Daresbury Proteins

What Daresbury Proteins does

Daresbury Proteins Ltd. is a UK-based private biotech founded in 2018 and headquartered at the Sci-Tech Daresbury campus in Warrington, Cheshire. The company specialises in mammalian recombinant protein production and cell line development using CHO-K1 and HEK293 production hosts. Its core technical differentiator is a proprietary stable expression vector system that the company reports can increase protein expression by up to 50-fold compared with alternative mammalian expression systems, combined with a rapid-pool workflow that avoids the time and cost of clonal cell line selection and expansion. Cell lines developed by Daresbury can be transferred into third-party cGMP manufacturing settings, supporting clients from research-grade reagent supply through to clinical biologics development.

The company generates revenue through three primary streams: bespoke mammalian recombinant protein production services, cell line development services, and royalty-bearing licensing of its background expression IP (notably to Thermo Fisher Scientific, USA, following extensive validation). It also participates in consortium-funded platform development, exemplified by a February 2026 collaboration with Eurofins CDMO Alphora and NRC IRAP to build a next-generation antibody-drug conjugate expression platform. Distribution is handled through a network of nine regional partners across the UK, DACH, China, Canada, the USA, France, India and Southeast Asia, supplemented by direct project-based sales to enterprise and academic clients. Disclosed customer relationships include Iksuda Therapeutics (stable cell line and IgG1 antibody production), Semmelweis University Budapest (custom recombinant human ATX), and Eurofins CDMO Alphora (ADC platform development).

Name

Daresbury Proteins

Legal name

Daresbury Proteins Ltd.

Website

https://daresburyproteins.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Daresbury Proteins Ltd. is a UK-based biotech founded in 2018 that provides bespoke mammalian recombinant protein production and cell line development services using proprietary CHO-K1 and HEK293 expression vectors, serving academic researchers and industrial biotech and pharma clients across nine countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Contract Recombinant Protein Production Services

NAICS

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

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Recombinant Protein Therapeutics (enzymes, hormones, growth factors) (HLAAAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Cell Banking & Viral Seed Services (MCB/WCB/VSB) (HLAGAGAD)

Keywords

• Recombinant protein production
• Mammalian cell line development
• Antibody expression services
• Biotherapeutics manufacturing
• Stable expression vectors

Headquarters

HQ city

Warrington

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Recombinant Protein Production Services: Bespoke mammalian recombinant protein production for academic and industrial clients. Services include sub-cloning of coding DNA sequences into proprietary vectors, generation of stable rapid pools and research cell lines, and production of target recombinants with supporting analytical packages. Revenue is earned on a project-by-project basis.
2. Cell Line Development Services: Development and transfer of proprietary cell lines into third-party cGMP settings. Supports generation of clonal cell lines for research purposes. Revenue generated through service contracts.
3. Technology Licensing: Licensing of background IP and proprietary expression technology to large biotech/pharma companies. The company's expression technology has been licensed by Thermo Fisher Scientific, generating royalty-based licensing revenue.
4. ADC Expression Platform Development: Participation in international consortium projects to develop next-generation ADC expression platforms. Supported by government funding (NRC IRAP) and collaborative arrangements with partners like Eurofins CDMO Alphora.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels9 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Daresbury Proteins Ltd. provides bespoke mammalian recombinant protein production and cell line development services for academic and industrial clients. Using a proprietary stable expression vector system in CHO-K1 and HEK293 cells, the company generates rapid pools, research cell lines, and target recombinant proteins with supporting analytical packages. Services include sub-cloning into proprietary vectors, generation of stable rapid pools, and transfer of cell lines into third-party cGMP manufacturing settings.

Product overview

Daresbury Proteins is a mammalian recombinant protein production company offering a suite of services built around their proprietary expression vector system. Their core offerings include mammalian recombinant protein production and cell line development (CHO-K1 and HEK293), research cell lines, and codon optimization services via partnership with Dapcel Inc. The proprietary expression vector system enables stable, high-level expression and can increase protein expression by up to 50-fold compared to alternative mammalian expression systems. Their technology has been licensed by Thermo Fisher Scientific. Services are designed to support rapid assessment of candidate functionality without requiring additional clonal selection and expansion, reducing cost and risk for clients.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mammalian Recombinant Protein Production Bespoke production of recombinant proteins using mammalian-based expression systems (CHO-K1 and HEK293) that preserve post-translational modifications required for specific and efficacious drug targets. Offered to academic and industrial clients on a project basis, with services including sub-cloning into proprietary vectors, generation of stable rapid pools, and production of target recombinants with supporting analytical packages.
• Cell Line Development Development of stable expression cell lines that can be transferred into third-party cGMP manufacturing settings. Includes generation of stable rapid pools, cryopreservation of Master Cell Stock, and optional clonal cell line generation for research purposes. Targets academic researchers and biotech/pharma clients that need GMP-ready cell lines for biologics development.
• Proprietary Expression Vector System (licensed) Novel proprietary expression vectors supporting stable, high-level expression of a broad range of product classes from mammalian-based production systems (CHO-K1 and HEK293). The system delivers up to 50-fold higher protein expression than alternative mammalian systems and uses a rapid pool approach that avoids clonal selection and expansion. Licensed by Thermo Fisher Scientific, USA, following extensive validation against industry standards.
• Research Cell Lines Generation of stable rapid pools and cryopreservation of Master Cell Stock using CHO-K1 and HEK293 backgrounds, with the option to support clonal cell line generation for research purposes. Delivered as standalone research cell line assets or as part of broader protein production projects.
• Codon Optimization Services Host-cell based codon optimisation of coding DNA inserts to increase protein expression levels, provided as part of the sub-cloning service through a partnership with Dapcel Inc., which uses its award-winning codon-optimisation algorithm. Recommended to clients to maximize expression titres.

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 50-fold higher protein expression compared to alternative mammalian expression systems
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Eurofins CDMO AlphoracoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 February 2026Eurofins CDMO Alphora's Canadian division is collaborating with Daresbury Proteins Ltd. on a next-generation ADC (antibody-drug conjugate) expression platform. The platform integrates optimized affinity peptide tags directly into monoclonal antibody production, eliminating traditional conjugation and purification steps. The collaboration aims to reduce ADC manufacturing complexity and costs while accelerating development timelines, with potential benefits across clinical and commercial supply chains.
• Thermo Fisher ScientificcoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerDaresbury Proteins' background IP and proprietary expression technology has been licensed by Thermo Fisher Scientific, USA. This licensing arrangement followed extensive and successful validation against industry standards, indicating strong scientific and commercial validation of Daresbury Proteins' technology platform.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• GenScript: Global biotech offering custom protein production, gene synthesis, and cell line development services across mammalian and other hosts. Directly comparable to Daresbury Proteins' project-based recombinant protein and cell line services for academic and industrial customers.
• Sino Biological: Provider of recombinant proteins, antibodies, and related reagents with a large catalogue and custom services. Comparable to Daresbury Proteins in producing mammalian-expressed recombinant proteins for research and biotherapeutic applications.
• Proteogenix: Specialist provider of recombinant protein production, antibody production, and protein engineering services with a strong focus on difficult-to-express proteins and custom biotherapeutics. Highly comparable in service scope, target customers, and emphasis on challenging expression targets.
• Eurofins CDMO: Contract development and manufacturing organisation with which Daresbury Proteins is co-developing the next-generation ADC expression platform. Comparable as a CDMO partner offering biopharmaceutical development, manufacturing, and analytical services across biologics including antibodies and ADCs.

Broad incumbents

• Thermo Fisher Scientific: Global life-sciences tools and services leader that has licensed Daresbury Proteins' expression technology. Operates extensive protein production, cell line development, and biologics CDMO capabilities through brands such as Gibco and Patheon, making it the most direct broad-incumbent comparable despite the licensing (rather than competing commercial) relationship.
• Catalent (Novo Holdings): Large biologics CDMO with cell line development and mammalian protein production services, including the GPEx expression platform. Comparable as a broad incumbent in stable mammalian cell line development and biologics manufacturing.
• Lonza Group: One of the world's largest biologics CDMOs, offering mammalian cell line development, recombinant protein production, and full GMP manufacturing. Comparable as the dominant incumbent in the mammalian expression and cell line development space in which Daresbury competes.
• Revvity (formerly BioLegend / PerkinElmer Life Sciences): Life-sciences tools company providing reagents, antibodies, and recombinant proteins, including proteins used in drug discovery and research workflows. Comparable as a broad supplier of recombinant protein reagents to overlapping academic and biopharma customers.
• Abcam: Major supplier of protein and antibody reagents, including recombinant proteins produced in mammalian systems, to academic and industrial researchers. Comparable in supplying high-quality research-use proteins to similar customer segments.

Emerging players

• Absolute Biotech: Specialist provider of custom antibody and protein services, including recombinant expression and antibody reagent production, serving academic and biotech customers. Comparable as a smaller specialist peer focused on custom protein and antibody services for research customers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses2 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/daresbury-proteins

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Daresbury Proteins