The mLife Research Conference 2026 (mRC 2026) convened from July 2 to 5 in Tianjin, bringing together nearly 300 scholars from across the global, including Australia, Canada, France, South Korea, the United Kingdom, United States and China, to share the latest advances and explore future directions in microbiology.

The conference was co-chaired by Prof. Qian Wei, Co-Editor-in-Chief of mLife and Director-General of the Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMCAS); Prof. Zhou Jizhong, Co-Editor-in-Chief of mLife from the University of Oklahoma; and Prof. Xiang Hua , Associate Editor of mLife, Director-General of the Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology (TIB), CAS, and Secretary-General of the Chinese Society for Microbiology (CSM).

A total of 31 invited talks were presented by leading experts and outstanding young researchers. Four distinguished scientists delivered plenary lectures, including Prof. Deng Zixin from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, the Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences; Prof. Tan Tianwei, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and President of Beijing University of Chemical Technology; Prof. Zhou Jizhong, Member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences; and Prof. Ma Wenbo from the Sainsbury Laboratory, UK and Fellow of the Royal Society.

The conference also featured a poster session, where 39 young scholars and graduate students from 22 universities and research institutes presented high-quality posters, showcasing the innovative thinking of the next generation of researchers.

The event was hosted by the IMCAS, TIB, and the CSM. It was organized by the State Key Laboratory of Engineering Biology for Low-Carbon Manufacturing, and co-organized by the Engineering Cells and Intelligent Manufacturing Professional Committee (preparatory) of the Chinese Society of Bioengineering, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, and Tianjin Society of Young Scholars.

The mLife Research Conference will be held biennially to build a high-level academic exchange platform for the global microbiology community and jointly advance disciplinary development.