Chen Wei (; born February 1966) is a Chinese epidemiologist and virologist specializing in

biodefense Biodefense refers to measures to restore biosecurity to a group of organisms who are, or may be, subject to biological threats or infectious diseases. Biodefense is frequently discussed in the context of biowar or bioterrorism, and is generall ...

, currently researcher and doctoral adviser at the

Academy of Military Medical Sciences The Academy of Military Medical Sciences (AMMS) of the PLA Academy of Military Science () is a Chinese military medical research institute. It was established in Shanghai in 1951. It has been based in Beijing since 1958. In October 2011 the drug ...

, and an Academician of the

Chinese Academy of Engineering The Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE, ) is the national academy of the People's Republic of China for engineering. It was established in 1994 and is an institution of the State Council of China. The CAE and the Chinese Academy of Sciences ...

(CAE). In September 2021,

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

reported that Chen is also a

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

in China's People's Liberation Army.

Biography

Chen was born in Lanxi County, Jinhua, Zhejiang in 1966. She received bachelor's degree in

chemical engineering Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials int ...

from the

Zhejiang University Zhejiang University, abbreviated as ZJU or Zheda and formerly romanized as Chekiang University, is a national public research university based in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. It is a member of the prestigious C9 League and is selected into the n ...

in 1988. She obtained a master's degree at

Tsinghua University Tsinghua University (; abbr. THU) is a national public research university in Beijing, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education. The university is a member of the C9 League, Double First Class University Plan, Projec ...

in 1991. She attended

where she obtained her doctor's degree in 1998. She became a faculty member of the academy upon graduation. In 2013, Chen became a delegate of the People's Liberation Army to the

National People's Congress The National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China (NPC; ), or simply the National People's Congress, is constitutionally the supreme state authority and the national legislature of the People's Republic of China. With 2,9 ...

. On 10 July 2015, she was awarded the military rank of

('' shaojiang'') by Central Military Commission chairman

Xi Jinping Xi Jinping ( ; ; ; born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has served as the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), and thus as the paramount leader of China, ...

. She was a delegate to the

12th National People's Congress The 12th National People's Congress was elected in national congressional conferences from October 2012 to February 2013 and was in session from 2013 to 2018. It succeeded the 11th National People's Congress. It held five plenary sessions in t ...

. In January 2018 she became a member of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. In November 2019, She was elected as an academician of the

. On May 30, 2021, she was elected vice president of the

China Association for Science and Technology The China Association for Science and Technology (CAST; ) is a mass organization of Chinese scientists and engineers, which is composed of multiple national professional societies and hundreds of branches at various local and international level ...

COVID-19 vaccine research

In 2020, Chen led a joint team of the Institute of Biotechnology, the

and

CanSino Biologics CanSino Biologics (), often abbreviated as CanSinoBIO, is a Chinese vaccine company. History CanSino Biologics was founded in 2009 in Tianjin by Yu Xuefeng, Zhu Tao, Qiu Dongxu and Helen Mao Huihua. In July 2018, it filed an application to l ...

to develop

Convidecia AD5-nCOV, trade-named Convidecia, is a single-dose viral vector vaccine for COVID-19 developed by CanSino Biologics. It conducted its Phase III trials in Argentina, Chile, Mexico, Pakistan, Russia, and Saudi Arabia with 40,000 participants. I ...

. The development team registered a Phase 1

trial In law, a trial is a coming together of parties to a dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court. The tribunal ...

in March 2020 and a

Phase 2 Michael Lawrence Marrow (August 2, 1955 – December 12, 2019), known as PHASE 2 and Lonny Wood, was an American aerosol paint artist based in New York City. Mostly active in the 1970s, Phase 2 is generally credited with originating the "bubble l ...

trial in April 2020. It conducted its

Phase III trials The phases of clinical research are the stages in which scientists conduct experiments with a health intervention to obtain sufficient evidence for a process considered effective as a medical treatment. For drug development, the clinical phases ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

, and

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

with 40,000 participants. In February 2021, global data from Phase III trials and 101 COVID cases showed the vaccine had a 65.7% efficacy in preventing moderate symptoms of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...

, and 91% efficacy in preventing severe disease. Convidecia is approved for use by some countries in Asia, Europe, and Latin America.

Honours and awards

* 2009 Qiushi Outstanding Youth Award * 2010 National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars * 2011 The 8th Chinese Young Women in Science Awards * 2017 Science and Technology Progress Award of the

Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation The Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation (HLHL, ) is a Hong Kong-based non-government organisation which annually bestows prizes upon Chinese scientists. It was established on 30 March 1994, with funds donated from the charitable foundations of Ho Sin Han ...

* 2020 China's national honorary title "the People's Hero"

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chen, Wei 1966 births Living people Chinese epidemiologists Chinese virologists Delegates to the 12th National People's Congress Members of the 13th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Members of the Chinese Academy of Engineering People from Lanxi, Zhejiang People's Liberation Army generals from Zhejiang Educators from Jinhua Scientists from Jinhua Tsinghua University faculty Women epidemiologists Women virologists Zhejiang University alumni

Biography

COVID-19 vaccine research

Honours and awards

See also

References

External links