Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biology (TIB) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) hosted the COMSATS Joint Center for Industrial Biotechnology (CCIB) Workshop on Technical Innovation in Traditional Plant Medicine on October 13, 2021. Nearly 100 scientists from more than ten the Commission on Science and Technology for Sustainable Development in the South (COMSATS) member states such as Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Iran, Egypt, Jamaica and Ghana participated the workshop. 

Medicinal plants have been used for thousands of years and are an important source for new drug discovery. In order to build a platform for the exchange of medicinal plants and to promote the joint research and application of traditional plant medicines, the workshop focused on the new drug discovery of natural products and the design of biosynthetic pathway, the biomanufacturing of high value-added natural products, and the new application of natural products. 

The scientists first introduced their latest research progress. They then made in-depth discussions on international cooperation on plant natural products drugs under the framework of the COMSATS Joint Center for Industrial Biotechnology (CCIB), and put forward future plans.

The CCIB is an innovative cooperation platform jointly established by TIB and COMSATS in April 2021 under the framework of the National Center of Technology Innovation for Synthetic Biology (NC SynBio).