Hengdian, China, October 17, 2026 — Apeloa Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. today convened its 2026 Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) Annual Meeting & International Forum on Frontiers in Chemistry and Biopharmaceutical Innovation in Hengdian, Zhejiang Province. The two-day gathering brought together leading scientists in chemistry and biomedical research from China and abroad, representatives from innovative drug companies, capital market participants, and industry partners to explore new opportunities in drug discovery, development, and commercialization — and to strengthen collaboration between academia and industry.
Among the distinguished attendees were Dr. Shengming Ma, Member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Department of Chemistry Fudan University; Dr. Phil S. Baran, Member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; Dr. Xiaoguang Lei, Boya Distinguished Professor, College of Chem. & Mol. Eng., Peking University; Dr. Zhiwei Wang, Senior Vice President at BeOne Medicines; John Wu, Director and Vice President of Hengdian Group; Brian Zhu, Assistant President of Hengdian Group and Chairman of Apeloa Pharmaceutical; and Chun He, General Manager of Apeloa Pharmaceutical. The event was chaired by Dr. Steve Zhan, Assistant General Manager of Apeloa Pharmaceutical and Secretary-General of the SAB.
With more than 30 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, Apeloa has established itself as a leading player in both small-molecule CDMO services and specialty active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) in China. Guided by its strategy of "Global API Leader, CDMO Excellence, High-quality & Affordable Medicine, Expanding Aesthetic & Care Ingredients" the company established its Scientific Advisory Board in 2022. The SAB brings together some of the world's most influential minds in biomedical science — including Dr. Shengming Ma, Dr. Yuguo Zheng, Dr. Phil S. Baran, Dr. Ang Li, Dr. Jianhong Xu, Dr. Xiaoguang Lei, and Dr. Zhengming Du — providing strategic direction in cutting-edge fields such as chemical synthesis, synthetic biology, and peptides and nucleic acids. Under the guidance of the SAB, Apeloa has built and refined 11 technology platforms spanning flow chemistry, synthetic biology and enzymatic catalysis, and peptide technologies.
In August this year, Apeloa received the 2026 Frost & Sullivan Global CDMO Company of the Year Award — a recognition of the company's international standing in solving high-barrier process challenges and supporting global pharmaceutical companies in managing supply chain risks. The award underscores Apeloa's ambition to be a partner that is "fast and dependable" behind every innovator.
Competition in the innovative drug landscape has evolved well beyond breakthroughs in R&D alone. Today, success depends on the entire value chain — from process development and scale-up engineering to quality compliance, supply chain delivery, and commercialization. Against this backdrop, Apeloa leveraged its SAB annual meeting as a platform for the international forum, where keynote presentations and roundtable discussions fostered open exchange on frontier technologies, collective solutions to industry challenges, and the building of a robust industrial ecosystem.
Keynote Lecture
Dr. Shengming Ma
Member, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Department of Chemistry Fudan University
Dr. Shengming Ma, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Department of Chemistry Fudan University, delivered a presentation titled "ATA Dating with Aerobic Oxidations." Drawing on decades of dedicated research, Prof. Ma introduced efficient strategies for constructing structurally complex 1,3-disubstituted allenes from simple, readily available starting materials through ATA reactions combined with green aerobic oxidation. He also showcased the successful application of these methods in the total synthesis of complex natural products, biologically active molecules, and pharmaceutical intermediates—underscoring significant potential for industrial-scale application and delivering tangible value for the fine chemical and pharmaceutical industries.
Dr. Phil S. Baran
Member, The U.S. National Academy of Sciences; Member, American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Dr. Phil S. Baran, Member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, presented "Simplifying Synthesis through Radical Cross-Coupling." In his signature clear and passionate style, Dr. Baran dissected the key synthetic bottlenecks and core challenges in modern drug discovery. He introduced the use of simple, inexpensive sulfonyl hydrazides as ideal radical precursors, demonstrating how nickel-catalyzed controlled radical cross-coupling enables the construction of C–C bonds that conventional methods struggle to achieve. Beyond being operationally simple and mild in reaction conditions, this approach offers a flexible and versatile retrosynthetic strategy, providing fresh perspectives and practical methodologies for drug R&D and process development.
Dr. Xiaoguang Lei
Boya Distinguished Professor, College of Chem. & Mol. Eng., Peking University
Dr. Xiaoguang Lei, Boya Distinguished Professor, College of Chem. & Mol. Eng., Peking University, spoke on "Frontiers in Biocatalysis and Drug Innovation," focusing on "biocatalysis-driven transformative drug synthesis." He presented cutting-edge advances in natural product biosynthesis and enzyme catalysis, including the elucidation of biosynthetic pathways for key taxol (paclitaxel) intermediates and homoharringtonine, as well as the creation of novel enzymes through directed evolution and protein engineering. A highlight of the talk was the latest breakthrough in enzyme-catalyzed amide bond formation—addressing one of the most frequently used yet long-standing challenges in pharmaceutical synthesis—and demonstrating the immense potential of biocatalysis in green manufacturing and industrial applications.
Dr. Zhiwei Wang
SVP, BeOne Medicines
Dr. Zhiwei Wang, Senior Vice President at BeOne Medicines, shared the story of Brukinsa (zanubrutinib) in his presentation "The Story of Brukinsa: From Bench to Bedside," Using zanubrutinib as a case study, Dr. Wang walked the audience through the full journey of an innovative drug—from laboratory discovery to clinical development and global market approval. He revisited the design rationale behind this BTK inhibitor, detailing the structural optimization driven by the goals of improved target occupancy, sustained inhibition, and enhanced selectivity. He also shared strategic insights from the drug development process and the increasingly important role of CDMO collaboration in future R&D. Today, zanubrutinib has demonstrated clear advantages in both efficacy and safety, validated through head-to-head clinical trials.
Panel Discussion
A roundtable discussion titled "Enabling, Connecting, Delivering: The Power of CDMO in the Innovative Drug Ecosystem" brought together customer representatives and Apeloa's senior leadership for an in-depth exchange on how CDMOs can better empower their clients and create value across R&D, process development, technology transfer, and commercial delivery.
The panel featured Dr. Li, Global Director of External Manufacturing at a leading multinational pharmaceutical company; Dr. Binhua Lv, Chief Scientific Officer at Zelgen Biopharmaceuticals; Dr. Juntao Liu, Senior Director of CMC at BeOne; and Dr. Xinglong Jiang, Senior Vice President at Structure Bio — alongside Mr. George Cai, Senior Deputy General Manager of Apeloa Pharmaceutical and General Manager of the CDMO Business Unit, and Dr. Yi Hsiao, Chief Technology Officer of Apeloa Pharmaceutical. The discussion was moderated by Dr. Shuangxi Guo, Chief Pharmaceutical Analyst at Zheshang Securities.
Drawing on the real-world needs of different types of innovative drug companies, the panel explored what clients truly value at each stage of development — and where a CDMO partner can make the decisive difference.
Speaking at the session, Apeloa's leadership outlined the company's comprehensive capabilities: a robust talent development system, technology platforms in flow chemistry and biocatalysis, and an integrated service offering that balances speed for early-stage projects with CMC compliance for late-stage development. Apeloa's ambition is to serve as its clients' "external CMC team" — supporting programs from toxicology studies and clinical trials through to commercial launch.
Looking ahead, the company has made proactive investments in commercial-scale manufacturing capacity, global technology transfer capabilities, and PPQ (Process Performance Qualification) success rates — all designed to help clients achieve stable, reliable delivery at controlled cost and with shorter timelines.
Site Tour
As part of the event program, attendees also visited Apeloa's CDMO R&D and manufacturing site, where they gained firsthand insight into the company's research, development, and production operations.
