Seventeen medical institutions launched China's first national organization against rare diseases in Jinan, east China's Shandong Province, on February 27.

The alliance is committed to establishing treatment centers nationwide, researching cures, publicity and medical education of rare diseases, said Han Jinxiang, an official with the Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences.

The academy is a founding member of the alliance, and the 17 medical institutions are from 13 provinces on the Chinese mainland.

The alliance will assist in data collection of rare diseases, carry out epidemiological studies and improve treatment, Han said.

According to the World Health Organization, a rare disease is one that affects a small percentage of the population, ranging from 0.65-1 in 1,000. More than 6,000 rare diseases have been confirmed so far.

Ecosystem Evaluation

China on February 25 launched a pilot gross ecosystem product (GEP) evaluation system in Hobq Desert in northern Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

The scheme was introduced by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the Inner Mongolia-based Elion Green Foundation. Hobq, China's seventh largest desert, will be the first pilot area.

The GEP, created and advocated by the IUCN, is an account system that corresponds to the GDP and measures the status of an ecosystem.

It will reflect ecological conditions by tallying the gross product of both natural ecosystems, including forests, deserts and wetlands, and artificial ones such as farmland, pastures and aquaculture farms.

The pilot is significant in testing whether the GEP is scientific and feasible, and the trial paves the way for integrating the GEP into the national account system and introducing it globally, said Zhang Xinsheng, President of the IUCN.

Homemade Centrifuge

China's largest atomic energy developer on February 23 announced the successful installation of a domestically produced uranium enrichment centrifuge for industrial use.

The centrifuge was built in a uranium enrichment plant in Lanzhou, northwest China's Gansu Province, said the China National Nuclear Corp.

Uranium centrifuges are necessary to obtain concentrated U235, which is used as fuel for nuclear power plants.

Top Maker

The total industrial output value of China's agricultural machinery industry reached 338.2 billion yuan ($54.35 billion) in 2012, ranking first globally, a senior official said on February 26.

Zhang Taolin, Vice Minister of Agriculture, said that the sector has been growing by about 20 percent annually for the last six years.

The sector's output surpassed that of the EU and the United States for the first time in 2012, according to the China Association of Agricultural Machinery Manufacturers. China produced more than 2 million tractors and 1 million harvesters in 2012, more than any other country.

China needs to improve quality, safety and technology in the sector and produce more mid- and large-sized high-end agricultural machinery, according to the official.