China in Africa

Four 100 kg nuclear emergency response robots, designed by China General Nuclear Power Corporation (CGN) and the CAS Institute of Optics and Electronics serve at Daya Bay Nuclear Power Plant in Guangdong province since last November. They carry out both land and underwater missions, including salvaging and observations. They are able to withstand temperatures of up to 65 degrees Celsius and nuclear radiation at up to 10,000 Sv per hour.

CAS news release, June 23, 2017

The system developed by WANG Shu and colleagues is based on fluorene-based light-harvesting polymers linked to photosystem II. The polymer coat on the surface of chloroplasts strongly absorbs incident UV light and emits visible light which chloroplasts can absorb. Owing to the superior light-harvesting property of the polymer, PS II can capture more light to oxidize water, enhancing photosynthetic activity of photosystem II. The level of ATP production in chloroplasts was also improved.

CAS news release, June 23, 2017

Green tides in the Yellow Sea have besieged the city of Qingdao every summer over the past decade. The blooms are usually formed by Ulva prolifera algae. A recent study confirmed that the increase in green algae was caused by seaweed farming in neighboring Jiangsu Province. Known as zicai in Chinese, gim in Korean, and nori in Japanese, Porphyra is an edible seaweed that plays an important part in the diets of East Asian countries, e. g., in sushi roles. Farmers on Jiangsu’s northern coast use rafts floating in shallow waters to grow Porphyra. In spring, the sunshine and warmer water temperatures are ideal for U. prolifera to grow on the edges of rafts. After farmers have harvested Porphyra, the boats and attached U. prolifera are left at sea. The algae grow very fast and join together to form huge floating masses which winds and currents push to the north. Having identified the source of the algae blooms, authorities have introduced a simple and effective intervention: Porphyra farmers must bring the algae-covered rafts ashore instead of leaving them in the water after the harvest.

CAS news release, June 21, 2017

According to a 2015 survey of the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, there were about 107.7 million obese children worldwide and about 603.7 million adults. The obesity rates for children and adults were 5% and 12%. The highest adult obesity rate is in Egypt, 35.3%, the lowest country in Vietnam, 1.6%. The highest rate of obesity in children is in the United States, 12.7%, the lowest in Bangladesh, 1.2%. The world’s most obese adult countries are China and India, mainly because of the large population base. Most obese children live in the United States and China. For females, the highest proportion of obese individuals is 60 to 64 years old, for men 50 to 54 years. Compared to 1980, the population obesity rate has doubled in 73 countries. In 2015, the loss of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) caused by overweight and obesity in the world was 120 million years, accounting for 4.9% of all DALYs, with 66.3 million DALYs resulting from cardiovascular disease.

China Bio news release, June 20, 2017

Within a 2 year research agreement of Bayer with the CAS Shanghai Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology (ZHU Xinquang), a model for photosynthesis in wheat which grows in a canopy that prevents light from penetrating to the lower leaves will be established and validated, in view to improve photosynthetic yields. Computer simulations suggest that changes in plant architecture would allow for higher levels of photosynthesis lower in the canopy.

CAS news release, June 16, 2017

According to ZHANG Yuanxun, an engineering researcher at the Center of Space Exploration at Chongqing University, China’s Chang’e 4 lunar probe scheduled for 2018 will carry a 3-kilogram “moon-surface mini ecosphere” of 16 cm diameter and 18 cm height. Made of a special aluminum alloy, the probe will carry silkworm eggs, seeds from potatoes and cress, as well as water, soil, air and scientific research tools. Natural light on the surface of the moon will be carried into the vessel through light pipes to assist the growth of the plants inside. The sprouting and blooming of the plants and the incubation of the silkworm eggs will be live-streamed to people all over the world using cameras inside the vessel.

CAS news release, June 15, 2017

In 2015, China’s energy generation from renewables was 12 %, of which only 8 % came from biomass. According to the biomass energy development 135 plan” of the National Energy Board just released, by 2020, at the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan, biomass will account for 30% of renewable energy, exceeding the sum of photovoltaic and wind power, and major investments are earmarked to reach this goal.”

China Bio news release, June 15, 2017

A group led by CAS Key Laboratory of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering of Shanghai Advanced Research Institute (SARI) has developed a bifunctional catalyst composed of In2O3 and zeolite HZSM-5 which converted CO2 to C5+ hydrocarbons (carbon atom-based) with a selectivity of up to 78.6%, with only 1% CH4. Conversion was 13.1%, with no obvious catalyst deactivation over 150 h, and much better performance was observed with internal gas recycling.

CAS news release, June 14, 2017

Founded in 1997, Cathay Industrial Biotech Ltd. is an industrial biotechnology company that commercially produces long chain dibasic acids, biobutanol, and bio-based 1,5-diaminopentane. Siemens has signed an agreement with Cathay Industrial Biotech to jointly build an advanced digital factory in Wusu, Xinjiang province. Siemens will provide comprehensive digital enterprise solutions crossing the typical processes of four industries, including agricultural processing, biopharma, chemical material, and spinning industries. The new factory is invested by Cathay and will generate, in phase, an annual output of 50,000 tons of 1,5-diaminopentane, 30,000 tons of long chain dibasic acids, 100,000 tons of bio-based polyamides, and 30,000 tons of staple fiber.

China Industrial Biotechnology news release, June 8, 2017

The Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory will be tuilt in the eastern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau at an average altitude of 4,100 m and span 1,36 square kilometers with thousands of detectors. Construction started in July 2016 and will be completed by 2021. The first stage, around a quarter of the entire area, is expected to be operational by the end of next year. Total spending is estimated at 1.2 billion yuan (160 million €), with three quarters coming from the National Development and Reform Commission and the other quarter from Sichuan Province.

CAS news release, June 7, 2016

Trial mining of combustible ice in a depth of 1,266 m at Shenhu sea, about 320 kilometers southeast of Zhuhai city in Guangdong, has made smooth progress with an average of 8,350 cubic meters of gas with high purity extracted each day. Combustible ice usually exists in seabed or tundra areas, which have the strong pressure and low temperature necessary for its stability. It is flammable like solid ethanol. One cubic meter of combustible ice is equal to 164 cubic meters of regular natural gas and considered the best replacement for oil and natural gas.

CAS news release, June 5, 2017

Amorphophallus titanum, commonly known as titan arum or the corpse flower, is one of the largest and rarest flowers in the world. The flower rises about three meters above the ground, and its flowering is rare and unpredictable. It usually takes seven to ten years for the flower to gather enough energy to bloom from seed. It maintains its full form for about 24 hours, with peak bloom  lasting from six to 12 hours. The ‘fragrance’ is like rotten meat.

China Bio news release, June 2, 2017

The group of SONG Haiyun at CAS SIBS has developed a method based on functionalized nanodiamonds for the oral delivery of RNAse A. Functional RNase A delivered by this procedure caused apoptosis in enterocytes, stimulated regenerative divisions in intestinal stem cells and triggered intestinal remodeling, which significantly increased the number of stem cells and precursor cells in the intestine – a potential approach for corectal cancer therapy.

CAS news release, June 3, 2017

Located in Shanghai Pudong Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, Boehringer Ingelheim’s Chinese bio-pharmaceutical production base was officially opened. This is the first multinational pharmaceutical company in China to establish a biopharmaceutical contract production (CMO) pilot plant based on international standards. The production line comprises a 2,000-liter disposable bioreactor, the world’s largest single-use bioreactor. Capacity can be expanded to four 2,000 liters disposable bioreactors, to meet the future greater market demand.

China Bio news release, June 1, 2017

The team around Ya-Jun LIU has used a genome editing system to create a recombinant strain of C. thermocellum wich secretes an additional ß-glucanase. The mutant strain showed twofold increased degradation of 100 g/L Avicel in a two-stage saccharification process. The effect is believed to be due to less inhibition of C. thermocellum’s cellulosome by cellulose degradation products such as cellobiose.

China Industrial Biotechnology Network, May 31, 2017