This email also ended Yang Rongxis two-year silence.

It turned out that Yang Rongxi had studied at Heidelberg University since 2006 and became the only independent Chinese team leader in the Medical College of Heidelberg University in 2016.

MammaScreen project team members from left to right are: postdoctoral Dr. Ruth Merkle, Yang Rongxi, Hamid Eminger and postdoctoral Dr. Patrick R. Merz. Image Source: entermedia.de

There, she led a team to develop a blood screening method for breast cancer, which increased the accuracy of breast cancer phase I screening to 95%. Only by accumulating more clinical trials, Yang Rongxi can realize her dream. She even sees a bright future in which the research will be applied in clinic in three years.

Eventually, however, her research was plundered by Christof Sohn, Dean of the Gynecological Hospital of the Medical College affiliated to Heidelberg University, and Sarah Schott, her student.

Two years after returning home, facing the Chinese Science Journal, Yang Rongxi told the whole story, and she hoped that she would eventually get a late justice.

Abnormal signal

In 2006, Yang Rongxi boarded a plane to Germany after finishing his research and study in Shanghai Institute of Biochemical Cells, Chinese Academy of Sciences. She will study at the doctoral level under Barbara Burwinkel, a professor at the Medical School of Heidelberg University.

In 2008, Yang Rongxis mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, which deeply affected her. How to detect early breast cancer more quickly and accurately has become Yang Rongxis dream and direction of endeavor.

In this regard, she began to study the new generation of breast cancer early in vitro molecular screening technology.

Seven years later, with the help of this research, Yang Rongxi successfully applied to the high-tech entrepreneurship support fund set up by the Federal Ministry of Economy and Energy of Germany, and received 866,000 euros in its maximum venture fund.

After getting the first barrel of gold, I co-founded the MammaScreen project with Dr. Hamid Emminger, former global vice president of Roches diagnostic marketing department, and recruited two other postdoctoral candidates to continue the development and transformation of a new generation of molecular screening technology for early breast cancer in vitro. Yang Rongxi said.

After the MamaScreen project team was funded by the EXIST project, Heidelberg University published official information. Dr. Rongxi Yang, a Gynecologic Clinic of Heidelberg University Hospital, is the director of a project aimed at developing a highly reliable and accurate diagnostic test for early breast cancer. This will be a low-cost, simple screening method that requires only a few drops of blood.

In the second half of 2016, the domestic enterprise Boai Xinkaiyuan Medical Science and Technology Group Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Xinkaiyuan) found Yang Rongxi, hoping to invest. This is also in line with MammaScreens strategic demand for R&D in China and Germany at the same time, and the two sides soon reached a cooperative intention.

However, when the news of Chinese companiesinvestment became clear, the Patent Management Company of Heidelberg University Medical College became a stumbling block for the cooperation between the two sides.

Why did the Patent Management Company of Heidelberg University Medical College intervene?

Here, we should introduce the concept of job invention.

When Yang Rongxi invented the patent, he was an employee of the Medical College of Heidelberg University. According to the German Job Invention Act, although I am an inventor, the ownership, patent licensing and authorization of the scientific research achievements I have obtained belong to the academic institution, the Patent Management Company of the Medical College of Heidelberg University (90% of the shares of Heidelberg University), and I personally only have the right to dividend. Yang Rongxi said.

The MammaScreen project must obtain the consent of the Patent Management Company of the Medical College of Heidelberg University in order to obtain a licence to use the patent.

Therefore, when New Open Source came to the negotiating table with the sincerity of 5 million in early 2017, Heidelberg University Medical College Patent Management Company took a strong stance from the beginning, demanding more than 10% of the new companys equity. Since then, the figure has been raised by 20% or even 30%.

According to the common practice in Europe and the United States, the proportion of the school patent management company is not more than 5%, and the share and authorization fee can only be one of two choices. But Heidelberg University Medical School Patent Management Company has been hoping for both from the beginning.

According to the information provided by lawyers for Yang Rongxis participation in the stock market of American universities, as a common practice, American academic institutions can only own 2%-5% of the companys equity as a fee for the use of service invention patents. Even if they are very mature, patents that can be put into the market immediately will not exceed 15%.

In order to facilitate the project landing, Yang Rongxi accepted the initial conditions proposed by the Patent Management Company of Heidelberg University Medical College, but as their requirements continue to rise, the cooperation between the two sides has become more and more difficult.

In a negotiation with the new open source, the representative of the Patent Management Company of Heidelberg University Medical College came up without warning, and the cooperation between the two reached an impasse. Even if I and my partner, Dr. Hamid Eminger, have tried to retrieve it over and over again, it will not work. Yang Rongxi said.

This unusual performance of the Patent Management Company of the Medical College of Heidelberg University made Yang Rongxi smell unusual. She immediately contacted the foundations and trade unions of Heidelberg University, which provided financial support for her, and began consulting lawyers.

cannot get help from anywhere

One day in April 2017, Yang Rongxi went to the project team as usual, but when he arrived at the door, he found that the access card had failed and he was blocked outside the office door.

I began to think it was the access card degaussing, but the security guard said no. Yang Rongxi recalled that after that, she received an e-mail notification from Christopher Zehn, Dean of the Affiliated Gynecological Hospital of Heidelberg University, that she had been removed from the post of MammaScreen Project Leader, which was replaced by Sarah Shett.

The incoming Sarah Shett was a student of Christopher Zehn and was quickly promoted to professor after taking over the MammaScreen project.

Soon after, Yang Rongxi received a letter from the legal department of the Medical College (the head of the legal department of the Medical College is also one of the directors of the Patent Management Company of the Medical College of Heidelberg University).

Yang Rongxi could not return to his previous laboratory because of the decision of the senior of the college, but was placed in a separate office, isolated from his colleagues in the project team, the letter said.

They also asked me to report to the Secretary of President Christopher Zehn every day, including how long I went out for lunch. Yang Rongxi told the Chinese Journal of Science.

In Yang Rongxis record of e-mail exchanges, an e-mail was sent to her on April 12 by a lawyer in the legal department of the Medical College of Heidelberg University. The email specifically asked her to report the time and asked her to report to her supervisor and get permission before leaving if she wanted to arrange personal affairs during the office hours.

The email was also copied to Sarah Shett and others who took over her project.

Every hour, Sarah Shett calls her office phone to make sure she doesnt leave. Even if she wants to see a doctor, she needs a doctors certificate of diagnosis and a time certificate.

This kind of special treatment is unheard of not only in Heidelberg, but also in any German work unit.

A snapshot of an email sent to Yang Rongxi by the legal department of the Medical College. The contents of the red boxes are as follows: Please indicate in the form the start and end time of your daily work, work rest time and Private appointments should be set outside normal working hours. If this cannot be done in individual cases, they will be exempted after consultation with their superiors.

The reason for this is that in Germany, lawyers and trade unions work only during daytime hours. If I want to ask for help, I have to leave the office at this time. Otherwise, its hard to find people. Yang Rongxi said.

Not only that, Yang Rongxi was forced to hand over all the previous experimental data, and his project team colleagues were also questioned whether they had kept the data privately.

Yang Rongxi has sought help from the Heidelberg Trade Union. But the union was reluctant to help the president of the gynecological hospital, the legal department of the medical college and the board of directors of the medical college.

In that case, Yang Rongxi decided to give up everything in Germany and return home.

As for what happened two years ago, Heidelbergs local media, Neckar River Daily, wrote in a report on March 26: According to several participants, Yang Rongxi was suddenly told to withdraw from the MammScreen project at the end of March 2017. No explanation, no reason. Professor Sarah Shett, a student of Christopher Zehn, Dean of the Gynecological Hospital affiliated to the Medical College of Heidelberg University, took over leadership. She helped collect a small number of specimens, but she was not in the breast cancer screening group.

Before returning home, Yang Rongxi considered all the possibilities: I was afraid they would spill dirty water on me and falsely accuse me of stealing core technology. So I contacted my lawyer and signed a peaceful separation contract with the Medical College of Heidelberg University before I could return home smoothly.

Markus Jones, the head of the legal department of the Medical College and one of the directors of the Patent Management Company of the Medical College of Heidelberg University, sent a snapshot of Yang Rongxis e-mail. The email did not mention the reasons for the dismissal of Yang Rongxis MammaScreen leadership, and obscurely forced Yang Rongxi to resign, and only gave him three days to consider.

In June 2017, Yang Rongxi returned home alone. So far, she put an end to what happened in Germany. But for the whole thing, its just a comma.

Continuous fermentation

After returning home, Yang Rongxi did not have time for anxiety and depression. She devoted all her energy to the research in China and actively contacted universities and potential investors.

At the end of December 2017, Nanjing Medical University extended an olive branch to her. In 2018, Yang Rongxis newly established company in China also received venture capital from domestic investors.

As a result, her research, development and transformation of early cancer screening in China has finally become possible, and this work has nothing to do with German patents.

Nanjing Medical University and our College of Public Health have given me a lot of support. Investors have given me a lot of support. The efficiency of domestic work is commendable. Yang Rongxi said that after learning about her research, many hospitals in China also provided her with a large number of sample data.

So far, the research has been progressing smoothly and good data have been obtained.

On the German side, with Yang Rongxis departure, the MammaScreen project team founded by Yang Rongxi was also disbanded, and all team members resigned one after another.

To Yang Rongxis surprise, Barbara Bowenkos tutors laboratory was occupied by Zens and Shetts newly formed team, and the research team was in danger of closing down.

Shortly after Yang Rongxi left office, in the second half of 2017, under the efforts of Zen, Shett and the Patent Management Company of Heidelberg University Medical College, New Open Source continued to inject capital into the company. HeiScreen and HeiScreenNKY were co-founded to focus on the development and industrialization of early diagnosis technology for breast cancer.

According to the Neckar River Daily, the Patent Management Company of Heidelberg University Medical College has won 48.6% of HeiScreen and 80% of HeiScreenNKY, respectively, and Zen and Shett have received 12% and 20% of their shares in return.

As Der Spiegel said in its report, bet on the rider, not on the horse race.

After Yang Rongxi and his team left, Zen and Shett got the technical path and patents, and formed a new team, but their R&D progress was rather slow, and there was no new originality.

HeiScreens test data were 86% accurate for young women and only 60% accurate for women over 50. According to a report in the Baden Wutenberg Health Industry Daily in 2016, the accuracy of breast cancer detection by Yang Rongxis MammaScreen team reached 95% that year.

Nevertheless, on February 21, 2019, the Medical College of Heidelberg University still made a high-profile official announcement. Researchers at the College developed a breakthrough and revolutionary blood test method, which can be used for early detection of breast cancer. It is expected that this year it will be available for clinical application.

Zen and Shett have also been interviewed by various media. Eventually, more than 180 German media followed up, causing a sensation.

At the same time, Zehn and Shett did not publish papers or reports on the major progress of breast cancer early screening. When asked about data and original research and development, they also appeared to be flickering.

This attracted the attention of journalists from Der Spiegel, Germany, who began a preliminary investigation.

Soon, the reporter found two years ago, Baden Wutenberg State Health Industry Newspaper on Yang Rongxi and its technology reports.

Further contact with people familiar with the situation, the reporter learned that Yang Rongxi, who was reported in that year, has now returned to China. Therefore, the reporter managed to get in touch with Yang Rongxi, which also had the letter Yang Rongxi received at the beginning of this article.

Yang Rongxi described his experience cautiously in his communication with the reporter of Ming Jing Weekly.

Im worried that the journalist will give up when he learns that it touches some high-level people. Fortunately, her concern did not turn into reality. After interviewing more than 20 people, the reporters report was published in Der Spiegel Weekly on March 29, which caused a great disturbance in Germany.

According to German media reports, at present, the Ministry of Science and Technology of Baden Wutenberg has organized a special committee to investigate the matter at Heidelberg University Medical College. The results of the investigation will be published in a few weeks. I hope that the final findings will be fair to me and the Mama Screen project and team I led. I believe that justice may be late, but never absent. Yang Rongxi told the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

On April 1, the Chinese Journal of Sciences contacted Heidelberg University to verify the relevant facts, but as of the time of publication, no positive response had been received from the other side.