Simple and honest news | The first in the world! A Chinese scientist has won the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Human Brain Mapping Society, marking a leapfrog breakthrough in transcranial magnetic devices
On June 14th, a great news came from Bordeaux, France!
At the opening ceremony of the 2026 annual meeting of the Organization for Human Brain Mapping (OHBM), the Glass Brain Award for Lifetime Achievement was handed over to a non-European or American scholar for the first time - Researcher Jiang Tianzi from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, making him the first Chinese scientist to receive this prestigious award!
After twelve years of deep cultivation, we have broken the perennial monopoly of the academic community in Europe and America. Our original brain networkomics technology has been transformed from a high-precision brain map in the laboratory to a domestically produced medical device, bringing a new precision treatment option to tens of millions of patients with brain diseases.
A world-class trophy, twelve years of perseverance
The Glass Brain Award is the highest personal honor bestowed by the OHBM to brain science researchers, with only one recipient selected annually. Prior to this, all awardees were exclusively from Europe and America: Karl Zilles, member of the German National Academy of Sciences, Marcus Raichle, member of the National Academy of Sciences, and Karl Friston, member of the Royal Society, are all hallmark figures in the field of brain science.
This year, this pattern has been completely broken by Chinese scholars.
The award citation highly praises Researcher Jiang Tianzi for his original and paradigm-level significant contributions to analyzing human brain structure and function through the application of neuroimaging technology
In academia, "paradigm-level" is never a mere compliment - it implies that he has not followed the beaten path of predecessors, but rather pioneered a completely new track in brain science research.
Break away from traditional brain atlases and pioneer a new discipline: brain networkomics
How did we map the brain in the past?
Traditional brain atlases only focus on the appearance of the brain: sulci, gyri, folds, and morphological boundaries, akin to a city administrative map that can only distinguish urban areas from suburbs, but fails to reveal the functional divisions within the city such as finance, research, and transportation.
Jiang Tianzi proposes a disruptive new approach
Instead of relying on the appearance of the brain, this new research system relies on the signal connections between brain regions and the functional collaborative network to map the brain. He named this system Brainnetome.
He led the team to create the "Human Brain Connectome Atlas", which precisely divides the brain into 246 functional subregions, each clearly labeled with its functional localization and neural connectivity patterns. The level of precision significantly surpasses the international mainstream standards.
If traditional maps are rough city zoning maps, brain network group maps are high-precision navigation maps detailed down to every street and every lane, completely rewriting the underlying logic of brain disease treatment.
From high-precision brain mapping to precision navigation therapy for brain diseases
What is the core value of a high-precision brain atlas?
Solve the century-old problem of "missing the target" in brain disease treatment.
Taking transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) therapy, which is widely used for depression, schizophrenia, and Parkinson's disease, as an example:
The traditional treatment approach has a significant pain point: the brain's functional areas are densely intertwined, and the old mapping is coarse. Doctors can only roughly locate the stimulation area, resulting in inconsistent treatment outcomes.
246 fine functional sub-regions revolutionize the status quo
Individualized mapping is achieved through the integration of patient-specific magnetic resonance imaging, enabling precise treatment with one patient, one image, and one image, one target. No longer is localization vague; it directly pinpoints the functional sub-regions and neural connection nodes corresponding to the lesion for targeted stimulation, truly achieving precise navigation for brain diseases.
Scientific research lands in Jiangxi! Puzhuo Medical has developed domestically produced precision treatment equipment
Top-notch brain science does not merely remain in laboratory papers, but has achieved industrialization and implementation in Nanchang Economic Development Zone.
Jiangxi Puzhuo Medical Equipment Co., Ltd., as the exclusive authorized transformation unit of the "Human Brain Network Atlas", has jointly developed the "Navigated Transcranial Magnetic Stimulator" with Zhongke Ruikong Cloud Atlas. This domestic medical equipment, carrying world-class original achievements, has officially been launched.
Three core breakthroughs in equipment
Brain network group atlas navigation and localization
Empowered by 246 fine subregions for individualized brain functional zoning, target localization has been upgraded from "vague targeting" to "precise guidance"
Optical navigation + fully automated execution by robotic arm
The optical system tracks the head position in real time, and the robotic arm automatically follows and calibrates the stimulation coil. The entire 20-minute treatment process requires no manual attendance from medical staff.
Clinical data confirms leapfrog efficacy
Clinical verification from Beijing Anding Hospital: In the treatment of schizophrenia with negative symptoms, the response rate of conventional transcranial magnetic stimulation is less than 30%, while the response rate is directly increased to 77.5% with Puzhe medical equipment!
The best lifelong achievement is to utilize scientific research outcomes to serve clinical practice
When cutting-edge original brain science emerges from university laboratories, bridges the gap between industry, academia, and research, and reaches the bedside of every patient with brain diseases, perhaps this is the best commentary on Researcher Jiang Tianzi's International Lifetime Achievement Award.
From Chinese scientists breaking through academic barriers in Europe and America to the independent innovation and implementation of domestically produced medical equipment, China's brain science is making a resounding Chinese voice heard on the world stage.