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OCR for page 15
4
New Research Centers
More tom 200 research facilities and 50 different colleges and universities
perform biotechnology and related research in China Dunng He past 5 years, the
Chinese government has inaugural two new types of research centers to promote
die development and commerci~i~ion of this field The first are He biotechnology
bases at Jiangmen and Shanghai, which are meant to bnag research results to the
p~ucdon stage. The second are the key labaratones, which provide research
Paining for scientists from throughout China
BIOTECHNOLOGY BASES
The Jiangmen Single Cell Protem Biotechnology Base is located about 100
ldlometers from Guangzbou in Guangdong Province. At present, He base is
loam on 200,000 square meters of land containing—all at venous stages of
cornpledo~an office building, worker housing, a 5,000 square-meter laboratory
building, a pilot plant, He single~ell protein plant, a tool factory, and a power
plant. Plans are to have 400 employees when construction is completed in 1989
or 1990. The initial invesunent by SSTC was 60 million yuan, but the whole idea
has fallen out of favor with Chinese adrn~nist;rators in He past 2 years, and the
base itself will have to raise the additional 20 million yuan needy for completion.
The original concept for the base was to ferment molasses (a by-product of the
large sugar industry in Gua~agdongProv~nce) into single~ell feed protein Because
of economic reform policies, however, nearby counties are no longer required to
sell Heir molasses to He base, resulting in a shortage of raw supplies. Instead, the
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16
BIOTECHNOLOGY IN ClIINA
base is ~v~ng on sales of low technology products (e.g., shrimp feed and meat
tenderizer) and electricity from its power plant.
The Shanghai Center of Biotechnology is located in an industrial sector of
southwest Shanghai and will eventually contain 30,000 square meters of buildings,
including a guest house, laboratory building, pilot plant, library, and offices. The
Shanghai center Is a national project a~n~ster~ by CAS and supported by 57
million yuan from the State Planning Comm~on. It is hoped Cat Me center will
represent a new type of research institute In Chum, one which runs the gamut from
laboratory research to pilot plant production. Project areas include genetic
engineering and cell, enzyme, and fermentation technologies. At present, the
center employs 200 people located at a biochemical Story and venous CAS
research institutes. They are attempting to develop processing techniques for
products such as human insulin, human grown factor, and epidermal growth
factor, but a definite product has not been identified as of this writing.
As shown in Table 1B, construction of He Jiangmen and Shanghai bases has
consumed a sizable fraction of Finals biotechnology funds. Both bases are
larg~probably larger than any comparable facility in the United Sates, even
Hose built by major pharmaceutical and chemical companies. However, the
consmucdon quality at both sites apes to be low. Moreover, bow have already
or are in He process of purchasing large quantities of expensive fermentation
equipment without knowing exactly what will be produced It is unlikely that
either base will produce a major product within Be next 5 years, by which time
much of this equnpment will be outdated and will have suffered from the neglect
Cat accompanies idleness. Over lime, questionable construction standards and
He lack of clear production planning will frame judgment of the utility of this
investment strategy.
KEY LABORATORIES
The key laboratories represent the second new He of biotechnology center.
To date, the Sate Planning Commission and SSTC have funded 11 such
laboratones, each at an average cost of 5 million yuan. An additional one-half
million yuan per year is provided by CAS to each of its labo~amnes for maintenance,
whereas laboratones at universities and other institutes are expected ~ raise their
own operating expenses. The laboratories are open to investigators from outside
institutions and are intended to serve as national Gaining centers. In general, these
key Tories have been established at the most advanced biotechnology research
centers in China: Peking University, Fudan University, Beijing Instimm of
Virology, Beijing Institute of Biophysics, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry,
Shanghai Institute of Plant Physiologr, and Shanghai Institute of Cell Biology.
The value of tile key laboratories as Mining centers is dubious since, in
general, visiting scientists from distant provinces are unable to apply Heir new
lmowledge after returning to them home insertions that lack adequate facilities.
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NEW RESEARCH CRIERS
17
On the other hand, the program has allowed some of China's best biology
research centers to make great improvements in Heir facilities and equipment
An example is Be L;`iborato~y of Genetic Engineering at Fudan University.
Rather Can building a new facility, this key laboratory was integrated win
existing laboratories of the university Institute of Genetics, and the money was
ppenton new instn~nentation. This allows visitinginvestigamrs maximum contact
well-mained university scientists and, at the same dme, permits access by
scientists to highly sophisticated laboratory ins~nents.
Representative terms from entire chapter:
square meters
