Tsinghua Institute of Multidisciplinary Biomedical Research, Tsinghua University (abbreviated as TIMBR), jointly established by Tsinghua University and National Institute  of Biological Sciences, Beijing (abbreviated as NIBS), was founded on the afternoon of July 8, 2018. President of Tsinghua University, Qiu Yong, and Director of NIBS, Wang Xiaodong, signed the co-establishment agreement on behalf of both parties.

Co-establishment Objectives

The Tsinghua Institute of Multidisciplinary Biomedical Research (TIMBR) is jointly established by Tsinghua University and National Institute of Biological Sciences, Beijing (NIBS). Both sides will utilize their respective disciplinary and talent advantages to carry out comprehensive cooperation in talent cultivation, transformation of research results, institutional mechanism innovation, and international exchanges. The cooperation between the two sides will surely add new momentum to each other's development and make new contributions to the construction of Beijing Science and Technology Innovation Center.

History of Co-construction

On the afternoon of July 8, 2018, the signing ceremony of the joint construction agreement between Tsinghua University and National Institute of Biological Sciences, Beijing (NIBS) was in the main building of Tsinghua University.  Mr. Yin Hejun, member of the Standing Committee of the Beijing Municipal Committee, Vice Mayor of Beijing and Chairman of the Board of Directors of NIBS, Mr. Qiu Yong, President of Tsinghua University and Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of NIBS, and Mr. Wang Xiaodong, Director of NIBS, attended the ceremony and delivered speeches. Mr. Gao Runsheng, Deputy Director General of the Department of Science and Technology of the Ministry of Education, Mr. Xu Qiang, Director of Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission and Vice Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Institute, and Vice Presidents of Tsinghua University, Mr. Yang Bin, Mr. You Zheng, Mr. Wang Xiqin, and Mr. Zheng Li, were present at the ceremony. Chen Xu, Party Secretary of Tsinghua University, presided over the signing ceremony.

Yin Hejun said that the co-construction cooperation between Tsinghua University and NIBS will surely provide more valuable experience and demonstration for the cooperation between industry, academia and research, and will surely make greater contribution to accelerating the construction of the national science and technology innovation center with global influence, to the high-quality development of the capital city and to the construction of the world's scientific and technological power. Qiu Yong said that Tsinghua University has long been cooperating closely with NIBS in academic research and talent cultivation, and that the establishment of TIMBR between Tsinghua University and NIBS is of great significance to the development of Tsinghua's life sciences, medicine, pharmacy and other related disciplines, as well as to the construction of Tsinghua University's goal of becoming a world-class university. At the same time, inter-disciplinary research is Tsinghua's strength, and the promotion of inter-disciplinary research is an important part of the reform of the scientific research system of Tsinghua. Wang Xiaodong said that the deep union between NIBS and Tsinghua University is not only a union of two units, but also a deep combination of concepts and goals, in order to better realize the common goals of discipline development and institutional exploration for joint construction in the future.

Status of the Institute

TIMBR/NIBS is an important "testing ground" for the Chinese government to develop the life sciences field and carry out the reform of the science and technology innovation system. The main mission of TIMBR/NIBS is to explore a new scientific research operation mechanism that is in line with international standards and China's national conditions, and to carry out original basic research with a collective of international first-class scientists as the main body, and at the same time to cultivate excellent scientific research talents.

TIMBR/NIBS has a directorate system under the leadership of the Board of Directors. The Governing Board includes eight ministries and commissions, including the Ministry of Science and Technology, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Health, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the National Natural Science Foundation of China , the People's Government of Beijing Municipality, and the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences. The first Council was responsible for preparing for the establishment of NIBS, appointing the first Scientific Steering Committee, and conducting a global recruitment for the Director. The Scientific Steering Committee (SSC) is an academic advisory body for TIMBR/NIBS, composed of renowned scientists from home and abroad appointed by the Governing Board, whose main tasks are to conduct academic assessment of the Director of the Institute before appointment and to provide vetting opinions, and to make a stage-by-stage assessment of the work of the Institute and to make recommendations. The term of each Scientific Steering Committee is three years.

TIMBR/NIBS strictly selects Principal Investigators(PIs), who enjoy academic freedom in choosing their research areas. And the Institute provides stable financial support to the PIs, so that they can devote themselves to their research without any distraction. During the 5-year appointment period, there is no pressure for PIs to be evaluated. After 5 years of appointment, the PI's work will be evaluated by the Scientific Steering Committee based on his/her academic level and scientific achievements, while the Director will decide whether he/she will enter the next term of appointment by taking account of his/her research work, comprehensive contribution to the Institute and the need for future development.

TIMBR/NIBS is conducting original research in many important areas of life sciences, including the mechanisms of infection by a variety of human disease-causing bacteria, viruses and chlamydia, the neural basis of animal social behaviours, the mechanisms of aging, stem cell research, neurodegeneration, development and genetics, the mechanisms of tumourigenesis and therapeutics, and the mechanisms of autophagy in animal cells. By the end of December 2022, TIMBR/NIBS has published a total of 644 SCI papers as corresponding authors, with an average impact factor of 11.409, and a total of 51 papers in three top international scientific journals, namely, Nature, Science, and Cell. The impact of scientific research results is in a leading position in the domestic research institutes of the same kind.

In terms of postgraduate training, TIMBR/NIBS is the first institute in China to introduce a rotational internship system for new postgraduates (Peking University - Tsinghua University - NIBS), which provides a platform for students and faculty members to get to know each other in both directions. TIMBR/NIBS hosts an annual academic conference every year, inviting top scholars from all over the world to give presentations, thus providing a high-quality environment for students to learn and grow. Nearly 70% of TIMBR/NIBS PhD graduates go to prestigious foreign universities for further study, 20% stay in domestic scientific research and institutions, and the rest go to industry to work in investment, R&D, marketing or technology.