Max Planck Centers Boost China Research Ties

New collaborations focus on synthetic biochemistry and the interactions between air pollution, extreme weather, and climate

The Max Planck Society is expanding its collaboration with China: On April 13, two new Max Planck Centers were officially inaugurated in Beijing. Both collaborations are being established jointly with institutes of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), the Max Planck Society's most important partner organization in China. With its more than 100 institutes and the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, CAS has been working closely with the Max Planck Society for more than 50 years. The new centers are intended to advance research on pressing societal challenges - ranging from new compounds derived from microorganisms to the consequences of air pollution and climate change. Through the Synthetic Biology Infrastructure in Shenzhen and the EarthLab supercomputing infrastructure in Beijing, Max Planck researchers will also gain access to unique research facilities.

The environmental conditions in the atmosphere are changing very rapidly in China, creating a unique opportunity to investigate how changes in atmospheric composition affect air quality, weather, and climate. Researchers at the MAC-Air Center (Max Planck - Asia Center for unraveling the nexus of AIR pollution, extreme weather, and monsoon in a warming climate: pathways to global solutions) are studying the interactions between aerosols, solar radiation, and clouds in order to lay the foundation for more effective measures against air pollution and climate change, as well as more reliable forecasts of extreme weather events. In addition to the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, the collaboration includes other leading institutions: the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM), Seoul National University (SNU), Tsinghua University (THU), Nanjing University (NJU), and the University of Helsinki (UHEL).

EarthLab: Supercomputing Infrastructure for Atmospheric Research

For their studies, the researchers collect atmospheric chemistry data using, among other instruments, the 325-meter-tall Tall Tower Observatory in Beijing. In addition to measurements, they use simulations based on the EarthLab supercomputing infrastructure (Earth System Science Numerical Simulator Facility). Their aim is, first, to understand the mechanisms by which atmospheric chemistry influences weather and climate and, second, to generate corresponding predictions. In addition to the computing infrastructure, they have access to extensive atmospheric chemistry datasets from recent years and AI-supported models for meteorological forecasting.

"The scientific findings are also directly relevant to Europe and Germany," says Yafang Cheng, Director at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, who co-leads the center together with Hang Su from the CAS Institute of Atmospheric Physics. "Floods, heat waves, and other forms of environmental damage are also increasing here. Our research can help improve forecasting, adaptation strategies, and resilience." In the long term, the MAC-Air Center is intended to help reduce the burden of fine particulate matter, make cities more climate-resilient, and improve early warning systems for extreme weather events.

Supporting early-career researchers also plays an important role in this center. Joint supervision, exchange programs, and cross-institutional training activities are intended to help them gain experience with different datasets, methods, and research approaches.

Synthetic Biochemistry for Medicine and Crop Protection

The new Max Planck Society-Chinese Academy of Sciences Center for Synthetic Biochemistry aims to unlock the potential of natural products from microorganisms for medicine, crop protection, and other applications. To this end, the center brings together the expertise of the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology in Marburg and the Institute of Synthetic Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Shenzhen.

At the heart of the collaboration are fundamental questions in synthetic biochemistry: How can new biosynthetic pathways for these compounds be discovered, and how can they be combined and reprogrammed to produce previously unknown bioactive molecules?

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute contribute their expertise in producing microbial natural products as well as in analyzing and designing metabolic pathways. Their knowledge of how microbial natural products can be produced without cells will also be an important component of the research at the new center. The Institute of Synthetic Biology complements these capabilities with automated laboratories and data- and AI-supported methods for identifying entirely new biosynthetic pathways.

Shenzhen Synthetic Biology Infrastructure: Modern Platform for Cultivation, Analysis, and Scale-Up of Microbial Natural Products

The collaboration gives researchers at the Max Planck Institute access to modern synthetic biology technologies in Shenzhen, above all the Shenzhen Synthetic Biology Infrastructure. This central analytical facility makes it possible to cultivate a wide range of microorganisms, including under anaerobic conditions, and to visualize them using state-of-the-art microscopes. The resulting cell cultures can be rapidly scaled up from very small quantities to fermenters of various sizes. The platform also includes methods for monitoring the amount of metabolic products produced by the cultures in real time and for analyzing the three-dimensional structure of the molecules offline. In this way, the platform generates standardized data that can be used in other facilities within the Shenzhen Synthetic Biology Infrastructure.

The collaboration also creates new opportunities for training the next generation of scientists, including joint doctoral projects as well as exchange and training programs. In this way, the new center will closely link basic research, technological innovation, and international support for early-career researchers.

PM