Profile

Mapped the chemical-component 'resource atlas' of Eucommia and discovered anti-neuroinflammatory nor-triterpenes.

Story

Gao Jinming is a professor at the College of Chemistry and Pharmacy, Northwest A&F University. Since 2000 he has led his team in cross-disciplinary research on the chemical components of Eucommia, serving as a key link between generations of Northwest A&F's three-generation 'Eucommia Corps'. Using modern analytical techniques such as HPLC, he mapped a 'resource atlas' of Eucommia's chemical components, giving the scientific development of Eucommia leaves, bark, flowers and seeds a concise guide and changing the past crude utilization model of 'selling only the bark'.

His team was the first to isolate special nor-triterpene constituents with anti-neuroinflammatory activity from Eucommia leaves, opening a new direction for Eucommia-leaf functional foods and the prevention of neurodegenerative diseases. As a major completer of 'Breeding of new Eucommia varieties and in-depth development and utilization of secondary metabolites', he won the 2017 Shaanxi Provincial Science and Technology Award (First Prize). His work has supported Lueyang County in forming a Eucommia whole industry chain spanning rubber, medicine, food and feed, with an annual output value exceeding 120 million yuan.

Milestones

• In January-February 2026, interviewed by China Science Daily and China Youth Daily as a third-generation backbone of Northwest A&F University's 'Eucommia Corps'
• Has long provided technical support for the comprehensive development of Eucommia in Lueyang County, Shaanxi (China's largest Eucommia-growing county, with 600,000 mu)
• Participated in publishing monographs on Eucommia secondary metabolites

Key Contributions

• Since 2000, has used HPLC and other techniques to map the chemical-component 'resource atlas' of different Eucommia parts, identifying leaves as a treasure house of chlorogenic acid and flavonoids and bark as the preferred source of Eucommia rubber and glycosides
• First isolated nor-triterpene constituents with anti-neuroinflammatory activity from Eucommia leaves
• As a major completer of 'Breeding of the Qinzhong 1-4 improved Eucommia varieties and in-depth development and utilization of secondary metabolites', won the 2017 Shaanxi Provincial Science and Technology Award (First Prize)
• His findings provide a scientific basis for developing Eucommia-leaf functional foods and preventive drugs for neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease