Center of Excellence for Molecular Plants of the Chinese Academy of Sciences: After harvesting a hundred flowers into honey

Fenglin Park No. 1 Scientific Research BuildingWhenever night falls, the artificial climate room of Shanghai Fenglin Road Park, rice, corn, cotton, cassava, tomatoes, athropomorthia and other green plants in the light of the light to emit a unique orange-red shadow, for the compound to bring a quiet and mysterious.
scientists have no time to enjoy the beautiful scenery. They study a series of major cutting-edge scientific issues in the field of molecular plants day and night in this lab that simulates the changes of the four seasons, providing an innovative source of impetus for China's agricultural modernization.
this is a big competition around the theme of "plant-specificity forming and directional development regulation" to promote China's crop science and technology revolution as the mission. The main character of the competition is the Center for Excellence and Innovation in Molecular Plant Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (hereinafter referred to as the Center of Excellence for Molecular Plants) as a member of the National Strategic Science and Technology Force.since its establishment in 2015, the
Molecular Plant Center of Excellence has been laid out in four directions: the genetic basis of plant characteristic formation, the material energy metabolism basis of the formation of characteristics, the molecular regulation mechanism of growth and development, and the basic laws of plant and environmental interoperability.
The international academic journal Nature-Botany published an editorial entitled "The Revival of Chinese Agriculture", which spoke highly of China's outstanding contribution to agricultural science in recent years, saying that "China's great progress in crop science research has made it a great position to re-establish it as the forefront of plant science in the world." Thesigned a cooperation agreement between the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the John Innes Center in the United Kingdom.
2014, the "First Action" program was launched and the curtain slowly opened for the Chinese Academy of Sciences to deepen its reform in an all-round way in the new era.
on May 16 of that year, Bai Chunli, president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, went to the Shanghai branch, with the theme of "implementing the "First Action" plan and accelerating the reform and innovation development", and introduced in detail the overall thinking and main measures of the institute's classification reform, which brought the spring breeze of the reform into the 19 institutions of the branch system.
Located at 320 Yueyang Road, the Shanghai Institute of Life Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (hereinafter referred to as the Shanghai Academy of Health Sciences), just one street from the Shanghai branch, is known as the "aircraft carrier" in the field of life sciences in China. According to Li Lin, president of the Shanghai Academy of Health Sciences, the reform has not allowed for a moment's hesitation. The Shanghai Academy of Health Sciences immediately organized an office meeting of the dean.
the meeting, Han Bin, vice president of the Shanghai Academy of Health Sciences and director of the Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology of the Shanghai Academy of Health Sciences (hereinafter referred to as the Institute of Plant Ecology), led the leadership of the Institute immediately began to act. The first step in action is to solve the positioning problem.
Within the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the distribution of plant science-related fields, in addition to plant ecology, there are the Chinese Academy of Sciences Plant Research Institute (hereinafter referred to as the Plant Institute), the Chinese Academy of Sciences Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology (hereinafter referred to as the Institute of Genetic Development) and other different research institutions. Over the years, homogenization and fragmentation have become increasingly prominent. In order to solve this problem, we must condense the academic direction and integrate the scientific research resources in the subject area.
Yu Jiming, deputy director of the Plant Ecology Institute, recalls that he went to Beijing many times to discuss and communicate with relevant research institutes, so that the layout of plant science gradually became clear - the plant ecology was located in the Center of Excellence for Molecular Plants, and the Institute of Genetic Development and the Plant Institute were located at the Seed Innovation Research Institute and the Institute of Characteristics, respectively.
the differentiated positioning of the field of foreign subjects is completed, and then focus on the subject areas within the institute. After repeated discussion by the academic committee, the Center of Molecular Plant Excellence has determined four research directions, such as genetic basis and evolutionary law, developmental process regulation, environmental interoperability and response, and material energy metabolism. The parties are closely related to each other, and closely follow the scientific problem of "the nature and law of the phenomenon of plant life".
" so that research institutions can form joint efforts, collaborative innovation and breakthroughs on major scientific issues. He Zuhua, a researcher at the Institute of Plant Ecology, commented, "The classification reform is conducive to avoiding homogenization competition, but also conducive to organizing and implementing major research projects, assembling scientists in related research fields, serving the needs of national strategies, breaking through cutting-edge theories and technologies, and solving the problem of 'card neck'." Han
still remembers the October 2015 meeting of the president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, which was a turning point for the Center of Molecular Plant Excellence. At the meeting, the proposal on "several centers of excellence of the Shanghai Academy of Health Sciences to develop in the direction of legalization" was endorsed by the leadership of the Academy.
the integration of resources in the field of science and technology, it is undoubtedly the key factor to determine whether the research institution can develop faster and higher.
November 2016, the Center of Molecular Plant Excellence was operating in a single program within the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
If it is said that straightening out the system problems of discipline resources and mechanisms is the premise and basis for the development of the Molecular Plant Centre of Excellence, then undertaking major special tasks and steadily supporting basic research is the driving force for the sustainable development of the Center.
2017-2018, the Center of Molecular Plant Excellence initiated the implementation of the Class B pilot special "plant-specificity formation and directional development regulation." In order to "return to the scientific research standard and release the vitality of innovation", the Center has established the Council, the Academic Committee, the International Assessment Committee, the Executive Committee and so on. "We have also established and perfected a series of rules and regulations, from organizational management system to personnel management system, funding management methods and so on." Xu Wei, Deputy Director of the Research Department of the Plant Ecology Institute, introduced.
a complete and efficient management system, effective rules and regulations, relatively mature, full coverage of the internal governance system, for decision-making support and orderly operation provides a strong guarantee. Guo Jinhua, secretary of the Party Committee of the Plant Ecology Institute, believes that the efficient and smooth communication and coordination mechanism and the standardized system have played a positive role in promoting the effective management of the Center of Excellence for Molecular Plants.
the end of May 2019, the Molecular Plant Centre of Excellence officially became an independent legal entity, opening a new development journey. to the rule of the world in the talent. Although the Molecular Plant Center of Excellence has a good foundation, in recent years, the introduction of a number of outstanding scientists, but to create an environment to attract talent "near Yueyuan", but also need to make real efforts to provide multi-faceted protection for talent.
first of all, let talent find the integration space in the field of scientific research. To this end, the Center of Molecular Plant Excellence put forward the "one wing" development ideas. Zhai Jiming explains that "oneness" is molecular plant science research, and "two wings" is synthetic biology and insect science research. With molecular plant science as the main body, promote and drive the interdisciplinary research of plant-insect-microbiology.
is currently the Director of the Shanghai Plant Adversity Biology Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (hereinafter referred to as the Plant Adversity Center). Since 2015, the Center of Molecular Plant Excellence has completed three member selections, with the participation of the Plant Adversity Center. "Environmental Interoperability and Response is one of the four directions of the Center of Excellence for Molecular Plants, which is in line with the research direction of the Center for Plant Adversity, which provides the foundation for team members to enter the Center of Excellence." He said.
the classification reform, the research land problems of the Plant Adversity Center over the years have been successfully solved by the coordination and promotion of the Molecular Plant Centre of Excellence. In 2017, the Shanghai Municipal Government approved a special plan for the allocation of 5 hectares of construction land by the Shanghai Greening and Municipal Capacity Administration.
, a researcher at the Institute of Plant Ecology and director of the Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, admitted that he is the most famous funding "negative". Over the years, his research group has run a "deficit" of more than $3 million. In the last five years, he has not published a yeast-related paper, "to other units, perhaps long ago rolled away." In the end, for the first time in the world, the research team artificially created a single chromosome of the nucleocytes, the results of which were published in Nature on August 2, 2018, and were hailed as a landmark breakthrough in the field of "artificial life".
to solve the urgent problem of space constraints in scientific research. In order to allow the introduction of talent has enough research space, molecular plant center of excellence in the inch of gold in Shanghai's inner ring Maple Forest Road Park, based on limited resources, solid support conditions.
15,000 square meters of new research building in Fenglin Road Park was put into use in March 2017, according to Yu Songfu, assistant director of the Institute of Plant ecology and director of the Integrated Management Department. "We allocated 70 per cent of the space to give priority to supporting the members of the Centre of Molecular Plant Excellence and provided one floor to the first group of the Plant Adversity Centre Research Group."
to strengthen the overall budget management and funding control capacity, the limited financial resources for focus areas, key development direction and key personnel training and development.
" and many research institutes, our research team leader salary, social security by the unit unified responsibility. "In addition, from the Chinese Academy of Sciences deployment projects, Class B pilot projects, to the National Natural Science Foundation of China all kinds of projects, to the national key research and development programs and base personnel special, molecular plant excellence center through a number of funding channels, to provide a guarantee for the continued stability of talent research." At
, the Molecular Plant Center of Excellence has formed a 64-person innovation team of excellence, including 7 special core backbone, 28 specially appointed backbone personnel, 29 young backbone. The average age of the team members was only 44 years old, distributed in seven research institutions.
2018, the Center of Molecular Plant Excellence successfully completed its international academic assessment. The Group highly recognizes the Centre's achievements and developments over the years and considers its achievements in the fields of botany, entomology and microbiology to be significant. Twenty-six of the 52 participating research leaders rated "excellent", accounting for 50% of the total.
Molecular Plant Excellence Center around the research direction and scientific research layout, relying on international peer review, innovation and cutting-edge as the central dimension of evaluation, the establishment of international assessment results based on the dynamic adjustment mechanism to maintain the excellence of the research team.
"We want to develop outstanding talents into outstanding talents." Han Bin said, "On the one hand, relying on the international first-class team of experts to check the selection of personnel, on the other hand, for talent to create a relaxed environment for research." Guided by scientific issues, free exploration is encouraged. The integration
science and education, and it is the key to maintain the sustainable development of talents to support the cultivation of high-level scientific and technological talents through high-level scientific research. Wang Qing, deputy director of the Personnel Education Department of the Institute of Plant Ecology, said that since the classification reform, the Center for Molecular Plant Excellence has adjusted the postgraduate grant by more than 30%, which has improved students' living conditions.
" chose to study here is very simple, here is the best platform for plant research, so that I get the most systematic training. Huang Yongcai, a doctoral student, said. Huang Yongcai is a student of researcher Wu Yongrui, who is engaged in the development and quality of corn endosperm. Every May and June, Huang Yongcai pollinates corn in a plant shed nearly 40 degrees Celsius on Songjiang Farm, sweating every day, but he says "it's the basis of research and he enjoys the process."
, April 8, 2019, the results of the Wu Yongrui research team were published online in Plant Cells, and the first author of the paper was Huang Yongcai. He also became the first student to publish an article in a well-known journal in the field as the first author of plant genetics in 2015.
At present, the Center of Excellence of Molecular Plants has initially formed a academician-led, "National Science Fund for Distinguished Young People" winners, "National High-level Talent Special Support Program" selected as the leading figures, to "National Excellent Youth Science Fund" winners as the backbone of scientific research, to the Chinese Academy of Sciences "Youth Innovation Promotion Association" members, postdoctoral students as outstanding young talent ladder structure.
Researchers at the Center of Molecular Plant Excellence work in the laboratory. may this year, Zhao Zhengnan, a researcher from South Korea, had been working at the Center of Molecular Plant Excellence for nine months. Every morning, he would go to the plant room, the artificial climate room to look after the plant's model plant athropophyl, or with the students to explore the progress of the research.
Zhao Zhengnan completed his postdoctoral research from the University of Cambridge in September 2018, and after comparing the research institutions in the United Kingdom and South Korea, he chose this place as the starting point of his research career. The 37-year-old is currently the research team leader and doctoral tutor of the Joint Research Center for Plant and Microbiology Sciences (CEPAMS) of the John Innes Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
"There is a first-class scientific research environment and excellent peers, the support for scientific research is very strong. Zhao Zhengnan admitted that he was "beautiful to come".
August 2018, the first major results of artificial monochromosome uerythromosomes by the research team were published. Zhao Zhengnant, who was still in the UK at the time, was thrilled to hear that scientists around him were talking about the Chinese Academy of Sciences, a sensational field of synthetic biology. He told colleagues that the Chinese Academy of Sciences is where he wants to work.
years, the Center of Excellence for Molecular Plants adheres to the international perspective and, through deepening international cooperation, explores ways to attract talents and nests to attract talented young talents from overseas. Since 2017, a total of 6 research team leaders, including Zhao Zhengnan, from South Korea, Greece, Canada and other countries, are affiliated with CEPAMS.
" Center of Excellence requires an international leader in research in this field, so improving research and international influence through open cooperation is the only way to build a Center of Excellence. Han Bin said.
CEPAMS was jointly funded by China and the United States and has two parks in Beijing and Shanghai, which were inaugurated in Shanghai in 2016, relying on the John Innes Center, the Institute of Genetic Development of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Plant Ecology.
Han Bin recalled that Bai Chunli sent a special congratulatory letter to this end, "The establishment of the Joint Center is not only important for the progress of plant science and the sustainable development of global agriculture, but also shows that China and Britain can join forces to do something beneficial to the two countries and the world." "
" in the newly completed scientific research building, dedicated to CEPAMS left two floors of research space. Wang Jiawei, assistant director of the Plant Ecology Institute, said that the Center of Molecular Plant Excellence issued the CEPAMS recruitment announcement in Nature in May each year, inviting members of the American Academy of Sciences to take the lead in forming an expert advisory committee to examine candidates in all aspects. The inspection criteria are not only papers, focusing on the comprehensive quality of candidates. "There was a candidate who was excellent in every way, but the review experts thought she lacked the energy needed for scientific research, and she lost out in the end."
CEPAMS Center is extended to the outside world by the Center of Molecular Plant Excellence