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CUHK Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Jiang Liwen becomes the first Hong Kong scholar to receive the Fellow of ASPB and nomination for Enid MacRobbie Corresponding Membership
Professor Jiang Liwen, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (External Affairs), Choh-Ming Li Professor of Life Sciences and Associate Dean (Research) in the Faculty of Science at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), has been nominated for the Enid MacRobbie Corresponding Membership by the American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB). This honour distinguished plant biologists based outside the United States. He has also been awarded the Fellow of ASPB Award, in recognition of his long-term contributions to plant biology and service to the Society. Professor Jiang is the first scholar from Hong Kong to receive both honours in the same year, underscoring his leadership and influence in the internal plant science community.
Professor Jiang said: “I am deeply honoured to be nominated for Enid MacRobbie Corresponding Membership and receive the Fellow of ASPB Award. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to CUHK for its unwavering support and to my colleagues and students for their dedication over the years. These honours encourage us not only to continue advancing the exciting research at our laboratory but also to drive the University’s development through international collaboration and research excellence, fostering mutually beneficial partnerships among academia, industry and government.”
Since joining CUHK in 2000, Professor Jiang has achieved outstanding accomplishments in research, teaching, and academic service. His research excellence has been recognised through major competitive grants and awards, including two Areas of Excellence from the Research Grants Council (RGC) of Hong Kong; four Ministry of Education Higher Education Outstanding Scientific Research Output Awards (First Class and Second Class); an RGC Senior Research Fellowship; two Croucher Senior Research Fellowships; four CUHK Research Excellence Awards; and a CUHK Science Faculty Exemplary Teaching Award. Professor Jiang also serves the scientific community through editorial roles for journals including Plant Science, Journal of Integrative Plant Biology, Chinese Bulletin of Botany, Protoplasma, The Plant Cell, Molecular Plant and SCIENCE CHINA: Life Sciences.
World-class imaging platforms supporting research excellence
With support from RGC grants and CUHK matching funds, Professor Jiang has established a state-of-the-art electron microscopy-based and live-cell imaging shared platform that has significantly advanced cutting-edge life sciences research. His research focuses on plant cell and organelle biology, particularly how plant cells organise their internal “transport routes” and how they maintain key cellular structures – processes essential for plant growth and survival.
In recent years, Professor Jiang’s team has applied advanced techniques such as 3D electron tomography and cryo-FIB/cryo-ET methods to observe plant membrane structures at the nanometre scale, further promoting the research direction of imaging-driven discovery. He also plans to integrate the MINFLUX system in 2026 to further enhance the capabilities of the shared research platform.
About the American Society of Plant Biologists Awards
The ASPB recognises individuals for their contributions to the advance of plant biology and service to the Society via more than 18 awards. For more information, please visit: https://aspb.org/awards-funding/aspb-awards
Professor Jiang Liwen
A group photo of Professor Jiang Liwen (1st right) and his research team.
Professor Jiang Liwen (2nd right) is having a discussion on the research data with his research team.
Research findings from Professor Jiang Liwen’s research team showing the 3D structure of vacuoles in an Arabidopsis root cell.
