On March 30, 2023, the "Mechanism and Synthesis Forum" (MAS Forum), founded by the Center of Basic Molecular Science of the Department of Chemistry at Tsinghua University, was successfully held in the Tsinghua Chemistry Building 301 lecture hall. Professor Jianjun Cheng from Westlake University was invited as a guest speaker for the fifth forum.

Before the lecture, Academician Jinpei Cheng, founder of the Center for Basic Molecular Science, awarded Professor Jianjun Cheng with the "MAS Forum" medal. Professor Jianjun Cheng gave an academic presentation entitled "Synthesis of Polypeptides via Bioinspired Polymerization of in situ Purified N-carboxyanhydrides" as the guest speaker for the fifth Mechanism and Synthesis Forum.

Professor Jianjun Cheng received his Ph.D. in Materials Science from the University of California, Santa Barbara. After graduation, he worked as a senior scientist at Insert Therapeutics until 2004. He was promoted to tenured associate professor in 2011, and received the Outstanding Promotion Professor Award from the University of Illinois in 2015. In August 2021, he became the Dean of the College of Engineering and the Endowed Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Westlake University. Professor Cheng is the Editor-in-Chief of the Royal Society of Chemistry's Journal of Biomaterials Science. Professor Cheng's research group has published over 200 articles and holds more than 40 US and international patents. His research interests include polymer chemistry, peptides, nanomaterials and nanomedicine, drug delivery, and cancer targeting technologies.

This forum was hosted by Professor Luo Sanzhong and delivered an opening speech. Academician Cheng Jinpei, Professor Zhao Liang, and several other teachers participated in the report. Peptide biomaterials have important applications in fields such as cell membrane penetration and drug delivery. Professor Cheng Jianjun introduced the team's progress in the efficient synthesis of polypeptides mediated by organosilicon reagents, the design of charged helical polypeptides, and their role in siRNA delivery. Teacher Cheng's report is logical and fascinating; The report is rich and exciting, vivid and interesting. After the report was completed, the on-site teachers and classmates had a friendly and cordial exchange with Mr. Cheng Jianjun, resulting in a strong academic atmosphere.