Chongqing - In recognition of their contributions to engineering and medical sciences, Liu Hanlong of Chongqing University and Wu Yuzhang of the Army Medical University have been recently elected as academicians to the prestigious Chinese Academy of Engineering.
The Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, representing the country’s highest academic level, elected 133 new members. The Chinese Academy of Sciences welcomed 59 new members, while the Chinese Academy of Engineering added 74.
Humanity’s first biological experiment on the lunar surface
Liu currently serves as the Managing Vice President and doctoral supervisor of Chongqing University. Professor Liu is also chief editor for Biogeotechnics and the Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering, available in Chinese and English.
Liu Hanlong currently serves as the Managing Vice President and doctoral supervisor of Chongqing University. (Photo/Chongqing University)
Professor Liu’s research primarily focuses on reinforcing soft foundations, pile foundation engineering, environmental geomechanics, and disaster prevention and reduction engineering.
Notably, in 2019, Professor Liu was the chief commander of the biological experiment payload of the Chang’e-4 spacecraft. This experiment was a milestone for humanity as it marked the first successful cultivation of a plant, a cotton sprout, on the lunar surface, signifying humanity’s first biological experiment on the Moon.
Cotton seeds that germinated on the Moon. (Photo/Chongqing University)
This June, Professor Liu proactively proposed using microbial geotechnical techniques for cultural heritage conservation and restoration developed by his team to carry out unpaid restoration work on the Red Well Monument.
This technology is specifically designed to address issues such as the material composition, cracks, flaking layers, and cavities of the monument, employing advanced techniques such as CT scanning, 3D laser scanning, infrared detection, and rock analysis.
The Red Well Monument before and after its restoration. (Photo/Chongqing University)
Professor Liu’s team is at the forefront of microbial geotechnical reinforcement technology research, both domestically and internationally. They have pioneered new applications of this technology in geotechnical cultural heritage conservation and restoration.
The team has achieved significant results in more than 20 projects, including key projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Key Program), and has published over 100 related papers in high-profile international journals.
35 years in immunology research
Wu Yuzhang, aged 60 and a professor at the Army Medical University, is a leading figure in immunology in China. He has made significant contributions to basic immunological research and international frontier studies.
Wu Yuzhang, aged 60 and a professor at the Army Medical University, is a leading figure in immunology in China. (Photo/Official Weibo account of the Army Medical University)
With 35 years of experience in immunology, Wu has focused on “specific immune response regulation,” systematically researching intrinsic and extrinsic regulatory mechanisms of T cells, including the first, second, and third signals.
He has pioneered theories and systems in antigen engineering internationally, discovering new subgroups of T cells and novel mechanisms regulating their differentiation fate.