The Key Laboratory of Cell Proliferation and Differentiation of the Ministry of Education has been established after more than thirty years through the unremitting efforts of several generations. The laboratory has 24 professors, 10 associate professors, and 2 senior engineers. Among them, there are 2 academicians of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 5 chief scientists of “973” program, 7 winners of National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars, and 7 winners of Young Thousand Talents program in various research fields. The laboratory uses nematodes, Drosophila, Xenopus, Arabidopsis, zebrafish, and mice as model organisms to conduct research on the key problems in the regulation of cell proliferation and differentiation, so that an internationally competitive research team at Peking University can produce research with a significant impact in this field. Since its establishment in December 2005, the laboratory has published more than 300 articles in international journals, including top journals such as Cell, Nature, Science, etc. The Key Laboratory of Cell Proliferation and Differentiation of the Ministry of Education has twice passed the 5-year evaluation by the Ministry of Education and achieved excellent results in 2016 and 2021.
The Key Laboratory of Cell Proliferation and Differentiation of the Ministry of Education was established on the basis of the discipline of cell biology and the construction of the laboratory of Peking University. Teaching materials are one of the priorities of the laboratory. The textbook "Cell Biology", edited and written by Prof. Zhonghe Zhai, Xizhong Wang, Mingxiao Ding, Chuanmao Zhang, and some members of the laboratory, has been published for five consecutive editions with a circulation of more than one million copies, which is one of the most influential biology textbooks in China.
