News from China

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 10-Jan-2026 16:11 ET (10-Jan-2026 21:11 GMT/UTC)

6-Jan-2026

AI is rewriting the rules of enzyme engineering—from faster prediction to smarter design

Nanjing Agricultural University The Academy of Science

A research team maps the key tasks that define modern enzyme engineering—function annotation, structure modeling, and property prediction—and explain how AI methods now accelerate each step, from mining candidate enzymes in massive sequence databases to generating new variants with improved activity, stability, or selectivity.

Journal

BioDesign Research

6-Jan-2026

From rare pigment to industrial bioproduct: How engineered microbes are boosting violacein production

Nanjing Agricultural University The Academy of Science

A research team has delivered a comprehensive overview showing how microbial fermentation—guided by synthetic biology, metabolic engineering, and smart bioprocess design—can transform violacein from a rare natural pigment into a scalable bio-based product.

Journal

BioDesign Research

6-Jan-2026

DeepCodon: A rare-codon–aware AI tool boosts protein expression in E. coli

Nanjing Agricultural University The Academy of Science

A research team has developed DeepCodon, a deep learning–based codon optimization tool that significantly improves heterologous protein expression in Escherichia coli while preserving functionally important rare codon clusters.

Journal

BioDesign Research

6-Jan-2026

Engineered probiotics emerge as programmable living medicines for complex diseases

Nanjing Agricultural University The Academy of Science

A research team provides an overview of how engineered probiotics—genetically modified beneficial microbes—are being transformed into living medicines capable of sensing disease, delivering therapies, and reshaping diseased microenvironments.

Journal

BioDesign Research

6-Jan-2026

Computational blueprints expand the reach of synthetic metabolism

Nanjing Agricultural University The Academy of Science

A research team has delivered an overview of how computational tools are reshaping the design of nonnatural metabolic pathways—engineered biochemical routes that do not exist in nature but enable microorganisms to produce valuable chemicals, fuels, and materials.

Journal

BioDesign Research

6-Jan-2026

Researchers develop electricity-free chlorine production from brines

Chinese Academy of Sciences Headquarters
Peer-Reviewed Publication

In a study recently published in Nature Communications, the researchers detail a modular system that integrates hydrochloric acid recovery with chlorine and hydrogen generation—eliminating the need for external electrical input during the electrochemical stage.

Journal

Nature Communications

6-Jan-2026

Engineered RNA sensor detects and fights coronavirus inside living cells

Nanjing Agricultural University The Academy of Science

A research team has developed a new RNA-based system that can detect coronavirus infection in real time inside living cells—and even trigger antiviral responses only when infection occurs.

Journal

BioDesign Research

6-Jan-2026

Rice genes matter more than domestication in shaping plant microbiomes

Biochar Editorial Office, Shenyang Agricultural University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Rice feeds more than half of the world’s population, but the tiny microbes living on and around rice plants may be just as important as the crop itself. A new study reveals that the specific genetic identity of a rice plant plays a stronger role than whether it is wild or domesticated in determining which microbes it hosts and how those microbes function.

6-Jan-2026

Smart biochar that remembers pollutants offers a new way to clean water and recycle biomass

Biochar Editorial Office, Shenyang Agricultural University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Molecularly imprinted biochar offers a highly selective and sustainable way to trap and destroy pollutants in water, soil, and even complex industrial waste streams, turning agricultural waste into powerful environmental cleanup tools. This new review explains how scientists design these smart carbon materials and where they could realistically change current pollution control practices in the near future.

6-Jan-2026

Microbes that break down antibiotics help protect ecosystems under drug pollution

Biochar Editorial Office, Shenyang Agricultural University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Antibiotics that escape into the environment are widely recognized as a growing threat to ecosystems, wastewater treatment performance, and the spread of antimicrobial resistance. A new study shows that certain microbes can act as community protectors by breaking down antibiotics and stabilizing entire microbial ecosystems, offering a new way to rethink environmental risk assessment and pollution management.