Our project, focused on the biosynthetic production of salidroside, has engaged with a diverse range of stakeholders to ensure our work is responsible, beneficial, and aligned with societal needs. We recognize that "Human Practices" is an integral part of any scientific endeavor, involving continuous interaction with the world to understand its impact and be impacted by it.
Our approach to Human Practices has been iterative and multi-faceted, guided by the principle of "closing the loop" – ensuring that stakeholder feedback directly influences our project's design and execution. Through Human Practice we want to understanding public needs; refine our research, optimize production, and strategize market entry; promoted synthetic biology and our project and iterative design based on stakeholder input. In this we way, we have continuously refined our project's direction, from technical development to product positioning and promotional strategies.

Our stakeholders can be broadly categorized as follows:

· The General Public: We have made significant efforts to engage with the public through various channels, including online questionnaires, off line survey and social media platforms (like Red Note). This engagement aims to raise awareness about salidroside, its potential benefits, and synthetic biology in general.

· Healthcare Professionals and Institutions: This group encompasses doctors and hospitals. Our engagement with them aims to understand the clinical needs, potential applications of salidroside in healthcare, and gather perspectives on its integration into existing treatment protocols.

· Students and Educators: Through activities like bacteria art promotion and experience sessions, we have engaged with teachers and students to popularize synthetic biology and foster interest in scientific fields. This educational outreach helps bridge the gap between complex scientific concepts and a broader audience.

· Industry Professionals: We have engaged with business experts and pharmaceutical companies to gain insights into commercialization strategies, market positioning, and product development.

· Regulatory Bodies and Government Agencies: While not directly interviewed, our interactions with experts and industry professionals have been heavily influenced by the need to comply with regulations and industry standards.

By systematically engaging with these stakeholders, we aim to ensure that our salidroside biosynthetic production project is not only scientifically sound but also socially responsible, ethically considered, and ultimately beneficial to the wider community.

In modern society, stress has become a prevalent issue affecting people across all age groups — students face academic competition, working professionals bear work-related burdens, and middle-aged and elderly individuals may experience psychological stress due to family responsibilities and health concerns. Chronic stress not only impacts emotional states but also poses potential negative effects on cardiovascular health, such as causing blood pressure fluctuations and abnormal heart rates. However, salidroside, a natural compound with potential stress-regulating and cardiovascular protective properties, still lacks sufficient awareness among the general public.
To better advance the implementation of our project and gather more insights into public preferences, we first conducted background research and brainstorming sessions for the project to clarify our research significance and survey objectives. Subsequently, we carried out a series of online questionnaires and offline surveys to assess stress levels and cardiovascular health status among people of different age groups. Meanwhile, through these surveys, we investigated the public’s understanding of salidroside, aiming to collect systematic and reliable data.

Background:

To gain a more precise understanding of the stress levels of different populations, their key concerns regarding cardiovascular health, and their level of knowledge about salidroside, we first chose to collect feedback through an online questionnaire survey. This method, leveraging its advantages of wide coverage and convenient operation, can break through geographical and age limitations to reach various groups such as students, office workers, and retirees, thereby ensuring the diversity of data. Meanwhile, by scientifically designing the content of the questionnaire, we were able to collect systematic and reliable data, which not only provides strong support for in-depth insight into public needs but also lays a practical foundation for the advancement of subsequent projects. In total, we collected 208 valid questionnaires.

Purposes:

The core objective of this online questionnaire survey is to comprehensively understand the public’s current status in three aspects: stress management, cardiovascular health, and awareness of salidroside. Specifically, it includes the following:

· Stress Status Dimension: Grasp the main sources of stress among different populations (such as academics, work, interpersonal relationships, health, etc.), common physical and mental reactions caused by stress (such as anxiety, insomnia, palpitations, etc.), and the stress relief methods currently adopted (such as exercise, meditation, taking health supplements, etc.).

· Cardiovascular Health Dimension: Understand the public’s level of attention to cardiovascular health (such as whether they regularly monitor related indicators, whether they understand the impact of stress on the cardiovascular system), daily protective habits (such as dietary control, exercise frequency, regular work and rest, etc.), and the potential demand for cardiovascular health products.

· Salidroside Awareness Dimension: Evaluate the public’s awareness of salidroside (such as whether they have heard of this compound), their level of understanding of its effects (such as whether they know about its potential stress-resistant and cardiovascular protective effects), and information acquisition channels (such as health popularization, product promotion, recommendations from relatives and friends, etc.). At the same time, collect the public’s willingness to accept related products.

Highlights:

1. Among the sources of stress, academics or work are the primary factors, with 42% of respondents troubled by this: students worry about exams and schoolwork, while working professionals are tied down by performance targets and work rhythms. Interpersonal relationships, health concerns, and financial stress also account for a certain proportion, and the rest are other factors such as the environment. Regarding stress-induced reactions, 76% of respondents reported emotional anxiety and irritability, 53% had insomnia issues, many experienced cardiovascular discomforts like chest tightness, 45% had impaired concentration, and only a small number showed no obvious reactions.

2. In terms of cardiovascular health, 29% of respondents paid great attention to it and proactively managed it, 51% showed general concern but did not maintain consistent actions, and a small number rarely paid attention or did not care at all. When it comes to the "link between stress and cardiovascular health," 32% had a clear understanding, 45% had heard of it but had no clear knowledge, and the rest knew nothing about it. For daily protection, 58% of respondents would control their diet, 31% kept exercising regularly, some had regular physical examinations or took heart-protective products, and a small number took no special measures.

3. The awareness rate of salidroside was relatively low: only 21% of respondents had heard of it, mostly those who paid attention to health, and the rest said they were unfamiliar with it. Among those who were aware of salidroside, a small number knew about its effects of relieving stress or protecting cardiovascular health, while most still did not understand its specific functions. The acceptance of related products was relatively high: 67% were willing to try them, 26% held a wait-and-see attitude, and only a small number explicitly refused.

Reflections:

The data from this survey has provided us with a wealth of valuable information. On the positive side, it has clarified the public’s current status and needs regarding stress management and cardiovascular health protection. It has also helped us understand that although the awareness rate of salidroside is low, there is a certain level of market acceptance for it—findings that provide a basis for adjusting and advancing the project direction.
However, the survey also has some limitations. In terms of sample distribution, the proportion of people over 40 years old is relatively low, which may lead to inaccurate judgments about the relevant situation of this group. Meanwhile, the description of salidroside’s effects in the questionnaire may have affected respondents’ attitudes to a certain extent, resulting in a degree of guidance bias. In addition, the survey did not dig deeply enough into respondents’ specific preferences regarding product forms, prices, and other aspects. All these shortcomings need to be improved in subsequent surveys.
In the future, we plan to adopt survey methods that are more accessible to target groups, further expand the breadth and depth of sample coverage to make the survey results more representative, and at the same time refine the survey content to obtain more accurate and comprehensive information. This will provide more solid support for the smooth implementation of the project.

Background:

Building on the preliminary overview of the public’s status regarding stress management, cardiovascular health, and awareness of salidroside provided by the online questionnaire survey, we conducted an offline survey to address the room for improvement in areas such as in-depth sample coverage and detailed demand exploration.
Through methods including face-to-face interviews and focus group discussions, this offline survey overcame the limitations of online communication. It focused on engaging groups that were underrepresented in the online sample—particularly middle-aged and elderly individuals aged 40 and above. Meanwhile, by observing respondents’ real-time reactions and conducting in-depth follow-up questions, we obtained more vivid and specific information. This not only compensated for the shortcomings of the online questionnaire, such as insufficient avoidance of guidance bias and inadequate exploration of detailed preferences, but also further enriched the data dimensions, providing a more three-dimensional basis for the advancement of the project.

Purposes:

The core objective of this offline survey is to deepen the understanding of the public’s relevant conditions based on the previous online survey, with a key focus on addressing the shortcomings of the online survey. Specifically, it includes the following:

1. Stress Status Dimension: For different groups—especially those aged 40 and above—this survey aims to gain in-depth insights into their unique stress sources, specific physical and mental reactions caused by stress, and more detailed stress relief methods, thereby supplementing the details not covered in the online survey.

2. Cardiovascular Health Dimension: It focuses on the middle-aged and elderly groups’ key concerns about cardiovascular health, the implementation details of their daily protective habits, as well as their real needs and concerns regarding cardiovascular health products. This helps to improve the online survey data related to this group.

3. Salidroside Awareness Dimension: Through face-to-face communication, the survey conducts a more objective assessment of the public’s channels for learning about salidroside and their cognitive misunderstandings about it. It also explores in depth the specific preferences of different groups regarding the form, price, and efficacy promotion of salidroside-related products, eliminating the potential guiding influence that may exist in the online questionnaire.

Highlights:

1. Among the stress sources of people aged 40 and above, health management (such as chronic disease control and abnormal physical examination indicators) and family responsibilities are prominent, accounting for 38% and 31% respectively. The physical and mental reactions caused by stress are mainly poor sleep quality (62%) and fatigue (55%), while stress relief methods mostly rely on family companionship (45%) and light exercise such as walking (39%). This fills the gap in online data regarding this group.

2. In terms of cardiovascular health, 83% of people aged 40 and above stated that they pay attention to it, among whom 65% conduct regular basic examinations such as electrocardiograms and blood pressure tests. For diet, 72% prefer home-cooked meals with low salt and low fat, and 58% mainly engage in group sports activities such as square dancing and tai chi. Their concerns about cardiovascular health products focus on ingredient safety (61%) and suitability for target groups (53%), which supplements the data on differences in health habits across different age groups.

3. In terms of salidroside awareness, 42% of those who know about it learned of it through community health lectures. Regarding product form preferences, 60% tend to choose capsules and oral liquids, 68% have a price acceptance range of 50-150 yuan per month, and 71% have high trust in efficacy promotion featuring "natural plant extraction".

Reflections:

The offline survey has specifically addressed the shortcomings of the online survey. By engaging with respondents in close proximity, it has obtained more accurate and in-depth information—particularly regarding the characteristics of the middle-aged and elderly groups and their detailed preferences for products. However, this offline survey also has limitations, such as the concentrated geographical distribution of samples (mainly covering urban residents) and the reluctance of some respondents to express themselves openly (e.g., concerns about information leakage).
Going forward, we will integrate the data from both online and offline surveys to further optimize the project plan:

• we will adjust the promotional focus and form design of salidroside-related products to align with the health needs of the middle-aged and elderly groups;

• we will expand the geographical coverage of samples by including rural residents in subsequent supplementary surveys.

These efforts aim to build a more comprehensive and reliable data system, thereby providing more solid support for the smooth implementation of the project.

In modern society, cognitive barriers and information gaps in biosynthesis hinder project implementation: the public lacks basic knowledge of synthetic biology (seeing it as "complex"), fears Escherichia coli (deeming it "harmful"), and over 80% haven’t heard of salidroside or its microbial synthesis. This blocks tech popularization, public trust in biosynthetic salidroside products, and the project’s "eco-friendly health improvement" value.
To address this, we first used bacteria art to turn abstract synthetic biology/fluorescent protein knowledge into tangible works, reducing Escherichia coli (E. coli) aversion. Then we held hands-on bacteria art experiences to deepen understanding of microbial benefits in controlled environments. Finally, we promoted on Red Note to reach health/tech fans, share the economic/eco value of microbial-synthesized salidroside, collect feedback, and boost project/product recognition.

Background:

To popularize knowledge about fluorescent proteins and synthetic biology among teachers and students in schools, we organized a promotional activity using the innovative form of bacteria art. Bacteria art integrates microbial cultivation with artistic creation, enabling the transformation of abstract knowledge—such as the luminescent properties of fluorescent proteins and the technical principles of synthetic biology—into tangible visual works.
Teachers and students possess strong learning and communication abilities, and this engaging format helps bridge the gap between them and biological knowledge. It also aids in reducing their aversion to E. coli, thereby guiding them to view the role of synthetic biology in advancing human health rationally. In turn, this creates favorable conditions for enhancing the market recognition of biosynthetic salidroside products.
Held in the school exhibition hall and biology classrooms, this activity attracted approximately 150 teachers and students to participate.

Purposes:

The bacteria art promotion activity aims to achieve multiple goals through its unique format, as detailed below:

1. Interest Enhancement: By showcasing bacteria artworks inspired by fluorescent protein and synthetic biology elements, it stimulates teachers’ and students’ interest in biology-related fields, encouraging them to proactively explore more biological knowledge.

2. Knowledge Popularization: Using bacteria art as a carrier, the activity explains the characteristics of fluorescent proteins and the basic principles of synthetic biology. This helps teachers and students develop a certain understanding of the biosynthetic field and recognize its application value in various sectors.

3. Cognitive Guidance: Combined with the demonstration of E. coli application in bacteria art, the activity eliminates teachers’ and students’ inherent aversion to the bacterium. It guides them to rationally view the positive role of synthetic biology advancements in promoting human health, while also helping them understand the advantages of biosynthetic salidroside products to enhance the products’ market recognition.

Highlights：

1. During the event, bacterial painting works integrating fluorescent protein luminescent effects and synthetic biology technology scenarios attracted great attention. Most teachers and students stated that these works helped them gain an intuitive understanding of relevant biological knowledge; students showed high enthusiasm for participation, and most expressed their willingness to take the initiative to try drawing simple bacterial paintings and actively consult about relevant knowledge.

2. In terms of knowledge dissemination, through the explanations of bacterial paintings and the introductions by staff, most participants learned about the principle of synthetic biology — modifying biological systems to synthesize specific products. Many participants also became aware of the role of E. coli in biosynthesis, and a large number of teachers and students indicated that their negative attitude towards E. coli had decreased, recognizing its value in a controlled environment.

3. Regarding biosynthetic salidroside products, after the introduction of their research and development background (R&D) (which uses synthetic biology technology and E. coli as the host), most teachers and students recognized the scientificity and safety of this technical route; some teachers and students were willing to further understand the product's efficacy, among whom teachers showed relatively high attention to the application of this product in the medical and health fields.

Reflections:

The bacteria art promotion activity achieved remarkable results. With its innovative format, it successfully stimulated teachers’ and students’ interest in the field of biology, effectively popularized knowledge about fluorescent proteins and synthetic biology, and played a significant role in reducing aversion to E. coli and guiding rational views on related technologies. Additionally, it laid a solid foundation of awareness and recognition for biosynthetic salidroside products. In particular, witnessing students’ strong interest in bacteria art creation has further strengthened our determination to carry out similar activities in depth.
In the future, we will further enrich the creative elements of bacteria art by integrating more cutting-edge applications of fluorescent proteins and synthetic biology. We will also launch bacteria art experience activities, allowing teachers and students to personally participate in the creation process of bacteria art and deepen their understanding of relevant knowledge through practice. Meanwhile, we will design more tailored experience content for teachers and students of different academic stages, continuously enhancing their understanding of the biosynthetic field and recognition of our products, thereby laying a solid foundation for product promotion.

Background:

Given the strong interest in bacteria art creation shown by teachers and students during the previous bacteria art promotion activity, we took the opportunity to launch a bacteria art experience activity. Centered on knowledge about fluorescent proteins and synthetic biology, this activity allows teachers and students to engage in close-range microbial cultivation while creating bacteria art with their own hands, enabling them to intuitively experience the charm of biological science.
Through this hands-on experience, participants can further deepen their understanding of relevant knowledge, continuously reduce their aversion to E. coli, and develop a rational perspective on synthetic biology technology—ultimately enhancing the market recognition of biosynthetic salidroside products.
Held in batches in the school’s biology laboratories, this experience activity attracted approximately 80 teachers and students to participate.

Purposes:

The bacteria art experience activity aims to achieve multiple goals through hands-on practice, as detailed below:

1. Practical Cognition: It allows teachers and students to personally experience the entire creation process of bacteria art, including E. coliinoculation, cultivation, and pattern formation. Through this practice, they deepen their understanding of the characteristics of fluorescent proteins and the technical principles of synthetic biology.

2. Interest Enhancement: By combining biological knowledge with artistic creation during hands-on work, the activity further stimulates teachers’ and students’ interest in biology-related fields, encouraging them to explore knowledge in the biosynthetic field more proactively.

3. Cognitive Deepening: During the experience, explanations about the application value of E. coli in synthetic biology are integrated with the hands-on process. This helps to further eliminate participants’ aversion to E. coli, guide teachers and students to view the role of synthetic biology in promoting human health more rationally, and at the same time deepen their understanding and recognition of biosynthetic salidroside products.

Highlights:

1. During the experience activity, teachers and students showed high enthusiasm for participation. Most participants stated that the process of creating bacteria art with their own hands gave them a more intuitive understanding of microbial cultivation.

2. In terms of knowledge deepening, through the combination of hands-on practice and explanations, participants said they gained a clearer understanding of the principle of modifying biological systems in synthetic biology, and their aversion to E. coli further decreased.

3. Regarding biosynthetic salidroside products, after introducing the similar biosynthetic technologies involved in their R&D during the experience, most teachers and students expressed greater trust in the product’s technical principles and stated that they were willing to recommend the product to others.

Reflections:

The bacteria art experience activity achieved results that exceeded expectations. By engaging teachers and students in hands-on creation, it not only deepened their understanding of knowledge related to fluorescent proteins and synthetic biology, further stimulating their interest in the field of biology, but also significantly reduced their aversion to E. coli. This laid a more solid foundation for enhancing the market recognition of biosynthetic salidroside products. The bacteria artworks created by teachers and students during the activity are highly ornamental and have substantial popular science value, making them well-suited for dissemination on online platforms.
In the future, we plan to expand the scale of the experience activity and introduce more themed bacteria art creations—such as works depicting the biosynthetic pathway of salidroside—allowing participants to gain a deeper understanding of our products through the experience. Meanwhile, we will optimize the experience process and provide more tailored operational guidance for teachers and students of different academic stages. Additionally, we will organize the wonderful moments of the activity, the artworks created by teachers and students, and relevant science popularization content, then promote them on Red Note. By leveraging the platform’s communication power, we aim to help more people understand the scientific knowledge behind bacteria art, as well as our biosynthetic technology and products, to continuously expand our influence.

Background:

Leveraging the rich materials accumulated from the previous bacteria art experience activity, and given that Red Note—a lifestyle-sharing platform popular among young people—boasts the characteristics of fast content dissemination and strong interactivity, we chose to launch a promotional campaign on this platform.
By tapping into Red Note users’ interest in novel things and healthy lifestyles, we integrated the exciting content from the bacteria art experience activity with our project information for dissemination. This approach can effectively expand the project’s influence, helping more people learn about the innovative solution of microbial-synthesized salidroside and its value.

Purposes:

This Red Note promotion aims to achieve multiple goals by leveraging the platform’s characteristics, as detailed below:

1. Project Promotion: We will introduce our project in detail—specifically the microbial synthesis of salidroside. This project provides an economical, environmentally friendly, and sustainable solution to address physical fatigue and prevent cardiovascular diseases, while offering new options in the healthcare, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical fields. Ultimately, it aims to improve people’s quality of life, helping more people understand the value and significance of the project.

2. Interaction and Traffic Generation: Through engaging content, we will stimulate user interaction, collect users’ opinions and needs regarding the project and salidroside-related products, and attract potential audiences to learn more about the project. This will enhance the attention and recognition of both the project and its products.

Highlights:

1. The promotional content has reached the core group interested in synthetic biology and natural health ingredients to a certain extent, and has also helped scientific knowledge achieve dissemination within a certain scope to a certain extent.

2. In the project introduction, the economic and environmentally friendly characteristics of microbially synthesized salidroside have gained recognition from some groups concerned about sustainable development.

3. Relevant groups concerned about the health field have shown expectations for salidroside products, which has also helped us gain a deeper understanding of the needs of the core group.

Reflections:

This Red Note promotion achieved remarkable results in accurately reaching the target audience and deepening professional interactions. By focusing on the core group, the project’s concepts and scientific knowledge were effectively disseminated within relevant communities, helping the project accumulate a group of potential followers with professional backgrounds and in-depth interest.
In the future, we will continue to delve deeper into niche areas and create more professional content for communities of health and technology enthusiasts—such as in-depth analysis of salidroside synthesis technology and case sharing of practical application scenarios. Through the continuous delivery of valuable information, we will strengthen connections with the core audience, steadily expand the project’s influence among the target group, and lay a solid foundation for the project’s long-term development.

To advance the biosynthetic production project of salidroside, we conducted interviews with experts from multiple fields based on distinct needs, each with a clear core objective: interviews with experts from the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) hospital aimed to gain insights into salidroside’s clinical application value in TCM, the feasibility of its synthetic technology, and suggestions for clinical implementation; interviews with Western medicine experts specializing in cardiovascular diseases sought to clarify its potential as an adjuvant therapy for cardiovascular conditions and its product positioning; consultation with Dr. Gu focused on resolving technical issues like enzyme selection optimization and standardized presentation of experimental data; consultation with business experts aimed to optimize the business plan and confirm strategies for product positioning, distribution channels, and pricing; and interviews with media expert Professor Fan were intended to select communication channels, develop targeted promotion strategies for different audiences, and alleviate public concerns about the technology. Collectively, these interviews have provided multi-dimensional professional support for the project.

Background:

Rhodiola rosea and salidroside are widely used in clinical Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practice, and the production of salidroside using synthetic biology technology has become a key direction in current research. To gain a deeper understanding of issues such as the practical application of salidroside in the TCM field, the feasibility of salidroside production via synthetic biology technology, and relevant market and regulatory matters, we specially conducted interviews with experts from TCM hospitals. This interview integrated the Chinese Pharmacopoeia, relevant regulations, and market data, and referenced cases such as artificial cordyceps and artemisinin, aiming to provide professional insights from the frontline of TCM clinical practice for the advancement of the project.

Purposes:

The core purpose of this interview with experts from TCM hospitals is to obtain professional information from multiple aspects and provide guidance for the biosynthetic production project of salidroside. The specific objectives are as follows:

1. To understand the clinical application value and market prospects of Rhodiola rosea and salidroside in TCM practice, and clarify their position and demand status within the TCM diagnosis and treatment system.

2. To discuss the feasibility, quality standards, and application potential of salidroside production via synthetic biology technology, and assess the applicability of this technical route in the TCM field.

3. To collect suggestions from TCM hospital experts regarding the clinical acceptance, regulatory pathways, and market-oriented strategies of synthetic salidroside, so as to provide references for the clinical implementation and market promotion of the project.

Highlights:

1. In terms of clinical practice and market outlook, experts pointed out that Rhodiola rosea is widely used in TCM clinical scenarios such as "replenishing qi and activating blood circulation", combating fatigue, and addressing altitude sickness. As its key active component, salidroside exhibits significant effects including anti-fatigue, anti-hypoxia, and anti-inflammatory properties, with a continuously growing market demand. However, natural raw materials face issues such as limited supply, large quality fluctuations, and high costs. The production of salidroside using synthetic biology technology can effectively alleviate these bottlenecks and holds broad application prospects.

2. Regarding the acceptance of synthetic biology, experts believe that synthetic salidroside can gain clinical and consumer recognition if it can ensure structural equivalence and stable quality, supported by sufficient pharmacological and toxicological data. They also suggested drawing lessons from successful cases such as artificial cordyceps and artemisinin, and highlighting features like "green biological manufacturing" and "precision fermentation" in communication to enhance acceptance.

3. In terms of quality and safety requirements, experts emphasized the need to establish rigorous quality standards covering purity, impurity limits, HPLC methods, and batch-to-batch consistency. Additionally, systematic safety and efficacy verification should be conducted, including acute/long-term toxicity, mutagenicity, reproductive toxicity, and pharmacokinetics studies, to ensure the safety and efficacy of clinical application.

4. For implementation and cooperation strategies, experts recommended that in the short term, cooperation can be carried out with TCM hospitals to develop in-hospital preparations and conduct small-scale clinical observations, and with health product enterprises to apply for "blue cap" certified health products. In the medium to long term, collaboration with enterprises experienced in TCM new drug development should be pursued to advance new drug registration and conduct key clinical trials, gradually expanding into the functional food, cosmetics, and international markets.

Reflections:

The interviews with TCM hospital experts yielded substantial insights, providing the project with highly valuable clinical perspectives and professional recommendations. These inputs have given us a clearer understanding of salidroside’s application value in TCM clinical practice, the key requirements for its production via synthetic biology technology, and the pathways for practical implementation. Importantly, the experts’ views align with our prior understanding and planning of the project, further validating the feasibility of the project and the correctness of its direction.
Additionally, we have realized that in the subsequent advancement of the project, greater emphasis must be placed on establishing quality standards and conducting safety verification, while closely aligning our work with TCM clinical needs. Given salidroside’s potential role in preventing cardiovascular diseases, we plan to interview Western medicine experts specializing in cardiovascular diseases next. This will allow us to explore salidroside’s application potential from a Western clinical perspective, the possibility of integrating it with existing treatment protocols, and relevant quality and safety considerations. By comprehensively integrating insights from both TCM and Western medicine, we aim to provide more holistic professional support for the project’s multi-dimensional development. In the future, we will synthesize recommendations from experts across various fields to facilitate the successful implementation and development of the project in the broader healthcare sector.

Background:

Given salidroside’s potential role in preventing cardiovascular diseases, and considering that Western medicine has a systematic theoretical framework and extensive clinical experience in the diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular diseases, we conducted an interview with Dr. Miao, an expert in cardiovascular diseases, to explore salidroside’s application potential from a Western medicine perspective.
This interview took into account practical contexts such as the global and domestic status of cardiovascular diseases and existing treatment methods. It aimed to provide professional references at the Western clinical level for determining the product positioning and planning application scenarios of synthetic salidroside, thereby complementing the TCM perspective and improving the project’s professional support system.

Purposes:

The core purpose of this Interview with Cardiovascular Disease Experts Profess Miao is to obtain professional information from multiple aspects and provide guidance for the product positioning and development direction of the salidroside biosynthetic production project. The specific objectives are as follows:

1. To gain an understanding from Dr. Miao of the current treatment methods for cardiovascular diseases, and clarify the characteristics and limitations of existing therapeutic approaches.

2. To explore the application scope, feasibility, and public acceptance of salidroside-based drugs in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases, thereby providing a basis for product development.

3. To determine the product direction of synthetic salidroside in light of the current status of the medical industry, and clarify its appropriate positioning—whether as a primary therapeutic drug or an adjuvant therapy (such as a health product-type drug).

Highlights:

1. Regarding the global and domestic impact of cardiovascular diseases, Dr. Miao pointed out that the global incidence of cardiovascular diseases is extremely high, accounting for one-fourth of the world’s population, and the incidence in China also remains at a relatively high level. The onset of such diseases is mainly related to innate genetics and acquired bad habits, such as emotional factors, alcohol abuse, smoking, and lack of exercise. This information has helped us clarify the market demand background for salidroside in the field of cardiovascular disease prevention and adjuvant therapy.

2. In terms of existing treatment methods and their limitations, the main approaches include drug therapy (e.g., antihypertensive drugs, lipid-lowering drugs, anticoagulants), surgical treatment (e.g., emergency rescue, cardiac stents, bypass surgery, cardiac pacemakers), and daily life prevention measures (e.g., quitting smoking and alcohol, increasing exercise, and a low-salt diet). However, most of these methods focus on "confrontational treatment"—they cannot cure the disease, most require lifelong treatment, and they have limitations such as side effects and high costs. This creates a market space for synthetic salidroside to be used as an adjuvant therapy.

3. The application of Rhodiola-based drugs in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases shows that they have a wide range of uses, with effects such as antioxidation, vasodilation, antithrombosis, and promotion of myocardial recovery, and can effectively prevent cardiovascular diseases. However, due to unclear active ingredients and effective dosage, they are mainly used as adjuvant therapy in clinical practice. At the same time, traditional Chinese medicines face challenges in global promotion due to issues such as bacterial contamination, heavy metals, unstable efficacy, and harmful components. This reminds us that we should focus on domestic promotion and development first, and set safety, efficacy, and higher salidroside content than natural Rhodiola as the goals for research and development.

4. Regarding the product positioning of synthetic salidroside, Dr. Miao believes that if the promotion is extensive and comprehensive and the product is safe and effective, it has great potential. Based on the current clinical situation, positioning it as a health product-type drug for adjuvant therapy is a more appropriate initial direction.

Reflections:

The interview with the cardiovascular disease expert yielded significant insights, providing us with professional perspectives on the current status of cardiovascular disease treatment, the application potential of salidroside, and product positioning from a Western clinical viewpoint. Complementing the recommendations from TCM hospital experts, this interview has given us a more comprehensive understanding of the market demand, application scenarios, and R&D objectives for synthetic salidroside.
The interview also clarified that in subsequent R&D efforts, we must focus on addressing key issues such as the clarity of salidroside’s active ingredients, the certainty of its dosage, and its safety—all to meet the rigorous requirements of Western medicine for clinical drugs. In the future, we will integrate the advice from both TCM and Western medicine experts to further optimize the product R&D direction and promotion strategies, and promote the application of synthetic salidroside in the fields of adjuvant therapy for cardiovascular diseases and health protection. Additionally, we may consider interviewing pharmacology research experts in the future to conduct an in-depth exploration of salidroside’s mechanism of action, thereby providing more solid theoretical support for the product’s efficacy.

Background:

During the advancement of the salidroside biosynthetic production project, we encountered issues that required optimization in technical details and experimental presentation. Dr. Gu has profound academic accumulation and extensive practical experience in fields such as enzyme engineering, biosensors, and experimental data processing. To enhance the project’s technical robustness and standardize the presentation of experimental data, we specifically consulted Dr. Gu, hoping to leverage his professional perspective to provide directions for project improvement.

Purposes:

The core purpose of this consultation with Dr. Gu is to obtain targeted improvement suggestions and promote the more efficient and standardized development of the project. The specific objectives are as follows:

1. To seek Dr. Gu professional advice on enzyme selection for salidroside synthesis—such as the optimization direction of currently used enzymes and the exploration of other potential functional enzymes—so as to improve synthesis efficiency.

2. To consult him on methods for presenting experimental data, aiming to make experimental results clearer and more intuitive, and enhance the persuasiveness of the data.

3. To request Dr. Gu overall improvement opinions on the project, covering aspects such as technical R&D and the implementation of popular science activities, in order to further refine the project.

Highlights:

1. At the technical level, Dr. Gu put forward specific suggestions regarding the UGT glycosyltransferases we are currently researching. Beyond the existing UGT enzymes, he recommended that we expand our research scope to explore other enzymes with the same function. Through comparative screening, this approach is expected to further increase the yield of salidroside. Additionally, regarding the currently used UGT85A1 glycosyltransferase, Dr. Gu pointed out that further modification of this enzyme could enhance its stability and catalytic efficiency, thereby significantly boosting the production yield of salidroside.

2. Regarding the biosensor component, Dr. Gu mentioned that we are currently using a modified HucR protein as the biosensor. He suggested further screening for more suitable promoters, which would help improve the sensor’s response sensitivity to salidroside and make the detection results more accurate.

3. In terms of experimental data presentation, Dr. Gu specifically noted that adding clear lane numbers to electrophoresis gels in experiments would greatly enhance the logical coherence and readability of the data, making it easier for others to understand the experimental results.

Reflections:

The consultation with Dr. Gu yielded substantial insights. From technical details to data presentation, he provided highly constructive suggestions that have pointed out specific directions for the optimization of our project. These recommendations not only addressed the confusion we are currently facing in a targeted manner but also expanded our research perspectives, helping us recognize that there is significant room for improvement in areas such as enzyme selection and modification, as well as biosensor optimization.
In the future, we will actively advance research on other enzymes with the same function, fully commit to the modification work of the UGT85A1 enzyme, and standardize the presentation of experimental data in accordance with Dr. Gu’s suggestions. We also plan to regularly update Dr. Gu on our progress to seek more continuous professional guidance and drive the continuous improvement of the project.

Background:

As the biosynthetic production project of salidroside continues to advance at the technical level, commercial implementation has become a critical link in the project’s development. To make the business plan more aligned with market realities and enhance the practicality of the project in terms of product positioning, channel layout, and promotion, we specifically consulted experts with extensive commercial operation experience in the health industry. These business experts possess profound insights into industry trends, consumer needs, and market rules—their recommendations can help us avoid commercial risks and make the project’s commercial path more clear and feasible.

Purposes:

The core purpose of this consultation with business experts is to obtain optimization directions for the business plan and provide specific guidance for the project’s commercial implementation. The specific objectives are as follows:

1. To gain insights into the precise direction of market positioning for salidroside-related products and clarify how to align with the needs of target customers.

2. To explore practical strategies for product sales channel selection and pricing, so as to enhance market penetration.

3. To acquire effective recommendations on promotion and marketing initiatives, with the aim of improving the product’s market awareness and acceptance, and strengthening the feasibility of the business plan.

Highlights:

1. In terms of product positioning, experts emphasized the need to balance affordability and ease of use, while closely aligning with people’s daily health management needs. This means that during product R&D and design, we must not only control production costs to maintain a price advantage but also consider consumers’ usage habits in terms of dosage forms (such as capsules, oral liquids, etc.) and administration methods. By making the product easily integrable into the daily lives of the general public, we can enhance its market acceptance.

2. Regarding channel and pricing strategies, experts pointed out that offline channels have the advantages of fast delivery and on-site explanations by pharmacists, making it easier to build trust with consumers. They recommended prioritizing the development of offline channels, with a specific focus on locations close to consumers’ daily scenarios, such as community pharmacies and health sections in supermarkets. For pricing, a differentiated strategy can be adopted, with high-end and entry-level product tiers: the high-end tier targets groups with higher health demands, adding supplementary nutritional ingredients to meet their personalized needs; the entry-level tier uses a basic formula, aiming for large sales volume to cover a broader consumer base. A reasonable price gradient will help improve market coverage.

3. On key promotion points, experts suggested focusing mainly on internet platforms (such as Red Note) and TV channels. The content should prioritize popular science and education, with a key focus on conveying the safety of synthetic biology technology to the public—for example, the controllability of the production process and high ingredient purity. To enhance persuasiveness and reduce public wariness toward synthetic biology products, data-driven formats such as laboratory test reports and user trial feedback can be used. At the same time, highlighting the core selling points of "technology empowering health" and "high cost-effectiveness" will strengthen the product’s market competitiveness.

Reflections:

The feedback from business experts has injected strong practicality into our business plan and given us a clearer understanding of the project’s commercial implementation path. Their recommendations on product positioning, channel pricing, and promotion are closely aligned with market realities and consumer psychology—effectively addressing our lack of experience in commercial operations. These insights have also made us realize that the business plan must start from market demands and translate technical advantages into product value perceivable by consumers.
In the future, we will follow the experts’ suggestions to refine the product pricing system: clarifying the ingredients, pricing, and target groups for different product variants, as well as explaining the basis for pricing. We will also finalize the promotional mix of internet platforms (short videos, social media accounts) and TV channels (health programs on local satellite TV), add popular science content about synthetic biology technology with specific cases, and refine the scenario layout and expansion steps for offline channels. However, we still lack systematic professional knowledge in areas such as the accurate delivery of promotional content, adapting to the characteristics of different media platforms, and presenting information in a more engaging manner. Next, we plan to consult media experts to further optimize the promotion strategy, ensure more efficient commercial promotion of the project, and drive the successful commercial implementation of the project.

Background:

After defining the commercial positioning, distribution channels, and initial promotion direction for salidroside-related products, we conducted an interview with media expert Professor Fan to select communication channels more accurately and develop effective brand communication strategies. With years of in-depth experience in the media industry, Professor Fan has conducted thorough research on the information-acquisition habits of different groups, the communication characteristics of various platforms, and brand promotion strategies. Her professional insights will help us optimize the promotion plan, enabling the product to better reach the target audience and enhance brand influence.

Purposes:

The core purpose of this interview with media expert Professor Fan is to obtain professional advice on the product’s communication channels, brand promotion strategies, and other related aspects. The specific objectives are as follows:

1. To understand the sales channels and promotion methods of pharmaceuticals and health products in the market, and identify the communication channels suitable for our product.

2. To explore the communication languages and methods that should be adopted for different audience groups, as well as effective strategies to drive brand communication.

3. To learn about the public’s opinions on health products and their habits of receiving professional information, and clarify the adjustments needed for our promotion strategy.

4. To understand how to address potential early doubts about the product’s safety and efficacy, and how to leverage cooperative groups to enhance brand awareness and credibility.

5. To learn how to use promotional methods to alleviate the public’s concerns about the role of E. coli in production and biosynthetic technology, and how to respond to negative public opinion.

Highlights:

1. Regarding Channels： From a personal analytical perspective, Professor Fan pointed out that young people mainly learn about health products through "seeding" content on Red Note, blogger reviews, and other methods, while middle-aged and elderly people mostly rely on recommendations from relatives and friends, overseas purchasing, and similar channels. This helped us clarify the information-acquisition preferences of different groups, providing a basis for subsequent channel selection.

2. Regarding Promotion Strategies： Professor Fan suggested developing different promotion focuses for different groups. For young people, the style should be approachable, entertaining, relaxed, and with a certain degree of professionalism; for the elderly, the focus should be on a single selling point, highlighting how the product meets their needs. At the same time, different communication methods should have distinct priorities: text-based promotion should emphasize professionalism, while short-video promotion should focus on viral potential.

3. Regarding Cooperative Groups： It was recommended to cooperate with experts, scholars, and authoritative review institutions to leverage their influence and authoritative endorsement. Targeted content should be released based on the tone of different platforms—for example, full interview videos on Bilibili, graphic content with key information on Red Note, and highlight clips on short-video platforms—to increase brand awareness and build credibility.

4. Regarding Alleviating Concerns： Since consumers face barriers to understanding the production process and have low attention to it, there is no need to directly explain the role of E. coli. Instead, safety can be indirectly demonstrated through production licenses, certifications from authoritative experts, and positive user feedback. Additionally, technical terms on product packaging should be replaced with more sophisticated expressions.

5. Regarding Suggestions for Promotional Activities： Distributing flyers is not recommended. Online, we can observe the marketing strategies of e-commerce platforms; offline, we can carry out popular science activities, expand the content scope, and promote the product through engaging formats such as interactive games.

Reflections:

This interview with Professor Fan provided us with highly valuable suggestions on communication channel selection, promotion strategy development, cooperative group selection, concern alleviation, and the implementation of promotional activities, further improving our promotion plan. These suggestions align with the characteristics of different groups and the attributes of various platforms, helping us reach the target audience more accurately and enhance the effectiveness of brand communication.
In the future, we will follow Professor Fan’s recommendations to refine the communication strategies for different groups, strengthen cooperation with authoritative experts and institutions, organize and present relevant professional evidence, and carry out diverse online and offline promotional activities. At the same time, we will continue to monitor market feedback and the communication rules of various platforms, adjust the promotion strategy in a timely manner, and continuously enhance the product’s awareness and market credibility, laying a solid foundation for the product’s promotion and sales.

To advance the commercial implementation of the salidroside biosynthetic production project and overcome technical challenges, the team conducted exchanges with Yipinhong Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. and SHENZHEN TECHNOLOGY UNIVERSITY respectively. When interacting with Yipinhong Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., the goal was to gain practical experience in the full commercialization process of salidroside products, clarifying the raw material supply model, large-scale production procedures, and risk and compliance control methods. During the visit to SHENZHEN TECHNOLOGY UNIVERSITY, the focus was on technical details and compliance—specifically understanding the treatment of E. coli toxins, the quality matching between purified salidroside and wild salidroside, the filing requirements for Aspergillus application, and the approval process in the cosmetics field. These exchanges provided key references for the project’s commercialization and technical optimization, helping drive its breakthroughs and successful implementation.

Background:

After completing a series of preliminary work, including technical R&D exploration, consultations with TCM and Western medicine experts, and business and media strategy planning, the project has gradually moved toward the commercial implementation stage. At this point, there is an urgent need to gain experience in the full commercialization process of salidroside products from an industrial practical perspective, so as to solve specific problems in the transformation from laboratory achievements to marketable products. Yipinhong Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. has mature experience in the commercial operation of salidroside-related products. We specifically conducted an interview with the company, hoping to leverage its practical experience in production, sales, compliance, and other aspects to provide direct references for the subsequent commercial advancement of the project.

Purposes:

Given that the project has laid a certain foundation in various preliminary links, this interview aims to focus on the practical details of the commercialization of salidroside products and obtain targeted guidance. The specific objectives are as follows:

1. To understand the stable supply model of salidroside raw materials and the actual market acceptance of products based on synthetic biology technology under the current technical and market environment.

2. To explore the specific implementation steps for transitioning from preliminary technical R&D achievements to large-scale production and the methods to overcome key difficulties.

3. To clarify how to control various risks in combination with preliminary planning during the commercial development process, ensure compliant operations, and achieve smooth connection with the market.

Highlights:

1. Supply and Production： Based on its actual operations, the company pointed out that to achieve stable supply of salidroside raw materials, it is necessary to establish cooperative planting bases to ensure the basic source, while using imported preliminary processed raw materials as a supplement to form a dual-channel guarantee model. In large-scale production, in addition to the standardized processes focused on in the early stage, it is also necessary to pay attention to the adaptive transformation of production equipment and the professional training of production personnel, so as to ensure the smooth connection of all links in the technology transformation process.

2. Consumer Communication： Regarding the public’s remaining concerns about microbial synthesis technology that may exist in the early promotion, the company suggested that in actual promotion, laboratory data should be combined with product experiences perceivable by consumers. For example, comparative experiments can be used to demonstrate the equivalence of synthetic salidroside and natural extracts in practical applications, transforming abstract safety concepts into specific usage experiences.

3. Compliance and Positioning： In combination with the preliminary product positioning direction, the company emphasized that as a food/health product, in addition to not claiming therapeutic effects, it is also necessary to strictly comply with relevant regulations in the expression of product labels and instructions, and avoid any words that may cause misunderstanding. For special groups such as children, targeted applicability tests need to be conducted additionally on the basis of preliminary safety data to ensure the accuracy of product use.

4. Risk Control： The company believes that on the basis of preliminary compliance planning, it is also necessary to establish a dynamic market monitoring mechanism to promptly grasp changes in industry policies and market feedback, so as to adjust business strategies quickly. At the same time, in terms of cost control, it is necessary to refine to all links such as production, transportation, and marketing, and improve the market competitiveness of products through accurate accounting.

Reflections:

This interview has provided more specific and practical experience for commercial implementation on the basis of the advancement of various preliminary links of the project. It made us realize that transforming technical achievements into marketable products not only requires preliminary planning but also focuses on the details control in actual operations, such as equipment adaptation, personnel training, and dynamic monitoring.
In the future, we will integrate the practical experience gained from the interview into the project’s commercial plan, further improve the specific implementation plan for large-scale production, optimize the actual content and methods of consumer communication, and strengthen the dynamic risk control mechanism. We will ensure the project transitions smoothly from preliminary planning to actual market operation, and promote the successful launch of salidroside products into the market.

Background:

At the critical stage of the project advancement, to further overcome technical difficulties, clarify the R&D direction and compliance path, we visited and exchanged with SHENZHEN TECHNOLOGY UNIVERSITY. The university has made remarkable achievements in the fields of microbial fermentation, biosynthetic purification technology, and related regulatory research. This visit aimed to leverage the university’s professional resources and research experience to provide new ideas and support for the project in terms of the safety, effectiveness, and compliant advancement of salidroside production.

Purposes:

This visit mainly focused on core issues such as technical details, effect comparison, and compliance direction in the salidroside production process. The specific purposes are as follows:

1. To understand the treatment of E. coli toxins in salidroside production and clarify the safety of salidroside after purification.

2. To explore whether the quality of purified salidroside can match that of wild salidroside in the short term (within one or two years), and whether salidroside needs to be used in combination with other drugs to enhance its efficacy.

3. To consult about the application of Aspergillus in production and the filing requirements, as well as understand the approval process and regulatory implementation in the cosmetics field, so as to provide references for the diversified development of products.

Highlights:

1. Regarding E. coli Toxin Issue： Researchers from SHENZHEN TECHNOLOGY UNIVERSITY pointed out that in the process of using E. colito synthesize salidroside, focus should be placed on the removal of toxins. Advanced purification technology can effectively separate and remove toxins produced by E. coli, ensuring that the final salidroside product is free of toxins. They suggested that a strict purification detection process should be established in the production process, and each batch of products must undergo toxin detection before entering the subsequent links. At the same time, comparative experiments can be conducted between purified salidroside and unpurified samples to intuitively demonstrate the effectiveness of purification technology and provide strong evidence for product safety.

2. Regarding the Matching Degree between Purified Salidroside and Wild Salidroside & Short-Term Goals： Researchers stated that with the current mature biosynthetic and purification technology, it is expected that within the next one or two years, the purified salidroside will achieve a high degree of matching with wild salidroside in terms of composition, structure, and efficacy. They emphasized that it is necessary to continuously optimize the production process, and gradually narrow the gap between the two through continuous experimental comparison and adjustment, striving to achieve quality equivalence in the short term.

3. Regarding the Combined Use of Salidroside with Other Drugs： Researchers believe that salidroside itself has certain efficacy, but in the treatment of certain specific diseases, combined use with other drugs may achieve better results. However, the specific combination plan needs to be in-depth studied according to clinical needs, and the optimal compatibility ratio and usage method should be determined through pharmacological experiments to ensure the synergistic effect of efficacy while avoiding adverse reactions.

4. Regarding the Application of Aspergillus： Researchers introduced that Aspergillus oryzae has been verified in the fermentation production of functional components and has good application prospects. However, during its use, it is necessary to file in accordance with relevant regulations and submit detailed materials such as safety assessment reports and production process descriptions to ensure the compliance of its application.

5. Regarding Development in the Cosmetics Field： Researchers stated that the application of salidroside in cosmetics is a relatively feasible direction. Compared with pharmaceuticals, the approval process for cosmetics is relatively simple, usually completed within 3-6 months. At the same time, the implementation of cosmetics regulations requires products to be both effective and compliant. During the R&D process, it is necessary to align with pharmaceutical standards, focus on the safety of ingredients and the scientific verification of efficacy, so as to meet the market demand for high-quality cosmetics.

Reflections:

This trip to Shenzhen University of Technology has yielded substantial gains and provided professional guidance and suggestions for the project in multiple key links. It clarified the treatment method of E. coli toxins and the safety guarantee measures for purified salidroside, which made us more confident in achieving the quality matching between purified salidroside and wild salidroside in the short term. At the same time, the consultation results on the combined use of salidroside with other drugs, the filing of Aspergillus application, and the development direction in the cosmetics field have provided a clear path for the diversified development and compliant advancement of the project.
In the future, we will further optimize the salidroside production process based on the gains from this visit, strengthen the quality control of the purification link, and accelerate the process of quality matching with wild salidroside. At the same time, we will actively carry out research on the combined use of salidroside with other drugs, explore specific application plans of Aspergillus in production and complete the filing in accordance with requirements. In addition, we will focus on promoting the R&D and approval of salidroside in the cosmetics field, strictly abide by relevant regulatory requirements, ensure the efficacy and compliance of products, and promote the project to achieve breakthroughs in multiple fields.
The high-efficiency biosynthesis project of salidroside focuses on technology development, commercialization, regulatory compliance, and diversified expansion. It has carried out technical exploration, consultations with experts in both traditional Chinese and Western medicine, exchanges with business and media professionals, visits to YiPinHong Pharmaceutical Company, and Shenzhen Technology University, achieving multidimensional breakthroughs.
Ultimately, the project established a comprehensive framework integrating technology, business, media, and compliance, successfully bridging the entire process from laboratory research to market implementation and advancing salidroside products from lab to market.