#tw rna

[hellsitegenetics]

U A C U G U U G A C C C

NO FUCKING RNA 🚫🚫🚫🚫🚫🚫🚫🚫🚫 NOT ALLOWED 🚫🚫🚫🚫🚫🚫🚫🚫🚫🚫🚫

[artcinemas]

i'm reading sons of darkness by gourav mohanty and i'm witnessing the visenya-fication of devi satyabhama in real life time.

[spidermilkshake]

Until September

More RE fanfics--more mutants, more corporate shenanigans. There is fluff! Also a rival company commando is blitzed by a Tyrant, but, uh, this is Resident Evil. Even the nicest scenes are bookended by scary.

Rating: Teen (TW for suggestive language, human experimentation, dehumanization, medical/lab settings and stuff, plus also human adults cuss like human adults, some obvious child neglect and endangerment, alcohol abuse, implied animal abuse)

Mr. X's long first assignment--to be upper-level Tyrant Project researcher Dr. Julian Ramirez's personal bodyguard as he spends his summer at his fancy house bought with his evil corporation money. Having a test mission prototype Tyrant on your property to help flatten any intruders or rival company agents that sneak in is apparently a common perk if the company's board likes your work. Ramirez, uh, has an interesting home life, and T-00 is smart enough to detect some of that despite this being its first experience of humans not poking it in a lab or putting it through combat training in a top-secret facility...

5: Until September

            From that point, after a short cargo helicopter ride and another in the back of a large civilian armored car, T-00… “Mr. X”… experienced the brief life of Dr. Ramirez’s at-home lab.

            Situated in a cozy, deep-red corner of northern California, the man had the benefit of the rural landscape for all manner of reasons. One being his bunker laboratory which he fiddled around with variants of common viral and bacterial elements within, as well as examining various domesticated animal species’ genomes to try and discover another, more advantageous quirk that could be added to the Tyrant project. Some of the sources of these genomes could be found on the small attached ranch property in the form of a somewhat decrepit horse and several large, semi-feral cattle. A highly-pampered golden retriever mix also bounced its way around the property, but it could hardly be lumped in with the farm animals considering how loving and attentive Dr. Ramirez seemed to become on sight of the canine. This animal was about as untrained as the cows—though it balked at any close quarters with the Tyrant, probably smelling something was off about the inoffensive but intimidating newcomer.

            The Tyrant was ushered swiftly into a portion of the swanky abode which bordered the laundry and a small guest room on the first day. Between these two locations, the doctor had prepared a simple rest area for the bioweapon to reside in while it was not to be seen—roughly the size of the small laundry though without the obstructing machines, T-00 noted the heavily-built twin bedframe and the fitting mattress, which it assumed it was meant to rest on. It… was not bad, now that it had a few minutes to contemplate it.

            Okay, it was more than “not bad”. Mattresses were invented for a reason, and the insufficient nature of those holding chamber benches became richly obvious to the beast that had never experienced proper back support before. It had slept a solid nine hours the first night, until summoned by a cheerful call of its nickname—the longest stint of sleep it had ever known.

            Otherwise, the Tyrant which Dr. Ramirez called “Mr. X” stayed a moment, or a meter or two, behind him (depending on what the man requested, and what the Tyrant’s highly-tuned senses for danger dictated). The man spent a lot of time in the small bunker lab, checking fuse banks before booting up huge computers to run an equally massive hypermicroscope device in order to manipulate pieces of dead SARS and Hepatitis delta-virus, picking out segments of RNA and comparing them to Umbrella’s sample slides of base genes. He often made spunky commentary, knowing it was only the so-far nonverbal Tyrant hearing him, but based on his specific, jovial responses it knew he could only be speaking only to it.

            Despite the doctor’s fancy and frequent social life, he was very lonely. After dark fell, no other human occupied the languidly-spread and draftily large house in the hills. The man still chatted happily—sometimes too happily—with his newly-won bioweapon attendant.

            The bioweapon had once or twice also stepped out with him, and a very flinchy, nervous man whom the doctor’d called a “trainer”, to see the old horse and the half-dozen cows. T-00 eyed the dusty, vacantly-staring creatures staying well back from the bioweapon. They behaved much like B.O.W.s with none or very rusty training. The lone horse would come right to the gate for Dr. Ramirez’s trainer, even with the towering creature feet away, though the whites of its eyes flared plainly as it stood, ears pinning and legs shaking for the trainer to check its hooves and teeth.

            T-00 focused instead on the cows, not wishing to interfere unintentionally on the equine check-over. It locked eyes with a large, rusty-brown beast that had very small, stubby horns. The animal stamped its rear legs softly, nostrils flaring. Strange. The creature was fairly small compared to the others in the group, though it placed itself front and center regardless—a “leader” of sorts, making all of the protective motions towards the others that the position entailed. A much larger steer of a mostly black color hid ineffectually behind her—sharing many features with this cow.

            “Come on! We’re done Mr. X,” the doctor called from the gate, the first indication it had quietly shuffled a step inside the paddock area to watch the animals more closely. With an instinctual start, it turned and tromped off after its current objective.

            It wished the animals and its master’s use of the Tyrant as a social interaction stand-in had been the most predictable parts of its mission. No—that honor would go to the once-monthly incident of rival agents attempting to gain access to Ramirez’s nuclear-shielded bunker. Irritated out of its comfortable rest, the Tyrant followed the clinking and ticking of attempts to bypass the lock code and the other measures to find a body-armored individual in front of the small cellar entrance, like a sitting duck as they focused on the loud—annoying—puzzle portion. It wasn’t clear if they ever realized an eight-foot mutant weapon was creeping up on them before it happened. Regardless, Ramirez would have one of the informed Umbrella staff bag up the body and tote it off the next morning as the household came awake.

--------

            It was one week during the hellishly dry heat of summer than Mr. X encountered a true challenge to its adaptable wits—and it began more or less during one of the more predictable, boring parts of its duties. The bioweapon lurked a few meters behind the doctor in his home office, blocking the large window with its even larger back while Ramirez was distracted on the phone.

            The Tyrant could only guess at some of this, but it did recognize the codenames and designations used for various B.O.W.s:

            “So the train was just…? All of them?” Julian Ramirez scrubbed at his patchy stubble, “Jesus… Well, do you know how it happened? …Uh huh, I’m sure it came back inconclusive. There’s never any hypercompetitive, jealous pricks trying to off each other at Umbrella labs, huh.”

            “Speaking of, do you have any idea what they’re gonna do about Birkin?” There was a long pause before a tinny squeak of the other voice picked up, “Oh come on. They practically know it was him. Who else has been sabotaging projects involving T for months? …It was T on that train, right? …Okay, they even know it’s that strain—so who else has access to the Arklay lab who would?”

            There was an even longer silence this time before the other line began to speak again; and once it did Ramirez’s grip on the phone tightened, his dark complexion going sweaty and almost impossibly pale. The change was so extreme that T-00’s senses honed in and it watched its master with mounting concern, convinced the doctor was about to collapse out of some kind of medical distress.

            “… Since when? …Really, that recent?” He finally dredged up his voice again, wiping furiously at his brows and mustache, staring down at his own shaking hand in bafflement as if wondering who put all of that sweat there, “So where was Willy in all this?”

            “…Ah.”

            “So… they’re sure it wasn’t him… Well. I’ll see about giving Teifer a call soon if she’s got questions for me.”

            After Ramirez hung up, he glanced over his shoulder at his house-Tyrant with an indecipherable expression, which had Mr. X straightening up to full attention. Then, with a heavy sigh he turned in his chair towards the squat glass bottle of Pilár dark rum that he kept on one side of the desk and unscrewed the cap in a ritual which usually—T-00 had observed—took place later in the day. The powerful alcohol swirled into a coffee mug and shortly after was slammed into the man’s mouth, eliciting a rough grunt as he fought the burn of the unhealthily-large shot.

            Mr. X relaxed somewhat as Ramirez returned to the phone. The next conversation had more that the bioweapon recognized, but was even more confusing:

            “Hey, Teifer! It’s Ramirez,” he sounded as peppy as always, despite the haggard look in his eyes and the rum flooding into his bloodstream, “Yeah, he told me you needed to hear from me… eh? Ah, he did mention what happened up at the Arklay lab…”

            He leaned back, hooded eyes inspecting his propped-up shoes as he took in his colleague’s words. He rolled them upon a certain part of her story:

            “Hey, hey—you’re getting too stressed. Listen: I get the risk. But Cerberus specimens physically can’t spread the virus. That shouldn’t be your main concern.

            “Those dogs don’t have T in them anymore—they’re kinda like the modern Tyrants, alright? We enhance the genome, we infect—with the delta strain for the Cerberus—and let the mutation take its course, okay? Then when they’re fully baked, we quarantine the specimens, give them a T-virus vaccination, and a course of anti-retrovirals just to be sure before those guys go to training. Which, by the way, you should be able to get a hold of someone at N.E.S.T. with experience training animal B.O.W.s. They’ve got lots of new Hunters coming out of there, they can help you wrangle those dogs when the time comes…”

            “Hm? …Ah… Yeah, see, that one is a problem,” Ramirez’s shoulders finally slouched more naturally, and he got a level, if slightly slushy, tone of voice back, “Rabies is very real and a good explanation for any ‘public eye’ stuff… If the bear story is true you’ll want to get a squad with heavy weapons and track down every rabid animal claim in a five-mile radius, then be sure to bag and burn everything they shoot.”

            “..? Teifer, you know that’s even easier. Quarantine and trace identity, burn the premises, then let the weaponized-virals R&D team see the data.”

            “…What journalist?” At this new turn in the conversation Ramirez shot upright in his chair, “… You don’t have a name? …Uh-huh. … Hm. Well, if he knows too much he probably already knows he’s dead.”

            “Right. See you in fall. Bye now.”

            After Ramirez hung up, he sat for a long while, head in hands. Mr. X let a good ten minutes pass before the alarm bells started to go off, and the huge mutant huffed as it took a careful step forward. At the creak of the floors, Dr. Ramirez raised his head again.

            “Eh?” He twisted around, “What is it, Mr. X?”

            The bioweapon had a number of words that it might have wanted to put out—“Are you well?”, “What was that about?”, “Do you need help?”, or even “What the fuck?”—but it had no idea how to move its throat, or tongue, or lips to do such a thing. He did the next best thing: Mr. X grunted, managing to make the trailing end of the noise rise up in pitch with wordless questions, as humans did in such a situation.

            “Smart fella,” Ramirez gave a soft laugh. “One of these days I’ll have to get you practice in saying a few words. I’m fine. Can you just… turn and check out the window for a while? I have to call my ex,” he added the last part quickly, which while confusing did not hold up the Tyrant very long in turning around and scanning the exterior of the house for potential threats.

            The phone rang several times, with Ramirez left waiting. Mr. X’s pinprick pupils hovered over the entrance gate, then the edge of the pinyon treeline, then over to where the dog was laid out in a patch of dirt by one of the front garden walls. Finally, someone answered the doctor:

            “Linda… hey. No don’t—” there was an insistent buzz of muffled vocals from the speaker, “It’s about the weekend, Linda—look, you want me to just not warn you? Huh?”

            “Okay okay. Look, I just need you to know I have to be out a few hours Saturday to work with someone. Don’t worry—” he interrupted the agonized screech from the speaker, “—I have someone to watch her until I get back. Don’t worry. I wouldn’t walk back on this, mi amor.”

            “… Okay, Jesus, I won’t do it again. Just… noon Saturday, right? I’ll be there.”

            The phone slammed on the receiver. Mr. X peeked back over his lapels in anticipation of a command. There was only so much time in the office, however decorated and airy, that Ramirez could stand and Mr. X tended to agree with this habit. It was in the loft area of the house, and the ceilings were a foot too low for the Tyrant’s comfort.

            “Right. Mr. X?” The bioweapon swiveled around in reply, “I’m going to fetch some things from the basement. Take up a guard downstairs, yeah?”

            Mr. X nodded with eagerness, letting the somewhat tipsy human lead the way out the door and down the stairs. This was an ideal task for both of them, considering the ninety-plus temperatures outside, and once the man had vanished down the too-narrow steps to the musty, refreshingly cool basement level the Tyrant posted himself in a comfortable nook within sight of the open basement door, the front door, and the downstairs hall towards the kitchen area. It watched. Nothing much reached its eyes or ears—except for a distant snort of a horse or cow, a wasp bouncing against the nearest window in a frenzy to find food or shade, and a clatter followed by a Spanish-language curse from the cluttered sublevel. Business as usual.

-------

            On Saturday, the omen which Mr. X innocently overheard came to the doorstep.

            In the morning, with Ramirez nursing a pickle-juice-based hangover cocktail and holding a hardboiled egg like it was a sergeant’s switch from bygone days, Mr. X was confronted with a series of warnings which it knew right away were serious, very serious, and urgent… but that he didn’t entirely grasp right away.

            “Mr. X! Listen—listen,” the man pressed his eggless hand into the lapel of his tame mutant’s trenchcoat, “Today is going to be a bit different. I need you to be… uh… well… different.”

            T-00 stared down at the man pressing himself as close to its face as possible, and gave a low grunt as he tilted his head.

            “Well, I mean…” Ramirez let up on the contact, as aware as they came that pushing the living weapons too hard or confusing them with contradictory orders could come with serious consequences, “Mr. X, you are going to meet my daughter today. She’s visiting over the weekend and will be here until roughly 11 a.m. on Monday.”

            Ramirez waited, as if to hear an acknowledgement from the creature staring him down with wide, perplexed, but still willing eyes. The man sighed, leaning into his hands which had settled on the Tyrant’s chest, “While she’s here, I want you to put your protective orders over me as secondary. While she’s here, you protect her, is that understood?”

            Daughter. Mr. X had not heard anything of Ramirez’s family before, but it had an intuitive sense of what the word “DAUGHTER” meant. The creature took a deep, sharp inhale, then gave a rough, affirmative growl at the same time it bobbed its head.

            “Good… good…” Ramirez reached up and patted the Tyrant on the shoulder, grin of relief almost palpable without flashing it within sight. Mr. X reflexively swelled with the praise.

            “She’ll be here at noon, and you must watch over her very closely until about four. If she needs water, get her a cup and fill it from the fridge. If she gets hungry, take her to the bottom left cabinet and she’ll pick what she wants. Otherwise just make sure no one and nothing hurts her. I’ll introduce you—”

            —and then, the kitchen phone rang, and the pager on the doctor’s hip bleeped with an annoying tone. The man rounded and went to answer, while the biomutant stood silently processing the future orders. Daughter… did that mean juvenile or adult daughter? Probably… juvenile. It would not need to be providing water on demand to an adult, or show an adult to the bottom left cabinet. There was also no reason to limit an adult to that particular cabinet, which only contained the sacks of undiluted nutrient gel for its own fluid intake along with boxes of crackers, jars of peanut butter, and a few bags of veggie chips and other “health snacks” as the doctor had called them. It was… not exactly designed for the task of childcare, and it shuffled anxiously in place as it dawned on him that it would have to figure it out with no more instruction. It could… learn this… right?

            Humans seemed to be fairly unbothered by the duty to watch over their offspring—so it must not be that difficult.

------

            Mr. X had been ordered to stand still inside the gates of the garden in an area half-concealed with shade when the large sedan pulled into the gravel circle at the end of the rural mountain road and crunched to a stop. Its keen vision spotted the small figure step out of the passenger side and quickly have an arm snatched up in a control grip by the small woman who had emerged from the driver’s side. There was a bitter argument between all three, which quelled after a minute or two while the sedan’s engine puttered impatiently. The woman released the little one, who did not run to either parent and instead stepped towards the gate, keeping her large brown eyes on both of them, as if wary of them following her.

            After a minute the car’s engine revved up as it returned down the uneven paving, disappearing in a few seconds around a bend. Ramirez was left wearily standing by where it had once parked, a small bag dangling from one hand (presumably the belongings of his child, packed into a tiny, colorful package).

          �� Mr. X glanced down at a small sound and was suddenly locking eyes with the absolute tiniest human he had ever seen. Dark hair and cut short, dark skin with a few freckles, and those huge brown eyes which widened further upon noticing the massive, trenchcoat-clad form skulking just inside the property line.

            “Papá!” The shrill voice was at such decibels and pitch that the Tyrant was forced to stagger back. Such a tiny body was so, so loud! The bioweapon resisted the urge to raise up its hands to cup over its ears, but its knees did bend and buckle before the doctor rushed up and grabbed the girl around the shoulders:

            “What’s wrong, m’ija?”

            “M-monstruo!” She pointed straight to the half-subdued, heavily-stressed visage of the startled Tyrant.

            “Oh,” Ramirez hugged his daughter closer and chuckled, as if there was some clear, and obvious, and worse trivial confusion at play. He knelt to where he was halfway between his child and his personal Bio-Organic Weapon.

            “It’s okay, m’ija—this is my bodyguard. I promise, he’s nice, okay?”

            The child peeked over the shabby fabric of Ramirez’s polo shirt, meeting the obviously inhuman pupils of the giant form that had frightened her. Without telepathy, it was unknown if she found a lack of evil within, but she did relent and sniffle up the start of her tears.

            “Bodyguard?”

            “Sí, for work,” Ramirez gave a strained smile, “It’s okay, he won’t hurt you. Look, see? He didn’t mean to scare you.”

            The doctor had slightly pressed the girl further around his shoulder, closer to the colossal form. Mr. X sensed the girl’s resistance to this and took a step slightly back—almost mirroring her trying to push herself back away from it. Its hearts thudded stronger in a sympathetic feedback loop upon seeing the feeble struggle she was putting up against her own father. He was forcing her towards a powerful monster, knowing full well what it could do. What then could it do, a being built for combat?

            It did what only its inbuilt reflexes urged it to do—and bowed its head until it lost eye contact with either of them. Mr. X had assumed Dr. Ramirez’s child would know what a T-103 was. It was now clear that she did not know at all what he was; she might think it was a human. But a big human staring hard at a tiny child was… threatening.

            “You’re okay. C’mon let me introduce you!” Ramirez’s voice chimed out as if no terror or stress was in evidence, “This fella is Mr. X. Don’t ask his real name—it’s secret. He’ll keep you safe so long as you’re here.

            “Mr. X! Eyes up.”

            T-00 reluctantly obeyed, and the first thing its eyes met was the petrified face of the girl still trying to cling onto her father’s shoulder after he’d pushed her to be well within the bioweapon’s reach. Its back twitched before it forced itself to stay completely still, the only other movement he made the uneasy blinking, and the gaze flicking back and forth—from the man, to the girl, to the man.

            “Mr. X, this is my daughter, Mariposa.” He smiled, “You remember I was talking about her yesterday, yeah? Be nice to her. She’s only—how old are you, Mari?”

            Was it… normal for humans to lose track of how old their offspring were? Mr. X felt his brows twitch, and somehow this microscopic expression which went in opposition of her father’s constant push was what Mariposa needed to see to give a quick swallow of nerves and relax a fraction:

            “Ten.”

            “That’s my girl! C’mon now, let’s get your stuff inside,” Ramirez stood up, all but shrugging his little girl off of himself like an annoying weight and picking up the backpack from where he’d set it down beside him. Apparently only Mr. X heard the soft whimper she let out as she stumbled and scurried to put her father back between herself and the menacing giant; T-00 took the opportunity to also do away with this forced close-quarters and took a much larger step back. It hesitated to follow the two into the front door for a few moments, especially as it spied the child sneaking worried glances over her hardly-evident shoulders at the creature.

            “Mr. X! Come on you, get out of the heat!” Its eye twitched a bit at the impatient tone of the order, but ducked his head low to negotiate the entryway and squeezed into the welcome air conditioning. Ramirez had been rushing around the open concept downstairs, dropping off Mariposa’s belongings onto one of the kitchen chairs before scoping around for his own briefcase, wallet, and the keys to his armored truck. The girl meanwhile had posted herself up behind the kitchen island, staring over bewildered and clearly scared at her parent preparing to leave her alone with a monster.

            “Right… that should be it. M’ija, come give a kiss ‘bye for now—Papá’s got to go into town for some last-minute business.”

            “You can’t leave me with—”

            “Shh! Don’t be rude. Mr. X is a big teddy bear, really—relax!”

            The Tyrant itself shot the doctor a dubious look; bear was maybe an accurate comparison at least in terms of size and weight, but… teddy? That was soft and harmless—and Mr. X knew by now it was very much not harmless, and… probably not soft.

            “Papá, please—”

            “No no, you listen. I’ve got to do this and it’s not a choice. You stay here and if you need anything just ask him. I won’t be gone for more than a few hours.”

            With that, Ramirez brushed past the Tyrant and swept out the door. The sound of the latch setting again ushered in a new, heavy silence. The bioweapon could feel the girl’s stare boring into the side of his head—watching him for any sudden moves with the same alertness that a Tyrant might train onto a potential threat. Understanding somewhat, Mr. X held completely still and listened for any indication that the tiny figure was moving out from her cover.

            The click and whirr of the fridge fan cutting on startled them both—Mariposa shrieked, the Tyrant jolted upright so hard the flooring shuddered, and it turned to see that the child had ducked further down and was only barely peeking over the island countertop at it. Briefly grumbling with embarrassment that it had reacted so strongly to so little, Mr. X eyed the floor as it reached up and scratched at the deformed grooves on its jaw. Being scared of something new was one thing… being scared of the box that kept the treats from spoiling was another entirely…

            “Um… Mr. X..?”

            He froze mid-itch at the trepidatious voice; the Tyrant turned to find that Mariposa had crept around the side of the kitchen. While still keeping a chair between herself and the hulking brute, she had cut the space between them by half, maybe more. Without the insufferable pressure of her unobservant (or uncaring) father forcing either of their hands, she seemed to calm down to the idea that this monster was “housebroken”—at least in the sense that it wouldn’t break the house. Not without orders to.

            Mariposa’s nose appeared to wrinkle up in contemplation as the Tyrant continued to watch her, making no move or noise but the normal bassy rush of its breathing.

            “…You don’t say much, do you.”

            Mr. X gave a sluggish blink; it could try to speak a word of two, but it wouldn’t have the slightest idea how the attempt would turn out—and it feared it may turn out like the ugly bellows and groans other Tyrants could more easily produce, so T-00 simply gave a creaky shake of its head.

            “So, you don’t talk?” Another shake, and Mariposa bit her lip as she processed what this meant for their hours stuck unattended together. “But… you listen?”

            It made sure it gave an emphatic nod to this, and then tilted its head as if alertly waiting to listen to her at this very second.

            “Okay…” She stepped out with care and no small degree of lingering trembles from the chair, peeking over her shoulder towards the back garden door, “May I… go outside? I wanna see Benji…”

            Benji. Dog’s name. The Tyrant recalled. The back garden of the house was a forty foot by fifteen foot rectangle with no known toxic or thorny plants, and it was northeasterly. Getting more and more shade soon. It should be safe; it would not be blinded by the California sunshine, and both sunburn and heatstroke would be less able to get at either of them. Mr. X gave a soft grunt that he hoped sounded affirmative and nodded.

            “You have to come with me, huh?” Another nod. “Okay… um… I’m going now.” The Tyrant watched as the small human very warily made her way to the back door, shooting looks its way every few steps as if to brace for the moment the massive form would start pursuing. Waiting until she had her hand to the door’s handle, T-00 started to follow with the lightest shuffling steps it could manage.

            The two of them kept about ten feet apart at minimum—keeping close tabs on each other but not being so jumpy or anxious now. This got even easier in the open space of the garden, especially as the golden-furred canine came loping around the side of the dry clumps of Pampas grass and wagged his whole body on sight of the little girl. T-00 planted its back to the house wall close by so it had the widest field of view and the most sun protection, and for a while it was almost as if the parental badgering, the uncomfortable introduction, and the sheer aura of child-endangerment which permeated the whole situation was no factor. The oblivious and overjoyed dog was a big help with that, and Mariposa bounded around with it as they gave the oversized tennis ball chewtoy a new coat of slobber and montane dust before both flopping down on the patio pavers and engaging in the kind of lazy cuddling that Mr. X could only give a curious stare. It had no context for this kind of contact; it sometimes bordered on violent the way she scratched at the domestic canine, but… Benji seemed to like it, and the dog rolling onto her lap and nuzzling her wet nose into her face was even drawing a few giggles. How… uncoordinated. How… how… something that he couldn’t connect the word for, but knew in its bones the concept of.

            Shit, damn… something. Other-expletive. It was on the tip of its… tongue? Brain? Subconscious linguistic knowledge? It knew what the “good uncoordinated not-serious companionship stress-relief good thing” was. It knew it. But a good word that summed the idea up had somehow not been something it had been exposed to in the growth chamber, it supposed.

            After more than an hour both dog and child were worn out, and their Tyrant chaperone had relaxed more, eyes half-hooded and drowsy. The sound of shoes scuffing nearby had it snapping back to alertness, and on looking down it found a surprise in the form of the little girl craning her neck up expectantly, hand just short of tugging at one of the gigantic hands. Benji padded up close by, wagging away as usual.

            “Mr. X, I’m gonna go in now. Can I take Benji with me?”

            T-00 remembered the dog being allowed inside before—especially when it was as hot as it had been today, so as he unstuck his back from the pebble-stucco of the wall he gave her a slight bob of the head. Benji led the way with tongue wagging in time with his tail.

            In the artificially-cooled interior, Mr. X let out a low huff. His mass was such that it was difficult for him to regulate his temperature once it got much hotter than 25 degrees Celsius. Staying in line of sight of the happy dog and the small child as they curled onto the floor by the couch, tired and joyous, it tried to focus otherwise on letting its system cool off back to normal. But after a moment, Mariposa asked a question, which took the Tyrant a moment to register from its unexpectedness:

            “Mr. X? Are you okay?”

            The Tyrant gave a forceful nod, which perhaps had the opposite effect as the large droplet of its sweat dived from the tip of its nose to the floor at the movement. Mariposa fixed it with an expression that it felt was familiar—maybe it had tried to aim that one at its own trainers, weeks and months ago…

            “Mr. X, do you know where dad keeps the ice cream?”

            T-00 truthfully did not, though the swift flicker of its pupils towards the freezer—where anything “ice” would logically go—betrayed something to the small girl. She stood and joined the hulking bioweapon in the kitchen area of the downstairs, pointing to the freezer section of the fridge.

            “Can you check if it’s in there? I can’t reach…”

            T-00 narrowed its eyes slightly, even as it took two ginger steps closer and reached to open the upper section of the refrigerator. There was a blast of refreshingly chilly vapor as it did so, and after that had passed it blinked rapidly and studied the slim pickings of the contents. There was, however, something which claimed to be “ice cream” within—and in a short motion it plucked the small box from its confines and let the freezer door swing shut and seal while it turned the container about. Not sure what to make of it, Mr. X lowered the package to where Mariposa could read the labels on its side.

            “Ooh…” At the way her eyes lit up, the Tyrant had a panicky feeling that it had just disobeyed Ramirez’s orders for this short guardianship period. But then… with how hot it was, and the man’s daughter had just been outside for so long…

            “…Are you allowed to have one?” Mariposa hesitated at reaching into the box, still lowered to where she could access it. Mr. X didn’t really have an answer. It assumed “no”, since it had never been given one of these “ice cream” things or even informed of their storage area. Almost as soon as it had managed a short shake of its head, Mariposa had pulled out two of the oblong objects and pushed one into the Tyrant’s free hand.

            “I’ll give you one, if you don’t say nothing to papá,” Mariposa smirked. Mr. X lifted up the comparatively tiny frozen treat as it returned the rest of the box to its normal position, and met the child’s gaze again.

            He nodded. Whatever the damn thing was, he was starting to smell it even through the foil wrapping, and whatever it was caused unrelenting rivulets of drool to keep forming at the edges of its tightly-sealed lips. Whatever it was was the good stuff, by the nutrient-hungry standards of a Tyrant. And it was cold as ice, still remaining so after more than a minute in the grip of an overheated bioweapon. Why would Ramirez not let his daughter have one of these, if they seemed so good?

            Oh.

            Oh!

            “Ice cream”, as it turned out, was indefinite proof that the universe was fundamentally good. After what by any numerical measure was only a few minutes, the Tyrant felt like it had experienced an hour of sugary and creamy wonder, all from the three-inch chunk of what Mariposa had specified was an “ice cream sandwich”—the brick of vanilla-flavored goodness wedged between chocolate cookies. T-00 barely knew what these specifications meant but committed them to memory anyways. At least, once it had become able to focus on any other incoming stimuli after the intense deliciousness had faded into the past. It let out an animalistic groan of pleasure before it considered how it may sound frightening to its nearby charge; it needn’t have worried, since Mariposa was licking the melted remnants from her fingers with similar noise and fervor though at a higher pitch and smoother, human vocal tones. Mr. X scooped up the foil pieces where they’d each left them and deposited them in the garbage bin. Mariposa had now settled on the rug in front of the television, petting Benji where he lay half-asleep and scanning through stations in search of something she liked. Mr. X eyed the temptingly large, luxurious couch which he generally was not given much chance to occupy; it was close to where his protective target now was, and he would have good peripherals on each side from there… why… not? But perhaps the most important reason was Mariposa:

            At the heavy creak of the wood flooring under the rugs behind her, the young girl paused in her channel surfing and caught the bioweapon red-handed halfway to the couch.

            “Is the couch, ah… strong enough?”

            Mr. X nodded. Somehow, the couch always held. Of course, it was designed to hold at least four humans weighing over two hundred pounds each, so a single Tyrant weighing almost that much by itself would still be within its design limits. Though, it could still be a fluke. It had only sat here twice before now, so it was still possible… Thankfully, even though it did creak and groan very tellingly, the couch did hold well enough that the Tyrant was able to relax. Mariposa started watching something which showed a number of strange animals—they were larger than humans, though by the way they moved slightly lighter than most Tyrants. Or at least more graceful. The camera zoomed and focused, and T-00 realized these were horses—fully-fleshed, healthy-looking horses, much unlike the half-lamed and raggedy one it had seen in person.

            “The horse only arrived in the American Southwest by chance… Most experts agree that the wild horses we see here are all descendants of domesticated horses brought to the southern part of the continent by the Spanish as early as the 1400s…” The Tyrant almost managed a frown out of pure confusion; despite what the voiceover said, the visuals of the program showed clearly labelled petrogylphs from the area in question from several thousand years prior to the “1400s” which had horses pointed out by convenient labels.

            “Nowadays, amongst the dry chaparral hills and the prairie plains, wild horse herds roam under the protection of a conservation branch of the US government—allowing for a certain number of wild mustang horses to be corralled, auctioned off, and trained to become domestic horses once more so that the many thousands of their wild cousins can continue to run free…”

            Why these apparently thousands of creatures could not do so without something of this sort occurring every year did not make particular sense—but thankfully the program moved on swiftly to another animal from the same region:

            “The Harris Hawk is another wondrous creature found in the American Southwest—one which boasts the title of the only bird of prey in the world which will hunt in packs.” T-00’s eyes flashed at the swift movement on the screen as several handsome-looking birds swept into view, and then looped joyfully into a thermal which took them high over a desert landscape. “Working together in the harsh arid environment, the Harris Hawks can between a group of three catch more than ten times the number of small rodents and reptiles as their closest relatives could on their own, making the cooperative arrangement entirely worth it. Falconers have begun capturing and taming these magnificent birds, bending their amazing talents and social habits to their own purposes…”

            … There seemed to be a pattern here. Animal was found useful—animal got caught and used for human interests. It almost seemed like all of the fanciful camera shots of wild things running and flying and the long-winded narration was just introduction to this idea. Mariposa apparently found this as dry and bizarre as they Tyrant did, and switched the channels again until she landed on one that cycled through daytime gameshows.

            “Alright, Karen—tell me something that frequently gets replaced on a car!”

            “Ummm… the mirrors?”

            This did not appear to be a very smart answer, and yet somehow the answer appeared among the top five of some kind of overall results. The most obvious explanation was that everyone shown was so terrible at operating motor vehicles they had to replace their broken-off mirrors often. Maybe that was the appeal of this game—to watch teams of perhaps the most foolish and ignorant specimens of humanity put these attributes on display to amuse the audience.

            It felt its head bob lower and awoke with a start—panic shooting through it as it realized it had started to drowse mid-watch. But there was… something wrong? No, not wrong; different. There was a slight warmth and pressure up against its side, and the arm on that side was propped up on a low, soft object.

            Mr. X started to move the arm to try and find the flat surface of the couch again, but froze as his palm bumped instead on the frail shoulders of the small girl. It craned its neck down fraction by fraction, trying not to move any other muscles; Mariposa had, beneath its notice, crawled up onto the open section of couch beside the bioweapon, wedging her tiny frame under its limp forearm and nestling her head into the crease and folds of its Limiter coat where its waist met its lap. As if the monstrosity’s leg was a comfy pillow. T-00 blinked as its bleary thoughts woke up further in order to race to the logical conclusion: It had clearly not just “started” to doze off… a sting of unease lit up in its chest and its hackles rose at the thought it had lapsed in this duty. It was supposed to protect her—if she had left the house again—or if that was the moment a rival company sent their agent—or if by pure accident she had gotten injured or threatened—

            Ramirez’s daughter suddenly shifted in her sleep, more onto her back, and as she did so her slender arms grasped up and ended up around the Tyrant’s arm. She was utterly dwarfed by the limb alone, and even the tight hug she had around it was barely making it through his tough sleeve and even tougher skin. Regardless, Mr. X could feel it, and the change had jarred him out of the panic spiral. The Tyrant’s heavily-wrinkled face softened up, and it studied its charge for a moment to ensure she was safe and well. It settled down once more, noting the low angle of the orange-gold sunlight streaking in through the kitchen windows; it estimated the time to be well over an hour later than Dr. Ramirez had said he would return. Its eyes flicked over to the child’s backpack hanging over the backrest of the chair, then to the wind rustling through the Pampas grass outside the window, and then the color and light of the vapid programming still on in the background.

            Ramirez did not return until it was almost dark, and aside from the façade of a bright and attentive reunion with Mariposa that he’d plastered over his clearly exhausted and aggravated inner feelings, the man did not linger on the surprise long absence and instead started throwing together something he’d called “mac and cheese”. Mariposa did not seem enthused, but she tolerated her father’s lazy cooking—especially since she had secretly pilfered the ice cream earlier. The doctor snappishly ordered Mr. X to take up a sentry position outside and leave them to their family time; the Tyrant grudgingly obeyed, shooting a pointed glance down at the lower cabinet where the nutrient gel base was stored but its yearning being ignored. It supposed it would have to wait another few hours. Very unfair, considering it had pulled so much additional weight that day. The bioweapon snorted once it was prowling its usual route in the dark. It was hungry, not starving. There was no danger in waiting a little longer. Mr. X would abide.

[winpolitics1234567890]

生物分類學（英語：biotaxonomy）簡稱分類學（taxonomy），是關於生物個體的鑑定（identification）、歸類（classification）和命名（nomenclature）的原理和方法的學科；此三要件間有相互依存的關係。生物分類學範圍包括：研究生物類群間的異同程度，闡明生物間的親緣關係、演化過程和發展規律。[1]要將生物分類，首先要知道生物與非生物的定義，但是我們似乎沒有辦法準確定義，以病毒來說，雖然可在其他生物體內寄生並複製，但在生物體外卻沒有一般生物的特徵如製造或攝取營養，生殖等現象。又如引起瘋牛病的朊粒（prion）可以造成感染卻無DNA成���，一直以來，DNA被視為生命遺傳物質，經由與RNA的轉錄轉譯過程，形成蛋白質，再進一步形成組成細胞的各個部分，如細胞膜、胞器等，而細胞則是我們長久以來所認為組成生命體的最小單位。

https://zh.m.wikipedia.org/zh-tw/%E7%94%9F%E7%89%A9%E5%88%86%E7%B1%BB%E5%AD%A6

生物分類學（英語：biotaxonomy）簡稱分類學（taxonomy），是關於生物個體的鑑定（identification）、歸類（classification）和命名（nomenclature）的原理和方法的學科；此三要件間有相互依存的關係。生物分類學範圍包括：研究生物類群間的異同程度，闡明生物間的親緣關係、演化過程和發展規律。[1]要將生物分類，首先要知道生物與非生物的定義，但是我們似乎沒有辦法準確定義，以病毒來說，雖然可在其他生物體內寄生並複製，但在生物體外卻沒有一般生物的特徵如製造或攝取營養，生殖等現象。又如引起瘋牛病的朊粒（prion）可以造成感染卻無DNA成分，一直以來，DNA被視為生命遺傳物質，經由與RNA的轉錄轉譯過程，形成蛋白質，再進一步形成組成細胞的各個部分，如細胞膜、胞器等，而細胞則是我們長久以來所認為組成生命體的最小單位。

https://zh.m.wikipedia.org/zh-tw/%E7%94%9F%E7%89%A9%E5%88%86%E7%B1%BB%E5%AD%A6

[tanghighacester]

生物分類學（英語：biotaxonomy）簡稱分類學（taxonomy），是關於生物個體的鑑定（identification）、歸類（classification）和命名（nomenclature）的原理和方法的學科；此三要件間有相互依存的關係。生物分類學範圍包括：研究生物類群間的異同程度，闡明生物間的親緣關係、演化過程和發展規律。[1]要將生物分類，首先要知道生物與非生物的定義，但是我們似乎沒有辦法準確定義，以病毒來說，雖然可在其他生物體內寄生並複製，但在生物體外卻沒有一般生物的特徵如製造或攝取營養，生殖等現象。又如引起瘋牛病的朊粒（prion）可以造成感染卻無DNA成分，一直以來，DNA被視為生命遺傳物質，經由與RNA的轉錄轉譯過程，形成蛋白質，再進一步形成組成細胞的各個部分，如細胞膜、胞器等，而細胞則是我們長久以來所認為組成生命體的最小單位。

https://zh.m.wikipedia.org/zh-tw/%E7%94%9F%E7%89%A9%E5%88%86%E7%B1%BB%E5%AD%A6

生物分類學（英語：biotaxonomy）簡稱分類學（taxonomy），是關於生物個體的鑑定（identification）、歸類（classification）和命名（nomenclature）的原理和方法的學科；此三要件間有相互依存的關係。生物分類學範圍包括：研究生物類群間的異同程度，闡明生物間的親緣關係、演化過程和發展規律。[1]要將生物分類，首先要知道生物與非生物的定義，但是我們似乎沒有辦法準確定義，以病毒來說，雖然可在其他生物體內寄生並複製，但在生物體外卻沒有一般生物的特徵如製造或攝取營養，生殖等現象。又如引起瘋牛病的朊粒（prion）可以造成感染卻無DNA成分，一直以來，DNA被視為生命遺傳物質，經由與RNA的轉錄轉譯過程，形成蛋白質，再進一步形成組成細胞的各個部分，如細胞膜、胞器等，而細胞則是我們長久以來所認為組成生命體的最小單位。

https://zh.m.wikipedia.org/zh-tw/%E7%94%9F%E7%89%A9%E5%88%86%E7%B1%BB%E5%AD%A6

[broodygaming]

Blurry af pic of the burger I made for my bday dinner! Homemade from scratch etc etc, bun and all. Not photoed is also sweet potato fries I made!

[tweedlebugged]

Me listening through TMA for the first time this summer/fall: All the fears are amazing explorations of the human psyche, but idk the corruption just doesn’t hit me the same way, y’know? Like bugs are cool and I just can’t seem to muster up any sort of deep, existential dread for germs and disease?

Me now:

[catchcrows]

Ash where did you WORK?!!

fdjkfdsa it was this really big biomedical sciences lab and between the vaccines i needed to handle some of the stuff i’d be working with, the blood draws to check antibody levels for vaccines i should already have, and the bloodborne pathogen exposure and subsequent treatment/testing (yeah that was a fucking blast), the lab had enough genetic material to sequence my entire genome and actually also plenty of machinery with which to do it

[sirthisisa-wendys]

Sweetcheeks: Ran & Rindou Haitani x Fem!Reader

synopsis: @thehypestdeano said to me: In other news, Ran and Rindou calling you The Same Pet Names; if you're in a relationship with one, the other will automatically refer to you with the same name, whether meant affectionately or antagonistically, especially if you tell them to stop.

wc: 268

tw: fluff

masterlist

song recommendation:

"Hey, sweetcheeks," Ran whispers, placing a tender kiss on the lips. Rindou isn't too far behind him, rolling his eyes and peeling off his Tenjiku uniform.

"Sweetcheeks, can you help me with this?" Rindou wonders and you bristle at the sound of the nickname in his mouth.

"No," you snap, helping Ran instead - who really didn't need help. Rindou sneers at you, snatching off his gloves and sighing.

"Fine. Have you gotten anything for lunch?"

"No." Your clipped responses earn you a curious look from Ran, who angles his head at his brother before looking down at you and cupping your face with one hand.

"Is there something wrong, love?"

"Yeah, love, is there something wrong?" Rindou echoes behind you, and it takes everything in you not to whip around and throw Ran's bloody gloves in his face.

"It's nothing," you grit out, and Ran nods, kissing your forehead.

"I'm going to take a shower. Don't kill each other while you're by yourselves."

When the bathroom door shuts, you turn to Rin, gripping Rna's gloves in one hand. "You're a shithead."

"What?" Rindou wonders innocently, holding a hand to his chest in mock hurt. "What did I do?"

"You know what you're doing," you rebut, pushing against him as you walk past. "Every time Ran calls me a pet name, you mock him and call me that, too."

"Wait, so your name isn't Sweetcheeks Love Darling Light of My Life?" He barely dodges the gloves that fly toward his face, followed by a sock to his gut. "Damn, sweetcheeks, your fist packs a hell of a punch!"

[bakidose]

i cant tell if this is supposed to mock anti's or mock us who have it like 💀

im fucking crying- i just read the strangest toji fic ever im still so confused 😭

[lluzionz]

Hi! I was wondering if you could make a Sakura x self harming reader? It's okay if you don't write things for such heavy themes. Have a nice day/night🙌💕

A/n: hello there! (Sorry if this isn't great but this is my first request.) Thank you for giving me the oportunity to write such a story because I've been struggling with self harm for a while now so this story is my comfort. (If anyone else is struggling with self harm or some kind of mental illness please please talk to someone you trust and remember, you're not alone. Love you all♡)

"I'll always be there for you"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sakura x self harming reader

Tw: graphic description of self harm, mentions of blood, mention of scars, self harm comfort

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sakura had noticed that lately you weren't yourself. You didn't smile as much as you used to, didn't spend time with her or with your friends as much, you basically had isolated yourself from everyone and everything. And that made her really sad. She tried many times to talk to you but the only reply she got from you was "I'm ok."

But that reply wasn't enough to her. It was clear that something was bothering you and she wanted to know what was really going on in your mind but she knew she couldn't force you to open up. She only tried it once and it didn't turn out as she hoped. You ran to your room and shut the door behind you as Sakura followed you but she didn't manage to catch up to you. You had already locked the door, leaving her banging at it from the other side until you yelled at her "Leave me alone already. I told you I'm ok!"

That was the first time you raised your voice to her. You usually were so sweet towards her and your voice sounded like an angel's. What had made you snap like that all of the sudden? She didn't have the answer to this question so she decided to leave you alone to relax.

You on the other hand where crouched down with your back against the door, crying your heart out. You couldn't take it anymore. All of your emotions burst out of you and that was too much for you. Even tho you made a promise to yourself to never cut again, you couldn't help it. You needed to cut. You needed to release the pain you felt inside and that was the only way to do it.

You slowly picked your broked self up from the floor and walked towards you night stand. "Only one cut" You thought to yourself as you picked thr blade up and placed it against you wrist. "Only one." You thought again as you rna the blade against your already scared skin. The pain was unbearable but you didn't care. You wanted this, you need this. You needed to release the pain that you felt inside. All those emotions that you felt, all the terrible thoughts you had about yourself, everything. Before you knew it, the one cut had become two and the blood that was coming out of them was too much. You couldn't handle this yourself this time. You needed help. You needed her help.

With slow and unsteady stepped you walked towards the door and unlocked it. Behind it was Sakura with her back leaning against it as tears rolled down her cheeks. She wanted to be beside you and comfoct you but you locked her outside when hou needed her the most. When she felt your presence behind her, she got up from the floor and approached you. "Y/N are you ok? I was so-" Her sentence was cut off as a gasp escaped her lips. "You're bleeding!" Her voice came out loud as she took her hand in hers and inspected it.

"What happened?" Was the only thing that came to her mind to ask you, even tho she already knew the answer. No reply came from you as more tears ran down your red cheeks. You were embarrassed. Ashamed about the fact that you found comfort on self harm rather that opening up to her. She didn't blame you tho. The only thing she did was taking you to the bathroom to clean your wounds.

Your blood covered the bathroom sink but once again Sakura kept quiet. She honestly didn't know what to say. Seeing all of this blood coming out of you, emptied her mind completely. The only question that was stuck on her mind since the moment she saw the blood coming out of you was "Why?" She didn'r know. But how could she?You had grown distant lately and everytime she tried to get closer to you, you pushed her away. But not now. You needed her. You needed to tell her everything that was haunting your mind.

Once she was done cleaning and bandaging you up, she took you in her hands and walked with you on the room. She made you sit on the bed, she sat next to you with her one arm wrapped around your shaking figure and the other on your bandaged wrist. "Y/N can you please tell me what is going on?" Her voice cracked a little at the end as a new pair of tears wetted her cheeks.

You finally broke and told her everything. Every little thought that brought you to this. You didn't hide anything. Not anymore. Sakura sat there, holding you gently as you emptied your heart out to her. She didn't interrupt you not even once. She wanted to hear everything you felt, every bad thought that lead you to harm yourself.

Once you were done talking, Sakura lifted up her head and looked you in the eyes. Her eyes were shining from the tears but she blinked them away. She smiled at you sweetly as she placed her hands on your cheeks, wiping the tears away from your eyes with her thumbs. "Why didn't you tell me anything?" She asked as she ran her fimges across your face, soothingly. "I-I didn't w-wanna upset you.." Your voice trailed off as more tears ran down your face.

"Hey it's ok, don't cry!" She moved closer to you as she wrapped her arms tightly around your body. She couldn't bare the sight of you crying. Her hand was brushing your hair as she whispered sweet nothing against your ear until you calmed down.

Once you were calm, Sakura started to complimenting you and praising you like "You're the most important person to me and I don't wanna loose you." or "you deserve the whole world Y/N. Please, don't forget that." or "You're an amazing person, so kind and so cute. I really don't know what I did to deserve you." That last comment made you blush as a little giggle left your lips.

"Finally you smiled!" A big smile spread across her face as she pulled your cheeks. "Hey don't do that!" You whined as your cheeks turned pink. Sakura leaned over and gave you a kiss on the forehead. "I love you so much Y/N." You were about to wrap her arms around her but she stopped you by taking your injured hand in hers. "You know, I had noticed the scars on your wrist for a while now but everytime I tried to talk to you, you just shutted me away so I stopped trying. I know you needed time and space so I decided to stop pushing you." She admited. A tear fell from your eye as you lowered your head in embarrassement. How could she had noticed. "I thought I hid them well enough." You thought to yourself as you hid your face with your palm.

Sakura was quick to remove your palm from your face and place a gentle kiss on it. "Don't feel embarrassed of what you did Y/N." She scolded you as she pulled you closer. "But next time you feel like cutting please, come and talk to me. I'll always be there for you no matter what." Your smile was brighter than the sun as you leaned over and rested your head on her neck. "Are you tired?" She asked as she rubbed your back. "Yeah.." Your voice came out as a whisper as you eyes closed by themselves. You were exhasted.

A small giggle escaped her as she lead down on the bed with you still in her arms. "Just rest and when you wake up we can talk again about it." You mumbled a "yes" as you snuggled closer to her and fell asleep. But she didn't. How could she? The thought of you crying and bleeding from your wrist was haunting her mind. Why didn't you tell her about your problems earlier? Why did you decided to cut yourself rather than talking to someone, to her? Why?

She wasn't trying to be selfish or anything like that, she just wanted to be there for you and make you happy, to keep you safe. But in the end she couldn't. She had let you down. How could she say that she loved you when she didn't do anything to help you when you needed her the most. Why did she let your smile being snached away from you so violantely? How did she let that happen? She was terrible and she needed to change, so she made a promise to herself to keep your smile to your face no matter what it cost.

She then took your bandaged arm in her, brought it up to her lips and started kissing each and everyone of you scars. She didn't care what people would say about your scars, she would always be there for you. "I love you so much Y/N!" Was the last thing sge said before her eyes closed and she fell asleep, holding you close to her, giving you all the love you deserved.

[mycomori]

i hate myself i’m an ungrateful brat how can i ever think i was abused or a victim when i still open my mouth i still let my emotions show i’m no good im no good why can’t i chnage thisbinhage this i’m a brat i’m a fucjing brat and i hate myself how could i ever claim to have been hurt when i’ve bene helped so much i didn’t wnat it i rna fork it i hate it i ha tw myself i hate this

[truong-phu]

Nguồn gốc sự sống

(Ảnh từ tapchisinhhoc.com)

1- Lời tâm sự: Trong những ngày đại dịch Covid ập đến TPHCM, các bài viết của tôi trên FB có tăng lên, bởi tôi nghĩ rằng dù mình ở xa, không đóng góp gì cho bà con TP, thì ít ra những bài viết của mình trên phây, cố chia sẽ tinh thần với bà con, dù biết khá ít người đọc trang mình! Tôi hoàn toàn ủng hộ chính phủ lo cho dân với các biện pháp nào đó. Nhưng khi thực tế phơi bày qua những hình ảnh đau lòng của tầng lớp nghèo đang đói run rẩy vì phong tỏa, tôi dứt khoát đứng về phía bà con nghèo dù biết rằng phong tỏa là biện pháp ngăn dịch đúng. Giữa con số tử vong tăng cao nếu không phong tỏa và những người dân nghèo đói đến mức lờ đờ do CQ TP bỏ mặc, tôi vẫn chọn bà con nghèo! Tôi không cô đơn: Có bạn bè quen thân, có cô giáo ở ĐN đã lên tiếng về người dân chạy đói từ TPHCM. Tôi cũng xem đấy là mối sỉ nhục, giận cả mấy ông đầu to của nước, ra rã chiến thắng dịch trên TV, mà thực tế bà con càng lúc càng cùng kiệt! Các bài viết của tôi mong sớm bỏ phong tỏa là vì thế, xem tử vong là số phận trong mùa dịch... Thời gian 2 tháng trôi qua, TPHCM đã tiêm vắc xin 1 mũi cho khoảng 75% người hiện có, Dư luận cùng lên tiếng về tình trạng bần cùng, đói lã của bà con nghèo. CQ TP đã có những hành động thiết thực hơn (chắc cũng còn sót!). Xem như cả TW cũng quyết tâm san sẻ cùng TPHCM: bên cạnh gạo cơm, CA, QĐ cũng nhảy vào để ngăn dịch. Tận đáy lòng tôi rất mong TPHCM thoát ra khỏi dịch bệnh, trả lại yên bình và phát triển cho thành phố. Tuy chiến dịch của mấy anh bộ đội mới bắt đầu, nhưng tôi vẫn tin thành công qua bài viết gần nhất.

2- Đề bài ở trên cũng có nghĩa: Mảng đề tài về Covid tạm ngừng, và trở lại với những bài viết quen thuộc về kiến thức khoa học phổ thông. Chữ phổ thông hàm nghĩa là nhiều người dễ đọc, hơn là các bài viết chuyên đề Covid vốn kén khách, và tiêu đề bài viết: Nguồn gốc sự sống sẽ chỉ bàn luận về các giả thiết được lưu hành từ trước đến nay. Thú thật khi viết về vắc xin mRNA là tôi phải đọc lại kiến trúc của acid RiboNucleic, sự vận hành, phiên mã rồi phiên mã ngược, dịch mã RNA để tổng hợp protein: vừa hoa cả mắt, vừa thán phục bởi sự chính xác đến kỳ diệu của từng công đoạn, cấu trúc gen chặt chẽ ấy vừa bảo vệ cho sự nguyên vẹn của loài vật, lại vừa kém chặt chẽ để cho phép biến hóa sinh ra muôn loài. Nếu bạn có một mảnh gốm cổ, trên đấy có những vạch tạo ra hình dạng nhất định, riêng biệt, có lúc lập lại, sắp xếp theo từng dòng. Vậy mảnh gốm cổ ấy phải chứa thông tin trên các hình vạch ấy, và có thể xem đấy là ký hiệu ngôn ngữ cổ, do người cổ tạo ra! Cho nên thật khó để kết luận là ngẫu nhiên khi đọc ra thông tin có thứ tự sắp xếp chính xác trên một sợi RNA, nhưng quả thật, sự biến hóa của các chủng virus Corona lại là ngẫu nhiên! Trong thời gian chỉ 2 năm, từ chủng CoV-2 ở Vũ Hán ban đầu, giờ đã có bao nhiêu biến thể? Khởi đầu bảng chữ cái Hy Lạp là Alpha tương đương chữ A La tinh, giờ đã nghe biến thể Lambda rồi! Vậy sự sống là ngẫu nhiên hay không ngẫu nhiên?

3- Trong tâm trạng nửa tin nửa ngờ ấy (thực ra chỉ có 1 chút dao động mà thôi). Tôi lướt qua Sáng Thế ký: Đơn sơ quá, hình ảnh của Đức Chúa Toàn Năng chỉ là hình chiếu của con người với những suy nghĩ còn ngây ngô buổi văn minh sơ khai. Phật giáo chấp nhận vũ trụ từ đầu, Đức Phật lại không thừa nhận mình là Đấng Toàn năng, chỉ là bậc thức giả muốn đem hiểu biết của mình truyền cho hậu thế. Dù cho Ngài là bậc hiểu biết rộng thời ấy, triết lý của Ngài cũng khó được chấp nhận vì toàn bộ logic cũng chỉ xuất phát từ mệnh đề mà Ngài phán. Khoa học thì đơn giản hơn nhưng khó bác bỏ: sự sống nằm ngay trong những thiên thạch, tiểu hành tinh va vào Trái Đất. Tuy không khẳng định là hữu thần, nhưng ít ra cũng ngầm bảo: Sự sống là kỳ diệu, không thể ngẫu nhiên trên Trái Đất nầy... Có lẽ trên thế giới nầy cũng nhiều người nửa tin nửa ngờ như thế. Hãy nhớ rằng đầu tiên xuất hiện thần Sét, thần Mưa để giải thích trôi ch��y các hiện tượng tự nhiên. Chính khoa học đã mời quý Thần ấy bay xa, mà khoa học tuổi đời lại quá non trẻ trong khi các định luật của tự nhiên lại vô vàn, nên xin cứ hằng tâm để chờ ngày mọi chuyện sáng tỏ, hơn là tin vào một điều vu vơ nào đó mà chẳng được chứng minh rõ ràng.

Phu Truong

[streamxuhddotcom]

Everything you should know about the coronavirus pandemic

The latest information about the novel coronavirus identified in Wuhan, China, and advice on how pharmacists can help concerned patients and the public.

A novel strain of coronavirus — SARS-CoV-2 — was first detected in December 2019 in Wuhan, a city in China’s Hubei province with a population of 11 million, after an outbreak of pneumonia without an obvious cause. The virus has now spread to over 200 countries and territories across the globe, and was characterised as a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on 11 March 2020[1],[2].

As of 3 May 2021, there were 152,534,452 laboratory-confirmed cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection globally, with 3,198,528 reported deaths. The number of cases and deaths outside of China overtook those within the country on 16 March 2020[3].

As of 3 May 2021, there have been 4,421,850 confirmed cases of the virus in the UK and 127,539 of these have died (in all settings, within 28 days of the test).

This article gives a brief overview of the new virus and what to look out for, and will be updated weekly. It provides answers to the following questions:

What are coronaviruses?

Where has the new coronavirus come from?

How contagious is COVID-19?

How is COVID-19 diagnosed?

What social distancing measures are being taken in the UK?

What is happening with testing for COVID-19?

What should I do if a patient thinks they have COVID-19?

What can I do to protect myself and my staff?

What about ‘business as usual’ during the pandemic?

Will the government provide financial help during the pandemic?

How can cross-infection be prevented?

There has been a lot of talk in the news and on social media about how certain medications can exacerbate the symptoms of COVID-19, what is the current advice around these medications?

Where can I find information on managing COVID-19 patients?

Is the coronavirus pandemic likely to precipitate medicines shortages?

Are there national clinical trials of potential drugs to treat COVID-19?

Is there a vaccine for COVID-19 and, if so, will pharmacy staff be involved in its roll out?

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What are coronaviruses? SARS-CoV-2 belongs to a family of single-stranded RNA viruses known as coronaviridae, a common type of virus which affects mammals, birds and reptiles.

In humans, it commonly causes mild infections, similar to the common cold, and accounts for 10–30% of upper respiratory tract infections in adults[4]. More serious infections are rare, although coronaviruses can cause enteric and neurological disease[5]. The incubation period of a coronavirus varies but is generally up to two weeks[6].

Previous coronavirus outbreaks include Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), first reported in Saudi Arabia in September 2012, and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), identified in southern China in 2003[7],[8]. MERS infected around 2,500 people and led to more than 850 deaths while SARS infected more than 8,000 people and resulted in nearly 800 deaths[9],[10]. The case fatality rates for these conditions were 35% and 10%, respectively.

SARS-CoV-2 is a new strain of coronavirus that has not been previously identified in humans. Although the incubation period of this strain is currently unknown, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that symptoms may appear in as few as 2 days or as long as 14 days after exposure[6]. Chinese researchers have indicated that SARS-CoV-2 may be infectious during its incubation period[11].

The number of cases and deaths outside of China overtook those within it on 16 March 2020

Where has the new coronavirus come from? It is currently unclear where the virus has come from. Originally, the virus was understood to have originated in a food market in Wuhan and subsequently spread from animal to human. Some research has claimed that the cross-species transmission may be between snake and human; however, this claim has been contested[12],[13].

Mammals such as camels and bats have been implicated in previous coronavirus outbreaks, but it is not yet clear the exact animal origin, if any, of SARS-CoV-2[14].

How contagious is COVID-19? Increasing numbers of confirmed diagnoses, including in healthcare professionals, has indicated that person-to-person spread of SARS-CoV-2 is occurring[15]. The preliminary reproduction number (i.e. the average number of cases a single case generates over the course of its infectious period) is currently estimated to be between 1.4 to 2.5, meaning that each infected individual could infect between 1.4 and 2.5 people[16].

Similarly to other common respiratory tract infections, MERS and SARS are spread by respiratory droplets produced by an infected person when they sneeze or cough[17]. There is also some evidence that SARS-CoV-2 can spread by airborne transmission. Measures to guard against the infection work under the current assumption that SARS-CoV-2 is spread in the same manner.

How is COVID-19 diagnosed? As this coronavirus affects the respiratory tract, common presenting symptoms include fever and dry cough, with some patients presenting with respiratory symptoms (e.g. sore throat, nasal congestion, malaise, headache and myalgia) or even struggling for breath.

In severe cases, the coronavirus can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure and death[18].

The case definition for COVID-19 is based on symptoms regardless of travel history or contact with confirmed cases. Diagnosis is suspected in patients with a new, continuous cough, fever or a loss or changed sense of normal smell or taste (anosmia). A diagnostic test has been developed, and countries are quarantining suspected cases[19].

What social distancing measures are being taken in the UK? The government launched its coronavirus action plan on 3 March 2020, which details four stages: contain, delay, mitigate, research[20]. On 12 March 2020, the UK moved to the delay phase of the plan and raised the risk level to ‘high’.

On 16 March 2020, Johnson announced social distancing measures, such as working from home and avoiding social gatherings, as well as household isolation for those with symptoms[21],[22].

Further social distancing measures were announced on 18 March 2020, including closing all schools in the UK except for vulnerable children and those of key workers, such as pharmacists and other health and social care staff, teachers and delivery drivers. Restaurants, cafes, pubs, leisure centres, nightclubs, cinemas, theatres, museums and other businesses were also told to close.

On 22 March 2020, Johnson announced that the most clinically extremely vulnerable people, including those who have received organ transplants, are living with severe respiratory conditions or specific cancers, and some people taking immunosuppressants, should stay in their homes for at least the next 12 weeks (see Box 2).

Since this date, shielding in England, Scotland and Wales has been eased and brought back in several times in line with lockdown restrictions. And on 16 February 2021, a new risk assessment model was introduced in England to help clinicians identify adults with multiple risk factors that make them more vulnerable to COVID-19, resulting in an additional 1.7 million people being added to the shielding list. Shielding ended in England and Wales on 1 April 2021 and in Scotland on 26 April 2021.

Box 2: Shielding from COVID-19

Those classed as “clinically extremely vulnerable” may include the following (disease severity, history or treatment levels will also affect who is in this group):

Solid organ transplant recipients People with cancer who are undergoing active chemotherapy People with lung cancer who are undergoing radical radiotherapy People with cancers of the blood or bone marrow such as leukaemia, lymphoma or myeloma who are at any stage of treatment People having immunotherapy or other continuing antibody treatments for cancer People having other targeted cancer treatments which can affect the immune system, such as protein kinase inhibitors or PARP inhibitors People who have had bone marrow or stem cell transplants in the last 6 months, or who are still taking immunosuppression drugs People with severe respiratory conditions including all cystic fibrosis, severe asthma and severe chronic obstructive pulmonary People with rare diseases that significantly increase the risk of infections (such as severe combined immunodeficiency, homozygous sickle cell) People on immunosuppression therapies sufficient to significantly increase risk of infection Adults with Down’s syndrome Adults on dialysis or with chronic kidney disease (stage 5) Women who are pregnant with significant heart disease, congenital or acquired Other people who have also been classed as clinically extremely vulnerable, based on clinical judgement and an assessment of their needs. GPs and hospital clinicians have been provided with guidance to support these decisions A strict lockdown started in the UK on 23 March 2020, with people told to stay at home except to buy essential food and medicines, one form of exercise a day, any medical need, and travelling to and from essential work. Gatherings of more than two people in public was not allowed and all shops selling non-essential goods, libraries, playgrounds, outdoor gyms and places of worship closed. All social events, including weddings, baptisms and other ceremonies, but excluding funerals were cancelled.

A relaxation of the lockdown was announced by Johnson on 10 May 2020. The government published a 60-page ‘recovery strategy’ on 11 May 2020, which sets out the next phases of the UK’s response to the virus, including easing some social restrictions, getting people back to work and reopening schools.

Local lockdowns were introduced at the end of June 2020 to try to control the spread of coronavirus in particular regions in England but cases continue to rise and a second national lockdown was imposed from 5 November 2020 for four weeks. A three-tier system of restrictions will follow the national lockdown in England. In Scotland, a five-level alert system was introduced on 2 November, which will allow different restrictions to be imposed in local areas depending on the prevalence of the infection. A fire-break lockdown came into force in Wales from 23 October 2020, and ran until 9 November 2020.

On 19 December 2020, new tier-four restrictions were imposed in London, Kent and Essex and other parts of the South East of England, meaning that individuals in those areas had to stay at home and not meet up with other households. On 31 December 2020, further areas of England including the Midlands, North East, parts of the North West and parts of the South West were also escalated to tier four.

A new national lockdown was imposed in England and Scotland from 5 January 2021, and similar restrictions were introduced in Wales shortly after. The lockdowns began to lift in steps from the end of March 2021.

What is happening with testing for COVID-19? Tests can now be accessed by anyone with symptoms via nhs.uk/coronavirus.

An NHS test and trace service was launched across England on 28 May 2020, with similar services starting in Scotland and Wales around the same time. Anyone who tests positive for the virus is contacted to share information about their recent interactions. People identified as being in close contact with someone who tests positive will have to self-isolate for 10 days, regardless of whether they have symptoms.

Testing is also now available to care home staff and residents in England, and NHS workers where there is a clinical need, whether or not they have symptoms.

Pharmacy staff in England and Scotland should book tests online via gov.uk and they will be conducted at drive-through testing sites across the country, as well as via home testing kits.

Pharmacy staff in Wales with symptoms of COVID-19 are able to access testing through their Local Health Board.

The government has also announced the start of a new national antibody testing programme, with plans to provide antibody tests to NHS and care staff in England from the end of May 2020. Clinicians will also be able to request the tests for patients in both hospital and social care settings if they think it is appropriate.

Regular testing of asymptomatic patient-facing staff delivering NHS services using lateral flow antigen tests was introduced in NHS trusts in November and expanded to primary care services in December 2020.

[devotedlydistinguishednut]

Allan Jones談大腦解析圖

    人類長久以來對人腦感到著迷。我們試圖繪製它、解釋它、我們已經將它畫出來、已經繪製了它。就像是真實事件的地圖一樣，繪製腦袋圖也受科技影響很深：像是谷哥地圖, 像是衛星定位：同樣的事情在繪製腦袋圖時也同樣在發生。所以讓我們來瞭解一下腦袋。很多人，當他們第一次看到人腦的時候會說：「這不是一般人家給你看腦的時候會看到的東西。」大部份時候你會看到的是已經固定的腦。是灰色的。這外面的這一層，這是微血管，圍繞在腦袋邊緣, 非常驚人。這些是血管。從肺中得到的 是百分之二十的氧氣、百分之二十從你的心臟中泵出來的血液，都是供應給這個器官。簡單的說, 如果你把你的兩個拳頭放在一起，它僅僅比這兩個拳頭大一點點而已。

    科學家在二十世紀末時學到如何利用非侵入性的手法追蹤血液流向來瞭解人腦正在工作的區域。舉例來說，他們可以從腦部背後這樣追蹤來到這裡。這是小腦，就是讓你現在保持著頭上腳下姿勢的東西。它跟協調性動作有關，讓我現在可以站著。在這裡是顳葉皮層。這裡跟聽覺處理有關： 是說你現在正在聽我講話，你把這個資訊送到語言處理中心。在腦的前面 是這個更複雜、跟做決定有關的東西。它是最晚成熟的部位，直到成年時期才發育完成。這是你腦袋做所有決定的地方。這是你現在正在決定你晚上是不是要點牛排當晚餐的地方。

    所以如果你更進一步地看我們的腦袋，如果你看這個切片圖，你會看到這邊沒有很多結構。事實上這邊是有很多結構的。這些是細胞被串聯在一起。大概在一百年前，一些科學家發明了一個可以染細胞的染劑。在這裡可以看到淡淡的藍色。你可以看到有些區域有著被染色的細胞。 但你也可以看到它並不規律。你可以看到更多的結構。在腦袋的外層是大腦皮層。你可以說它是一個連續的單位。但你也可以看到在它下面還有很多其他的結構。而這些空白的區域就是連接網絡經過的地方。這些區域的細胞密度有可能比較低。所以我們腦袋中有86億個神經元。 而且就像你們看到的，他們沒有非常規律地分佈。而他們如何分佈的事實上和他們的功能有關。而且就像我之前提到的，因為我們已經開始繪製腦袋功能解析圖了，我們可以試圖將這些細胞連接起來。

    讓我們更進一步地觀察。讓我們看看這些神經元。就像我剛剛說的，我們有86億神經元。你們還可以看到還有這些更小的細胞。這些是支持細胞, 叫作星狀膠細胞。但接收到訊息的是神經本身。它們將訊息儲存並作處理。每個神經元可經由突觸連接到最多一萬個其它也在腦部的神經元。且每一個神經元都有它的獨特性。單一神經元和某些聚在同一區域的神經元的獨特性是源於基本的生化特性。也就是蛋白質。蛋白質控制像是離子通道輸送功能這類的事情。蛋白質也決定神經系統與什麼東西合作。基本上蛋白質控制了所有與神經系統有關係的東西。

    所以如果我們更深入地看，這些蛋白質是由我們的基因所決定的。我們有23對染色體。其中一條來自於母親，另一條來自父親。在這些染色體上，大約有25,000個基因。這些基因被寫在DNA裡面。而細胞本質這些基層的生化組成，就是由這25,000個基因來決定何時被啓動及如何被啓動的。

    所以我們的計畫就是研究這些結果，試圖瞭解這25,000個基因中的哪一些是被啓動的。所以要做這樣的實驗，我們明顯地需要腦袋。所以我們派了實驗室技師來幫我們搜集正常的人腦。我們從法醫的辦公室出發。這是一個死人會被帶到的地方。我們想要正常的人腦。我們對我們需要的腦袋有很多要求。我們需要確定我們得到的腦袋是在20到60歲之間、是自然死的、沒有任何腦部傷害、沒有任何心理疾病、沒有長期用藥：我們會要做一系列的毒物檢查。且我們要非常謹慎地對待我們要拿的腦袋。我們選擇可以從中拿到組織的腦袋，且我們需要在死亡後24小時內拿到取組織的許可。因為我們想要測量的 RNA（核糖核酸）代表著各個基因的表現量：這是非常不穩定的，所以我們需要很快的速度完成實驗。

    另外一個值得一提的是：因為我們這樣的做法，也就是我們需要得到許可，我們得到的男性腦袋遠多於女性腦袋。男性比女性更有可能在壯年時期死於意外事件。而且男性比女性更容易取得他的重要伴侶、另一半的許可願意讓我們拿他的腦袋。

    在我們取到樣本後的第一件事情就是取得我們叫作MR的東西。這是一張MRI也就是核磁共振影像。這是一張基準圖，我們用它來跟我們取得的影像做比較。我們取得這個叫MR的東西。你可以把這個想成是我們想要繪製的地圖的衛星圖。接下來我們要做的是取得一個叫做擴散張量影像 Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) 的東西。這可以幫忙繪製腦袋中比較明顯的連結。你可以把這個想像成地圖上的高速公路。從頭骨中取出腦袋後，我們將之切成約一公分後的切片。這些切片冷凍後被送到西雅圖。在西雅圖，我們會拿到這個，這是整個人腦半球，然後把它放在一個基本上是切肉機的東西。這邊有刀片，可以從組織中切出一部份然後將它放到顯微鏡玻片上。用染劑將之染色後就可以掃描了。我們就可以得到第一張圖。

    這裡是專業學者來將基本的結構標示出來的時候。你可以把這個想像成各州的界限，就是那些很容易劃分的界限。從這裡，我們可以開始將腦袋進一步分成幾個小部份，然後我們可以把這些部份分開存放於低溫存放器中。這就是在做這件事情：這是冷凍組織切片的過程。這是20微米厚的切片，大約跟嬰兒頭髮一樣厚。而且別忘了，這是冷凍的。所以在這裡你可以看到，古早的水彩筆方法被運用在這上面。我們拿一片玻片，很小心地將它熔在另一片玻片上。然後讓機器人加入染劑。然後我們的解剖學家要更進一步的解析這個樣本。

    這是我們在顯微鏡下看到的東西。你可以看到一些大大小小的細胞聚集在各處的一些構造。從這裡開始就是例行事務。這些學者知道各個結構應該在哪裡。他們可以建立一個像是圖鑒的東西。就是一個更精準的地圖。

我們的科學家利用這個資訊 再回到原本的樣本並做雷射切割。技師得到這個指令，他們在這裡劃線，也就是雷射切割的地方。你可以看到這些雷射切割的藍點，然後整個組織會被切下。你可以從這個影片看到顯微玻片上發生的事情。在這個下面有個桶子會接住所有切下的組織。我們利用一些簡單的技術將這個組織中的 RNA純化，然後加上螢光顯色。我們將顯色的東西放到一個叫做微晶片 (microarray) 的東西上。

    你們可能會覺得這看起來像是一堆點點，但這上面每一個點都代表著人類基因的一個片段。每個片段都被我們點在玻片上。這上面大約有60,000個元素，所以我們一直重複著測量基因組中25,000個基因的表現量。當我們拿一個樣本並將它跟芯片中的片段配對，我們可以得到一個像是指紋般特殊的組合，可以告訴我們樣本中哪些基因是被啓動的。

    我們對每一個我們拿到的腦袋重複這件事情。我們可以從一個腦袋中取得超過一千個樣本。這個部位叫作海馬迴。它跟學習和記憶有關。在我們的一千個樣本中，它大概佔了七十個。所以我們大約有一千個樣本，每個樣本可以給我們大約50,000個點。

    所以每一個腦袋我們大約有五千萬個點。目前我們大概做了兩個人腦多的數據。我們把這些數據合成一體，且我會給你們看我們怎麼做的。基本上就是一個很大的數據組，讓世界上所有科學家都可以用的數據。他們不需要登入就可以使用、挖掘、尋找他們想要的東西。這是我們目前建構出來的���型。你們會開始認識這些我們蒐集來的東西。這是MR，它給我們一個骨架。在右邊這裡可以控制讓圖轉動，可以讓你放大，也可以將特定的區域上色。但更重要的是，我們是從這樣的解剖骨架來繪製我們的圖，一個人類用來瞭解基因在何處被啓動的骨架。這些紅色的 是基因表現量很高的地方。綠色是基因沒有被啓動的地方。而每一個基因給我們一個類似指紋的東西。別忘了我們已經對基因組裡面25,000個基因做了這樣的實驗，所以我們有所有基因的資料。

    那麼科學家們可以從這學到什麼？我們也是才剛開始瞭解這些資料的。有一些較基本的是你們可能會想要知道的。兩個很棒的例子是藥物：百憂解和 Wellbutrin (抗憂鬱藥物）。這些是常被用來治療憂鬱的藥物。別忘了我們是在瞭解基因。基因告訴我們的身體要製造蛋白質。蛋白質是藥物的目標。也就是說藥物和蛋白質結合然後可以抑制蛋白質作用之類的。所以如果你想要瞭解藥物是如何運作的，你需要瞭解藥物是怎麼樣做到你想要它做的事，和你不希望藥物做的事。像是副作用之類的。你想要知道各個基因是如何被啓動的。而且是有史以来，我們真的可以這麼做。且我們可以對不只一個樣本怎麼做。

    所以現在我們可以來看這個腦袋。我們可以看這些特異的指紋。我們可以確認它。我們可以確認某些特定的基因是被啓動的：像是百憂解這樣的東西，它有羥色胺結構、我們已經知道會有影響，但我們在這裡也可以看到整個架構。我們可以看到以前看不到的東西，我們可以看到這些基因被啓動。這也有可能是很有趣的副作用。另外一個你可以做的事是你可以從這些資料中找出相關的部份。因為這樣的指紋是獨特的，我們可以掃過整個基因組並尋找其他有相似指紋的蛋白質。舉例來說如果你是在做藥物研發，你可以掃過整個基因組然後試著找到更好的藥物的目標而從中優化。

    在座的各位可能對於掃描整個基因組的觀念來自於新聞中一些字句。像是：「科學家最近找到一個基因會影響Ｘ。」這樣的研究常常被科學家發表。且這是很好的。他們可以分析很大的族群。他們可以看整個基因組，然後試圖找到一些基因容易影響的地方。但事實上這樣的研究只能找到一張基因列表。它告訴你什麼基因，但沒辦法告訴你在哪裡表現。所以對這些研究者來說，我們就是給他們一個資源。現在他們可以來並開始尋找這些表現的痕跡。他們現在可以去看是不是有共同的路徑，是不是有其它他們沒有找到的東西。

    所以我想在座的各位可以理解個體差異的重要性。我認為每一個人都有不一樣的基因背景，我們都有不一樣的人生。但事實上，我們的基因組有超過百分之九十九是一樣的。在基因的層面下我們非常相似。而我們現在看到的是，就算是在腦袋的生化層面上，我們也是非常相似的。所以這代表著不是百分之九十九，但大約百分之九十是個非常合理的範圍，也就是說大部份的東西是相似的。然後我們會找到一些「局外人」, 就是那些不在範圍內的數據。且這些基因是很有趣的，但他們不是很明顯的。所以我想這是我今天要說的一件很重要的事情 就是就算我們認為我們之間很不同，但事實上我們是很相似的，就算是在腦袋層面也是。

    這些相異處是什麼呢？這是一個我們做的用來瞭解這些相異處是什麼的研究。這些相異處是很不明顯的。像是各種不同細胞的哪些基因被啓動了。這是我們找到兩個比較好的例子。一個是RELN，它跟早期發育有關。DISC1也是個基因，是在精神分裂患者中被移除的基因。這些不是精神分裂患者，但他們也有個體差異。所以你們現在看到的是第一個捐贈者和第四個捐贈者。它們的基因跟另外兩個不同，他們的基因在非常特定的細胞被啓動。這些細胞內的深紫色的沈澱物告訴我們那裡有哪些基因被啓動。但到底是跟個體基因行有關還是跟他們的經驗有關，我們不知道。這樣的研究需要更多更多的個體。

所以我要跟你們說的最後一件事是：腦袋有多麼的複雜，和我們還還有多少研究需要做。我認為這些資源非常重要。這些資源讓研究者知道接下來要怎麼做。但目前我們只看了一些個體。我們將來當然會看更多。我最後只能說我們需要的工具已經有了，而且這是一個還沒被瞭解、還沒被研究的課題。這是一個新推進。所以給那些沒被嚇倒但仍然對腦袋很感興趣的各位，未來就在此。

  TEDGlobal 2011

Chinese, Traditional translation by Joan Liu. Reviewed by Ana Choi.

https://www.ted.com/talks/allan_jones_a_map_of_the_brain/transcript?language=zh-tw#t-359266

[rnomics]

Molecular analysis of PRC2 recruitment to DNA in chromatin and its inhibition by #RNA.

Related Articles Molecular analysis of PRC2 recruitment to DNA in chromatin and its inhibition by #RNA. Nat Struct Mol Biol. 2017 Dec;24(12):1028-1038 Authors: Wang X, Paucek RD, Gooding AR, Brown ZZ, Ge EJ, Muir TW, Cech TR Abstract Many studies have revealed pathways of epigenetic gene silencing by Polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) in vivo, but understanding the underlying molecular mechanisms requires biochemistry. Here we analyze interactions of reconstituted human PRC2 with nucleosome complexes. Histone modifications, the H3K27M #cancer mutation, and inclusion of JARID2 or EZH1 in the PRC2 complex have unexpectedly minor effects on PRC2-nucleosome binding. Instead, protein-free linker DNA dominates the PRC2-nucleosome interaction. Specificity for CG-rich sequences is consistent with PRC2 occupying CG-rich DNA in vivo. PRC2 preferentially binds methylated DNA regulated by its AEBP2 subunit, suggesting how DNA and histone methylation collaborate to repress chromatin. We find that #RNA, known to inhibit PRC2 activity, is not a methyltransferase inhibitor per se. Instead, #RNA sequesters PRC2 from nucleosome substrates, because PRC2 binding requires linker DNA, and #RNA and DNA binding are mutually exclusive. Together, we provide a model for PRC2 recruitment and an explanation for how actively transcribed genomic regions bind PRC2 but escape silencing. PMID: 29058709 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] http://bit.ly/2CqTMlx #Pubmed