Tulane National Primate Research Center

What Tulane National Primate Research Center does

Tulane National Primate Research Center (now operating as Tulane National Biomedical Research Center / TNBRC) is a university-affiliated biomedical research institution located at 18703 Three Rivers Road in Covington, Louisiana. Founded in 1983 as one of the original eight NIH-designated National Primate Research Centers, it maintains a colony of approximately 5,000 non-human primates (rhesus and cynomolgus macaques) and conducts research across four divisions: Comparative Pathology, Immunology, Microbiology, and Veterinary Medicine. The center is operated by Tulane University and houses specialized scientific cores including confocal microscopy and a dedicated Quality Assurance Program.

The center's commercial offering is structured as collaborative research services rather than a product platform. It provides partnership-based research support spanning early discovery through development or publication, alongside scientific core services, a Pilot Research Program for preliminary studies, and four formal education and training pipelines (graduate, postdoctoral, summer, and laboratory animal medicine). Customer segments are academic researchers, government agencies, and pharmaceutical/biotechnology industry collaborators, with engagement delivered through direct collaborative research agreements rather than published pricing.

The revenue model is grant- and collaboration-driven rather than transactional. Funding is anchored by NIH National Primate Research Center base grants — a $42M NIH award is documented for 2018 — supplemented by industry contract research and Tulane University cost-sharing. Pricing is not publicly disclosed, the center is not independently capitalized, and no venture, private equity, or strategic investors are identified. The center is therefore best understood as a federally subsidized research infrastructure asset embedded within a private university, not as a commercial enterprise.

Name

Tulane National Primate Research Center

Legal name

Tulane National Biomedical Research Center

Website

https://tnprc.tulane.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Tulane National Primate Research Center is a federally designated NIH National Primate Research Center in Covington, Louisiana, operated by Tulane University. It provides collaborative biomedical research services, scientific core facilities, and graduate training to academic, government, and industry partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonhuman Primate Biomedical Research Services

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Biomedical Sciences & Medical Research Institutes (University-Based) (EDAHAGAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Academic Medical Centers (AMCs) & Teaching Hospitals (HLAFAAAA), Health & Biomedical Research Universities (Academic Medical Center–Affiliated) (EDAHABAC)

Keywords

• Nonhuman primate research
• Biomedical research services
• Preclinical research models
• Comparative pathology
• Infectious disease research

Headquarters

HQ city

Covington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Tulane National Primate Research Center (TNBRC) provides collaborative biomedical research services built around a colony of approximately 5,000 nonhuman primates, supporting academic, government, and industry collaborators from early discovery through development or publication. Offerings include access to specialized scientific core facilities and advanced equipment, a pilot research funding program, a quality assurance program, and four integrated research divisions in Comparative Pathology, Immunology, Microbiology, and Veterinary Medicine. The center also delivers graduate, postdoctoral, summer, and laboratory animal medicine training programs through Tulane University.

Product overview

Tulane National Biomedical Research Center (TNBRC) is a research institution offering a unified suite of research services rather than a commercial product platform. The center provides collaborative research partnerships, scientific core facilities and equipment, pilot research funding, and education/training programs. Research is organized into four specialized divisions: Comparative Pathology, Immunology, Microbiology, and Veterinary Medicine. Services support academic, government, and industry collaborators from concept through publication or development.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Tulane National Primate Research Center: Original name used prior to 2022 rebranding to reflect non-human primate research focus.

Products and services

• Collaborative Research Services Research partnership offerings enabling academic, government, and industry collaborators to work with TNBRC scientists from early discovery through development or publication, leveraging the center's nonhuman primate colony, specialized facilities, and scientific expertise.
• Scientific Cores and Services Specialized facilities and advanced equipment available to collaborators for advanced research, including confocal microscopy and other specialized instrumentation supporting biomedical research projects.
• Pilot Research Program Internal funding program supporting preliminary research projects to generate data suitable for larger external grant applications.
• Quality Assurance Program Quality control and assurance services supporting research integrity and regulatory compliance for animal research conducted at or in collaboration with the center.
• Graduate Program in Biomedical Sciences Graduate-level training program in biomedical sciences offered through the research center, providing doctoral and master's-level research training to students.
• Postdoctoral Training Program Advanced postdoctoral research training opportunities at the center for individuals who have completed their doctoral studies.
• Summer Programs Educational programs offered during summer months for students, including research internships and hands-on learning opportunities at the center.
• Laboratory Animal Medicine Opportunities Specialized training and career development programs in laboratory animal medicine offered through the research center.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Yerkes National Primate Research Center: Emory University-affiliated NPRC and one of the original seven federally designated National Primate Research Centers, with a comparable ~3,500+ primate colony and similar infectious disease and neuroscience research portfolio.
• Oregon National Primate Research Center: OHSU-affiliated NPRC with a large NHP colony focused on reproductive biology, neuroscience, and infectious disease — operates under the same NIH P51 base-grant funding model as TNBRC.
• California National Primate Research Center: UC Davis-affiliated NPRC and one of the original seven federally designated centers, with comparable scale, biomedical divisions, and federal funding structure.
• Wisconsin National Primate Research Center: University of Wisconsin-Madison-affiliated NPRC operating under the same NIH national-primate-research-center funding designation with parallel infectious disease and reproductive biology programs.
• Texas Biomedical Research Institute: Southwest National Primate Research Center host institution, with one of the largest NHP colonies in the U.S. and BSL-3/BSL-4 capabilities directly comparable to TNBRC's infectious disease research mission.
• Washington National Primate Research Center: University of Washington-affiliated NPRC with a comparable NIH P51 funding structure and infectious disease / translational research portfolio.
• Bioqual: Private contract research organization specializing in NHP-based infectious disease and vaccine challenge studies, directly competing with TNBRC for industry and NIH-funded preclinical research.

Broad incumbents

• Baylor College of Medicine: Major private biomedical research university with comparable primate-based infectious disease and genetics programs, overlapping with TNBRC's immunology and microbiology research areas.
• University of Texas Medical Branch: Major academic medical center operating the Galveston National Laboratory BSL-4 facility with significant NHP-based infectious disease research, a strong adjacent peer in the BSL primate research category.
• Charles River Laboratories: Large CRO that supplies research models (including NHPs) and provides preclinical research services — a commercial-scale peer that competes for industry-sponsored primate research contracts.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tulane-university

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Tulane National Primate Research Center