CRI听力:Tu Youyou Shares Experiences in Helping Fight Malaria

Tu Youyou was awarded the Nobel Prize for her discovery of the drug Artemisinin. The drug has proved a highly effective treatment for malaria, saving millions of lives around the world.

During her Nobel lecture she was happy to share the secrets of her success.

"Set a clear goal and insist on your beliefs as a precondition for success."

Tu Youyou also said that when she received such an important task to find a drug to cure malaria in 1969, she felt enormous trust and great responsibility. She was determined to fulfill the task with all her might.

The scientist said her advantage in fulfilling the task was that she had studied both western and Chinese medicine. This cross discipline provided solid foundations for research into new drugs for malaria.

"Ancient Chinese medical books and documents gave me great enlightenment. I looked through many ancient medical books and that inspired me to use low temperatures to collect Artemisinin."

Tu Youyou also said that in the 1970s, conditions for medical research were very poor, but even so she and her team still worked diligently with very primitive tools. They even resorted to trying the new drugs on themselves.

The last secret for her success, she said, was team spirit and selfless cooperation.

The discovery of Artemisinin mobilized many medical researchers across China including those from Shandong, Yunnan, Shanghai, Guangzhou and military research institutes.

However, Tu Youyou said malaria remained a big challenge for public health because about 120 million people still live areas highly vulnerable to the disease.

"Chinese medicine is a treasure chest, people should try to dig it up, and further improve it. Judging from my own experiences, I feel deeply that both Chinese and western medicines have their own advantages. If the two can be combined, it will be mutually complementary. There will be great potential and prospects for future development."

She said with two thousand years of history of Chinese medicine, she believed the utilization of natural resources for medicare can benefit mankind.

For CRI, this is Chen Xuefei reporting from Stockholm.