In early spring in Beijing, a season of high flu prevalence, when faced with the flu, many people immediately think of antibiotics. The individual that "Our Home, Our Country" is about to visit has been dealing with antibiotics for a lifetime. She is Wang Yiguang, an 88-year-old researcher at the Institute of Medicinal Biotechnology of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.
Since the discovery of penicillin by British bacteriologist Alexander Fleming in 1928, scientists have successively applied more and more antibiotics to clinical practice, providing treatments for an increasing number of microbial infections. Wang Yiguang is one of these scientists. She participated in the development of various antibiotics such as griseofulvin, midecamycin, and erythromycin, which changed the situation in China where antibiotics were heavily reliant on imports. At one point, she reshaped the history of antibiotic development in China.
Reporter Wang Ning: How was the development level of antibiotics in our country back in the 1950s?
Wang Yiguang: It was very backward. For example, my father passed away from tuberculosis, and the treatment for tuberculosis should have involved antibiotics like streptomycin, which were not available domestically at that time, so it was very regrettable.
Wang Ning: It seems like nowadays our lives are increasingly reliant on antibiotics.
Wang Yiguang: Yes, that's why we need to use them carefully and appropriately. Bacteria are mutating, constantly developing resistance, so we must always update the types of antibiotics and continuously research new antibiotics. This is an inevitable mission for humanity.
The top student with a full score
With the aspiration to save lives, 19-year-old Wang Yiguang arrived at the Leningrad Chemical Pharmaceutical School in the Soviet Union, becoming the only Chinese student majoring in antibiotics. At that time, the Central Committee of the Party issued a call to "march towards science," aiming to bring some important and urgently needed fields close to or even surpass the world's advanced level within 12 years. Antibiotics were one of these fields.
With the trust of the motherland and the people, facing new fields and challenging coursework, Wang Yiguang diligently studied and worked hard. In the end, she achieved full marks in all subjects she studied. If the term "academic overachiever" existed back then, Wang Yiguang would undoubtedly be the epitome of a "perfect score academic overachiever."
Wang Ning: Is it difficult to study in the Soviet Union?
Wang Yiguang: It's still quite challenging. You have to study mathematics up to calculus, as well as subjects like physiology, microbiology, organic chemistry, and inorganic chemistry. You have to learn all kinds of chemistry. There are also subjects like civil engineering, thermodynamics, which I had never heard of before, and in total, I studied thirty-seven subjects.
Wang Ning: How are your grades?
Wang Yiguang: Each one is a perfect score.
Wang Ning: All perfect scores.
Wang Yiguang: The country has certain expectations, so I feel I should study hard, give it my all, and definitely excel.
The "Senior" International Student
Upon entering the workforce, Wang Yiguang continued to demonstrate his academic excellence. He played a crucial role in the development of streptomycin and maduramycin in China, marking the country's mastery of the most advanced methods for producing antibiotics at that time. However, Wang Yiguang also realized that the traditional methods of antibiotic development involved continuous trial and error and were time-consuming. Therefore, she decided to study molecular biology in the United States to improve the development process. At the age of 42, she became a "senior" international student.
Wang Ning: Why did you choose to study abroad in your forties?
Wang Guang: At that time, I considered that our country's antibiotic research had always been imitating (foreign methods), which was not a solution.
Wang Ning: This road is a shortcut we have found through so much hard work. Why not continue on?
Wang Yiguang: As a major country, why can't China have a bit of innovation? Moreover, diseases in China may not be the same as those in the rest of the world, so we need to research medicines specifically for Chinese people. Anyway, this is my lifelong mission, and my mind is always focused on this matter.
The Brave Warrior Testing Medicine on Herself
Whenever Wang Yiguang talks about the development of antibiotics, she is always enthusiastic and radiant. To give everyone a more vivid understanding of this process, even though she is retired, she puts on the white coat again and demonstrates in the laboratory.
The path of exploration is not always smooth sailing, but rather full of challenges and obstacles. The closer one gets to success, the harder it becomes. Taking the development of erythromycin as an example, from 1988 to 2001, Wang Yiguang went through 13 years of scientific research and development before erythromycin finally advanced to the clinical trial stage.
As requested, the individual who volunteered to test the drug took it at the maximum dosage to verify the drug's safety. Wang Yiguang did not hesitate to step forward and took the first dose. To this day, Wang still keeps the pills used in the experiment. In 2019, Kanamycin finally passed the review, a goal Wang had been striving for over 31 years.
Wang Yiguang: This experiment is a bit risky. Firstly, the tablets are quite large. Secondly, all eight tablets need to be taken at once, and you can't drink too much water, just half a cup at most. I said I'll have to do it myself, and if it really doesn't work, we'll call 120.
Wang Ning: Are you not afraid of being a guinea pig?
Wang Yiguang: Not afraid, no other reactions, just felt a bit nauseous. Because I felt a bit nauseous after eating, I later wrote in the instructions to suggest taking it after a meal.
Wang Yiguang, 88 years old this year, currently resides in Beijing with his wife Yang Houyuan. They met and married while studying in the Soviet Union, and have shared a life of struggle for 64 years, which also witnessed the ups and downs of antibiotic research in China.
From being the only Chinese student in the field back then to her achievements in antibiotic research and development today, Wang Yiguang has not disappointed the expectations of her country and people. With her hard work and perseverance, she has benefited thousands of patients and propelled the rise and continuous development of China's antibiotic industry.
Wang Ning: This is a very difficult path, but you have always been talking to me about this path with a smile, you have always been smiling.
Wang Yiguang: Yes, I feel that in my life, I have done something, I have tried my best, now I can face my conscience, I can be true to myself.
