China's first national gene bank will open on Sept 22. The national gene bank, which took five years to create, was approved by four government departments including the National Development and Reform Commission, the country's top economic planner, and is operated by BGI-Shenzhen.

The national gene bank is the fourth national gene bank to be established globally after the establishment of the US' National Center of Biotechnology Information, the European Bioinformatics Institute and the DNA Data Bank of Japan.

China's national gene bank is not only a database but also a comprehensive gene bank that will preserve samples of living animals and plants.

China's national gene bank aims to build a biological information database, biological sample resource library and living animal and plants bank, as well as a digital platform and gene editing platform. It will thus be the world's biggest and most comprehensive gene bank.

It aims to achieve comprehensive integration of resources, data, science and industry to benefit human health, agriculture, biology and protection of the ecological environment.

About 780 million yuan ($117 million) has been invested in the first phase of the gene bank.