Biology

(Discipline Code: 0836)

I. Discipline Overview

Bioengineering is a discipline that is oriented to human demands for biological products, integrates the theories and methods of biology, chemistry, physics and engineering, systematically designs, optimizes and modifies biological systems and functions, focuses on solving technical and engineering problems faced by the industrialization of life science research results, and promotes the healthy development of biological industries. Its mission is to translate the research discoveries of life science into actual products or scaled-up processes or systems that meet social needs. Bioengineering is widely used in such fields as medicine, food, chemical engineering, energy, light industry, material and environmental protection.

Based on the College of Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Engineering for the first-level discipline of bioengineering, Nanjing Tech University is one of the most influential and competitive higher education bases in the field of biomanufacturing in China, and is the supporting unit of national research institutions such as the National Engineering Research Center for Biotechnology, the State Key Laboratory of Materials-Oriented Chemical Engineering, and the Synergetic Innovation Center for Advanced Materials. Its Biology & Biochemistry is ranked in the top 1% of ESI worldwide. This discipline has gathered young and middle-aged scholars with profound academic attainments and outstanding scientific achievements, including academicians of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and national high-level talents. This discipline has long insisted on cultivating people with moral character, innovating and developing basic and applied research in the fields of synthetic biology and systems biology, cell culture and metabolic engineering, biocatalysis and pharmaceutical processes, biomaterials and process engineering, and bioenergy and resources and environmental engineering, as well as cultivating high quality talents with innovative spirit. Aiming at international academic frontiers and the strategic goals of national and regional economic development, this discipline is geared to social and market demands, insists on the combination of industry, academia, research and application, and follows the road of advantage and characteristic development. It has formed a complete innovation chain of "basic research - common technology development- achievement industrialization", made positive contributions to the long-term growth of biological manufacturing, pharmaceutical industry and national economy in China, and become a common technology research & development base for biological industry with significant influences at home and abroad, and a leading position for regional innovation and development.

II. Cultivation Goals

Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, the discipline comprehensively implements the CPC's education policy, takes establishing moral values and educating people as the fundamental, and the all-round moral, intellectual, physical and aesthetic development as the main line, and cultivates high-level talents with firm political stance, noble ideological character, rigorous academic attitude and innovative spirit.

Knowledge structure: Expertly master the basic theory and expertise of synthetic biology and systems biology, cell culture and metabolic engineering, biocatalysis and pharmaceutical processes, biomaterials and process engineering, and bioenergy and resource and environmental engineering.

Ability structure: Master a solid and broad basic theory of biological engineering and systematic professional knowledge and experimental research skills, understand the current situation and development trend of this discipline and modern life science and other related disciplines, master a foreign language (usually English); have basic innovation ability and team spirit, the ability of scientific research in biotechnology and biological engineering and the ability to solve practical process and engineering technology problems. Degree holders are able to engage in the research and development of new technologies and products, competent for professional work in bioengineering-related enterprises and institutions, or can further study for doctoral degrees in related disciplines.

Quality structure: Have a correct outlook on life and values, systematically scientific and cultural knowledge and skills, robust physique and strong willpower, noble sentiments and correct aesthetics, correct labor concepts and good labor habits.

III. Cultivation Direction

1. Synthetic Biology and Systems Biology: Carry out systematic research for synthetic biology and microbial cell factory construction. Establish bioregulatory strategies for coupling metabolic modules and construct microbial cell factories with important application value; analyze the regulatory functions of functional genes and explore a series of regulatory components to provide theoretical guidance for the transformation of strains and optimization of biological processes.

2. Cell culture and metabolic engineering: Conduct research on biomanufacturing of microbial cell culture and metabolic engineering modification for the preparation of high value-added products in response to the strategic development of efficient green manufacturing of bulk chemicals and fine chemicals in China. Innovate new strains, genes and enzyme preparations with important application value by screening special biological resources based on high-throughput screening and gene modification technology to develop a series of medicinal and edible high value-added biological products.

3. Biocatalysis and pharmaceutical processes: Carry out discovery and modification of biocatalysts, and research and development of efficient bioconversion technologies, equipment and integrated systems for waste biomass resources, and carry out research on biomanufacturing of drug intermediates and other high value-added products. Be committed to solving the problems of atomic economy and spatio-temporal efficiency of the biomanufacturing process, strengthening the development of integrated bioprocess technologies and equipment, and realizing green and clean production. Improve the theoretical system of fitness regulation of substance metabolism and cofactor metabolism, and innovate a new technology of biotransformation based on the cell clustering effect.

4. Biomaterials and processing engineering: Conduct research on the synthesis of bio-based polymeric material monomers and polymers, material processing and their applications. Develop new varieties of bio-based material additives such as bio-based polyurethane, polyester, polyamide and their core monomers, bio-based non-toxic plasticizers, etc. Construct new methods for the preparation of bio-based materials and monomers and additives such as microfluidic reaction technology and its exclusive equipment, bionic catalysis technology, etc.

5. Bio-energy and resource environment engineering: Carry out research and development of technology, equipment and integrated system for resource-oriented transformation of wastes with waste biomass resources such as straw, livestock manure and high concentration organic wastewater as the object. Research the production of bio-based chemicals; develop the technology, equipment and system integration for efficient anaerobic conversion industrialization of livestock manure, high concentration organic wastewater, and etc.

IV. Study Period and Credits

The study period for academic master students is generally 3 years, with a maximum of 5 years.

The minimum total credits required for academic master students is 28 credits, including 24 credits for courses (8 credits for public degree courses, 8 credits for professional degree courses, 4 credits for professional elective courses and 4 credits for public elective courses), 2 credits for attending academic lectures/reports (at least 15 times) and 2 credits for academic practice.

V. Curriculum Setting

VI. Compulsory Links Management

1. Academic Lectures/Reports (2 credits)

Academic degree master students must attend at least fifteen academic seminars on and off campus during their study period, including at least five academic seminars arranged by the Graduate School, at least two lectures on the quality of humanities and aesthetics, and other lectures arranged by each college, and only those who have attended a total of at least fifteen seminars can obtain 2 credits for lectures/reports.

2. Academic Practice (2 credits)

During the study period, academic master students must participate in one of the following academic practice activities: graduate student science and technology forum, graduate student summer school, graduate student academic innovation forum, graduate student research innovation practice competition, high-level international and domestic academic conferences or overseas exchange visits, and labor practice, and participate in activities such as sunshine run on campus and sports meeting, in order to obtain 2 credits for academic practice.

VII. Thesis

1. Basic requirements for thesis

(1) Normative requirements

The topic of the thesis should be clear in direction, have basic theoretical significance or good technical application prospect, and can come from the supervisor's scientific research project or self-chosen project; the thesis should have compact structure, rigorous logic, smooth written expression and standardized diagrams. The results of the research should provide new insights or address academic problems. The thesis should be completed independently under the guidance of the supervisor, and the actual working time of the thesis should be at least one year since the proposal of the topic. The thesis should generally include: the background of the subject research and domestic and overseas trends, main problems to be solved and the ways, the main research carried out, experimental data processing; necessary graphs and curves; the conclusion and the references cited.

(2) Quality requirements

The thesis should demonstrate that the author has mastered solid basic theories and systematic professional knowledge in the discipline, is familiar with the field researched, has a better understanding of the research trends of its academic frontiers, and can pose scientific questions on the research topic engaged in, design experiments reasonably, and use advanced technical lines and research methods, and his/her research results provide independent insights and academic value. Relevant research results meet the standards for the award of a master's degree as stipulated by the Academic Committee of the University and the Academic Committee of the College.

(3) The master's thesis in the discipline of biological engineering should conform to the following requirements in addition to format requirements for the master's thesis of the country and Nanjing Tech University:

(a)The thesis has a clear direction in topic selection, researches discipline frontiers, and has some theoretical significance or good application prospects;

(b) The thesis should involve literature review, which focuses on discussion of primary literature, details recent research literature, points out its research significance and academic value, and describes the significance of the research carried out by the author;

(c) When abbreviating a term, use the name in full on its first use in the thesis, and give a list of all the abbreviations either before the main body of the thesis or after the references;

(d) The gene sequences, protein sequences, etc. involved in the master's thesis should be in the form of an appendix or a database number;

(e) The terminology is standardized and citation notes are reasonable.

2. Thesis proposal

According to the "Requirements of Nanjing Tech University on the Thesis Proposal of Graduate Students", graduate students should generally write a proposal at the end of the third semester or the beginning of the fourth semester. The proposal should be roughly 5,000 words long; more than 100 references should be read, at least two-thirds of which should be foreign papers. The proposal should include:

(1) Research significance of the subject and its current status at home and abroad;

(2) The accumulation of work related to the subject and the achievements of existing research work;

(3) The difficulties of the subject and key problems to be solved; proposed research methods, technical lines, experimental programs and their feasibility;

(4) Planned progress and expected results.

3. Thesis review and defense

Academic master students can apply for defense after completing all the links and credits stipulated in the cultivation plan. Specific requirements for thesis review and defense are detailed in the Detailed Rules for the Master's Thesis Defense and Review and Degree Application of Nanjing Tech University.

4. Academic achievement requirements

Academic achievements should be consistent with the thesis direction. The requirements are detailed in the Measures for Assessment of Scientific Research Achievements of Master's Degree Applicants of Nanjing Tech University.

VIII. Criteria for Graduation and Degree Awarding

The criteria for graduation and degree awarding shall conform with the relevant regulations of the university.