Joint R&D Center
The International Joint Research Center for Food and Health Sciences of Shaanxi International Science and Technology Cooperation Base is the first provincial and ministerial international science and technology innovation platform established by Shaanxi Normal University, an international science and technology cooperation base established by the Shaanxi Provincial Department of Science and Technology, and a member of the National Alliance of Foreign Science and Technology Cooperation Bases under the guidance of the Ministry of Science and Technology. The center has reached academic exchange agreements or carried out scientific and technological cooperation with famous universities and research institutions in countries such as Canada, Spain, Pakistan, France, and Greece, especially in countries along the "Belt and Road" and special administrative regions such as Macao. The center has strong research strength and rich educational resources.
The person in charge of the International Joint Research Center for Food and Health Sciences is Director Huafeng Zhang (professor, academic leader, and chief scientist). The team members include 1 chief scientist, 2 academicians, 2 scientists, 2 scholars, and dozens of professors, associate professors, and other scientific researchers. It is composed of a "Traditional Chinese Medicine Research Team", a "Food Science Research Team", and a "Medicine and Food Interdisciplinary Research Team". It has established "Academician Expert Workstations" (approved by the Organization Department of the Yunnan Provincial Party Committee of the Communist Party of China, the Yunnan Provincial Department of Science and Technology, the Yunnan Provincial Department of Finance, and the Yunnan Provincial Department of Human Resources and Social Security) and "Experimental Demonstration Stations" (approved by the Shaanxi Provincial Department of Science and Technology) in Pu'er City, Yunnan Province and Ankang City, Shaanxi Province respectively. It has built provincial, ministerial, and bureau-level experimental research, transformation application, and demonstration and promotion bases such as the Xi'an Base, Pu'er Base, Ankang Sub-Center, and Macau Base.
R&D Director
Huafeng Zhang, male, is Director, Principal Investigator (PI), and Chair Professor of International Joint Research Center of Shaanxi Province for Food and Health Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University. He is also Chair Professor of Provincial Expert Workstation for Huafeng Zhang, Academician and Expert Workstation in Pu'er City of Yunnan Province. And he is Head of Provincial Research Station of Se-Enriched Foods in Hanyin County of Shaanxi Province. Meanwhile, he is Director of Shaanxi-Macau Joint Research Center of Traditional Chinese Medicine Resources and Development (Shaanxi), and Investigator of National Engineering Laboratory for Resources Development of Endangered Crude Drugs in Northwest China, as well as Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Medicinal Resources and Natural Pharmaceutical Chemistry. He is an editorial board member or guest editor of international academic journals such as Switzerland's "Separations" (SCI), and an expert in natural science project evaluation at the University of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates.
He received his Ph.D. from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, a leading academic institution and comprehensive research and development (R&D) center in China's natural science, technological science, and high-tech innovation. His research focuses on edible medicinal plants, nutrition and food safety, selenium-enriched foods, as well as biochemistry and biochemical engineering. He has published more than 120 articles in journals such as Nature (JCR Q1, IF=69.504, U.K.), Trends in Food Science and Technology (JCR Q1, IF=15.300, U.K.), Ultrasonics Sonochemistry (JCR Q1, IF=9.336, Netherland), Innovative Food Science and Emerging Technologies (JCR Q1, IF=6.600, U.K.) and Industrial Crops and Products (JCR Q1, IF=5.645, U.K.).
He is the senior member of Chinese Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and Chinese Nutrition Society. And he is a reviewer for several international journals (e.g., Current Medicinal Chemistry, Biological Trace Element Research, Natural Product Research, and Journal of Food Biochemistry) and research funding agencies (e.g., National Natural Science Foundation of China, and Research Project Fund of University of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates). His professional honors and awards mainly include: (1) National Prize in Science and Technology Week in China; (2) National Prize for Top Article in Excellent Scientific Journals in China; (3) National Excellent Instructor of Annual Conference on College Innovation and Entrepreneurship; (4) National Excellent Instructor of "Challenge Cup" Undergraduate Curricular Academic Science and Technology Works by Race; (5) Provincial Award of Excellent Works for Science Popularization in Shaanxi Province; (6) Chu Yuet Wah Award in Chinese Academy of Sciences; and (7) Education Award in Shaanxi Normal University.
Key R&D Personnel
Hong Deng, female, former Vice President of the School of Food Engineering and Nutritional Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, PhD in Botany, Associate Professor, Visiting Scholar at Northern Arizona University, USA. She is currently the Vice President of the Shaanxi Food Science and Technology Society and the Director of the Food Quality and Safety Department of the School of Food Engineering and Nutritional Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University. She is mainly engaged in scientific research and teaching in food engineering and natural product separation and extraction, and her research direction is the separation and extraction of plant active ingredients. She participated in the publication of "Principles of Food Processing", "Food Environmental Engineering", "Food Analysis and Inspection", and "Cultivation and Processing Technology of Edible Fungi". She joined in many scientific research projects such as the Shaanxi Natural Fund Project "Separation and Identification of Active Ingredients of Saponins in Xanthoceras sorbifolia Seeds and Their Anti-cancer Effects", and published more than 60 academic papers.
Key R&D Personnel
Mei Liu, female, associate professor at Shaanxi Normal University, PhD. Her research interests are food chemistry, food analysis, and life analysis. Currently, she is the Principal Investigator of the National Natural Science Foundation project "Study on chemiluminescent biosensors based on conjugated polymer nanoparticles", the Shaanxi Provincial Science and Technology Department's agricultural research project "Rapid detection technology of drug residues in animal-derived foods", and the Xi'an Science and Technology Department's agricultural research project "Application of molecular imprinting technology in the detection of hormone veterinary drug residues in animal-derived foods". She has published more than 20 academic papers, 5 SCI papers, including 1 SCI Region 1 paper, and won two provincial and ministerial science and technology awards. She received a bachelor's degree in science from Shaanxi Normal University in July 2000, and a master's degree in analytical chemistry from the School of Chemistry and Materials Science of Shaanxi Normal University in July 2004. She then worked at the School of Food Engineering and Nutritional Sciences of Shaanxi Normal University. In 2013, she obtained a doctorate in analytical chemistry from the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering of Shaanxi Normal University. She has participated in two National Natural Science Foundation projects: "Research on liquid phase chemiluminescence involving carbon nanomaterials and its application in biosensors" and "Research on new methods of chemiluminescence biosensors based on functional deoxyribonucleic acid".