Chapter 2 November 18 Thread A
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] DR SUGA I'M A LITTLE CONFUSED BECAUSE ARE YOU NOT IN BIOLOGY ANYMORE????
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] Not at the moment. I'm between teams right now. I'm mostly handling observation.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] I suppose that makes two of us then. I wasn't aware you were an engineer now.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] Yes well it turns out I'm actually very GOOD at engineering so I'm an engineer now.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] Well I hope that's been enjoyable for you. I'm somewhat surprised to see you upstairs though.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] It's because I'm an engineering supervisor now. Isn't it kind of crazy how I'm really important now and you don't have a job really anymore?
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] Well that was awfully backhanded. I'll have you know I'm actually quite comfortable in my current position. I wouldn't mind if they kept me in observation for the rest of time.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] WELL IT'S GOOD THAT YOU'RE HAVING A GOOD TIME!!!!!!!!! I've missed seeing you around so it's cool to be upstairs now.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] Thank you, Genki. It's good to see you too. I hope you've been well.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] YEAH I'M WELL!!!!!! HOW IS BIOLOGY DOING NOW THOUGH!!!!!
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] Not much has changed since your departure, I'm afraid. I suppose the only real change is that I've lost my night shift conversation partner. I've been getting along well with Dr. Daikubara and Dr. Kasuga though.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] Are you still taking care of my notes?
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] Of course. I've added what I can, but I'm afraid I lack your expertise. I've left all of your work untouched but protected. Don't be worried.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] DO NOT LOSE MY NOTES!!!! I'm going to need them so don't lose them okay?
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] I won't. I promise. They're safe.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] I love you so don't lose my stuff okay? Because when I get better WE'RE GOING TO WORK TOGETHER AGAIN so don't lose my things okay?
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] I assure you I won't lose them.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] Okay, good. Why don't you work in biology anymore? Did something happen?
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] The explanation's a bit long-winded, it's best to just let it be. I'd rather just focus on the work I'm doing currently.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] Did something happen with Dr. Kan?
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] I've been advised not to speak on it.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] Oh okay sure. I'm wondering if I should talk to Dr. Kan now that I'm upstairs. I don't know.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] If that's something you feel you need to do, I won't stop you, but I'm not enthusiastic about the idea.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] Shouldn't you be working, Genki?
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] Yeah but nothing happens in engineering mostly until motives hit or people die. It's super boring. I feel like this whole lab is just watching TV all the time. I wanna do science.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] Would you like me to tell you a bit about your research, maybe?
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] YES!!! DO THAT!!!
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] Fine, but don't tell Dr. Higashigaki that I'm distracting you. Pretend you're working. You can do that, right?
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] YES!!!!!!!
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] You were researching cellular senescence. I'm afraid it's not really my area of expertise, but from my understanding, it's a matter of cells that stop dividing with age and produce inflammatory signals that damage tissues and organs.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] Your work was about figuring out how to target those cells and clear them out. Either that, or turn them into healthy, functioning cells. I hope I'm getting that right.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] You wanted to cure degenerative diseases. Alzheimer's, arthritis, cancer, you understand. You wanted to keep cells healthy and cooperative. Does that ring a bell?
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] Oh that definitely sounds important. A bit ambitious though. I don't know about all that.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] You were very ambitious! I remember you telling me how important it was to give people more time with the ones they loved. You were quite determined. You cared a lot about helping people.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] You said it wasn’t enough to just study the cells; you had to understand the entire environment. You worked on the extracellular matrix, the way cells communicate and adapt to their surroundings.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] You were experimenting with engineered enzymes and targeted RNA molecules to "clean up" the cellular neighborhood, to reset the system without causing harm. Honestly, it's all a bit beyond me.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] You were deep into senolytics, the compounds designed to selectively clear out the old, dysfunctional cells. You’d developed an experimental enzyme that could target the molecular markers these senescent cells give off.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] It was supposed to break down the proteins those cells release - the ones that cause chronic inflammation and disrupt healthy tissues. The goal was simple: get rid of the bad apples without touching the good ones.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] You wanted more than just clearing out the debris. You were experimenting with reprogramming those cells entirely, coaxing them into becoming young, active cells again.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] You used a modified version of Yamanaka factors - the genes that can revert adult cells back into a stem-cell-like state.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] But you weren’t reckless about it; you knew that too much reprogramming could lead to cancer or uncontrolled growth. You worked tirelessly to refine the process, using bursts of these factors rather than prolonged exposure.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] And your work on the extracellular matrix - that was *groundbreaking.* You said senescent cells aren’t the only problem; it’s the environment they create that traps healthy cells in a vicious cycle.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] You studied how to "reset" the matrix, using engineered peptides and even nano-scale scaffolds to repair damaged tissues. Your goal was to make the environment hospitable again, to give the remaining healthy cells a fighting chance.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] You worked to develop delivery systems for your therapies - targeted nanoparticles, capable of homing in on senescent cells like precision-guided missiles. It was elegant, really. And risky.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] You always worried about unintended consequences - if one of those delivery systems malfunctioned, or if a treatment activated the wrong genetic pathways, there could be problems. But you believed the potential was worth it.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] I think what I admired most was your perspective. You never saw it as just a scientific puzzle. You always talked about the people who’d benefit.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] The patient with early-stage Parkinson’s who could keep walking their grandkids to school. The mother with failing kidneys who wouldn’t have to spend her last years tied to a dialysis machine.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] It wasn’t about ego for you, Genki. It was about giving people a second chance. I hope that's stuck with you, at least. Do you remember?
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] WOW that sounds really complicated. You still have all my notes on that right??
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] Of course. They'll be ready when you're feeling better.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] HAAAA okay good. When I'm feeling better I'm get right back to it and finish it up probably since you have no idea what you're even doing in there Suga.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] I'm afraid that's about right. But I can keep your notes safe, at least.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] How are you feeling though? Still unwell?
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] I AM ALWAYS UNWELL LITERALLY EVERY DAY SUGA!!!!!!!! But engineering isn't SO bad like motive implementation because I can GO OUTSIDE MORE and fresh air feels pretty good.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] I went out earlier today and people were SMOKING OUT THERE. Bad idea. Makes you smell bad too. Don't smoke.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] Believe me, I have no intentions of picking up the habit.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] A lot of these engineering guys have bad habits. Lots of smoking lots of drinking also sometimes manga but I guess that's not as bad. Still probably makes you smell bad.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] I'm not sure those three are on par with each other.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] Yeah probably. YOU SHOULD COME VISIT ENGINEERING SINCE I'M UP HERE NOW SUGA! I wanna talk to you because I love you okay? So VISIT!
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] Maybe. I'd like to be able to find the time.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] ueghrrrrrrrrr I'm already feeling sick again and I just sat down JUST NOW. You come supervise instead and I'll nap in the storage closet.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] I'm afraid I can't help you with that. If you need rest though, I'm sure you could leave the department with Dr. Dannake for a bit and sneak upstairs.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] I WANT TO DO SCIENCE THOUGH I DON'T JUST WANT TO SIT AND FEEL SICK OR TAKE NAPS!!! I'm a SCIENTIST Suga I want to do SCIENCE.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] Well there's not much for us to be doing right now, is there?
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] HEY WRITE SOMETHING IN MY NOTES FOR ME ACTUALLY. Something with COL1A1 and COL1A2 I don't know. Write it down I feel like I've got something.
[434334633/ Dr. Suga] I'll write that down, sure thing.
[888079647/ Dr. Nemoto] OKAY BYE SUGA I NEED TO GO TAKE A BREAK!