Thomas C. Su dhof didn't expect that he would win the Nobel Prize.
At the beginning of 20 13, 10, the neuroscientist of Stanford University in the United States received a call from the Nobel Prize Organizing Committee on his way to Spain, and he was going to give an academic report that afternoon. At first, he thought that a colleague called him for directions, so he drove into a parking lot to answer the phone, but he didn't expect it was from Sweden.
"Even then, I was a little lost." Sudhoff recalled afterwards.
This scientist was born in Germany in 1955. Together with JamesRothman and RandySchekman from the United States, he was awarded the 20 13 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine by the Swedish Academy of Royal Science for his outstanding contribution to the study of "cellular material transport".
It is worth mentioning that Sudhof is also "China's son-in-law". His wife, Chen Lu, is also a scientist and has made great achievements in the field of life science. She once won the MacArthur Prize for Genius.
Recently, Su Dehuo visited China, attended the second "Road to Internationalized Talents" forum sponsored by International Talent Exchange magazine, and accepted an exclusive interview with a reporter from China Science News.
In his view, no scientist can "plan" to win the Nobel Prize. It's only about science, and there is no shortcut to winning the Nobel Prize.
Why do you like science?
Sudhoff's interest in science began in college when he was a medical student. Sudhoff spent a lot of time studying medicine and did a lot of exercises and practice.
The main research is how to cure diseases and save lives. But he gradually felt that he was studying technology instead of science. He found that although many doctors know how to treat diseases, they are not very clear about the deep-seated causes of diseases.
In Sudhoff's mind, it is more important to understand pathology and explore the reasons behind diseases, which is why I am interested in science.
When he was a child, no one urged him to study, and exams were never his burden. In his German educational environment, the purpose of learning is regarded as cultivating creativity and teaching children the skills and methods of learning through education. If a parent's purpose is to get his child into a top school, then such a parent will be considered short-sighted.
Although there is no external pressure, Sudhoff seems to be born to like reading and has a wide range of interests, including books on history and religion. Reading can make him forget himself completely. He is always curious about things. Once he started doing things, it was difficult for Thomas to stop. He always wants to do things well, well.
The staff in charge of Sudhof's trip to China told the reporter of China Science that he has a distinct rigor and seriousness of the German nation, and his control of time can be described as "precise", and he never deviates from the start and end time of each arrangement.
The road to the Nobel Prize
Sudhoff's road to the Nobel Prize is not easy. He began to study nerve conduction 30 years ago, during which he constantly adjusted his research direction and focus, trying to solve related biochemical and medical problems, and "stripped" these problems layer by layer, and finally found the answer.
Neurons, also known as nerve cells, are the basic units that constitute the structure and function of the human nervous system. They communicate with each other through synapses, which are the basis for the operation of the human brain. Sudhoff's research is to find out how the "communication" between neurons is carried out.
Although Su Dehuo has never cooperated with two other Nobel Prize-winning colleagues, the three of them have solved a major problem in biology, that is, "how cells sort, package and send a large number of substances to the right place at the right time". They successfully revealed that the key to the problem lies in the vesicle transport system existing in cells.
From 65438 to 0986, Suderhoff established his own laboratory in Southwest Medical Center, USA, and devoted himself to the study of neurons. At that time, many neuroscientists devoted themselves to studying the relationship between neurons and learning and memory, while Sudhoff studied the signal conduction between neurons in different ways.
Thanks to the mechanism discovered by Rothman and Schuchman, it was clear at that time that vesicles containing neurotransmitters would release neurotransmitters into extracellular space by fusing with the outer membrane of neurons. However, these vesicles only release neurotransmitters when they need to transmit signals to neighboring nerve cells.
Sudhoff found that there is a binding protein on the surface of vesicles produced by neurons. Only when calcium ions flow directionally can this binding protein combine with another protein on the surface of cell membrane, thus promoting the fusion of vesicles with cell membrane and releasing neurotransmitters. This study reveals how the time accuracy of vesicle transport is regulated.
The Swedish Academy of Royal Sciences commented that the vesicle transport mechanism discovered by the three Nobel Prize winners not only solved a major problem in cell physiology, but also promoted scientists' understanding and research on many diseases. For example, insulin that regulates blood sugar level needs to be released into the blood at the right time and place, and the defect of vesicle transport system will hinder the release of insulin and cause diabetes. Defects in this system can also lead to other neurological and immune system diseases.
There is no shortcut to the Nobel Prize.
Now, as a Nobel Prize winner, in his view, there is no shortcut to the Nobel Prize, "it must rely on real skills", and he thinks that winning the prize is largely something that can be met but not sought, "it is impossible to plan to win the Nobel Prize".
However, he still tried to sum up some award-winning experiences.
First of all, he stressed that in order to win the favor of the Royal Swedish Academy of Science, they must pay great attention to the quality of research. "Science is the study of truth, but scientists are human beings, and they may make mistakes. In order to avoid making mistakes, we must concentrate on improving the quality of our scientific research. "
Secondly, he thinks the topic selection is very important. According to him, there are many scientists in the United States who pay great attention to topic selection. "It is very important to choose a topic with very high research value. What we should study is scientific research that can improve people's understanding of the world. "
Thirdly, Sudhoff attaches great importance to creativity. In his eyes, this means that scientists must be able to ask questions, which is not only related to his scientific research skills, but also related to whether scientists have real ideas.
"Creativity may be the last thing I mentioned. You can't teach a person to be creative, "he added. "But I think a feasible way is to create a creative culture and an environment where everyone likes to discuss problems together."
For some hot issues that others think are very important, Sudhoff does not agree. "You can't just consider what issues you are interested in. Scientists should focus on believing what they think is important, rather than blindly listening to other people's opinions. "
China's son-in-law
After work, Sudhoff has an enviable family. He took his wife and children with him at the Nobel Prize ceremony last year.
In fact, his wife Chen Lu got the good news of winning the prize earlier than her husband. The Nobel Prize Organizing Committee first called Sudhov's home, but he was not at home. The phone rang three times, and Chen decided to go downstairs to answer it. She thought it was from a relative in China who didn't know the time zone.
Chen Lu 1989 was admitted to the Biology Department of China University of Science and Technology from Fu Jen Middle School in Wuxi, and 1998 received his doctorate from the University of Southern California. Later, he worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Southern California and the University of California, San Francisco. In 2003, he was appointed as assistant professor of neurology, molecular and cell biology at the University of California, Berkeley, and has been promoted to associate professor.
Su Dehuo and Chen Lu met about six years ago, and their research fields are close to the laboratory, so they met in the laboratory.
Today, the couple have two children. Everyone thinks that free growth space is very important, and try to give children full and free play space. Su Dehuo likes to play hide-and-seek games with children at home, and he is good at hiding, which often makes children unable to find it.
In the eyes of his wife, Sudhof is a big child with childlike innocence. If he is bored with the topic of participating in activities, he will pop up a sentence to the enthusiastic guests: "Are you happy?" If he feels wrong after listening to the academic report, he will directly point out to the other party: "I don't believe your research."
Sudhoff himself admitted to reporters that he was very frank about the problems at work.
But apart from the debate on individual professional issues, he is by no means a Frankenstein who is not easy to contact. From beginning to end, I was a gentleman and patiently cooperated with taking photos to ask questions, and every question was answered with great concentration. When talking about the topic he is interested in, the smile on his face will bloom into a knowing smile.
Chen Lu believes that winning the prize will not have much impact on their lives. He said that he didn't work to win the prize before, and he won't stop working because of winning the prize in the future. I'm still young and don't want to retire.