Se-Jin Lee, the molecular biologist at Johns Hopkins University who discovered myostatin in mice in 1992, says it's "disappointing" that MYO-029 is dead, but he still believes blocking myostatin holds promise.
"This is the first evidence that myostatin regulates muscle mass in people as it does in other animals, " said Dr Se-Jin Lee, professor of molecular biology and genetics at Johns Hopkins University and one of those involved in the study.
The Chinese stars, who also won Olympic gold in Sydney, are seeded fourth here but had too much quality for top seeds Lee Jae-Jin and Lee Hyo Jung in Saturday's second semi-final.