On February 12, 2016, Institute of Subtropical Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Sciences (ISA) doctoral candidate REN Wenkai won first prize in the masters & doctors group of Alltech's Young Scientist Competition in the Asian-Pacific region. Mr. REN was invited to participate in the Global Competition and attend the Alltech Ideas Conference on May, 2016 in Lexington, Kentucky. 

Prof. YIN Yulong, REN Wenkai's mentor in ISA, recommended that Mr. REN participate in 2015-2016 Alltech annual competition. Mr. REN submitted a research paper titled "GABA mediates interleukin-17 expression during intestinal bacterial infection" which was the Asia-Pacific winner. 

Prof. YIN has long been engaged in the regulation of amino acid metabolism in pigs for decades and won 4 National Prizes for Progress in Science and Technology, and 27 invention patents. He published four book chapters and 210 SCI articles which have been cited 5104 times (H-index = 41). In 2014, Prof. YIN was the only Chinese agricultural scientist who designated as a Thomson Reuters Citation Laureate and entered the world's top 1% of scientists rated by Plant & Animal & Science, Biology & Biochemistry, and Agricultural Sciences. 

Since REN Wenkai joined in Prof. YIN's research group, he has engaged in investigations about amino acids and infectious disease and has published research papers in such journals as Eur. J. Immunol, J. Nutr, and Vaccine. 

Founded in 1980 by Irish biochemist and entrepreneur Dr. Pearse Lyons, Alltech is a leading global biotechnology company whose mission is to improve the health and performance of people, animals and plants through natural nutrition and scientific innovation. 

The Alltech Young Scientist program is the world's largest agriscience competition. It offers the brightest scientific thinkers from colleges and universities across the globe an opportunity to compete at the highest level and be rewarded for their innovative research. Students are encouraged to join Alltech in pursuit of solutions in animal health and nutrition, crop science, agriculture analytical methods, food chain safety and traceability, human health and nutrition and other agriscience-related sectors, while also gaining valuable experience with the company's global team.