Window to China
The instrument will be based on iGene’s liquid chip probe hybrid gene capture technology TargetSeq and multiple PCR amplification technology MultipSeq. It aims at enterprises, hospitals and research institutions interested to customize and develop genetic testing kits. China Bio news release, February 28, 2017
CAS Hefei Institute of Physical Sciences has already built 3 large-scale scientific units: a synchrotron, a superconducting tokamak and a steady-state strong magnetic field device. Next to Beijing, it is among the country’s most densely populated science areas. The next step is to upgrade the existing devices, e. g., by a new fusion reactor, a 3D detector for atmospheric particles, a fourth generation synchrotron and other large scientific devices. Hefei plans also for a national information laboratory, a large gene center, an ion medicine center and research platforms concerning national information security, nuclear fusion energy, haze governance, cancer treatment and others. Anhui Province where Hefei is located had in 2016 a GDP growth of 8.7%, fiscal revenue growth of 9%, and per capita disposable income of urban and rural residents increased by 8.2% and 8.3%. China Bio news release, February 28, 2017
Prof. Chang CHEN has proposed a new concept based on studies with C. elegans and human fibroblast senescence cells. His results showed that compared with old worms or senescent cells, young worms or young cells could generate more reactive oxygen species (ROS) to activate Erk and Akt signal pathways in response to redox stress. Based on these results, he proposes a new concept RRC, which includes the ability to generate ROS/RNS to activate cellular signaling, the ability to activate the antioxidant system and to degrade the damaged proteins. CAS news release, February 27, 2017
China’s largest cotton-producing area is Xinjiang, with about 1,8 million ha. According to the Ministry of Statistics, the cotton-producing area was down by over 11 %, but the the cotton production in Xinjiang alone reached 3.594 million tons and will eventually contribute 2/3 of China’s cotton harvest. The standard cotton is Zhongmian 49″, an insect-resistant transgenic variety.” China Bio news release, February 22, 2017
According to the Ministry of Science and Technology, 80 % of this budget targeted Information technology, advanced manufacturing, new energy, biomedicine and other high-tech fields. It was announced that China will build new technology sharing platforms for researchers and implement new laws to protect their intellectual property. China will also encourage companies to build innovation centers, staffed with professional technical managers, to cooperate with universities and institutions, Eight investment funds, including a 10-billion-yuan fund for commercializing major science projects, have already been established. CAS news release, February 23, 2017
The IODP program will involve 33 scientists, 26 from China, others from the US, France and other nations. The scientists will explore the lithosphere extension during the continental breakup, by drilling four sites to a depth of 3,000 to 4,000 meters in the northern area of the South China Sea. CAS news release, February 22, 2017
The ordered arrangement in antifreeze-proteins of the hydrophobic and hydrophilic functional groups protruding in the ice-binding phase facilitates the formation of ice like water, which provides the driving force for binding to the ice surface and inhibits the growth of ice crystal. Researchers from CAS Institute of Chemistry and CAS Institute of Applied Physics in Shanghai showed that the unique structure of graphene oxide (GO) also inhibited the growth and recrystallization of ice crystal, and shaped them into a hexagon. When 0.01% of GO was used for the cryopreservation of horse sperm, the motility of sperm increased from 24.3% to 71.3%. CAS news release, February 22, 2017
Scientists from Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica (SIMM) of Chinese Academy of Sciences discovered a role of the metabolic enzyme phosphoglycerate mutase 1 (PGAM1) in maintaining genomic stability, and found that PGAM1 inhibitors have the potential to expand the therapeutic benefits of Olaparib (Lynparza), an FDA-approved drug for treatment ovarian cancer, to a wider range of cancer types such as triple-negative breast cancer. CAS news release, February 22, 2017
Phase I of the new incubation park has a total area of 600,000 square meters and is expected to be completed before the end of 2017. It will contain appropriate energy facilities, animal housing, cold chains, sewage plants and other supporting facilities. At present, 208 projects are negotiated and 43 have been signed. The perspective for 2035 is to achieve an output value of more than 500 billion Yuan, have settled more than 30,000 enterprises, gathered 200,000 people and have constructed an international bio-industry transfer hub. China Bio news release, February 21, 2016
According to the NOVA institute, 45 % of the 2,4 million tons of biopolymers globally produced were manufactured in China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Thailand and Taiwan. PLA and PA polyamide will show the strongest future growth, but remain at 25 % of global share, whereas for PET, Asia’s share will stay around 59 %. China Bio news release, February 21, 2016