From growth hormone into a broader range of therapeutic areas, GenSci's transformation is beginning to show results.
In the first three quarters of this year, the company's revenue reached 6.676 billion yuan, down 18.71% year on year; net profit was 778 million yuan, down 45.26% year on year. Overall performance came under short-term pressure, but sales revenue of the core product Jinbeixin grew nearly 300% year on year, and sales revenue of Meishiya grew more than 100% year on year after being included in the medical insurance catalog. With the launch of Jinbeixin, the overseas licensing of GenSci098 and the continued advancement of multiple pipeline projects, concrete clues have emerged for observing this transformation.
At its R&D Day on October 31, GenSci presented progress in areas including gout, autoimmune diseases and thyroid diseases. The products span a wide range, yet the development approach shows some continuity: finding diseases that require long-term treatment, making drugs act for longer, and then trying to address the shortcomings of existing therapies by adding targets and changing the route of administration.
This path continues GenSci's exploration of long-acting treatment in the growth hormone field, while also expanding the scope of its research.
From the selection of inflammatory factors, to intervention in specific cells, and then to improvements in drug delivery methods, this R&D Day showcased the company's development attempts for different diseases, as well as the progress these projects have made in clinical and early-stage research.
Starting from long-acting
One important improvement GenSci made in growth hormone was turning daily injections into weekly injections. For children and families that need long-term treatment, reducing the number of injections itself has value.
The "long-acting" theme that appeared repeatedly at the R&D Day continues this focus on the burden of medication, but different diseases require different kinds of long-acting treatment.
Gout is one example. Patients need pain relief during acute attacks, and after the condition eases they still need to lower uric acid. Some people have frequent attacks but cannot tolerate colchicine or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or do not respond adequately to these drugs. GenSci's Jinbeixin chooses to block IL-1β, which triggers gout inflammation, providing a new anti-inflammatory treatment for this group of patients.
Jinbeixin reduced the risk of recurrence by 90% at 12 weeks and by 87% at 24 weeks, continuously protecting joints and reducing the sustained damage caused by repeated inflammation.
This explains the value of long-acting treatment in gout. Beyond relieving immediate pain, patients also hope not to have another attack in the coming months. In the first three quarters of this year, sales revenue of Jinbeixin grew nearly 300% year on year, indicating that patients and doctors are willing to use it. Continuing research along the inflammation mechanism, GenSci also developed GenSci161. This dual antibody targets both IL-1α and IL-1β and is intended for diseases such as hidradenitis suppurativa. Patients repeatedly develop painful skin lesions and abscesses, and in severe cases scars form. The company hopes to intervene in two inflammatory factors at the same time and extend the drug's duration of action.
The afternoon technical presentation explained the engineering challenges involved: to make an antibody stay longer in the body, factors such as its charge, hydrophobicity and tendency to bind to unrelated tissues must all be considered at the same time. Changing one site may not work, and some modifications can constrain each other. This differs from the specific technology used in long-acting growth hormone and requires re-optimizing the molecule.
Phase I data for GenSci161 disclosed at the R&D Day showed a good safety profile, and the drug's absorption and elimination rates in the human body provide a basis for extending the dosing interval, potentially supporting administration every 8-12 weeks and improving patient compliance.
Going overseas starts with the GenSci098 BD
GenSci098 targets two diseases: Graves' disease (GD) and thyroid eye disease (TED). Abnormal antibodies in patients with Graves' disease continuously stimulate the thyrotropin receptor, causing the thyroid to overwork; this receptor is also involved in the development of thyroid eye disease. GenSci designed an antibody to try to directly block this abnormal stimulation.
The appeal of this project lies in the possibility that the same target may involve both thyroid and eye lesions. Reducing abnormal hormone secretion and improving eye symptoms are two related but separately proven clinical goals. Changes in thyroid hormone indicators in early research were enough to support continued development.
But the market potential of this drug goes far beyond China. In December 2025, Yarrow obtained the rights to develop and commercialize the drug outside Greater China. GenSci received a $70 million non-refundable upfront payment, with a potential total transaction value of up to $1.365 billion, plus sales royalties.
This collaboration gives GenSci a way to earn returns beyond domestic sales. The company retains domestic development and sales opportunities, while the partner invests in overseas clinical trials, and both sides share research results. For a drug not yet on the market, the upfront payment can recover part of the R&D investment and also share the funding and organizational pressure needed for subsequent development.
Yarrow has already launched a Phase II study in Graves' disease. Whether patients can reduce or stop existing anti-thyroid drugs and how long efficacy can be maintained are questions closer to actual treatment than "indicator decline." Overseas buyers are already willing to pay for this molecule, but whether subsequent payments can be realized still depends on trial and commercialization results.
With more new drugs, learning to choose is also necessary
Moving from growth hormone into multiple diseases, one change GenSci faces is that each drug must enter a different treatment system and compete with different medicines.
Take rheumatoid arthritis as an example. Existing drugs can suppress inflammation, but some patients still have inadequate response. GenSci's GenSci120 tries to activate PD-1, an immune "brake," and uses antibody effects to clear some T cells involved in the disease. The R&D Day presented results such as target binding and reductions in related cells, and these observations support researchers in continuing to test whether it can improve joint lesions.
For earlier-stage projects, the difficulty even lies in whether the drug can reach the diseased tissue. The inhaled siRNA introduced in the afternoon is intended to deliver nucleic acid drugs into lung cells and reduce the production of proteins involved in pulmonary fibrosis. Beyond the route of administration, structures must also be designed to help the drug enter cells and then release and take effect inside them.
The change presented at GenSci's R&D Day is that the company has begun to combine development tools such as antibodies, multiple targets and nucleic acid delivery according to the needs of different diseases. Jinbeixin proved that its innovation capability can be replicated, while GenSci098 obtained overseas development funding.
Beyond growth hormone, new drugs must be made one by one, and also selected one by one.
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