Japan Bio Research Center

What Japan Bio Research Center does

Japan Bio Research Center (Nihon Bioresearch Inc., 株式会社日本バイオリサーチセンター) is a privately held Japanese contract research organization founded in February 1982 through joint investment by Kitayama Lavers Inc. and Oriental Yeast Industries Co., Ltd. Headquartered in Hashima City, Gifu Prefecture, with 92 employees as of October 2025, the company provides non-clinical testing services to pharmaceutical, medical device, regenerative medicine, health food, cosmetics, and chemical companies. Its service portfolio is organized around six core categories: pharmacological efficacy studies, GLP-compliant safety studies, miniature pig studies, medical device testing, regenerative medicine studies, and BSL-2 infection studies, supported by specialized safety pharmacology, CNS pharmacology, and a validated proprietary disease model library covering CNS disorders, infectious diseases, cancer, fibrosis, and dermatology.

The company's underlying technology platform is built on physical vivarium infrastructure across three dedicated facilities (Hashima Research Institute, Shuzenji Branch miniature pig facility, Kiso-Sansan BSL-2 infection facility) and an accumulated base of validated animal models. NBR holds AAALAC International full accreditation across all three facilities (Shuzenji 2020, Hashima Division 1 June 2025, Hashima Division 2 February 2026) and GLP compliance in four regulatory categories (pharmaceutical, medical device, regenerative medicine, chemical substance), with all four most recent conformity inspections completed in September 2024.

The business model is fee-for-service professional services: clients engage NBR directly via inquiry channels for individual non-clinical study contracts priced per project, with periodic promotional campaigns offering discounted screening studies. Commercial reach is driven by industry conference participation, online seminars, technical publications (NBR Study Navi, 100+ issues; NBR Times quarterly magazine), and a dedicated Business Planning Department. Geographic focus is domestic Japan with emerging international conference presence at SOT (USA) and WHX Osaka 2026.

Name

Japan Bio Research Center

Legal name

株式会社日本バイオリサーチセンター

Website

https://nbr.co.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Japan Bio Research Center is a Japanese non-clinical contract research organization providing GLP-compliant pharmacological efficacy, safety, miniature pig, medical device, regenerative medicine, and BSL-2 infection testing services to pharmaceutical, medical device, and chemical sponsors from three AAALAC-accredited facilities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Preclinical Contract Research Services

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Testing Laboratories and Services (54138)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro primary industry

Toxicology & Safety Assessment CROs (GLP) (HLAGAAAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Preclinical CROs (Discovery/Pharmacology/DMPK) (HLAGAAAB)

Keywords

• Preclinical contract research
• Non-clinical safety testing
• GLP toxicology studies
• Animal model studies
• Pharmaceutical testing services

Headquarters

HQ city

Hachiman

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. 非臨床試験サービス（薬効薬理試験・安全性試験）: NBR operates as a contract research organization (CRO) providing fee-for-service non-clinical testing on a per-study or per-campaign basis. Revenue is generated through individual study contracts with pharmaceutical, medical device, regenerative medicine, health food, cosmetics, and chemical companies. Pricing is quoted per project, with periodic campaign discounts offered for screening studies. No subscription or recurring revenue model is apparent; each engagement is a discrete service contract.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Japan Bio Research Center (Nihon Bioresearch Inc.) is a Japanese contract research organization (CRO) providing non-clinical (preclinical) testing services for pharmaceutical, medical device, regenerative medicine, health food, cosmetics, and chemical companies. Service lines include pharmacological efficacy studies, GLP-compliant safety/toxicology studies, miniature pig studies, medical device testing, regenerative medicine testing, and BSL-2 infection studies across three AAALAC-accredited facilities in Japan.

Product overview

Japan Bio Research Center (NBR) operates as a comprehensive contract research organization (CRO) providing preclinical testing services primarily for pharmaceutical, medical device, regenerative medicine, and health food companies. The company's core offerings consist of six integrated service categories: Pharmacological Efficacy Studies, Safety Studies (including GLP-compliant toxicology), Minipig Studies, Medical Device Testing, Regenerative Medicine Studies, and Infection Studies (BSL-2). Supporting these core services are specialized offerings including Safety Pharmacology, CNS Pharmacology, and an extensive portfolio of validated animal disease models. NBR also provides educational resources through NBR Study Navi (technical publications) and NBR Times (quarterly magazine), along with online seminars for client engagement. The company holds multiple GLP certifications (pharmaceuticals, medical devices, regenerative medicine products, chemical substances) and AAALAC International accreditation across its research facilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Pharmacological Efficacy Studies Preclinical pharmacological efficacy testing using various disease animal models (rodents, guinea pigs, rabbits, dogs, miniature pigs) to evaluate drug candidate effectiveness across therapeutic areas including CNS disorders, cancer, renal disease, hepatic disease, dermatology, and inflammatory conditions.
• Safety Studies Comprehensive non-clinical safety assessment including general toxicity testing (single and repeated dose), reproductive and developmental toxicity, genetic toxicity (Ames, chromosome aberration, micronucleus), irritation, and antigenicity/sensitization testing. Studies available in GLP-compliant form across pharmaceutical, medical device, regenerative medicine product, and chemical substance categories.
• Minipig Studies Specialized preclinical studies using miniature pigs (Göttingen minipigs) for pharmacological efficacy and safety assessment, including dermal evaluation, cardiovascular studies, renal dialysis models, and GLP-compliant toxicology studies, with facility capacity of 178 heads.
• Medical Device Testing Safety and performance testing for medical devices including cytotoxicity, sensitization, irritation, implantation, hemocompatibility, pyrogenicity, and tumorigenicity studies conducted under medical device GLP standards and ISO 10993 frameworks.
• Regenerative Medicine Studies Safety and efficacy studies for regenerative medicine products including somatic stem cells and ES cells, with tumorigenicity testing and soft agar colony formation assays for cell-based therapies.
• Infection Studies Specialized infection studies conducted in dedicated BSL-2 facilities using various pathogens including influenza virus, rotavirus, MRSA, candida, and dermatophytes, with both in vivo and in vitro testing capabilities and approximately 330 studies conducted over 13 years.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Oriental Yeast Industries Co., Ltd. (オリエンタル酵母工業株式会社)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1982One of the two founding investors of NBR (along with Kitayama Lavers Inc.) in 1982. Oriental Yeast Industries is a major Japanese life sciences company providing laboratory animal models and related products. PS2APP transgenic mice used in Alzheimer's disease models are sourced through the Oriental Yeast Group. Göttingen miniature pigs are sourced from Oriental Yeast Industries for certain studies.
• 一般財団法人ヒューマンサイエンス振興財団 (Human Science Promotion Foundation)minorOthersNBR obtained animal experiment facility certification from the Human Science Promotion Foundation in 2011. This is a third-party accreditation body for animal experiment facilities in Japan.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Labcorp Drug Development (Fortrea): Global CRO with extensive non-clinical and clinical capabilities (formerly Covance). Broad incumbent competing for Japanese pharma GLP studies through international capacity and integrated development services.
• WuXi AppTec Co., Ltd. Global preclinical and clinical CRO/CDMO with large-scale toxicology capacity. Broad incumbent serving global pharma sponsors, including Japanese clients seeking integrated discovery-to-clinical development support.
• Charles River Laboratories International: Global preclinical CRO (NYSE: CRL) with Safety Assessment, Research Models, and Discovery Services segments. Broad incumbent setting global pricing benchmarks for GLP toxicology and offering cross-border study transfer options to Japanese pharma sponsors.
• CMIC Holdings Co., Ltd. Japan's largest CRO (TSE: 2309) with preclinical, clinical, CDMO, and consulting service lines. Broader incumbent offering overlapping non-clinical safety testing but with significantly larger scale and full clinical-to-commercial coverage.

Direct peers

• LSI Medience Corporation: Japanese CRO providing non-clinical safety, clinical laboratory, and diagnostic services, part of the Mitsubishi Chemical Group. Direct peer in GLP toxicology, medical device testing, and pharmaceutical safety studies for Japanese sponsors.
• Ichiken Co., Ltd. Japanese non-clinical CRO (TSE: 3371) offering GLP safety, pharmacology, and pathology services to pharma, chemical, and agrochemical clients. Direct small-cap peer comparable in scope, GLP breadth, and Japanese domestic customer base.
• Shin Nippon Biomedical Laboratories (SNBL): Japanese preclinical and clinical CRO (TSE: 7707) with non-clinical safety, pharmacokinetics, and translational research services including primate studies. Directly comparable for global pharma sponsors seeking Japanese non-clinical capacity.
• BoZo Research Center (Sekisui Medical): Long-established Japanese non-clinical CRO (now part of Sekisui Medical) offering GLP-compliant safety, pharmacology, and pathology studies. Direct competitor for Japanese pharmaceutical safety assessment contracts with comparable accreditation footprint.
• Ina Research Inc. Japanese preclinical CRO (TSE: 3741) providing non-clinical safety and efficacy studies for pharmaceuticals and medical devices. Most directly comparable to NBR by size, product mix, and Japan-centric customer base, with overlapping GLP, pharmacology, and toxicology service lines.

Emerging players

• Eurofins Scientific SE: Global testing services group (Euronext: ERF) with growing non-clinical and product safety testing footprint. Emerging competitor in preclinical and chemical safety testing, particularly for chemical, cosmetic, and food sectors overlapping with NBR's secondary segments.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

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 Japan Bio Research Center