Exclusive: Medinno Completes Over RMB 200 Million in Series A Financing; The World’s First Locally Administered Pan-JAK/Pan-Trk Multi-Target Inhibitor Enters Phase II Clinical Trials in China and the United States

VCBeat learned at the earliest opportunity that, On September 17, 2026, Medinno announced the completion of a new round of financing. This round was led by River Head Capital, with participation from Xiamen Jinyuan Industrial Chain Fund, Xiamen Cardiovascular Industry Fund, Insight Capital, C&D Emerging Investment, Womeida Capital, Laurel Venture Capital, and Xiamen High-Tech Venture Capital. Fenghe Capital served as the exclusive financial advisor for this round. The funds raised will be primarily used to accelerate the global clinical studies of the core pipeline MDI-1228, advance preclinical development of early-stage innovative pipelines, and further expand the team.

Leveraging a topical candidate drug with a “broad-spectrum inhibition + non-systemic absorption” profile, Medinno has established a differentiated pipeline in dermatology and ophthalmology, currently advancing to Phase II clinical trials in both China and the United States.

Dr. Lu Liang, founder of Medinno, has a career that spans nearly the entire value chain of small-molecule drug development.

During his tenure at Incyte Corporation, he was a core member of the team that discovered pemigatinib, the world’s first targeted therapy for cholangiocarcinoma—a pan-FGFR inhibitor. Pemigatinib was approved for marketing in the United States in 2021 and was subsequently licensed by Innovent Biologics for introduction into China. He later joined the startup Prelude Therapeutics, where he helped establish the company’s PROTAC research and development platform, led the development of innovative molecules such as PRT3789, and supported the company’s successful initial public offering (IPO) on NASDAQ.

Over a decade of industry experience has drawn his attention to an issue largely overlooked by most: topical and oral medications follow two entirely different development paradigms. Antineoplastic drugs generally need to enter the bloodstream to exert their therapeutic effects, whereas topical agents for dermatological and ophthalmic indications are only required to achieve effective drug concentrations locally at the lesion site; systemic absorption in these cases would instead increase the risk of adverse effects.

In an interview, Dr. Lu Liang stated, “Amid the intensely competitive landscape of small-molecule novel drug development, we have chosen to focus on the relatively untapped market of topical medications, currently concentrating primarily on dermatological and ophthalmic diseases.”

To this end, he returned to China to establish Medinno on a full-time basis.

Dr. Lu Liang posits that JAK-mediated diseases often involve multiple subtypes rather than a single one, giving pan-inhibition a unique therapeutic advantage. “We also recognize that the toxicity risk associated with pan-JAK inhibitors is a significant concern; therefore, our solution is Prevent Molecules from Entering the Bloodstream.”

The core challenge with traditional topical JAK inhibitors is systemic absorption into the bloodstream following transdermal delivery. Topical ruxolitinib exhibits a bioavailability of nearly 7%, prompting the FDA to mandate a black box warning. In contrast, MDI-1228 has shown no detectable systemic exposure in both preclinical and early clinical studies, conferring a potential safety advantage for long-term, repeated administration in the management of chronic diseases.

The design objective of MDI-1228 is to achieve effective concentrations locally while avoiding absorption into the bloodstream, thereby realizing a pharmacokinetic profile characterized by “high local concentration and zero systemic exposure.” This goal is achieved through precise control of the molecule’s physicochemical properties; the molecular weight of MDI-1228 hinders its penetration across biological membranes into the systemic circulation, while still maintaining favorable diffusion capabilities within local tissues.

More importantly, MDI-1228 incorporates Trk family targets on the basis of pan-JAK inhibition, becoming the world’s first locally administered multi-target inhibitor of pan-JAK/pan-Trk.

Data indicate that MDI-1228 also exhibits prominent inhibitory activity against the Trk family. “Developing dual-target inhibitors in the small-molecule field entails a very high barrier to entry; through this design, we have established a substantial competitive moat.” The dual-target design endows MDI-1228 with not only anti-inflammatory effects but also the potential for analgesia and tissue repair.

In the interview, Dr. Lu Liang stated that it is precisely the unique effects brought about by this dual-target synergy that enable MDI-1228 to demonstrate efficacy profiles entirely distinct from those of other JAK inhibitors in indications such as diabetic foot and other chronic wounds.

The selection of indications is a critical, make-or-break decision for startups. In an interview, Dr. Lu Liang shared Medinno’s three core principles for pipeline portfolio strategy: The market must be sufficiently large, the competitive landscape should not be overly crowded, and the molecule must demonstrate a unique advantage in the indicated indication.

Currently, atopic dermatitis is the most crowded therapeutic area for topical JAK inhibitors. “Many companies are developing treatments for atopic dermatitis. Our subsequent analysis revealed that this space is overly saturated; even if we achieve success, we would face significant challenges in future commercialization,” said Dr. Lu Liang. Medinno has chosen to sidestep this red ocean.

In contrast, diabetic foot follows a different logic: the market size is enormous, with a vast global patient population, and virtually no new drugs have been approved over the past nearly 30 years. More importantly, the Medinno team discovered that MDI-1228 produces unique tissue repair effects through the synergistic action of pan-JAK and pan-Trk dual-target inhibition, an advantage not seen in other drugs of its class. “Only our molecule can deliver such therapeutic efficacy, demonstrating powerful effects in both anti-inflammation and tissue repair.”

In terms of mechanism of action, MDI-1228 fundamentally enhances the healing capacity of chronic wounds by promoting the generation of adipose-derived stem cells and myofibroblasts at the wound site, which is essentially different from traditional strategies that merely control inflammation.

Medinno focuses on patients with Wagner grade 2-3 diabetic foot, the largest patient population, among which a significant proportion are refractory cases unresponsive to conventional treatments, representing the core target population for MDI-1228.

In the current clinical study, enrolled patients with refractory Wagner grade 2–3 diabetic foot ulcers (non-responsive to conventional therapy) experienced an average wound area reduction of over 80% after 8 weeks of treatment with MDI-1228 gel. All patients achieved a wound area reduction exceeding 50%, with several cases reaching complete healing. Patients at risk of amputation successfully avoided amputation surgery following treatment. In terms of safety, no drug-related systemic adverse events were observed throughout the entire treatment period.

Many dermatological and ophthalmic diseases are triggered by inflammation and excessive autoimmune activation. The validation of efficacy for the diabetic foot indication marks only the beginning of MDI-1228’s development journey. The team is advancing multi-formulation development, continuously extending the core advantages of “non-systemic absorption + pan-target inhibition” to additional indications and conducting further clinical studies.

Meanwhile, the company’s early pipeline drew on the R&D approach of MDI-1228, featuring a non-systemic safety profile and demonstrating exceptional efficacy in addressing other unmet clinical needs in dermatology.

Amid the sustained pressure on financing for innovative drugs, Medinno is carving out a unique path by leveraging its differentiated design of “non-systemic exposure + pan-target inhibition” and deploying multiple dosage forms to target blue-ocean indications in dermatology and ophthalmology.