Li Jitong (also romanized as Tsi-tung Li, ; 24 August 1897 – 12 December 1961) was a Chinese botanist and member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Biography

Li was born on August 24, 1897, in

Xinghua, Jiangsu Xinghua () is a county-level city under the administration of Taizhou, Jiangsu province, China. It is located in the central part of Jiangsu Province. It borders the prefecture-level cities of Yancheng to the north and east and Yangzhou to the ...

Qing China The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the Ming dynasty ...

. He spent his childhood in his hometown, and in 1912, he was admitted to the Shanghai YMCA High School before transferring to St. John's University High School two years later. He graduated from high school in 1916 and enrolled in St. John's University. Because of the high tuition fees at St. John's University, he transferred to

University of Nanking The University of Nanking (金陵大學) was a private university in Nanjing, Jiangsu, China, from 1888 to 1952. It was sponsored by American churches. Founded in 1888, the university effectively become defunct in 1952, following the 1952 reorg ...

to study forestry and graduated in 1921. After graduating from the University of Nanking, he received government funding to move to the United States and enrolled in the Yale Forest School. In 1923, he graduated with a master's degree. In 1925, he received a PhD with the doctoral thesis on "Soil Temperature as Influenced by Forest Cover". After graduation, he returned to teach at the University of Nanking, and in 1926, he moved to

Nankai University Nankai University is a public university in Tianjin, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. Nankai University was establ ...

to teach in the Department of Biology. He was reportedly the first Chinese In 1929, he moved to

Tsinghua University Tsinghua University (THU) is a public university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Constructio ...

, where he became a professor. That same year, Li published a paper on the transient effects of

photosynthesis Photosynthesis ( ) is a system of biological processes by which photosynthetic organisms, such as most plants, algae, and cyanobacteria, convert light energy, typically from sunlight, into the chemical energy necessary to fuel their metabo ...

in the 43rd volume of ''

Annals of Botany ''Annals of Botany'' is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal publishing experimental, theoretical and applied papers on all aspects of plant biology. As of 2024, the Chief Editor is Rowan Sage. The journal is owned and managed by thAnnals o ...

''. After the outbreak of the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War was fought between the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the Empire of Japan between 1937 and 1945, following a period of war localized to Manchuria that started in 1931. It is considered part ...

, he moved to Yunnan with Tsinghua University. While in Yunnan, he was a professor at the

National Southwestern Associated University The National Southwestern Associated University was a national public university from 1938 to 1946 based in Kunming, Yunnan, China. It was formed by the wartime incorporation of National Peking University, National Tsinghua University, and Nat ...

, and in 1946 he moved back to Beijing with Tsinghua University. In 1952, the national faculty reorganization led to the merger of the Biology Department of Tsinghua University and the Biology Department of

Peking University Peking University (PKU) is a Public university, public Types of universities and colleges in China#By designated academic emphasis, university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of the Peop ...

, which brought him to teach at Peking University. He was elected as a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in the 1950s. In 1957, he became vice president of

Inner Mongolia University Inner Mongolia University (IMU) is a provincial public university in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, China. It is affiliated with the People's Government of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and co-funded with the Ministry of Education of China. The ...

. He died on December 12, 1961 in

Hohhot Hohhot,; abbreviated zh, c=呼市, p=Hūshì, labels=no formerly known as Kweisui, is the Capital (political), capital of Inner Mongolia in the North China, north of the China, People's Republic of China, serving as the region's administrativ ...

due to illness. Li has been recognized as a pioneer for the study of

plant physiology Plant physiology is a subdiscipline of botany concerned with the functioning, or physiology, of plants. Plant physiologists study fundamental processes of plants, such as photosynthesis, respiration, plant nutrition, plant hormone functions, tr ...

in China.

References

{{Authority control 1897 births 1961 deaths St. John's University, Shanghai alumni Academic staff of Inner Mongolia University Academic staff of Nankai University Academic staff of Peking University Academic staff of Tsinghua University Academic staff of the National Southwestern Associated University Academic staff of the University of Nanking University of Nanking alumni Yale University alumni People from Xinghua, Jiangsu