Peking University and Yunnan Baiyao Celebrate Centennial Collaboration with the Successful Hosting of the '2022 Forum on Medical Innovation and Scientific Frontiers'
On August 11–12, 2022, the “2022 Forum on Pharmaceutical Innovation and Frontier Technologies” (hereinafter referred to as the “Forum”) was convened as part of the series of academic events commemorating the 110th anniversary of Peking University Health Science Center, as well as the 120th anniversary of Yunnan Baiyao.
Held at the Baiyao Space in the Yunnan Baiyao headquarters in Kunming, the forum was attended by Jiang Xu, Deputy Director of the Yunnan Provincial Health Commission and Director of the Yunnan Provincial Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine; Academicians of the Chinese Academy of Engineering Zhan Qimin, Qiao Jie, and Jiang Baoguo; Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences Ji Weizhi; leaders, experts, and scholars from universities, research institutes, and medical institutions in Yunnan Province; as well as Yunnan Baiyao executives including Chen Fashu, Wang Minghui, and Dong Ming, along with scientific researchers and management personnel. In total, more than 500 pharmaceutical science experts and industry practitioners participated in the forum to jointly explore new approaches to innovative development in medicine and expand new frontiers in pharmaceutical technology.
Yunnan Baiyao Group Headquarters · Baiyao Space
“Leverage Peking University’s talent attraction advantages and Yunnan Baiyao’s market-oriented strengths to conduct in-depth collaboration in the field of medicine, health, and healthcare, achieving a unity of economic and social benefits.”
When Peking University and Yunnan Baiyao established the “Peking University–Yunnan Baiyao International Medical Research Center” (hereinafter referred to as the “PKU–YB Medical Center”) in December 2019, they clearly defined the objectives of their collaboration, leveraging the PKU–YB Medical Center as a key hub to integrate the academic innovation chain with the industrial innovation chain.
How to “bridge the gap” has become a topic of considerable concern among attendees of this forum, hosted by the Peking University–Baiyao Medical Center more than two years after its establishment.
Selected Medical Experts at the 2022 Forum on Pharmaceutical Innovation and Frontier Technologies
Leveraging the respective strengths of both parties to forge comprehensive medical collaboration is the key to achieving “integration.”
Distinct from collaborations between certain enterprises and individual research projects or specific experts, the Peking University–Yunnan Baiyao Medical Center represents a novel innovation model featuring university–enterprise cooperation to conduct scientific research, cultivate talent, and facilitate the translation of research achievements.The two parties collaborate across multiple fields, including oncology, reproductive medicine, orthopedic traumatology, pharmacy, stomatology, and medical aesthetics. By adopting high-level yet focused strategic planning, granting full respect to research teams, and imposing no restrictions on specific projects, they have created greater potential for industrial translation of scientific achievements.
Meanwhile, Academician Qiao Jie also stated that the 83,000-square-meter science and technology building currently under construction in Beijing provides enhanced spatial connectivity, enabling Peking University, Yunnan Baiyao, and the PKU-Yunnan Baiyao Medical Center to serve as an organized platform that truly integrates the innovation chain with the industrial chain.
At this forum, the Peking University-Baiyao Medical Center also launched a ceremony for the appointment of senior researchers., including eight top medical experts in their respective fields—Academician Zhan Qimin, Academician Qiao Jie, Academician Jiang Baoguo, Professor Zhang Ning, Professor Zhou Demin, Professor Ye Min, Professor Deng Xuliang, and Professor Li Hang—who have become the first cohort of Senior Fellows.
Appointment Ceremony for the First Batch of Senior Researchers at Peking University-Baiyao Medical Center
When discussing the talent aggregation effect of the “Peking University-Baiyao Medical Center,” Academician Zhan Qimin and Academician Qiao Jie have both repeatedly mentioned,The establishment of the “Peking University–Baiyao Medical Center” facilitates the “emergence” of effects driven by “interdisciplinary integration.”
Sharing advanced medical concepts, technological innovations, and research achievements across disciplines facilitates a transition from “comprehensive responsibility” to “specialists handling specialized tasks.” This approach maximizes the convergence of talent and ideas, strengthens basic research, fosters original innovation, and significantly enhances the efficiency of scientific research advancement.
In the future, the Peking University-Baiyao Medical Center will recruit and gather world-class scientific leaders to build discipline teams with international competitiveness. By supporting the development of the Peking University-Baiyao Medical Center through high-level innovative research and talent cultivation, we aim to propel a number of disciplines into the ranks of world-class programs. This will yield a series of academic achievements with significant international impact and foster the emergence of several scientists of major global influence.
“Problems arise from clinical practice and must ultimately return to it.”
In his presentation titled “Innovation and Reflections on Clinical Medical Research” at the forum, Academician Jiang Baoguo stated that scientific research should align with the practical needs of the public.
When discussing the collaboration between Peking University and Yunnan Baiyao, two “pharmaceutical brands” that have each spanned more than a century, the partnership goes beyond resource integration and complementary strengths. More importantly, both parties share the same original aspiration and goals: to safeguard life and health, genuinely address the public’s practical needs, and advance the national strategy of Healthy China, moving forward with a mission to assume greater responsibility.
From breakthroughs in individual technologies to support for overall system capabilities, from a disease-centric to a health-centric approach, and from an emphasis on basic research to equal prioritization of both basic and clinical applications. Peking University and Yunnan Baiyao are more committed to providing comprehensive, end-to-end protection for the Chinese people, enabling prevention before diseases reach critical stages, and effectively implementing holistic health management.
From left to right: Academician Zhan Qimin, Academician Qiao Jie, Academician Jiang Baoguo, Academician Ji Weizhi, and Dong Ming, CEO of Yunnan Baiyao Group
“Keeping something in your heart is passion; seeing it through to the end is greatness.”
At the forum, Yunnan Baiyao CEO Dong Ming articulated a longer-term vision for the continuous enhancement of bilateral cooperation and exchange mechanisms. It is believed that these two century-old brands will forge ahead together on their shared journey to safeguard life and health.