The DeSci concept is coming, and the new track that CZ and Vitalik Buterin are focusing on has sparked a MEME frenzy.

Author: Revc, Golden Finance

After the abundance of material wealth, crypto whales, like tech giants, began to focus on the "longevity" biotech track.

On November 13, Binance founder CZ posted on social media platform X, sharing his feelings about attending a small decentralized science (DeSci) entrepreneur gathering organized by Binance Labs, along with a photo with Ethereum founder Vitalik. During the event, Vitalik introduced CZ to VitaDAO's first longevity product—VD001, a natural high-dose spermidine supplement approved by the Thai Food and Drug Administration. In the interaction, CZ expressed hope to see the emergence of 1,000 DeSci-related projects next year.

On November 8, Binance Labs announced its investment in BIO Protocol. The BIO platform enables global scientists, patients, and investors to collaboratively fund, develop, and co-own new drugs and therapies. Currently, the BIO network consists of seven BioDAOs, focusing on diverse fields such as cryopreservation, women's health, and psychedelics for mental health.

Crypto users with keen senses seized the Desci hotspot over the weekend, participating in a frenzy of MEME tokens valued at tens of millions of dollars.

Introduction to DeSci** Related Projects**

Bio Protocol

Bio Protocol is a new type of financial protocol designed for decentralized science (DeSci), aimed at accelerating the influx of capital and talent into scientific research through on-chain mechanisms. Its core objectives include:

1. Create and support the BioDAO network to provide on-chain funding and liquidity for scientific research.

2. Standardize the framework, economic model, and data products of BioDAO to enhance the generation and commercialization efficiency of scientific intellectual property (IP) and data.

3. Provide continuous funding and liquidity to address the long-term development needs of scientific research.

Core Operations Module

BIO Protocol achieves its goals through the following five core functions:

1. Curation:

• Use the $BIO token to filter new BioDAO projects and select quality projects through community voting.

• Holders use locked vBIO tokens to show support, and successfully selected projects will receive funding, support, and market priority.

2. Funding:

• Provide initial seed round financing opportunities for selected BioDAOs, where participants can obtain terms that are on par with or even better than those of institutional investors.

• Ensure a high degree of consistency between research and community engagement.

3. Liquidity:

• Provide market liquidity for BioDAO through BIO tokens and other assets held by the BIO Treasury (such as ETH).

• Reduce exchange costs and accumulate protocol-owned liquidity (POL) through liquidity pools (e.g., VITA/BIO, BIO/ETH).

4. Reward Mechanism (Bio/acc Rewards):

• Distribute BIO tokens as rewards to incentivize BioDAO to achieve milestones (such as advancing IP to clinical stage or generating sales revenue).

5. Meta-Governance:

• BIO holds multiple tokens of BioDAO, granting the community governance rights over the entire ecosystem (BioDAO and IP assets).

The value of BIO Protocol comes from:

1. Token Distribution:

• Provide a grant of 100,000 USD to the new BioDAO in exchange for its 6.9% token allocation; at the same time, the BIO Treasury can hold rights to its scientific IP.

2. Protocol-Owned Liquidity (POL):

• Continuously increase the value of the BIO Treasury through liquidity pool earnings (BIO, BioDAO tokens, IP tokens, ETH, etc.).

3. Uses of BIO Token:

• Planning the selection and funding program for BioDAO.

• Priority participation in BioDAO's token and IP sales.

• Enjoy discounts on BioDAO products/services.

• Vote on fund allocation and protocol updates in governance.

The 2.5 round auction of the BIO token has been completed, raising approximately 58 million USD, but the tokens have not yet circulated, with only about 3,200 holders, primarily consisting of institutions and large holders. Additionally, the token has an inflation mechanism, with details to be determined.

pump.science

Currently, under the Desci concept, there are three MEME tokens being pursued by major funds, with RIF's market capitalization reaching 180 million US dollars.

Rif** is deployed by pump.science**, the project has been strictly screened and investigated, Desci track shows that it is different from the traditional MEME**, there is a high threshold for asset issuance, Pump.Science is a decentralized science based onSolana** blockchain ** (DeSci) platform designed to advance longevity research. The project is funded by the Solana Foundation, which combines IP-tokenization and real-time experimental transparency to incentivize community participation in scientific research. **Its core experiments are dominated by compound testing, including Urolithin A ($URO) and Rifampicin ($RIF), with test subjects ranging from worms to humans and market valuations (e.g. $69k for worms and $10m of the human stage) to gradually unlock the experiment. Experimental data is streamed live in real time, similar to Twitch's scientific transparency mode, and anyone can submit compound suggestions for testing.

Rif

RIF is a research token related to the antibiotic Rifampicin, which has attracted attention in the medical community for its potential anti-aging effects. Studies on model organisms such as the "Caenorhabditis elegans" (C. elegans) indicate that Rifampicin can activate cellular defense mechanisms, enhancing resistance to stress and damage. It helps reduce oxidative stress and maintain protein quality within cells, promoting healthier and longer-lived organisms. Although research is still in the early stages and its application in humans has not been confirmed, the ability of Rifampicin to enhance cellular health makes it a promising candidate drug in the development of anti-aging therapies.

As of 6 PM Beijing time on the 18th, RIF has risen over 129% in the last 24 hours, with a market value of nearly 200 million USD. As the leader in its sector, it continues to trigger FOMO sentiment in the market, with some smart money building positions in RIF at a low point and achieving a 74 times profit.

Uro

URO is an experimental research token related to Urolithin - Urolithin A, which is a natural compound produced by the human gut microbiota through the metabolism of ellagitannins (such as the active components found in pomegranates). It has unique biological functions in terms of cellular health. It supports the generation of new mitochondria by activating "mitophagy" to clear aging or dysfunctional mitochondria. This process helps cells optimize energy metabolism, enhancing overall efficiency and vitality. In animal studies, Urolithin A has been shown to extend the lifespan of Caenorhabditis elegans, demonstrating its anti-aging potential.

Similarly, in the past 24 hours, it has increased by 113%, with a market value of nearly 70 million US dollars.

SCIHUB

SCIHUB focuses on academic freedom and the resistance against the long-standing monopoly of the academic publishing industry. Sci-Hub was founded by Russian Alexandra Elbakyan, providing free access to academic papers, helping users overcome the high costs of downloading research articles. Elbakyan faced financial barriers during her student years and created Sci-Hub after self-learning programming. Sci-Hub is particularly popular in China, where Chinese users make up a large portion of its traffic and donations. The platform faces multiple lawsuits, primarily from publishers like Elsevier, whose domain names and social media accounts have been blocked. Despite legal challenges, Elbakyan still relies on crowdfunding to maintain service operations.

The existence of this platform highlights the ongoing issues in the academic publishing industry, where high subscription fees restrict people's access to academic research results. Many researchers support Sci-Hub because it is convenient and easy to use. Elbakyan hopes to restore the paper upload function of Sci-Hub and introduce AI features to enhance its services. In China, Sci-Hub is affectionately referred to as "little bird," while Elbakyan is hailed as the "goddess of academia." The logo of Sci-Hub consists of a hammer and sickle along with a key, symbolizing its stance in the copyright struggle. Below is the main process of the struggle:

In May 2017, Elsevier submitted a list of 100 articles illegally provided by Sci-Hub and LibGen to the court, requesting a permanent injunction and claiming $15 million in damages. On June 21 of the same year, after an absence hearing, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled in favor of Elsevier. Subsequently, on November 6, 2017, the court ordered Sci-Hub to pay $4.8 million in damages to the American Chemical Society (ACS) and blocked its servers and domain names. Nevertheless, Elbakyan stated in an interview with The Scientist that she would not pay the damages.

In December 2018, a Russian court blocked several domains related to Sci-Hub at the request of the British publisher Springer Nature. In January 2021, Twitter banned its account for posting pirated papers related to Sci-Hub.

From a narrative perspective, SCIHUB is more likely to evoke widespread sympathy and resonate with the long-term oppression experienced by industry scholars. In this context, MEME has evolved into a community expression of feelings regarding social inequality.

In the past 24 hours, SCIHUB has also recorded a 158% increase, with a market capitalization reaching 50 million US dollars.

Summary

The Desci track has demonstrated independence in project review and application, combined with the launch method of MEME assets, allowing cutting-edge scientific exploration to gain support from "community finance." However, the implementation of related concepts is uncertain, and investors need to pay attention to the associated risks. From the financing operations of BioProtocol, until the assets are issued to the PumpFun market, the team displays a high level of professionalism, but it should also consider whether excessive financial speculation has deviated from the original intent of the experiment. Whether Desci is close to us or just a "vision" of super-rich individuals is no longer important in the eyes of investors in the short term.

If I were to summarize the currently booming MEME market in one sentence, "Initial Emotion Offering" might be a relatively fitting understanding. Narratives that are more likely to resonate emotionally with people, such as Pnut the hamster and SciHub, are more likely to yield excess returns against the backdrop of a bull market.