China in Africa

A research group led by Prof. MA Pengcheng at CAS Xinjiang Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry and Prof. Edith Mäder in the Leibniz Institute of Polymer Research Dresden in Germany utilized BF as a substrate to deposit/grow various carbon-based nanoparticles on fibre surface. The introduction of pyrolytic carbon (PyC) or carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on the surface of basalt fibers (BF) resulted in conducting BF. When a tow of this BF was embedded into a polymer matrix, the corresponding fibre-reinforced polymer showed a positive piezoresistance under mechanical deformation. The study was co-financed by the China-Germany Scientific Cooperation Program

CAS news release, September 13, 2017

The group of TANG Zhihui is developing a method to replace extracted teeth by 3D-printed implants. In his approach, the tooth to be extracted is measured prior to surgery by dental cone beam computed tomography (CBCT), and the 3D data are synchronized with a 3D printer providing a copy of the original tooth including the root. After extraction of the original tooth, the printed dental implant is fixed to the alveolar bone by a metal nail through minimally invasive surgery. For the patient, the trauma is small, the repair time is short, and the cost is greatly reduced. TANG Zhihui’s team has completed the preclincial stage stage and observed no serious adverse reactions in animal experiments. The project will enter clinical trials this year, before mass production and application.

China Bio news release, September 13, 2017

As to ZHANG Shuyang, vice president of Peking Union Medical College Hospital, by 2020 China will have included 59 types of orphan diseases into its registration system. At present, there are about 7,000 rare diseases recognized internationally, accounting for about 10% of human diseases. About 80% of rare diseases are believed to be due to genetic defects.

China Bio news release, September 11, 2017

According to ZHANG Rongqiao, chief engineer at the Lunar Exploration and Space Engineering Centre under the China National Space Administration (CNSA), China’s roadmap for deep space exploration includes assembly of a space station in 2019, China’s Mars 2020 mission followed by a sample return mission around 2030, a visit to the Jupiter moon Ganymede in 1936, and to Uranus in 2040. Much of this program depends on the development of the Long March 9, a super-heavy-lift rocket in the same class as the Saturn V or NASA’s future SLSwill.

CAS news release, September 8, 2017

The group of WANG Wei has announced that an expert review has cleared the way to study the effect of porcine Langerhans island extracts on type-1 diabetic human patients. The university center operates a pig breeding station, and the island extracts are obtained from newborn pigs whose immune system has been manipulated to contain each human patient’s own regulatory T-cells, thus preventing graft rejection. So far piglets imprinted with the immune system of 10 patients are under study, but the team prepares to treat ten thousands of patients every year in the future. The donor pigs have been selected from a race which is free of endogenous retrovirus C, a risk factor for human infection.

China Bio news release, September 8, 2017

A joint team of Jiangnan University in Wuxi and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln found that when PLA fiber is first heated to 200 C followed by slow cooling, the heat resistance of the resulting intertwined complex has improved to > 200 C, and structural integrity was maintained in hot water. It is hoped that this new technology could substitute for the more expensive procedure to polymerize mixtures of D- and L-lactic acid to scPLA.
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-08/uon-tca083017.php

China Bio news release, September 9, 2017

The machine is based on the Helicos technology, using sequencing by synthesis and detection of single-molecule fluorescence using total reflexion microscopy. In a test on E. coli genome sequencing where the GenoCare device was tested against Illumina’s MiSeq, reading accuracy of both instruments was comparable, but usable read length of the GenoCare was only 29 as compared to the MiSeq 146 bases. Direct Genomics plans to compensate this disadvantage by targeting specific genomic sequences by probes immobilized to the flow cell. This would qualify the instruments in particular for clinical tests such as non-invasive preimplantantation assays (NIPT) or of tumor-specific markers. Direct Genomics CEO Jiankui HE, backed by venture capital, claims to be able to build and sell 1000 units of GenoCare per year in China

China Bio, September 6, 2017

According to the plan, China will strive to achieve the world’s leading level by 2030 in artificial intelligence theory, technology and application, as the world’s major artificial intelligence innovation center. By 2025, the current status of robotics technology in Japan shall have been reached, including the largest number of IP. This plan is embedded in a „smart manufacturing 2025“ concept.

China Bio news release, September 4, 2017

Neutron beams can examine subatomic materials without damaging their structure－an advance expected to lead to new discoveries in material science, clean energy and medicine. The China Spallation Neutron Source cost 1.87 billion yuan ($280 million) and took around six and a half years to build. It will be fully operational next year and Chinese scientists from more than 70 projects and 22 universities have applied to use it. The facility will also be open to foreign researchers.

CAS news release, Sept. 4, 2017

Using transcriptomic analysis, the group of XU Jian at CAS Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology (QIBEBT) observed a nuclear-encoded RuBisCO activase (nRCA) in Nannochlorpsis oceanica which functions as a mechanochemical motor protein and uses the energy from ATP hydrolysis to facilitate carbamylation and thus maintaining activity of RuBisCO by removing various inhibitors from RuBisCO catalytic sites. By overexpressing RCA, microalgal growth rate under air-level CO2 was enhanced by ~32%, biomass accumulation by ~46% and lipid productivity by ~41%, and photosynthesis by ~28%. Furthermore, abundance of RuBisCO large subunit protein increased by ~45%. 

CAS news release, September 4, 2017

According to a director of the National Health and Family Planning Commission, 95 % of patented drugs and 95 % of major medical equipment in China are still under patent protection from foreign companies. During the present 5 years plan (“135”), the government has taken steps to speed up drug development by Chinese companies, in particular by funding R&D, by improving the priority review system of CFDA and by revising patent regulations. 2018 is considered an excellent year for Chinese companies to obtain support for submitting original and proprietary new APIs.

China Bio news release, August 31, 2017

China is plagued by „white pollution“ originating from plastic residues, in particular for agricultural use. In 2015, the Ministry of Agriculture launched the National Biodegradable Film Evaluation Test” with more than 30 test sites, involving 8 crops. After 3 years of testing it was concluded that CAS Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry’s biodegradable PPC film showed excellent functions concerning warming and moisture conservation at low production cost. 300.000 t of this carbon dioxide-based film were produced in April by Oriental New Chemical Co.”

China Bio news release, August 31, 2017

Within its grants4apps program, https://www.grants4apps.com/shanghai/index_en.html, the company has selected 4 out of 130 start-up candidates for training and support. The startups are a) Tuo Xiao Intelligent, committed to the development of a home stethoscope and fetal heart rate monitor, b) Huiyun Tong, focused on a cloud-based, non-invasive diagnosis for coronary artery occlusion, c) Nuo Tong which develops intelligent medical robot equipment for the elderly, and d) Drop Technology, committed to the development of electronic antiperspirant patch products.

China Bio news release, August 30, 2017

Using Corynebacterium glutamicum and glycerol as the sole substrate, metabolic engineering led to the synthesis of rare sugars such as l-tagatose, l-sorbose, and l-psicose in g/L yields.

China Bio news release, August 30, 2017

The partners will combine modern diagnostics and information technology such as AI with internet communication to help doctors and patients with better diagnosis, faster treatment and easier insurance and payment facilities.

China Bio news release, August 29, 2017