Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences (GIBH) was jointly planned by Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), the People’s Government of Guangdong Province and the People’s Government of Guangzhou Municipality after the SARS outbreak in 2003 and was officially founded in March 2006. It is the first research institute of CAS that targets the local economic and social development and manifests CAS’s cooperation with the local government. GIBH’s establishement has adressed the lacking of national biomedicine research institute in South China at that time, and was regarded as a success in the exploration of building a new type of R &D institute in China. 

With the orientation on the human health and the Healthy China Movement, GIBH focuses on cutting-edge scientific issues and major disease mechanisms in life and health and strives to be a world-class R&D institute of biomedicine and health as well as a high-level incubator for innovative talents. It undertakes the mission of producing original fundamental theories, procuring frontier technology breakthroughs and providing systematic solutions for health and disease prevention and control, with the expectation to optimize the rapid commercialization of scientific and technological achievements, to meet the national strategic and regional economic and social needs, to promote the biopharmaceutical industry, and to support national strategic science and technology programs. 

GIBH is now mainly engaged in the research of stem cells and regenerative medicine, chemical biology, infection and immunity, public health, and scientific equipment R&D. It houses 5 research units including the Cell Lineage and Development Research Center, the Cell Regeneration and Biological Therapy Research Center, the Infection and Immunology Research Center, the Chemical Biology and Drug Research Center, and the Health Research Center, as well as supporting centers including the Analysis and Testing Center, the Experimental Animal Center, the Biomedical Data and Supercomputing Center, the Therapeutic Cell Preparation Research Center, the Biosafety Level 3 Mobile Lab, etc. GIBH has co-established the State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Diseases with Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Health, the Key Laboratory of Regenerative Biology of CAS, the Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine and the Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biomedical Computing, and has supported the foundation of the Guangzhou Bioisland Lab and the Stem Cell Innovation Center of CAS’s Hong Kong Institute of Science and Innovation. 

GIBH gathers and trains a group of committed talents. At present, there are 384 employees and 459 students including 389 graduate students. 55 senior scientists including 4 non-Chinese scientists have been recruited and more than 90% were introduced from overseas. Among them are 9 winners of the National Talent Program, 6 winners of the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars, 5 winners of the National Science Fund for Outstanding Young Scholars, 6 winners of the National High-Level Foreign Expert Introduction Program, 1 winner of the Chinese Government Friendship Award, and 19 winners of the CAS Talent Introduction Program, 31 winners of the CAS Young Talent Program, 2 winners of the South Guangdong Innovation Award, and 16 winners of the Guangdong Provincial Talent Plan. 

Researches in GIBH have been funded by China’s Ministry of Science and Technology, National Natural Science Foundation, CAS, Guangdong provincial and Guangzhou municipal government, including 6 projects of the National Major Research Plan, 15 of the National Key R&D Plan, 1 of the CAS Strategic Priority Research Program (class A), 1 of the National Major Research Equipment Development Scheme, and 1 of the National Natural Science Foundation Innovative Study. 2,025 papers have been published. 1,858 of them have been accepted by SCI, 42 by Nature portfolio journals, and 28 by Cell Press journals. Multiple awards and honors have been received: 2 second prizes of National Natural Science Award, 1 Outstanding Scientific and Technological Achievement Award of CAS, 2 South Guangdong Outstanding Contribution and Innovation Award, 6 first prizes of Guangdong Science and Technology Award, and 3 first prizes of Guangzhou Science and Technology Award.    

GIBH provides doctoral programs in Biology, Basic Medicine and Medicinal Chemistry, and master of engineering programs in Materials and Chemical Engineering, and Biology and Medicine. It also has collaborative programs with Chinese Universities including University of Science and Technology, Jilin University, Guangzhou Medical University, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University and Shandong First Medical University, covering the undergraduate, master and doctoral levels. Those educational and training programs are molding students not only from China, but from Spain, India, Pakistan, Nepal and etc.  

GIBH is committed to promoting local industries through science and technology, and attaches great importance to local cooperations and the transfer and commercialization of research findings. 790 patents (590 domestic and 131 international) have been applied and 74 PCT patents. 376 of them have been authorized (330 domestic and 46 international) and 4 have been granted with China Patent Excellence Award and Guangdong Patent Excellence Award. The self-developed  GZD824 (a first-in-class anti-leukemia drug), ASK120067(a first-in-class anti-tumor drug), and AD16 (a first-in-class anti-Alzheimer drug) have been approved for clinical trial by China’s Medical Products Administration (NMPA). GZD824, known as Olverembatinib Tablets, has been the first drug, since the establishment of GIBH, approved for marketing on November 24, 2021. ASK120067 has been submitted to the Center for Drug Evaluation of NMPA. AD16 has been passed for Phase I clinical study. 

GIBH has forged close bonds with international research institutions and universities, including Germany’s Max Planck Society and the University of Auckland in New Zealand. International Joint Research Center for Biomedicine and Health, International Science Cooperation Base for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine and Max Plank-GIBH Research Center have been co-established and Guangzhou International Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Forum has been held for 12 times so far, with Nobel Laureates as speakers.