Glycorex Transplantation

What Glycorex Transplantation does

Glycorex Transplantation AB is a privately held Swedish medical technology company founded in 1996 and headquartered in Lund. The company develops and commercializes single-use medical devices based on a proprietary molecular-level, nano-surgical platform that selectively removes specific antibodies from blood through extracorporeal treatment using biologically active carbohydrates. Its core product, Glycosorb® ABO, has been used clinically since 2001 to enable blood group incompatible organ and stem cell transplantation, with more than 6,000 procedures performed across four continents and outcomes documented in over 60 peer-reviewed publications.

The company serves transplant centers and hospitals — particularly those performing kidney, liver, heart, and stem cell transplants — by removing the blood group barrier that otherwise limits donor-recipient matching. A second product, Glycosorb® ABO 4ml for Transfusion, has been launched for converting donated plasma into universal blood plasma, extending the same antibody-removal technology into transfusion medicine for blood banks and plasma suppliers. The company's commercial model relies on direct sales of single-use medical devices to healthcare institutions, supported by a scientific evidence base and routine adoption at reference centers such as Great Ormond Street Hospital. Pricing is not publicly disclosed. Glycorex is pursuing R&D expansion of its platform into autoimmune disease treatments, with rheumatoid arthritis and Myasthenia Gravis cited as focus areas.

Name

Glycorex Transplantation

Legal name

Glycorex Transplantation AB

Website

https://glycorex.se

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Glycorex Transplantation AB is a Swedish medical technology company that develops single-use antibody-removal devices (Glycosorb® ABO) enabling blood group incompatible organ, stem cell, and plasma transplants for hospitals and transplant centers globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Medical Devices for Transplantation and Transfusion

NAICS

Electromedical and Electrotherapeutic Apparatus Manufacturing (334510)

SIC

Electromedical & Electrotherapeutic Apparatus (3845)

akta.pro primary industry

Specialty Injectable & Infusion Therapies (Cross-therapeutic) (HLAIACAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

Blood Bank, Transfusion Medicine & Immunohematology (HLAHAAAH), Transfusion Medicine & Immunohematology (Blood Bank) (HLAFAMAG)

Keywords

• Medical device manufacturing
• Blood antibody removal
• Organ transplantation products
• Transfusion medicine devices
• Immunoadsorption technology

Headquarters

HQ city

Lund

HQ country

Sweden

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Glycorex Transplantation AB develops and manufactures specialized medical devices (Glycosorb® ABO product family) that use proprietary molecular-level technology to selectively remove preformed blood group antibodies from blood plasma. Their products enable ABO-incompatible organ transplantation and safe blood transfusion across blood group barriers, allowing transplant centers to expand donor pools for kidney, liver, heart, and stem cell transplant patients.

Product overview

Glycorex Transplantation offers a portfolio of medical devices based on unique molecular-level technology that specifically selects and removes antibodies in the blood. The core product line consists of Glycosorb® ABO (Transplantation) for enabling blood group incompatible organ transplants across kidney, liver, heart, and stem cell transplants, and Glycosorb® ABO 4ml (Transfusion) for producing universal blood plasma from donated plasma. The products share a common technology platform focused on extracorporeal blood treatment and work together to address both transplantation medicine and transfusion medicine needs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Glycosorb® ABO: Medical device for blood group incompatible transplantation - used for kidney, liver, heart, and stem cell transplants. Also used for transplants with living and deceased donors.
• Glycosorb® ABO 4ml

Products and services

• Glycosorb® ABO (Transplantation)

Quantifiable outcome

• 6,000+ blood group incompatible transplants performed on four continents
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015Great Ormond Street Hospital in London has routinely used Glycorex Transplantation's Glycosorb® ABO product since 2015 to facilitate ABO-incompatible pediatric heart transplantation. The hospital conducted a retrospective study analyzing 14 children aged 2-9 years who received ABO-incompatible transplants between 2013-2023, with a median follow-up of 4.9 years. A study by Hollis et al. at GOSH was selected by the Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation editorial board as one of the top five most impactful papers of 2025.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• CytoSorbents: Developer of blood purification cartridges (CytoSorb) for removal of cytokines and other substances in critical illness. Comparable as a smaller medical-device player using extracorporeal blood-treatment technology, although its therapeutic focus differs from Glycorex's antibody-removal specialization.
• Spectral Medical: Develops extracorporeal blood-purification devices (e.g., Toraymyxin for endotoxin removal). Comparable as a niche medical-device company using extracorporeal blood-treatment technology targeting specialized hospital indications.
• Veloxis Pharmaceuticals: Specialty pharma focused on transplant immunology (immunosuppressants such as Envarsus XR). Comparable to Glycorex in serving the transplant ecosystem, though Veloxis sells pharmaceuticals while Glycorex sells medical devices.
• Miltenyi Biotec: Specializes in cell separation and antibody-based selection technologies, including clinical-grade immunoaffinity columns. Comparable to Glycorex in applying antibody-specific selection/separation technology to clinical cell and blood-processing workflows.

Direct peers

• Asahi Kasei Medical: Manufactures immunoadsorption columns (e.g., Immunosorba, Globaffin) used to selectively remove antibodies from plasma. Directly comparable to Glycorex because both companies sell antibody-removal medical devices used in autoimmune and transplantation settings through extracorporeal blood treatment.
• Kaneka Corporation: Produces LIPOSORBER and other selective apheresis systems for antibody/lipoprotein removal, including immunoadsorption technologies applied in autoimmune disease and transplantation. Closely comparable to Glycorex's antibody-removal platform and clinical use cases.

Broad incumbents

• Haemonetics: Supplies blood and plasma component management devices and disposables to blood banks and hospitals. Comparable in the transfusion medicine customer segment (blood banks) and in direct-to-hospital commercial channels relevant to Glycorex's plasma products.
• Fresenius Medical Care: Global leader in dialysis and apheresis with extensive infrastructure for extracorporeal blood treatments. Overlaps with Glycorex in blood-purification device manufacturing and hospital sales channels, though Fresenius operates across a broader therapeutic portfolio.
• Terumo BCT: Provides blood component processing systems and therapeutic apheresis devices used by blood banks and transfusion services. Comparable to Glycorex in the transfusion-medicine channel and direct hospital sales motion, particularly with the recently launched Glycosorb® ABO 4ml.

Others

• DiaSorin: Specialized in immunodiagnostics and blood-bank screening reagents. Comparable to Glycorex as an adjacent player in transfusion medicine workflows, though DiaSorin provides diagnostic consumables rather than therapeutic devices.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/glycorex
• Facebookfacebook.com/Glycorex
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/glycorex-transplantation-ab

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Glycorex Transplantation