RCOcean Shines at Brazilian International Symposium, Showcasing Cutting-Edge Research in Marine Natural Products
Leading the Dialogue: Marine Drug Discovery at the Forefront
On May 23, 2025, the Symposium on Traditional and Marine Natural Products, hosted by Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) in Santos, gathered leading scientists in the field of natural product research. PolyU-BGI Joint Research Centre for Genomics and Synthetic Biology in Global Ocean Resources (RCOcean) was invited as a key international partner to present its latest innovations at the intersection of genomics, artificial intelligence, and marine drug discovery. The event marked a new step forward in China-Brazil scientific collaboration in the field of natural products.
The symposium was opened by renowned scholar Prof. Norberto Peporine Lopes from the University of São Paulo. In his address, he emphasized that “the diversity of natural products is a treasure trove for drug development, and interdisciplinary collaboration—including molecular biology, genomics, and artificial intelligence—is the driving force to unlock its full potential.”
The RCOcean team presented three key reports at the event:
Prof. Simon Ming-Yuen, LEE, Director of RCOcean, delivered a talk titled “Discovery of Natural Products from Medicinal Plants and Marine Organisms for Neurodegenerative Disease Treatment”. He introduced the team’s recent progress in identifying marine bioactive compounds through genomics approaches, highlighting their therapeutic potential for conditions such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases.
Mr Jianwei Chen, Associate Director of RCOcean, presented “Systematic Mining of Bioactive Natural Peptides from the Microbiomes Using Machine Learning”. He outlined the development of an AI-driven platform for high-efficiency screening of marine microbial peptides, emphasizing their promise as candidates for novel antibiotics and anti-stroke therapeutics.
PhD student Ling Peng presented findings from her research titled “Deciphering the Fungal Diversity and Genomic Functionality of Mangrove Rhizosphere Soil in China”, shedding light on the pharmaceutical and biotechnological potential of fungal resources in these unique habitats.
Brazilian Scientists Highlight Local Breakthroughs:
The symposium also featured leading Brazilian researchers. Prof. Paula C. Jimenez (UNIFESP) shared her team’s bioprospecting efforts on anti-cancer agents from coastal microorganisms and invertebrates. Prof. João Henrique Ghilardi Lago (UFABC) discussed the Bioactive Secondary Metabolites in Antiparasitic, Antitumor, and Antimicrobial Models. Prof. Leticia Veras Costa Lotufo (USP) introduced novel Connecting Dots— What Can We Learn About Cancer Biology from the Understanding of Natural Products Mechanism of Action.
A Visit to Center for Marine Biology: Charting New Frontiers for Blue Economy Cooperation
On May 24, the RCOcean delegation visited the Center for Marine Biology (CEBIMar) of the University of São Paulo, one of South America's leading platforms for marine ecosystem research.
Prof. Ronaldo Bastos Francini Filho, director of CEBIMar, showcased deep-sea live organism cultivation technologies, enabling the long-term laboratory survival of rare marine species. Dr. Hudson Tercio Pinheiro presented integrated research combining genomics and biogeography to unravel the evolutionary patterns of mesophotic coral reefs. The center’s extensive specimen repository of rare tropical marine organisms offers unique resources for future pharmaceutical development.
Prof. Simon Ming-Yuen, LEE and the CEBIMar team explored three major avenues for collaboration:
Smart Diving Equipment Development – Combining advanced manufacturing in the Greater Bay Area with Brazil’s deep-sea exploration expertise.
Genomic Profiling of Live Marine Samples – Building a fast-track, trans-hemispheric bio-sample identification platform.
Synthetic Biology Technology Transfer – Jointly developing pharmaceutical pipelines from Brazil’s endemic marine microbes.
“Sustainable exploration of ocean resources requires global collaboration,” said Prof. LEE. “Leveraging Hong Kong’s position as an international innovation hub, RCOcean looks forward to working closely with Brazilian partners to chart a scientific path for the blue economy.”
