Shen Ziyin


Shen Ziyin was a Chinese biologist, physician, and medical researcher. He spent his entire career at Huashan Hospital, a teaching hospital of Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University. He was elected an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 1997.

Biography

Shen was born on 22 March 1928 in Zhenhai, Zhejiang, Republic of China. After graduating from Shanghai Medical College in 1952, he worked in internal medicine at Huashan Hospital, which is affiliated with Shanghai Medical College. While he was trained in Western medicine in college, he began studying traditional Chinese medicine in 1955 under the well-known doctor Jiang Chunhua.
Shen spent his entire career at Huashan Hospital. He was a pioneer in using biomedical research to affirm the pathological bases of TCM concepts, and was an ardent proponent of TCM. One of his major research areas was the TCM concept of "kidney yang deficiency", which he linked to the malfunction of the hypothalamus. However, his research received mixed reaction from TCM practitioners, with some embracing his scientific authority, while others accused him of fragmenting and debasing Chinese medicine.
He published more than 100 scientific papers and six monographs. He received more than 20 major awards including the State Science and Technology Progress Award, and trained more than 30 graduate students. He was elected an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 1997.
On 7 March 2019, Shen died at Huashan Hospital in Shanghai, at the age of 90.