At the 9th National Conference on Bioinformatics and Systems Biology of China in Shanghai, Academician Zhang Chunting was recognized with the Lifetime Achievement Award for his great achievements and contributions in the field.
Academician Zhang is known for establishing Tianjin University Bioinformatics Center (TUBIC) in 1998, which was the second such center following Peking University Bioinformatics Center. Its English website (http://tubic.tju.edu.cn/or http://tubic.org/),which has been running for over 20 years, has played a significant role in presenting research findings to foreign counterparts and increasing the influence of Tianjin University. The TUBIC has received sequential visitations by the Communist party and state leaders since its foundation. During this pandemic, members of TUBIC have engaged in the research for COVID-19 genome, and have made tremendous contributions.
Academician Zhang is one of the founders and pioneers of bioinformatics research in China. He has been working in the Department of Physics of Tianjin University since 1984 until his retirement and has advanced many subjects involving biology and biochemistry, computer science, and social sciences to enter the world's top 1% (ESI Top 1%) for publishing more than 100 essays as corresponding author on major periodicals such as Nature Biotechnology, Nucleic Acids Research, EMBO Reports, and Bioinformatics. In addition, master and doctor stations of biology were set up and later the discipline was authored as “first-level” through his hard work.
The academician devoted his whole life to the benefits of the country and the university. Years ago, together with other experts, he presided over Xiangshan Science Conferences(XSSC) for several times, the themes of which proved to be far-sighted. He provides suggestions on national development and calls for innovation of Chinese scholars. The Symmetrical Theory of DNA Sequences, or Z-curve theory, which was originally put forward by Zhang Chunting, has made a profound impact on international bioinformation community.
