Chen Guo-Qiang, Professor from the School of Life Sciences at Tsinghua University, was awarded the ISBP (International Symposium on Biopolymers) Industry Award for his groundbreaking work in synthetic biology of halophilic bacteria and the NGIB (Next generation industrial biotechnology) for biopolymer PHA production at the 19th International Symposium on Biopolymers (ISBP) recently held in Penang, Malaysia.
Upon its establishment in 1988, the lSBP introduced this industry award for the first time to honor scholars who have made outstanding contributions to advancing the industrialization of biopolymer PHA.
Chen Guo-Qiang (second left) receives the award.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the discovery of microbial material PHA. According to the ISBP, Chen and his team have achieved groundbreaking innovations in the industrialization of PHA, with remarkable results in halophile synthetic biology and next-generation industrial biotechnology.
Early in his academic career, Chen foresaw that PHA would become a key trend in the development of sustainable materials and dedicated himself to researching its bioproduction. Under his leadership, the team overcame the challenge of "microbial contamination" in PHA production and innovatively developed synthetic biology techniques based on halophiles. This technology, characterized by its openness, high efficiency, low energy consumption, reduced process complexity and water-saving advantages, has been successfully scaled up by multiple industrial companies, marking a significant breakthrough in core technologies for the biomanufacturing industry.
Chen’s research has now gained widespread recognition and application worldwide. The technology he developed has been adopted by several companies for large-scale PHA production, establishing China as one of the most advanced countries in both academic and industrial aspects of the PHA field. His work has accelerated the industrialization of PHA and made a significant contribution to sustainable global development.
