Break the Cocoon
Authors:   College of Biological Science of Jiangsu University, China., CHEN KEPING 
Published: January 2024

Silkworms were first domesticated in China and have benefited humans for a long time. Little “Tian Chong” has left memories and reveries over thousands of years to Chinese people. A string of tiny silver silk has erected a bridge between Chinese and western cultures. The “Silk Road” that has survived for thousands of years has brought about rapid development of Chinese and Western civilizations. Nowadays, the banner of the “Belt and Road Initiative” flutters high on the earth, marking the aspiration of Chinese people for friendship, peace, and development. To this end, the author has compiled this science work Break the Cocoon with literature and history data and illustrations, and strived to prevail Chinese culture, popularize science knowledge, and promote the development of sericulture. About the Author Chen Keping, doctorate, researcher, and doctoral supervisor, has served as dean, and general Party branch secretary in College of Biological Science of Jiangsu University since 2001. He is a young and middle-aged expert with outstanding contributions, a perspective expert of Jiangsu Project 333 as well as “Six Talents Peak Time”, an examiner, reviewer and assessor of Natural Science Foundation of China, an editor and reviewer of academic magazines at home and abroad, and member of Jiangsu Society of Agronomy. From 1983 to 2000, he has engaged in study of germplasm resources and mutant genes of silkworms in Silkworm Institute of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and obtained his doctorate in Southwest Agricultural University from Chinese famous bombycology academician Xiang Zhonghuai. In 2004, Chen Keping, as a senior visiting scholar, studied in Institute of Biological Science of University of Tokyo and devoted to protein research. He has published more than 100 papers in international SCI academic journals. The number of SCI academic papers published in the silkworm virus field ranks first to second in the world. He has won the Second Prize of National Science and Technology Progress Award, the First Prize of Scientific and Technological Progress of the Ministry of Agriculture, the Second Prize of Natural Science of the Ministry of Education, and the Second and Third Prize of Jiangsu Province for Scientific and Technological Progress. The monograph “Model Organism Silkworm” won the First Prize of Outstanding Science and Technology Books in East China. Preface Can1 (silkworm) consists of a “tian2 (sky)” and “chong3 (worm)”. I didn’t mean to discuss the origin of the Chinese character, but Can must imply a certain culture. Well-known legends about Leizu (a legendary Chinese empress and wife of Yellow Emperor) who discovered silkworm breeding and Maiden Matou (goddess of silkworm) credited China with silk contribution to humans. Silkworm-related discoveries in Hemudu and Yangshao cultural sites undoubtedly evidenced that it is Chinese people who invented sericulture. In ancient times, it was so difficult to crack the mystery of silkworms in cocooning and reeling silk that descendants always compared silkworm breeding on white mulberry trees and silk reeling to Four Great Inventions. Chinese culture is inclusive and Chinese people live in harmony with other nations. It is widely read that Zhang Qian who served as an envoy traveled to Western Regions4 and created the “Silk Road”. A “Tian Chong (silkworm)” silk bridged Chinese and western cultures and made them integrate and exchange for thousands of years. Sericulture spread in the rest of the world and benefits all people beyond measure. In the kingdom of insects, when it comes to economic index, silkworms and bees must come first. They contribute a considerable part of clothing and food. Silkworms not only produce silk that can be luxurious clothing but also a delicacy for humans. Each link of a “white mulberry, silkworm, bombyx mori, silk moth, cocoon, silk and fabric” chain has its merits. An article entitled by Old Materials, New Hope in Science shows us the promising future of silk in medical and optical areas. Scientists have acknowledged that silkworms are model organisms of Lepidoptera, but now silkworms are being model organisms of life science. In near future, we believe that as silkworm baculovirus expression vector improves itself, a technical innovation with silkworm as bioreactor surely brings new benefits to humans. Ever since humans broke the code, Chinese sericulture researchers will volunteer to take on the mission of Chinese people to conquer barricade in silkworm genomes. This treasure, left behind by ancestors, will evidently glow in boundless shine again as the “One Belt, One Road” Initiative launched. At the beginning of the reform and opening-up in China, I was fortunate enough to get myself tied to silkworm in the university. For over 3 decades in scientific research, I have been so addicted to “silkworms”. Witnessing the rapid development of sericulture science in China, I wanted to write a book long before, but I was busy with daily chores and only finalized the work and sent to the press at this time. And your advice or suggestions will be much appreciated.