Chinese virologist Zhang Yongzhen gained global recognition in 2020 for sharing crucial data on the genome of the virus responsible for Covid-19. However, in China, he has faced ongoing disruptions and obstacles in his work for over four years, as reported by CNN.
Zhang protested against these disruptions outside his lab at the Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center after it was abruptly closed for renovations, according to accounts posted on his Weibo social media page. Despite his contributions to combating Covid-19, Zhang has encountered unexpected challenges in his career and research.
Images on Chinese social media showed Zhang sleeping on the lab’s doorstep wrapped in blankets, with security guards nearby. His research students reported challenges, including the formal transfer of his employment to the Shanghai Center in 2020, ending his 19-year tenure at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center stated that it closed some labs for safety reasons and provided additional space for Zhang and his team. Zhang, however, stated that the reasons given for the lab closure were nonsensical and that more than a dozen students’ research had been affected.
Although Zhang and the online post detailing the circumstances of his protest did not directly link the lab closure to his sharing of the coronavirus genome sequence in 2020, CNN’s attempts to reach the Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center’s public relations department went unanswered.
Zhang was the first scientist to share Covid-19’s genomic sequence on January 11, 2020, which was crucial as the World Health Organization awaited China’s data following its announcement of a viral outbreak in Wuhan. Despite his contributions, Zhang’s lab faced limitations after the data release, preventing it from isolating the Covid virus, according to Edward Holmes, a University of Sydney professor and Zhang’s long-time collaborator.
These challenges faced by Zhang are part of China’s tight monitoring and control over information related to Covid-19, ensuring transparency remains limited.