On the afternoon of May 10, the opening and supervisor appointment ceremony of the "Zhou Jian Innovation Class" of the basic medical sciences program at Wenzhou Medical University was held in the lecture hall on the second floor of the Biomedical Research Building. Vice President Cao Jianming, and Zhu Xuebo, member of the WMU Party Committee and director of the Academic Affairs Office, attended the activity. Professor Qu Jia, president of the Alumni Association, was invited to give a lecture. Leaders and representatives of teachers and students of the School of Basic Medical Sciences attended the event.

"If you ask me, why did I choose to be a teacher? Because I work today, and I am constructing the tomorrow of my motherland." "We are angels in white, but our wings are made up of your precious pieces of feathers, thank you for your care and guidance along the way."... The activity kicked off with the poetry reading "Love goes to wherever the heart is" by the representatives of teachers and students of the School of Basic Medical Sciences. The teachers and students remembered Alumnus Zhou Jian in the affectionate reading.

Cao Jianming said that Dr. Zhou Jian is an outstanding alumnus of Wenzhou Medical University. His spirit of loving our country and Alma Mater as well as his dedication to science is a valuable legacy. The "Zhou Jian Innovation Class" of the basic medical sciences program does not only pay tribute to Dr. Zhou Jian, but also is grown out of and will carry forward his spirit of science. He pointed out that basic medical education is the cornerstone and core of medical education. With the implementation of the Healthy China initiative, Wenzhou Medical University, as the only independent medical university in the region of southern Zhejiang, northern Fujian, and eastern Jiangxi, has taken the cultivation of top innovative talents in basic medical sciences as its important mission in the new era. He put forward three requirements for the running of the "Zhou Jian Innovation Class": first, the students of "Zhou Jian Innovation Class" should be studious, inquisitive, innovative, diligent in thinking and research, and devote themselves to scientific research to pursue greater heights; second, the academic and scientific supervisors should adhere to the fundamental task of cultivating virtuous talents, deepen the reform of education and teaching, and strive to foster a new generation of young people; third, the School of Basic Medical Sciences should take the opening of the "Zhou Jian Innovation Class" as an opportunity to strive for distinction and excellence and cultivate outstanding medical talents who are passionate, confident, willing to take action and innovate.

Sun Xiaoyi, Dr. Zhou Jian's wife, delivered a video speech to congratulate the opening of the "Zhou Jian Innovation Class" of the basic medical sciences program. From the three aspects of Zhou Jian as a scientist, an alumnus, and a senior schoolmate, she affectionately talked about Zhou Jian's pureness, concentration, love, and dedication to scientific research, showed his emotional feelings and deep care for his Alma Mater when he was abroad, and interpreted generations of WMUers’ carrying forward the university’s motto of "Compassion, Reverence, Diligence, Modesty, Make Efforts and Seek Truth". She urged the students of the "Zhou Jian Innovation Class" to always remain curious, try to make the impossible possible, keep the original intention in future study and work, always be grateful, and strive to forge ahead.

The dean of the School of Basic Medical Sciences introduced the training concept, training goal, and training mode of the "Zhou Jian Innovation Class" of the basic medical sciences program. He said that the "Zhou Jian Innovation Class" will always aim at "cultivating top-notch innovative talents of basic medical sciences". By adopting measures such as the small-class system and mentorship, the "Zhou Jian Innovation Class" will offer a successive study of undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral programs, focus on improving the comprehensive quality of students, and strive to cultivate outstanding scientists and educators of basic medicine in the future.

The supervisor appointment ceremony for the "Zhou Jian Innovation Class" of the basic medical sciences program was also held at the event. Cao Jianming and Zhu Xuebo presented letters of appointment for the scientific research supervisors and academic supervisors of the “Zhou Jian Innovation Class” of the basic medical sciences program. Professor Lu Xincheng, the representative of scientific research supervisors, and Associate Professor Chen Xin-an, the representative of academic supervisors, made speeches. Lu said that as a scientific research supervisor, he will always keep in mind “who and how to train, and to what end”, devote himself to scientific research and teaching, and make contributions to the cultivation of top-notch innovative talents in basic medical sciences. Chen said that he will always bear in mind the mission of education, earnestly fulfill the obligation of academic supervisors, carefully carry out education and teaching work, and strive to cultivate top talents in basic medical sciences.

Xin Xianming, the student representative of the “Zhou Jian Innovation Class” of the basic medical sciences program, promised that they will carry forward the spirit of Zhou Jian with “an indomitable will, creative thinking, benevolence and great love" at its core. Moreover, every student will forge ahead with diligence, work hard to become a medical scientist, and spare no effort in becoming an excellent professional in basic medical sciences.

In the first lesson of the class, Professor Qu Jia gave a touching lecture titled "The Eternal Zhou Jian", telling the story of Alumnus Zhou Jian in detail sentimentally. Professor Miao Tianrong invented the visual acuity chart with only a pen, a piece of paper, and a ruler. Our university has experienced rapid growth and made continuous progress with more and more outstanding alumni. Qu used these examples to profoundly elaborate the spiritual connotation of the university’s motto of "Compassion, Reverence, Diligence, Modesty, Make Efforts and Seek Truth". He encouraged the students of the "Zhou Jian Innovation Class" to carry forward the spirit of the university’s motto, prove worthy of the times and the splendor of youth, make contributions in the field of basic medical education and research in the future, and write a brilliant chapter of life with passion and sweat.

Professor Ian Fraser and Dr. Zhou Jian (1st, R)

Zhou Jian was one of the first batch of clinical medicine students enrolled by Wenzhou Medical University (formerly Wenzhou Medical College) after the resumption of the college entrance examination in 1977. After obtaining his bachelor’s degree in 1982, he went on to study at Zhejiang Medical University for a master’s degree and at Henan Medical University for PhD studies. After that, he undertook his postdoctoral study at Peking Medical University. In 1990, at the invitation of Professor Ian Fraser, director of the Center for Immunology and Cancer Research at the University of Queensland, Zhou and his wife Sun Xiaoyi went to Queensland to study the synthetic HPV vaccine. In 1991, Zhou and Fraser used recombinant DNA technology to synthesize human papillomavirus-like particles, and applied for a patent. On March 19, 1999, when the clinical trials of his research results, now sold as Gardasil, began, Zhou passed away at the age of 42 due to overwork. The vaccine against cervical cancer jointly developed by Zhou and Fraser is the first vaccine against cancer in human history, benefiting hundreds of millions of women worldwide.

Text translated by Cai Lingchen and reviewed by Sun You.