AnalytiCon Discovery

What AnalytiCon Discovery does

AnalytiCon Discovery is a natural product research and development organization serving pharmaceutical, cosmetic, food and beverage, and agriculture companies. Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Potsdam, Germany, the company operates as a division of publicly listed BRAIN Biotech AG, with approximately 65 employees across its German headquarters and a North American business development presence in the Gaithersburg/Rockville, MD area. The company monetizes through sales of screening compound libraries, contract discovery services, and collaborative R&D programs structured around defined commercial outcomes.

The company's technology backbone is a high-throughput isolation platform that combines extraction, individually optimized column chromatography, HPLC-MS and NMR analytics, and a proprietary data management system, supported by complementary liquid, solid, and membrane (biofilm) fermentation systems. Its biological assets include an in-house strain collection of 25,000 microorganisms (actinomycetes, myxobacteria, endophytic fungi) and 20,000 plant partitions representing diverse geological and climatic origins. Productized outputs include the MEGx isolated natural products library, the NATx synthetic natural product motif library, the MACROx macrocyclic compounds library, and specialized sub-libraries such as Polyphenols and Flavonoids. Service offerings span target-to-lead discovery, biological profiling against GPCRs, protein kinases, and protein-protein interactions, and medicinal chemistry optimization with fermentation scale-up from 10L to 200-1000L.

The business model is multi-stream. One-time library licensing covers MEGx, NATx, MACROx, and sub-libraries delivered in .sdf format. Contract research services cover natural product chemistry, medicinal chemistry, total synthesis, and biological profiling under quote-based pricing. Collaborative R&D programs, such as DOLCE (natural sweetening solutions with Roquette) and FRESCO (nature-based preservation ingredients), are structured around co-development and licensing economics. The customer base spans large pharmaceutical groups (J&J, Merck KGaA, Boehringer Ingelheim, Schering-Plough, Roche, Pharvaris, Bionaut Pharmaceuticals, Memorial Sloan-Kettering), consumer-facing companies (Symrise, Roquette, Kyowa Hakko), and more than 100 ongoing client relationships globally, with direct sales in Europe and North America and distribution partners in China (J&K Scientific) and Japan (Namiki Shoji).

Name

AnalytiCon Discovery

Legal name

AnalytiCon Discovery – a Division of BRAIN Biotech AG

Website

https://ac-discovery.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

AnalytiCon Discovery is a Potsdam, Germany-based natural product research firm and division of BRAIN Biotech AG that provides screening compound libraries, contract discovery services, and collaborative R&D programs to pharmaceutical, cosmetic, food and beverage, and agriculture companies worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Natural Product Drug Discovery Services

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

Medicinal Chemicals & Botanical Products (2833), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Library & Diversity Generation Platforms (display libraries, DNA-encoded libraries for biologics, variant libraries) (HLAAAIAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

CMC & Pharmaceutical Development (Formulation/Process/Analytical Development) (HLAIALAD), Chiral / Asymmetric Synthesis & Complex Chemistry Services (HLAGAHAE)

Keywords

• Natural product discovery
• Compound library sales
• Drug discovery services
• Natural product chemistry
• Microbial strain library

Headquarters

HQ city

Potsdam

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Screening Library Sales: Sale of compound libraries including MEGx (isolated natural products), NATx (synthetic NP motifs), MACROx (macrocyclic compounds), and specialized sub-libraries for pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and nutritional research.
2. Contract Research Services: Early drug discovery and discovery chemistry services including natural product chemistry, target-to-lead discovery, medicinal chemistry optimization, total synthesis, and biological profiling.
3. Collaborative R&D Partnerships: Joint development programs with pharmaceutical and food companies such as DOLCE (with Roquette for natural sweetening solutions) and FRESCO (for nature-based preservation ingredients).

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

AnalytiCon Discovery develops, produces, and sells natural product screening compound libraries (MEGx isolated natural products, NATx synthetic NP motifs, MACROx macrocyclic compounds) and provides contract research services covering natural product chemistry, target-to-lead discovery, medicinal chemistry optimization, total synthesis, fermentation, and biological profiling. The offering serves pharmaceutical, cosmetic, food and beverage, and agriculture customers seeking novel starting points from microbial and plant-derived sources.

Product overview

AnalytiCon Discovery is a BRAIN Group company specializing in natural products for pharmaceutical, cosmetic, nutrition, and agriculture sectors. The company operates as a research and development organization covering the full spectrum from establishing substance libraries, identifying active ingredients, and synthetically optimizing them to production on commercial scale. Their core product portfolio consists of three main screening compound libraries: MEGx (isolated natural products of microbial or plant origin), NATx (synthetic compounds based on natural product motifs), and MACROx (next generation macrocyclic compounds). These are complemented by specialized sub-libraries including Polyphenols and Flavonoids and Natural Macrocyclic Compounds. The company also operates collaborative programs including DOLCE (natural sugar/calorie reduction) and FRESCO (nature-based preservation ingredients), alongside technology platforms for high-throughput isolation, fermentation, biological profiling, and medicinal chemistry optimization.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• MEGx – Isolated Natural Products
• NATx – Synthetic Natural Product Motifs Synthetic compounds based on natural product motifs designed for drug discovery, available to pharmaceutical research customers.
• MACROx – Next Generation Macrocycles Library of natural medium ring and macrocyclic compounds with ring sizes 8-35 atoms from plant and microbial sources, covering bioactivities from nematicidal to antibacterial to cytostatic.
• Polyphenols and Flavonoids Sub-Library Sub-library of over 300 plant-derived pure natural product compounds from the polyphenols and flavonoids classes, offered pre-plated for biological evaluation.
• Natural Macrocyclic Compounds Sub-Library Sub-library of natural medium ring and macrocyclic compounds with ring sizes 8-35 from plant and microbial sources covering broad bioactivity indications.
• Biological Profiling Services Target-to-lead discovery services using cell-based and biochemical assays addressing G-protein-coupled receptors, protein kinases, protein-protein interactions, and phenotypic approaches.
• Fermentation Services State-of-the-art fermentation services including liquid, solid, and membrane (biofilm) fermentation with scale-up capabilities from 10L to 200-1000L.
• Medicinal Chemistry Optimization Medicinal chemistry optimization of natural product hits including total synthesis, structure-activity relationship development, toxicity studies, and scale-up processes.
• High-Throughput Natural Product Isolation Platform Proprietary technology platform enabling high-throughput isolation of pure natural products from extraction through chromatography to HPLC-MS and NMR analytics, delivered as a service.

Named customers12 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature9 records

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• PharvariscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 February 2022Extended collaboration with Pharvaris for natural product research. Pharvaris is developing small molecule bradykinin B2 receptor antagonists.
• Global beverage company (unnamed)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 December 2018Joined BRAIN's and AnalytiCon's FRESCO program for nature-based preservation ingredients to address demand for sustainably produced and healthy products, reducing product losses from microbial decay.
• RoquettecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 August 2016Strategic partnership for DOLCE program - development of next generation natural sweetening solutions. Roquette joined in 2017 and major milestone achieved March 2018 for natural-based sugar and calorie reduction in food and beverages.
• BRAIN Biotech AGcoreOthers · 1 January 2013AnalytiCon Discovery has been part of the BRAIN Group since 2013. BRAIN Biotech AG is a leading European industrial biotechnology specialist. All BRAIN Group companies act as independent entities while interconnecting for R&D and production synergies.
• SymrisecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 November 2008Strategic partnership for development of innovative new active ingredients for cosmetics. Symrise, BRAIN and AnalytiCon collaboration.
• Merck KGaAcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 May 2007Collaboration agreement on natural product lead generation program for pharmaceutical research.
• Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & DevelopmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 December 2005AnalytiCon provided a highly purified, fully elucidated natural product compound library for J&J's drug discovery programs.
• BioPlanta GmbHminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 September 2005Cooperation in plant-based search for active ingredients using plant-derived natural products.
• EvolvaminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 July 2005Nuclear Receptor Alliance for discovery and development of nuclear receptor modulators.
• Bionaut PharmaceuticalsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 April 2005Lead optimization collaboration for a novel class of anti-cancer compounds.
• Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer CentercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 July 2004Drug discovery collaboration for development of new classes of anti-cancer drugs.
• Kyowa Hakko Kogyo Co., Ltd.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 July 2004Collaboration in search of novel drugs based on new compound libraries from hydroxy-prolines.
• Roche VitaminscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 October 2002Co-operation for natural product-based drug research with Roche Vitamins division.
• Boehringer IngelheimcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2001Delivery of natural product libraries to Boehringer Ingelheim for pharmaceutical research.
• Schering-Plough Research InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 October 2000Provision of MEGAbolite Processing services to Schering-Plough.
• J&K Scientific Ltd.coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorChina distributor for AnalytiCon Discovery products, located in Beijing, China. Handles local sales and support for Chinese customers.
• Namiki Shoji Co., Ltd.coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorJapan distributor for AnalytiCon Discovery products, located in Tokyo, Japan. Handles local sales and support for Japanese customers.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Selvita: Mid-sized European CRO offering integrated drug discovery services including medicinal chemistry and biology. Comparable in scale and service scope to AnalytiCon's contract research offering.
• Hypha Discovery: UK-based CRO specializing in microbial natural product discovery and custom screening library generation for pharma and agrochemical clients. Directly comparable to AnalytiCon in business model, target customers, and natural-product isolation technology.
• Sygnature Discovery: UK-based CRO providing integrated drug discovery including medicinal chemistry, biology, and DMPK to pharma and biotech. Similar mid-sized CRO profile competing for the same type of discovery outsourcing customers.
• Sequoia Sciences: US-based natural product drug discovery company focused on isolating and developing compounds from plants and microbes. Directly comparable niche player in natural-product library generation and early-stage discovery.

Emerging players

• Novobiotic Pharmaceuticals: Emerging biotech applying novel culturing techniques to discover previously uncultivable bacteria for new antibiotics. Overlaps with AnalytiCon's microbial natural-product discovery and novel-mechanism focus, though more therapeutics-oriented.

Broad incumbents

• Charles River Laboratories: Global CRO providing discovery, safety assessment, and manufacturing services to pharma and biotech. Broad incumbent whose discovery services overlap with AnalytiCon's contract research offering, though at much larger scale.
• Evotec: Large publicly listed CRO offering integrated drug discovery services including medicinal chemistry, screening, and CMC across small molecules and biologics. Broad incumbent with overlapping discovery capabilities, though not specialized in natural products.
• Eurofins Discovery: Division of Eurofins Scientific offering drug discovery services including compound libraries, in vitro pharmacology, and ADME. Broad incumbent that sells screening libraries and contract research, overlapping with multiple AnalytiCon offerings.
• WuXi AppTec: China-based global CRO/CDMO offering comprehensive small-molecule discovery, biology, and CMC services. Broad incumbent that competes for pharma service contracts that AnalytiCon also targets.
• WuXi STA: CDMO arm of WuXi AppTec providing process development, API manufacturing, and formulation services. Comparable for the medicinal chemistry optimization and scale-up portions of AnalytiCon's integrated offering.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/447713

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors3 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about AnalytiCon Discovery