On May 16th, the second Zhongshan Biomedical Industry Forum with the theme of "Progress in the Treatment of ALS and Rare Diseases" opened at the Cuiheng International Science and Technology Innovation Center in Cuiheng New District, Zhongshan.
This forum is hosted by ZebraPeutics (Zhongshan) Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "ZebraPeutics") and organized by Zhongshan Life Science Park. It brings together experts and scholars from multiple research institutions, universities, and medical industries around the world to explore cutting-edge technologies in the field of biomedicine, promote international cooperation and research results transformation, and explore new breakthroughs in the treatment of ALS and other rare diseases, which are known as the "top five incurable diseases in the world".
Officials from institutions and units such as the Consulate General of Canada in Guangzhou, the Organization Department of the Zhongshan Municipal Committee, the Foreign Affairs Office of the Municipal Committee, the Municipal Bureau of Industry and Information Technology, the Municipal Association for Science and Technology, and the Cuiheng New Area attended the forum.
Strategic signing launches joint construction of international scientific research collaboration platform
ZebraPeutics, the organizer of this forum, is an innovative pharmaceutical company specializing in the research and development of new drugs for the treatment of rare diseases. Dr. Wen Xiaoyan, the founder of the company, was a professor at the University of Toronto School of Medicine in Canada before returning to China. She has been engaged in pharmaceutical research overseas for more than 30 years and founded the globally renowned "Zebrafish Centre for Advanced Drug Discovery". The center has established more than 20 disease models of zebrafish for drug screening and obtained international patents for small molecule drugs for several major human diseases. Its zebrafish high-throughput drug screening platform has served international pharmaceutical companies such as Johnson&Johnson and Eli Lilly abroad.
The "Zebrafish New Drug Research and Development Center" has been hosting an international Zebrafish Precision Medicine conference every two years since 2013. In 2022, ZebraPeutics was registered and established in Cuiheng New District, Zhongshan, and settled in Zhongshan Life Science Park, building a world-class main laboratory of over a thousand square meters. The new drug pipeline under development by the company includes small molecule drugs for the treatment of ALS, hemorrhagic stroke, and severe sepsis, which are very difficult to treat internationally and lack effective drug treatment methods. It is expected to fill the international gap in the treatment of these diseases.
In 2024, ZebraPeutics held the 5th International Zebrafish Precision Medicine Conference and the first Zhongshan Biomedical Industry Forum in Zhongshan. The second Zhongshan Biomedical Industry Forum aims to further promote global collaboration in rare disease research and treatment, including ALS, and achieve more breakthroughs.
This forum has achieved multiple collaborative results. Among them, ZebraPeutics has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the Canadian Norman Bethune Medical Development Association (BMDAC) to jointly build an international scientific research collaboration platform, using the Bethune spirit as a link to promote China Canada medical cooperation to a higher level and wider field. At the same time, the "Zebrafish ALS Drug Screening Platform" jointly initiated by ZebraPeutics and the team of well-known ALS fighter Cai Lei has been officially launched. This innovative platform will utilize advanced zebrafish technology to significantly improve the efficiency of drug development for ALS, bringing new hope to ALS patients worldwide.
Authoritative experts gather to explore new breakthroughs in the treatment of rare diseases
This forum invited several authoritative experts from home and abroad to give keynote speeches. Professor Lee E. Errett from the University of Toronto and President of the Norman Bethune Medical Development Association of Canada reviewed the history of medical cooperation between China and Canada under the theme of the Norman Bethune spirit and Sino Canadian medical collaboration, and looked forward to future cooperation. Pierre Drapeau, a professor at the University of Montreal, systematically analyzed the pathogenic mechanism and experimental therapy of ALS, providing solid theoretical support for disease research. In addition, Professor Hu Jianxiang from the University of Toronto focused on the breakthrough progress of gene therapy for rare diseases, demonstrating the enormous potential of gene technology in overcoming the challenges of rare diseases.
Professor at the University of Toronto and President of the Norman Bethune Medical Development Association in Canada, Lee E. Errett.
Professor Lin Jianping from Nankai University, Klaus Fiebig, founder of KMFBio in Canada, and other experts also shared innovative practices in fields such as AI drug development and rare disease new drug development.
Gathering global innovation resources to create a highland of biopharmaceutical innovation
We look forward to using the forum as a link to promote deep cooperation between governments at all levels, academia, industry, clinical institutions, and patient organizations, injecting new impetus into the high-quality development of the biopharmaceutical industry, promoting the landing of more projects, and enabling scientific research results to benefit rare disease patients worldwide as soon as possible. Dr. Wen Xiaoyan, the head of the organizing committee of this forum and the chairman of ZebraPeutics, expressed her hope to gather global innovation resources in Zhongshan and Cuiheng New Area, and accelerate the industrialization of research results.
Dr. Wen Xiaoyan, the head of the organizing committee of the 2nd Zhongshan Biomedical Industry Forum and the chairman of ZebraPeutics.
As an important biopharmaceutical base in the Guangdong Hong Kong Macao Greater Bay Area, Zhongshan City has accelerated the gathering of global high-end resources and actively created an international innovation ecosystem in recent years, relying on carriers such as the Cuiheng New Area Life Science Park. The biopharmaceutical industry is one of the key pillar industries for the development of Cuiheng New Area. In terms of gathering innovative resources, Cuiheng New Area has established industrial platforms such as Zhongshan Life Science Park and South China Modern Traditional Chinese Medicine City (Guangdong Province Industrial Platform), and introduced the high-level research institution of Zhongke Zhongshan Drug Innovation Research Institute. In 2024, Zhongke Zhongshan Pharmaceutical Innovation Research Institute will be established as a sub center of the Guangdong Hong Kong Macao Greater Bay Area National Technology Innovation Center and the Greater Bay Area International Research Center for New Drug Discovery, exploring innovation in the biopharmaceutical industry nationwide and even globally.
