in known scientific fields, but also because he knows how to find new problems. He dug deep and understood the problem quickly. He is also good at unifying all parts of the problem and discovering new research tools to help other scientists explore other new problems. "

In this regard, Qian Yongjian modestly emphasized that he was not the discoverer of fluorescent protein. "I'm just a tool maker."

After several turns, I finally returned to chemistry.

Qian Yongjian was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his achievements in the field of fluorescent protein research. In fact, he has a wide range of interests, and he didn't choose this road from the beginning.

Qian Yongjian is a man with a wide range of interests. Because of asthma, he had to stay at home when he was a child. Because of his love for chemistry, he set up his own "small chemistry laboratory" in his basement, fiddling with bottles and cans. At the age of 16, Qian Yongjian also won the Westinghouse Science Genius Award, when he studied how to melt metal into thiocyanate. This "Westinghouse Science Genius Award" is the oldest and most prestigious science competition in the United States, and the winner is usually regarded as the "Little Nobel Prize winner". Then he entered Harvard University through Westinghouse Scholarship.

Although he achieved excellent results, Qian Yongjian sometimes got tired of chemistry. When he was studying at Harvard University, he was quite dissatisfied with the rigid curriculum, so he took many piano lessons himself.

When he continued studying at Cambridge University, he wanted to do something more interesting, so he turned from chemistry to molecular biology and then to oceanography. "I always have some dreams about sailing on the blue sea, but it turns out that my work has nothing to do with this dream. My research includes measuring oil pollution in the Gulf of Mexico. Finally, I finally understand that I don't care about the depth of the algae sea at all. "

Therefore, Qian Yongjian turned from oceanography to physiology, and obtained a doctorate. At that time, his research mainly focused on the human brain, which was more interesting to him.

In Qian Yongjian's view, the human brain is a fascinating loom. "More skilled, more elaborate and more creative methods are needed to weave these fragments together." After that, he "returned" to chemistry and started his own research on green fluorescent protein.

Have confidence in your cancer research.

Jennifer, head of organelle biology at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, said: "Qian Yongjian has great influence. It was he who showed a series of application possibilities of reactants based on green fluorescent protein and promoted the application of all these in biology. Dr. Qian played a vital role in the development of cell biology.

At present, green fluorescent protein has attracted more and more attention from the scientific community. Before 1992, there were few scientific articles about green fluorescent protein, but according to statistics last year, there were 12000 scientific articles related to green fluorescent protein or fluorescent protein. Some scientists predict that this number will continue to grow.

Qian Yongjian is particularly interested in whether fluorescent protein can be used in neurobiology and cancer treatment. His father died of cancer. "He had pancreatic cancer and left us six months after his diagnosis."

Although Qian Yongjian has made revolutionary contributions to the study of fluorescent protein, he has planned to leave this kind of work to his colleagues and devote more time and energy to the study of human condition, including overcoming diseases such as cancer, atherosclerosis and stroke.

Qian Yongjian admitted that his research on cancer may be fruitless. "In the history of science, there are many examples in which scientists succeed in one research and fail in another."

However, Qian Yongjian is still full of confidence in his research, because animal experiments show that this research is promising.

all one's life

Qian Yongjian was born in New York, USA on 1952. His father is a mechanical engineer and his uncle is an engineering professor at MIT. Qian Yongjian showed his scientific talent in his childhood.

Because of children's asthma, Qian Yongjian has to avoid outdoor sports as much as possible. He often spends hours doing chemical experiments in the underground laboratory. The bright colors produced by the experiment fascinated him.

/kloc-at the age of 0/6, Qian Yongjian won the first prize of Westinghouse Scientific Talent Selection Competition, a national prize in the United States, for an investigation project on the corrosion sensitivity of metals to thiocyanate. This competition is now called "Intel Science Talent Selection Competition", which is the oldest and most prestigious science competition in the United States. The contestants are mainly high school students, also known as the "Junior Nobel Prize".

At the age of 20, Qian Yongjian obtained a bachelor's degree in chemistry and physics from Harvard University at 1972.

organic dyestuff

When Qian Yongjian was a graduate student at Cambridge University in England, he invented a better dye to track the intracellular calcium level.

Calcium plays a key role in many physiological reactions, including nerve impulse regulation, muscle contraction and fertilization. However, at that time, the method of measuring intracellular calcium level was quite primitive, and calcium-binding protein needed to be injected through the cell wall, which usually destroyed the research cells.

Qian Yongjian invented organic dyes through chemical technology, which, when combined with calcium, will significantly change the fluorescence.

In addition, Qian Yongjian also found a way to "make up" calcium, so that the dye can penetrate the cell wall without injection.

Legend of Qian family

Qian Yongjian's father Qian Xuexiu and Qian Xuesen are cousins. Both of them graduated from Shanghai Jiaotong University and went to study in the United States. Qian Yongjian spoke highly of Qian Xuesen, the elder of his family. In an interview with the Journal of Cell Biology last year, he specifically mentioned that there were many engineers in his mother's and father's families, among whom Qian Xuesen was the head of China's atomic bomb project.

Qian Yongjian was born in new york on 1952. Maybe it's from his family. He has been interested in science since childhood. When he was in primary school, his parents bought him a chemical experiment toy, but he was not satisfied. Later, Qian Yongjian found a chemistry book in the school library, which tells how to turn purple solution into green, so he was deeply attracted by chemistry. When he was in high school, his basement was full of bottles and jars. The two brothers even made gunpowder quietly, and as a result, they accidentally caught fire and burned the table tennis table. Despite the accident, the parents didn't stop the children's chemistry experiment. Qian Yongjian just moved the experimental site to the outdoor concrete terrace.

At the age of 16, Qian Yongjian won the Westinghouse Science Award for Middle School Students for a chemistry project funded by the American Science Foundation. However, when Qian Yongjian was studying at Harvard University, he didn't like the chemistry teaching methods at that time, and his interest began to turn to neuroscience. Later, he won a scholarship and will go to Cambridge University to study for a doctorate. His designated tutor is Richard Adrian.

At that time, Qian Yongjian's eldest brother, Qian Lide, had just returned from Oxford, England. Richard later worked at Stanford University and became a member of the American Academy of Sciences like Qian Yongjian. Richard W. Tsien told his younger brother that Adrian is an electrophysiologist who studies muscles. Qian Yongjian suddenly froze, because he wanted to study the brain.

However, Adrian gave Qian Yongjian a lot of freedom, and Qian Yongjian began to study how to observe the neural signal network of the brain. 1980, Qian Yongjian invented dye molecules to detect the concentration of calcium ions. Calcium ion is an important signal molecule in organism, so Qian Yongjian's invention is widely used in in vivo imaging technology. For a long time, biologists have ignored the chemical problems of calcium ion, and chemists do not understand the biological significance of calcium ion signal. Qian Yongjian, with a dual background of chemistry and biology, has made some gains after many failures.

Two years later, Qian Yongjian married a beautiful girl, Wendy Global.