Background Overview

From August 29 to 31, 2025, the 15th Chinese Enzyme Engineering Symposium was successfully held in Fengxian District, Shanghai. This grand event brought together more than 700 representatives from universities, research institutes, and enterprises across the country. With the theme of “Basic Research – Technology Application – Industrial Transformation,” the conference built a high-level exchange platform for the enzyme engineering field.

Academicians Zixin Deng from Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Jian Chen from Jiangnan University were invited to deliver keynote speeches and witness the rise of “AI+ Enzyme Engineering” as an emerging innovative force.

As one of the co-organizers, Hzymes deeply participated. The company’s founder/CTO, Professor Guangyu Yang of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, served as the conference chair and joined industry peers in exploring cutting-edge innovations in enzyme engineering.

Two Major Innovations Landed

Establishment of the “AI + Enzyme Engineering” Innovation Alliance

Launch ceremony of the “AI + Enzyme Engineering” Innovation Alliance

Led by Professor Guangyu Yang, researcher at the School of Life Science and Biotechnology of Shanghai Jiao Tong University and founder/CTO of Hzymes, the “AI + Enzyme Engineering” Innovation Alliance was officially established during the conference. Supported by over 30 experts and scholars and joined by 18 representative enterprises, the alliance operates under the guidance of the Enzyme Engineering Committee of the Chinese Society for Microbiology.

This is China’s first AI-focused collaborative innovation group in the enzyme engineering field, integrating top-tier resources from government, industry, academia, research, application, and capital. Its mission is to build an AI-driven engine for new productive forces, tackling key industry challenges by:

1. Systematically collecting common bottlenecks in enzyme engineering basic research and technology development, condensing them into industry-driven “real problems”;

1. Organizing cross-institutional and interdisciplinary collaborative research, building shared resource platforms, and accelerating AI-driven enzyme engineering technology R&D and iteration;

1. Deepening industry–academia–research collaboration, creating channels for innovation, entrepreneurship, and technology transfer, and turning technical value into industrial value.

Looking forward, the alliance will be driven by AI technology, striving to break through key bottlenecks in enzyme engineering, accelerate industrialization, and further unite government departments, research institutes, experts, and enterprises in synthetic biology. By breaking down disciplinary barriers and resource silos, it will pool innovation wisdom. Against the backdrop of rapid AI development, the alliance will continuously promote technological breakthroughs, industrial transformation, and integrated development, helping China secure a leading position in synthetic biology and the bioeconomy, while safeguarding national industrial security.

Unveiling of the Joint Innovation Center

Unveiling ceremony of the Joint Innovation Center

At the same time, Ji Zizong, Deputy Director of the Yangtze River Delta National Technology Innovation Center, and Jian Li, Senior Director of Shanghai HannoWay Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (a subsidiary of Hzymes, hereinafter referred to as “HannoWay Biotech”), jointly unveiled the “Joint Innovation Center.” This center positions “proof of concept” as the key bridge connecting basic research with industrial applications, offering a practical platform to overcome the “valley of death” in technology transfer.

The Yangtze River Delta National Technology Innovation Center, as the core hub of the regional innovation system, will leverage its strengths in key technology breakthroughs and resource coordination to inject transformation momentum. Meanwhile, HannoWay Biotech will contribute its industrialization expertise, ensuring precise alignment between technologies and market demands.

Frontier Reports & Full-Chain Solutions

As a leading enterprise in biopharmaceutical raw materials, Hzymes made a remarkable appearance at the conference, delivering two insightful presentations and showcasing a comprehensive product portfolio that highlighted its innovation strength.

 “Discovery and Directed Evolution of Key Enzymes for Natural Product Glycosylation”

He highlighted two major breakthroughs in the field of glycosyltransferases:

1. Development of a high-throughput screening platform enabling rapid detection and characterization of glycosylation enzymes;

1. Overcoming challenges in precise modification of oligosaccharides with specific degrees of polymerization, effectively improving solubility, stability, and druggability of natural products, offering new solutions for food and pharmaceutical applications.

“Central Dogma in Cell-Free Synthetic Biology”

At the “Applied Enzyme Engineering” sub-forum, she detailed Hzymes’ technological expertise in DNA synthesis (assembly, error correction, and large-scale enzymatic synthesis), mRNA and gene editing tool synthesis, and cell-free protein synthesis.

She also introduced Hzymes’ full-chain solutions “from gene to protein” for research institutes and pharmaceutical companies, including flagship products for PCR, seamless cloning, restriction enzymes, T7 RNA polymerase, RNA ligation, and cell-free protein synthesis.

In addition, Hzymes exhibited its core business products in gene synthesis, molecular biology, mRNA raw materials, cell culture, and synthetic biology. With its high-performance enzymes and customized services, the company attracted many participants to stop by and engage in discussions.

Hzymes’ molecular biology, cell biology, and synthetic biology solution portfolios and diverse product lines are available for consultation and orders.

Government–Academia–Industry–Research Collaboration: Co-Creating a New Blueprint for Enzyme Engineering

The conference received strong attention from both government and academia. Jianing Li, Deputy District Mayor of Fengxian District, Shanghai, emphasized that Fengxian will continue to optimize its research and industrial environment, facilitating the local implementation of enzyme engineering achievements. Ansan Zhang, Executive Deputy Director of the University Council of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, highlighted the university’s multidisciplinary strengths to support deep integration of enzyme engineering and industry. Professor Bian Wu from Beijing University of Chemical Technology, also Chair of the Enzyme Engineering Committee of the Chinese Society for Microbiology, reviewed the 30-year development of the conference and noted that China’s enzyme engineering discipline has achieved a leap “from its inception to leading innovation.”

At the opening ceremony, two major awards were announced.

Academician He Huang of Nanjing Normal University and Professor Shengying Li of Shandong University received the “2025 Enzyme Engineering Outstanding Contribution Award.”

Researcher Yuxiang Bai, Professor Xiaoqiang Huang, and Professor Ge Qu received the “2025 Young Enzyme Engineer Award.”

Group photo of Young Enzyme Engineer Award winners

This year’s symposium featured 70 experts and scholars presenting 12 plenary lectures and 58 sub-forum talks, covering hot topics such as “new enzyme discovery,” “enzymology research,” and “new enzyme engineering technologies and processes.”

Academician Zixin Deng from Shanghai Jiao Tong University delivered a keynote report “DNA Sulfur Modification: Enzymatic Mechanism Breakthroughs Empowering Synthetic Biotechnology Innovation”, systematically explaining the enzymatic mechanisms of DNA sulfur modification, its role in bacterial defense systems, and its innovative applications in constructing phage-resistant chassis cells and developing gene editing tools in synthetic biology.

Academician Zixin Deng delivering his keynote

Academician Jian Chen from Jiangnan University delivered a keynote report “Future Food and Biomanufacturing: Scientific Opportunities and Strategic Tasks”, elaborating on future food development driven by synthetic biology and AI. He highlighted five strategic directions: resource exploration, sensing technology, precision nutrition, and others, promoting breakthroughs in new protein biomanufacturing technologies and achieving sustainable development of the food industry.

Academician Jian Chen delivering his keynote

During the industry matchmaking session, nearly 100 enterprise and academic representatives engaged in in-depth exchanges, reaching multiple consensuses on technology transfer and cooperation needs, laying a solid foundation for industry–academia–research collaboration.

Innovation as the Key to Opening the “AI Era” of Enzyme Engineering

With the successful conclusion of the symposium, China’s enzyme engineering field has officially entered a new development stage empowered by AI. As both a participant and promoter, Hzymes will continue to focus on “enzyme technology innovation,” leveraging its proprietary platforms for enzyme gene discovery, molecular engineering, and high-throughput screening to deliver more efficient enzyme solutions for biopharmaceuticals and green manufacturing.