Winners of China's top 10 scientific and technological progress news pose for a group photo at the prize presentation ceremony on Jan 11. [Photo/sdu.edu.cn]

The research on the molecular mechanism of olfactory perception by the team led by Professor Sun Jinpeng of Shandong University has been named among the top 10 scientific and technological progress news in China in 2023.

The list, voted by academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, was announced in Yantai, Shandong province, on Jan 11.

Most animals, including humans, have a master olfactory system that recognizes volatile odor molecules. A large number of olfactory receptors help animals identify trillions of odor molecules through "combinatorial coding" odor recognition.

The team led by Professor Sun of Shandong University and the team led by researcher Li Qian of Shanghai Jiao Tong University completed a study that explains the molecular mechanism of odor sensing by certain types of specific olfactory receptors. The study lays a theoretical foundation for the olfactory receptor family to recognize ligands, and is also of great significance for the development of new drugs targeting olfactory receptors. The research results were published in Nature on May 24, 2023.

The study was one of the nine high-level research results from Shandong University that were published in top journals in 2023. Its inclusion in the top 10 list of China's scientific and technological progress news in 2023 demonstrates the university's prowess in the field of basic research for scientific and technological innovation.