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Chapter 7: Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (2)

“Yeah, that’s Nobel Prize-worthy technology.” Jung Hae-Rim agreed.

“Even if it’s different from the work our department is supposed to do, some trivial lab directors won’t be able to pick on us if we did that. But it’s not feasible,” Park Dong-Hyun spoke.

Jung Hae-Rim added, “Once a cell differentiates, it can’t go back. It’s like how we can’t go back to being an undergraduate student because we already completed our doctorate.”

Koh Soon-Yeol also added, “Back in the day, you couldn’t reset your skill tree in RPG games once you choose one. The cell system of the body is a pro that’s been working for about ten billion years. So, I don’t think...”

Park Dong-Hyun went back to opening the presentation file on his laptop.

“Well, we’re trying to focus on creating an artificial cell. Let’s work on this a little more for now. I’ll catch you up on the current results we have.”

Young-Joon stared at the blinking message in front of his eyes.

[Synchronization Mode: Would you like to gain insight into how to revert a regular cell into an embryonic cell? Fitness consumption: 2.0]

Rosaline was telling him that it was possible. What kind of advancements would happen if this technology was invented? There would be no need to harvest eggs or sperm, and they would not have to make an embryo either. They also didn’t need extremely precise micro-control to replace genetic material. Since it was the patient’s own genetic material, there would be no rejection. This was like a technological leap from the days when women used to wash their clothes with a washing paddle to using a washing machine.

Click.

Young-Joon tapped on Rosaline’s message.

“What are you doing~!” Koh Soon-Yeol tilted his head in confusion as Young-Joon tapped into nothing.

“Ah, just some dust.” Young-Joon made up some excuse. He pressed it, but as expected, nothing happened.

[You do not have enough fitness.]

The amount of fitness that Young-Joon had was 1.5; this was the maximum. To get it higher, he needed to upgrade Rosaline.

“...”

‘But how?’

Bleep! As Young-Joon was lost in thought, a message popped up with a notification.

[Improve Metastatic Status or Synchronization to upgrade Rosaline’s level.]

[The fitness limit and the recovery rate will increase with Rosaline’s level.]

They were messages that he had read before. It was information he already knew. The problem was how he could improve the Metastatic Status or Synchronization...

Young-Joon checked Rosaline’s metastatic status.

[Metastatic Status: Heart (2%), Liver (46%), Brain (7%), Kidney (13%), Spinal Cord (4%)]

These values were the result of what Rosaline did in order to recover his body when he was an alcoholic. She had corrected his herniated disc, forward neck posture, fatty liver, and all kinds of small discomforts.

‘...Should I take some cyanide or something?’

As Young-Joon was coming up with ridiculous ways, he heard Park Dong-Hyun presenting.

“4.87, the most recent version we tested, was destroyed because we could not get the cell membrane to stabilize.”

‘4.87!’

Young-Joon’s eyes widened. He remembered that when he first obtained Rosaline, the artificial cell that was reacting in the lab was labeled v4.87. It was just a blob of chemicals that wasn’t living yet, but Rosaline was born as soon as Young-Joon’s blood went into it.

‘What happened? The ATP originating from my blood cells entered into v4.87. Maybe ATP is the source that Rosaline needs to grow?’

ATP was a very high-energy chemical entity; it was the fuel that was widely used in a variety of cellular functions in the body. And Rosaline, which was in Young-Joon’s body, had also reacted strongly to ATP before. Then, wouldn’t her Metastatic Status or Synchronization be improved with ATP?

“Does anyone have good ideas?” Park Dong-Hyun asked. However, Jung Hae-Rim and Koh Soon-Yeol all avoided his gaze and lowered their heads. Park Dong-hyun sighed.

“It’s alright. It’s not your fault that our project isn’t progressing. It’s because this project is too difficult and unrealistic.”

“How long do we have until our year-end seminar?” Young-Joon asked.

“About two weeks...”

Young-Joon thought for a little while. It wasn’t a terrible idea; it would cause huge waves in the scientific community if he could create embryonic stem cells from regular ones. If he presented this, it wouldn’t be long before he entered stardom in the scientific community. It was a good way to gain some leverage at A-Gen.

Another benefit was that this technology was fundamental. If he was successful, it wouldn’t end there. This technology would require further, more advanced experimentation, such as growing artificial organs or differentiating cells into tissues and nerves, which were all difficult for modern scientists. The ball would be in Young-Joon’s court as he would also hold the key to solving those problems.

If he used that, he would also be able to make a deal about the percentage of royalties. Young-Joon had decided that he would not give any percentage of the royalties to the executives or shareholders; why would he give them anything when none of them contributed?

Young-Joon would need a little deception after presenting the data, but he was confident he could do that. If he succeeded, the tables would be turned. He was determined to become the first author of the paper, the first inventor, and take the maximum share of the patent.

Young-Joon silently stared at Park Dong-Hyun, Jung Hae-Rim and Koh Soon-Yeol.

“I will study the de-differentiation of stem cells in the meantime.”

“I’m telling you, you can’t.” Park Dong-Hyun seemed irritated.

“But I think it might be fine to let him do whatever he wants since he’s new...” Koh Soon-Yeol told Park Dong-Hyun, to which the latter nodded after some thought.

“Alright. I guess it’s not a great time to assign you new tasks because we’re busy with the year-end report and you need time to get used to this place, too. Do whatever you want for two weeks.”

“Thank you. I appreciate it.”

The meeting ended not long after. The department hadn’t found an idea to use at the year-end seminar, but it didn’t matter; Young-Joon was confident he could make it himself.

As soon as Young-Joon returned to the lab, he searched for ATP.

‘Found it.’

He took out a small reagent bottle from the -20 degrees freezer.

[Adenosine 5’-triphosphate disodium salt hydrate]

Without the disodium salt hydrate, it was called ATP, adenosine 5’-triphosphate.

Young-Joon extracted about a milliliter of ATP from the reagent bottle. He sterilized it by filtering it through a 0.22-micrometer filter and then put it into a five-milliliter syringe from the lab. Then, he disinfected the inside of his elbow with alcohol and injected the ATP into his veins.

‘I can’t believe that I’m conducting a clinical trial on my own body.’

To be honest, it was crazy. However, this much was definitely harmless to a healthy person. Even if it didn’t affect Rosaline, it would end with no particular negative effects on Young-Joon\'s body as well.

‘Let’s take a look...’

Young-Joon opened Rosaline’s status window and stared at it.

Bleep.

[Rosaline has absorbed the ATP.]

“...”

‘Is this wrong?’

The moment Young-Joon, who was disappointed, was about to try something new...

[The fitness of the cell will increase momentarily.]

‘Momentarily.’

[Rosaline Lv. 1]

—Metastatic Status: Heart (2%), Liver (46%), Brain (7%), Kidney (13%), Spinal Cord (4%)

—Synchronization: 3%

—Cell Fitness: 2.1 (+0.6: For 21 hours due to ATP)

—Gene Expression Control: Suppression of CYP2E1 (38%)

A value of 0.6 was added to fitness from the ATP. It seemed like it meant that 0.6 would be added to his regular amount and that it would last for twenty-one hours. Whatever it was, his total fitness amount was over two.

Young-Joon quickly opened the message again.

[Check how to revert a regular cell to an embryonic cell (Fitness consumption: 2.0)]

Click.

A solution appeared when Young-Joon pushed the button.

[You can revert a normal cell into an embryonic stem cell if you modify a few genes.]

[It is the most simple method you can use right now. Rosaline recommends the next four sets of genes.]

[SOX2, cMyc, OCT4, KTF4]

[Overexpress these four genes in the cell.]

‘Woah...’

Young-Joon felt like he cheated off God’s answers or something. How could someone discover that a normal cell could be reverted into a stem cell by modifying just four genes out of the twenty different kinds they have?

If Young-Joon were to pick genes randomly and experiment with them, this knowledge would be like hitting the lottery jackpot billions of times. Chills went through his spine again when he realized that Rosaline also knew all the numbers to hit that jackpot.

Young-Joon closed the message window and ran to his office computer. He searched [genebank.com] and logged in with his ID. This website sold genes. They sold individual fragments of artificially synthesized genes. He could order freeze-dried genes and use them in his experiments after melting them in some water. Young-Joon ordered those four genes right away.

* * *

The genes were delivered two days later, but Young-Joon needed to flesh out his experiment a little more. How was he going to put the genes into the cell, and in what cell was he going to add it? What was the right amount to add, and how long would he have to wait to observe it after inserting it?

Normally, he would have spent a month figuring out the best conditions for each component of the experiment, but Young-Joon didn’t have to do that; Synchronization Mode provided him with the optimal conditions as well. He gained new messages as he regularly used his cell fitness.

[Recommends you to insert the genes into a human embryonic kidney cell (HEK293). (Click to see the characteristics of an embryonic kidney cell)]

[Insert the gene using a retrovirus. (Click to see how to produce viruses)]

[Grow them using the same method of growing embryonic stem cells three days later. (Click to see growing method)]

Young-Joon consumed cell fitness every day and executed the experiment as per Rosaline\'s instructions. He grew embryonic kidney cells and produced gene-carrying retroviruses.

A few days flew by while he was busy with his experiment.

And on Friday morning, Young-Joon finally infected the embryonic kidney stem cells with the retrovirus. Now, SOX2, cMyc, OCT4, and KLF4, the four genes Young-Joon put inside the cell, were going to start being expressed. Now, all he had to do was observe. The experiment would be a success if this cell reverted back into an embryonic state.

‘Anyway, it’s so simple.’

Comparing it to cooking, what scientists were basically doing was collecting unknown ingredients and creating a new recipe. But following Rosaline’s orders was just like cooking by following the prepared recipe. The difference in the level of difficulty was unbelievable.

Finally, Young-Joon plated the genetically modified embryonic kidney cells onto a special STO culture dish. If the cells flourished on this plate and differentiated, it would mean that these were artificially crafted embryonic stem cells.

‘Is it really possible?’

“What are you doing?” Jung Hae-Rim asked Young-Joon from behind as he was observing the plate through the microscope. She walked beside him and looked at the culture plate.

“What is this?”

“It’s a stem cell candidate.”

“Wow.”

“It can be called a stem cell if it grows from this culture dish. I’ll send you the details of the experiment by email.”

“I hope it goes well, but honestly, I’m not expecting anything.”

“It’s lunch. Are you not going to eat?”

“We’re heading out right now. We came to ask you to come with us.”

“Let’s go.”

As Young-Joon followed Jung Hae-Rim out, Park Dong-Hyun and Koh Soon-Yeol were already waiting for them in front of the elevator with their jackets on.

Young-Joon asked, “Do you have to bundle up like that when we’re going to the cafeteria?”

“The halls are cold. And we also have to wait a while when we’re getting our meal tickets, so bring your coat,” Jung Hae-Rim replied.

“I heard that the flu is going around.Your immune system gets weaker when you’re cold, so be careful, everyone,” Park Dong-Hyun added.

“Eek. The flu?” Jung Hae-Rim shuddered.

“Yes. Take your vitamins. And Doctor Ryu, our team usually has lunch together if there isn’t anything special,” Park Dong-Hyun told Young-Joon.

“Is that so?”

“Yes. I told you before, right? We outcasts have to stick together at least. We won’t last here if we don’t do that.”

Jung Hae-Rim and Koh Soon-Yeol laughed. Park Dong-Hyun went on.

“We couldn’t have lunch with you because you were busy with your experiment this week, but let’s have lunch together starting next week.”

Young-Joon nodded. They actually asked him to have lunch together a few days during the week, but Young-Joon turned them down because he had to work on a tight schedule if he wanted to have prominent results in two weeks. Now all he had to do was wait since he was finished with all the busy work, but for the past few days, he had brought kimbap from home and shoved them in his mouth.[1]

Young-Joon wondered why they made such a fuss about eating together, but he was able to figure out why.

Laboratory Six was used by seven departments in total. They didn’t run into each other as each department worked with their own members, but everyone shared lunchtime and the cafeteria.

Bleep!

Young-Joon’s profile showed up on the small monitor as he scanned his company ID to get his meal ticket.

[Scientist Ryu Young-Joon, Life Creation Department]

At the same time, Young-Joon could feel the scientists behind him stare with unfriendly gazes.

“Why are they at Lab Six anyway?” someone behind him murmured.

“Our lab’s performance falls because of them during the year-end seminar. I heard that Director Kim Hyun-Taek from Lab One leads the Anticancer Drug Research team by himself. But we have that department... Sigh.”

“They probably have nothing again this year, right?”

“Ha. Think about it. Do you think they would have anything to show?”

“The atmosphere at the seminar is going to be bad, yet again. It always goes south when they present.”

“It’s because they are a collection of people that used to make things go south in their own departments.”

1. Kimbap is often eaten as a quick meal, like a simple peanut butter jelly sandwich. ?