Prof. Jerzy Duszyński, researcher and former director of the Nencki Institute of the Polish Academy of Sciences and former president of the Polish Academy of Sciences (PAS), has been appointed Visiting Chair Professor at the National Institute of Translational Medicine at Shanghai Jiao Tong University. As part of his new role, Prof. Duszyński will contribute to research in translational medicine, focusing on ways to bring scientific discoveries closer to clinical application.

Prof. Duszyński served as director of the Nencki Institute from 2003 to 2008, was Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of Science and Higher Education from 2008 to 2009, and served as president of the Polish Academy of Sciences from 2015 to 2022. During his presidency, he established close scientific contacts with the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

“In 2015, as president of the Polish Academy of Sciences, I traveled to the General Assembly of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. This is a major event in Chinese science, bringing together several thousand participants. I was received by the president of the organization,” says Prof. Duszyński.

The meeting in Beijing with then-CAS President Bai Chunli, together with subsequent contacts, contributed to Prof. Duszyński being elected a foreign member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2017.

During subsequent visits to China, Prof. Duszyński had the opportunity to observe the country's rapidly developing scientific sector. “It was impressive,” he recalls.

His most recent visit to China, last year, was connected with a congress on translational medicine. It led to an invitation to Shanghai and to the Center for Translational Medicine at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

“Shanghai Jiao Tong University is one of the world's leading universities. Depending on the ranking, it is placed around 36th to 40th globally. It is an ultramodern research center. I was appointed Visiting Chair Professor at the National Institute of Translational Medicine. I was given my own research team and responsibility for overseeing other research groups,” says Prof. Duszyński.

Shortly afterward, Prof. Duszyński also became Chief Science Advisor to Jiangsu Wuzhong Group Co., Ltd. in Suzhou, where he is expected to oversee the development of biotechnology start-ups.

One of the potential research directions for Prof. Duszyński's team in China involves compounds found in traditional Chinese medicinal plants. Such compounds are currently being investigated as potential sources of new medicines.

A notable example is artemisinin, an active compound isolated from sweet wormwood (Artemisia annua). Drawing on knowledge contained in traditional Chinese medical texts, Chinese researcher Tu Youyou identified artemisinin as an effective treatment for malaria. Her discovery contributed to the development of modern malaria therapy, and in 2015 she was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.