Yuchen Liang

Tight control and multifactorial regulation of gene expression are important challenges in genetic engineering and are critical for the development of regulatory circuits. Meeting these challenges will facilitate transgene expression regulation and support the fine-tuning of metabolic pathways to avoid the accumulation of undesired intermediates. By employing the endoribonuclease Csy4 and its recognition sequence from Pseudomonas aeruginosa and manipulating 5'UTR of mRNA, we developed a two-component expression-repression system to tightly control synthesis of transgene products. We demonstrated that this regulatory device was functional in monocotyledonous and dicotyledonous plant species, and showed that it can be used to repress transgene expression by >400-fold and to synchronize transgene repression. In addition to tissue-specific transgene repression, this system offers stimuli-dependent expression control. Using a bioinformatics approach, we identified 54 orthologous systems from various bacteria, and then validated in planta the activity for a few of those systems, demonstrating the potential diversity of such a two-component repressor system.

This article explores the concept of qinqin 親親 (familial closeness) within Chinese culture, challenging traditional definitions of family through the lens of authenticity and diversity. It critically examines Roger T. Ames’ concept of optimizing symbiosis and Sun Xiangchen’s analysis of qinqin in familial being-between-generations. Through Ames’ concept of zoetological difference, the author exposes possible misunderstandings of qinqin and its root shengsheng 生生 (incessant living, growing, birthing) as something merely biological or dogmatic, as well as the practical consequences of those misunderstandings both historically and contemporarily. Ames’ and Sun’s concepts are used to counter these misunderstandings. By analyzing familial relationships beyond mere biological connections and patriarchal dogmas, the author argues for a broader understanding of family that includes non-traditional structures like DINK and LGBTQ families. The article then opens up the possibility of forming non-patriarchal families while preserving the zoetological-existential urge to keep meaning and love flowing between generations.

It is conventionally accepted that while Western philosophy has “being” as a central topic, Eastern thoughts focused only on “nothing”. I will challenge this perception by retrieving the original meaning of the Chinese existential word 存 cun, which can provide a hitherto neglected affective aspect of being, which in the West is also mentioned by only a handful of philosophers, including Heidegger’s famous discussion of Sorge. I will utilize Heidegger’s hermeneutical phenomenology on cun by looking into the present state of cun’s usage, comparing to its original meaning, and proposing a new way forward. Cun and its compound form cunzai is used to translate “being” in modern East Asian languages. However, recently Chinese philosophers began to question the appropriateness of using cunzai for this role. I will go back to the original meaning of cun as care with both lexicographical and orthographical evidence, comparing its antonym pairing to that of the other East Asian existential words such as 是 shi and 有 you, and trace its changes in meaning. In the last section I will propose possible changes to our dealing with our own existence when we retrieve the original affective aspect of cun, with its coherence of care and existence, through the philosophical use of cun in Mencius.