What Biobase does

Biobase (legal entity Brüller GmbH) is a German bioinformatics company founded in 1997 as a spin-off from the German Research Center for Biotechnology (GBF) in Braunschweig. The company develops, curates, and licenses manually curated molecular biology databases and integrated software platforms for academic and pharmaceutical research, with proprietary products including TRANSFAC (eukaryotic transcription factors), TRANSPATH (signal transduction pathways), BRENDA (enzymology with 80,000+ entries), and the integrated BioKnowledge Library (BKL). Data assets span transcription factors, enzymes, promoter sequences, pathways, and proteomes across yeast, worm, human, and rodent species, supplemented by tools such as MATCH, ExPlain, Pathway Builder, and Array Analyzer for gene regulation and pathway analysis.

Biobase operates a B2B subscription-based licensing model, charging institutional annual fees via quote-based pricing to academic institutions, pharmaceutical companies, and biotechnology firms globally. Distribution is conducted through three wholly-owned subsidiaries in the United States (Beverly, Massachusetts), India, and Japan, alongside direct sales from its German headquarters. In addition to proprietary databases, Biobase distributes selected third-party bioinformatics products (QIAGEN-integrated databases, CLC Genomics Workbench, HGMD, QCI Interpret) and offers Knowledge Process Outsourcing services for gene expression content.

The company employs approximately 150 staff and traces its primary assets to foundational acquisitions: exclusive worldwide BRENDA marketing rights secured in 2003 and the Incyte database assets acquired in 2005 that seeded the Proteome BKL. Revenue figures are not publicly disclosed, and the company has remained privately held under Brüller GmbH since its 1999 acquisition by MBG Hannover.

Name

Biobase

Legal name

Brüller GmbH

Website

https://biobase.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Biobase is a German bioinformatics company that develops and licenses manually curated molecular biology databases—including TRANSFAC, TRANSPATH, BRENDA, and the BioKnowledge Library—on a subscription basis to academic, pharmaceutical, and biotechnology research customers globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Bioinformatics Databases and Software

NAICS

Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171), Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Bioinformatics & Multi-omics Analysis Software (HLAGAJAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Bioinformatics, Multi-Omics Data Analysis & Interpretation Services (HLAGANAI)

Keywords

• Biological database licensing
• Molecular biology databases
• Bioinformatics software platforms
• Enzyme research databases
• Genomic data curation

Headquarters

HQ city

Germering

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Database Licensing: Biobase licenses its biological databases including TRANSFAC, TRANSPATH, BRENDA, and the BioKnowledge Library to research institutions, pharmaceutical companies, and academic researchers. Revenue is generated through subscription-based access to curated molecular biology databases and software platforms.
2. Software Platform Access: Access to proprietary software tools including BKL Search, MATCH-Tool, Matrix-Tool, Array Analyzer, Pathway Builder, and ExPlain system for data analysis and interpretation.
3. Third-Party Product Distribution: Distribution of third-party bioinformatics products including IPA, CLC Genomics Workbench, HGMD, and various QCI Interpret products. Revenue from reselling and distributing partner-developed databases.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Biobase develops, curates, and licenses manually curated molecular biology databases and bioinformatics software platforms for life sciences research and pharmaceutical R&D. Its core offering is the BioKnowledge Library (BKL), which integrates databases covering eukaryotic transcription factors (TRANSFAC), signal transduction pathways (TRANSPATH), enzymes (BRENDA with 80,000+ entries), and species-specific proteomes, delivered alongside proprietary analysis tools such as ExPlain, MATCH, Pathway Builder, and Array Analyzer. The company also distributes third-party bioinformatics products and offers Knowledge Process Outsourcing services focused on gene expression content.

Product overview

Biobase offers a platform-plus-modules architecture centered on the BIOBASE Knowledge Library (BKL), which combines two main modules: the TRANSFAC Suite for eukaryotic gene regulation analysis and the PROTEOME module for protein data. The platform includes analysis tools (MATCH, FMatch, COMPOSITE MODEL, MATRIX, ExPlain, Array Analyzer, Pathway Builder, BKL Search, BKL Pathfinder, Network Analysis, and BKT). Core proprietary databases include TRANSFAC (transcription factors), TRANSPATH (signal pathways), BRENDA (enzymes with 80,000+ entries), TRANSCompel, TRANSPro, PathoDB, YPD, HumanPSD, PombePD, WormPD, and GPCR-PD, plus BRENDA sub-products (BTO, FRENDA, AMENDA, DRENDA, KENDA). Biobase distributes selected third-party products and offers Knowledge Process Outsourcing services for gene expression content.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• TRANSFAC: Comprehensive database of eukaryotic transcription factors, their experimentally determined DNA binding sites, and regulated genes.
• TRANSPATH
• BRENDA
• Proteome BKL

Products and services

• BIOBASE Knowledge Library (BKL) A comprehensive software platform combining proteomics and genomics databases, enabling researchers to cross-reference their results with existing data and access extensive expert-curated background information; targets academic and pharmaceutical researchers in molecular biology.
• TRANSFAC A manually curated database containing comprehensive data on eukaryotic transcription factors, their experimentally determined DNA-binding sites, and the genes they regulate; serves as a reference work for eukaryotic gene regulation analysis by academic and pharmaceutical researchers.
• TRANSPATH A complete molecular biology database system focused on signal pathways in gene regulation, providing extended analysis capabilities for identifying signaling pathways and building regulatory networks from molecules, genes, and reactions; targets life sciences researchers.
• BRENDA (Braunschweig Enzyme Database) One of the world's largest online biochemistry databases containing molecular biological and biochemical data on over 80,000 enzymes and their metabolic pathways extracted from scientific publications; targets biochemists, enzymologists, and systems biology researchers.
• Knowledge Process Outsourcing Services providing specific content and analyses on gene expression topics; targets research institutions and pharmaceutical companies requiring outsourced curation and analysis expertise.
• Third-Party Bioinformatics Product Distribution Reselling and distribution of partner-developed bioinformatics databases and software (IPA, CLC Genomics Workbench, HGMD, QCI Interpret); targets researchers requiring complementary tools alongside Biobase proprietary products.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• University of TokyocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBiobase maintains research partnerships with leading universities including the University of Tokyo for collaborative research in bioinformatics and molecular biology.
• Fraunhofer Institut Toxikologie und Experimentelle MedizincoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partnership with Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine for collaborative scientific projects.
• Sysco Project ConsortiumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch consortium combining experimental and simulation approaches to study intracellular processes in parasite infections.
• TRANSISTOR Project ConsortiumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch project focused on regulatory processes in plants, involving collaborative research with academic partners.
• Helmholtz Association / German Research Center for Biotechnology (GBF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBiobase was founded in 1997 as a spin-off from the German Research Center for Biotechnology (now part of Helmholtz Association). Maintains ongoing relationships with the research institution.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries3 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 Biobase