Until recently, Zai Lab had been content with cultivating their collection of oncology assets, along with a few drugs targeting infectious and autoimmune diseases. That's why their latest deal, struck Tuesday with Blueprint Medicines for rights to two cancer drugs, seemed to be business as usual.

However, on the same day, the Chinese company marked a sudden shift in strategy by in-licensing their first neuroscience asset from another company, Karuna Therapeutics. The licensing deal with Karuna gives Zai Lab rights to the former's KarXT for development and commercialization in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.

In its second collaboration, Zai Lab bought rights to develop and sell two Blueprint Medicines' lung cancer drugs, BLU-945 and BLU701, in China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.