2025 National Symposium for Deans of Schools of Basic Medicineandthe 4th China Conference on the Development of Basic Disciplines of Medical Sciences Held Successfully

The 2025 National Symposium for Deans of Schools of Basic Medicine and the 4th China Conference on the Development of Basic Disciplines of Medical Sciences, jointly organized by the Institute of Basic Medical Sciences (IBMS) of Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS)/School of Basic Medicine (SBM) of Peking Union Medical College (PUMC) and Southern Medical University (SMU), was successfully held in Beijing from September 27 to 28, 2025. The symposium was held against the backdrop of promoting the implementation of Ministry of Education’s project “Integration of Science and Education for Collaborative Talent Cultivation” for basic disciplines and accelerating the cultivation of top-notch innovative talents, with “Medical Education Reform and New Research Paradigms” as its theme. A total of 64 medical universities or schools of basic medicine/schools of life sciences from 27 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities across China attended the symposium. Nearly 100 experts and scholars at the symposiumengaged in deep reflections and extensive exchanges on the development of basic disciplines of medical sciences, medical education reform, and cutting-edge medical research, jointly exploring the innovative paths for the integrated development of education, technology, and talent.

On the morning of September 28, leaders from the Department of Science, Technology and Education of National Health Commission, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, and Southern Medical University attended the opening ceremony and delivered speeches, extending warm congratulations on the convening of the symposium.

After the opening ceremony, three keynote speeches were delivered. Liu Depei, Member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, Professor of the Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, CAMS, and Director of the State Key Laboratory of Common Mechanism Research for Major Diseases, delivered a speech entitled “Enhancing Original Innovation Capacity to Support Healthy China Construction”.Li Jinsong, Member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Dean of the School of Basic Medical Sciences of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and Researcher at the Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science (Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology) of Chinese Academy of Sciences, gave a report entitled “Building World-Class Basic Disciplines of Medical Sciences in the 15th Five-Year Plan Period: Connotation Deepening and Innovative Breakthroughs”.Professor Ming Dong, Vice President of Tianjin University, Chair of the Faculty of Medicine, and Young and Middle-Aged Leading Talent inthe Scientific and Technological Innovation Program of the Ministry of Science and Technology, presented an address entitled “Innovative Education Practice of Medicine-Engineering Integration at Tianjin University”.

On the afternoon of September 28, three parallel sessions were held. Focusing on the themes of “Systems and Development of Basic Disciplines of Medical Sciences”, “Status and Reform of Basic Medical Education”, and “Development of Basic Medical Sciences in Chinese Medical Journal (CMJ)”, experts and scholars at the sessions conducted active exchanges onthe innovative practices in medical education, explored the new paths for the development of basic disciplines of medical sciences, and shared the latest progress of their research.

In the roundtable discussion, 23 presidents, deans or Party secretaries, drawing on the exploratory experience of their own institutions, engaged in lively exchanges and discussions on such core issues asthe concrete paths for science-education collaborative talent cultivation, measures to guarantee teachers’ teaching competency, development and transformation of traditional disciplines in basic medical sciences, breakdown of barriers between secondary disciplines, and the status and challenges of artificial intelligence-enabled education.

On the afternoon of September 27, participating institutions held a closed-door meeting on thethree major topics of “New Research Paradigms in Medicine”, “Medical Education Reform”, and “Future Work Plan for the Collaborative Development of Schools of Basic Medicine”. Consensus was reached on how to strengthen the construction and collaborative development in areas such as planning, space, funding, talent andplatforms for schools of basic medicine in the future.