From December 16-18, 2023, the 13th Guangzhou International Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Symposium was successfully convened in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province. The symposium covered various aspects of stem cell and regenerative medicine basic research, including basic research, applied research, and clinical applications, with a particular focus on hot topics such as cell lineage, cell fate regulation, metabolism and aging, and stem cell therapies. The conference was chaired by Professor Duan-Qing Pei from Westlake University.

In his keynote speech, Professor Olivier Pourquié, a member of the US National Academy of Sciences and from Harvard University, highlighted a new tool for somite research - the in vitro three-dimensional culture system of somites differentiated from human pluripotent stem cells, and used this system to deeply explore the mechanism of somite formation. Professor Yeguang Chen, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and President of Nanchang University, emphasized the role of BMP signaling in regulating intestinal homeostasis. Professor Weizhi Ji, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Director of the Primate Translational Medicine Research Institute at Kunming University of Science and Technology, comprehensively explained the epigenetic regulation mechanisms underlying the establishment of totipotency and the first cell fate determination. Professor Shaorong Gao, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Dean of the School of Life Sciences at Tongji University, introduced the latest research results on the mechanism of establishing cellular totipotency and explored the molecular mechanisms of somatic cell reprogramming and their applications.

The conference set up 7 thematic sub-forums, where 32 experts delivered high-quality academic reports, including 9 invited reports, 16 thematic reports, and 5 young scholar reports. 34 conference posters were also collected. Scientists from around the world engaged in in-depth exchanges and discussions at this meeting, jointly planning the basic research and application prospects of cell lineages. As one of the most influential forums in the stem cell field, this meeting deepened the exchange and collaboration between domestic and foreign scholars, pointed out new directions for future scientific research and applications, strengthened the leading position of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in biomedical science and technology innovation, and expanded the global influence of Guangzhou in the international biomedical science and technology field.

The symposium has a long and successful history, with 12 previous sessions held from 2008 to 2019 by the Guangzhou Institute of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The conference was highly praised by over 470 top scientists from around the world and gradually formed a brand. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the symposium was suspended for 3 years from 2020 to 2022, but was resumed this year, attracting more than 200 scholars from around the world to participate in exchanges and discussions. An award ceremony for the best posters was also held at the closing ceremony of the conference.

The conference was jointly organized by the Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Health，Hong Kong Institute of Science & Innovation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Guangdong Precision Medicine Application Association, with multiple units as co-organizers and co-sponsors. The forum was also sponsored by the Zhenxi Life Science Fund of the Education Foundation of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Footage of the Symposium

Footage of the Symposium

Footage of the Symposium

Footage of the Symposium

Footage of the Symposium