Institute of Microbiology
Profile
| Official Chinese name | 中国科学院微生物研究所 |
|---|---|
| Official English name | Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences |
| Chinese aliases | 中国科学院应用真菌研究所, 中国科学院北京微生物研究室, 微生物所 |
| English aliases | Institute of Applied Mycology, Beijing Laboratories of Microbiology |
| Acronyms | IMCAS |
| Research fields | Biology, basic medicine and pharmacy, microbiology, genetics, biochemistry and molecular biology, bioinformatics, molecular biology, bioinformatics, pathogenic biology, immunology, microbiology and biochemical pharmacy |
| Total employee count | Nearly 500 (as of 24 November 2025) |
Summary
Institute of Microbiology is categorised as a Limited Defence Partner based on the following indicators:
- Defence advisor
- 1 indicators
- Defence award
- 2 indicators
- Defence funding
- 3 indicators
- Defence laboratory
- 1 indicators
- Military-technology patent
- 1 indicators
- Research collaboration with defence entities
- 3 indicators
A limited defence partner contributes to the development of China’s defence capabilities in ways that are limited in time, frequency, scope or scale. Evidence indicates that participation has either ceased or if it persists, it is narrow in scope, not institutionalised and occurs through isolated or infrequent activities led by individual researchers, rather than through sustained programmes or organisational commitments.
Rules-based framework
| Rule | Resulting category |
|---|---|
| Two or more indicators = 4 | Core defence partner |
| One indicator = 4 and two indicators = 3 or Three or more indicators = 3 | Regular defence partner |
| One indicator = 4 and one indicator = 3 and all other indicators = 1 or 2 or Two indicators = 3 and all other indicators = 1 or 2 | Limited defence partner |
| All indicators between 0 and 2 | Civilian institute |
| Three or more indicators = 0 | Insufficient data |
Note: All indicators operate on a 0 to 4 scale. There are a total of six indicators.
For more information on the graded scales see the user guide.
Defence advisory roles
Members of the leadership of the Institute of Microbiology served on defence-related expert committees. However, because the underlying data are outdated and lack sufficient detail, this assessment is made with medium confidence, and such service cannot be fully ruled out.
Defence awards
Available information indicates that Institute of Microbiology researchers have received at least one defence award over time: a national Most Beautiful Science and Technology Worker Award granted in 2021.[1] But because the underlying data are incomplete and outdated, this assessment is made with medium confidence. Awards granted to individuals not surveyed or in recent years cannot be ruled out.
Defence funding
Between 2021 and 2025, researchers from the Institute of Microbiology authored 15 publications funded by Chinese defence entities, placing the institute in the 37th percentile among the CAS institutes included in this analysis. Of the 2,625 authors affiliated with the Institute of Microbiology who published during this period, 38 (1 per cent) had at least one defence-funded publication. However, it is not possible to attribute specific funding to individual researchers based solely on publication data.
Defence laboratories
No publicly available information suggests that this institute hosts or is affiliated with any known defence laboratories. The Chinese language laboratory websites do not mention any links or references to defence-related activities.
Military-technology patents
Between 2021 and 2025, the Institute of Microbiology Geophysics was not granted any military-technology patents. This places it at the very bottom (0th percentile) among the CAS institutes included in this analysis. No inventors from the Institute of Microbiology Geophysics were listed on any military-technology patents during this period.
Research collaboration with defence entities
Between 2021 and 2025, researchers from the Institute of Microbiology co-authored 193 publications with at least one Chinese defence entity, placing the institute in the 20th percentile among the CAS institutes included in this analysis.
These collaborations include 17 publications with PLA academic institutions, 121 with defence laboratories, 15 with military hospitals, 45 with members of the Seven Sons of National Defence, 11 with members of the Seven Sons of Ordnance Industry and 6 with defence conglomerates.
Of the 2,625 authors affiliated with the Institute of Microbiology who published during this period, 428 (16 per cent) had at least one defence-related collaboration.
Return to directoryNotes
All cited web content was viewed at its original website location; however, to ensure ongoing accessibility we are providing links to Internet Archive versions here.
- Institute of Microbiology. 2021. 'Warmest congratulations to Academician Zhuang Wenying on being selected as one of the "2021 Most Beautiful Scientific and Technological Workers"!' [热烈祝贺庄文颖院士入选’2021最美科技工作者’！]. 5 November. As of 7 April.Return to content⤴