Institute of Biotechnology of the Czech Academy of Sciences

What Institute of Biotechnology of the Czech Academy of Sciences does

The Institute of Biotechnology of the Czech Academy of Sciences (Biotechnologický ústav AV ČR, v. v. i., "BTÚ") is a public research institution founded in 2008 and headquartered at the BIOCEV biomedical centre in Vestec near Prague. With 97 employees, BTÚ operates 13 specialised research laboratories spanning structural biology, protein engineering, molecular therapy, reproductive biology, cancer metabolism, gene expression, molecular pathogenetics, and biomolecular recognition, plus two core service facilities — the Centrum molekulární struktury (CMS, structural biology services) and the GeneCore Facility (quantitative/digital PCR). Under Director Bohdan Schneider, the institute sits within the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic and is co-located with Charles University at BIOCEV, giving it access to cryo-electron microscopy, X-ray crystallography, and advanced omics infrastructure as a national node of ELIXIR, Instruct-ERIC, and CIISB.

BTÚ is funded through a four-stream revenue model: (1) institutional state funding from the Czech Academy of Sciences covering salaries and base operations; (2) competitive research grants from national agencies (GACR, TAČR, Ministry of Education) and European programmes (ERC, Horizon Europe); (3) fee-for-service research and consulting for industry and academia via the 'Pro firmy' (For Companies) programme; and (4) technology licensing and spin-off revenue, exemplified by Molecule 46 commercialising CD46-based sperm diagnostics and Carta Genum developing AI-enabled spatial-biology bioinformatics. Revenue figures are not publicly disclosed. Customers are predominantly academic (Charles University, international collaborators including Cambridge, MIT, Institut Curie) and institutional (Czech/EU funding bodies), with industry engagements spanning pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and agricultural sectors.

The institute's research output materially outperforms EU15 benchmarks — 78% of publications appear in Q1 journals (vs 51% EU15) and 22% in D1 journals (vs 18% EU15) — and it achieved the highest proportion of grade-1 rated outputs in the Czech M17+ government evaluation for 2019-2023. Recent strategic recognitions include the 2025 European Commission HR Excellence in Research Award, the 2025 Praemium Academiae (Jiří Neužil, CZK 30M/6yr) and Lumina quaeruntur (Aniruddha Mitra, CZK 4M/yr/5yr) awards, and active international recruitment including the appointment of BTÚ's first foreign laboratory head.

Name

Institute of Biotechnology of the Czech Academy of Sciences

Legal name

Biotechnologický ústav AV ČR, v. v. i.

Website

https://ibt.cas.cz

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

BTÚ AV ČR is a Czech public research institute at the BIOCEV biomedical centre in Vestec, conducting basic and applied research in structural biology, cancer, reproductive biology, and molecular therapy, serving academic, industry, and government clients via grant-funded research, core-facility services, and technology licensing.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Biomedical Research Services

NAICS

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

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Medical Laboratories (8071)

akta.pro primary industry

Biomedical Sciences & Medical Research Institutes (University-Based) (EDAHAGAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Process Development & Tech Transfer Services (upstream/downstream) (HLAAAKAF)

Keywords

• Biomedical research services
• Structural biology research
• Molecular biology research
• Cancer research
• Reproductive biology research

Headquarters

HQ city

Vestec

HQ country

Czechia

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Institutional State Funding: Core operational funding from the Czech Academy of Sciences (Akademie věd ČR), provided through the public research institution framework. Covers salaries, infrastructure, and basic operations.
2. Competitive Research Grants: Funding from national agencies (Czech Science Foundation/GACR, Technology Agency TAČR, Ministry of Education), European programmes (ERC grants, Horizon Europe), and international foundations. Constitutes the primary driver of research activity.
3. Research Services for Industry and Academic Partners: Fee-for-service laboratory analyses, contract research, and consulting provided through the 'Pro firmy' (For Companies) division, offering access to specialised facilities and expertise to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and other companies.
4. Technology Licensing and Spin-off Revenue: Intellectual property developed at the institute is commercialised through licensing agreements and spin-off companies, such as Molecule 46 (founded by Kateřina Komrsková) for CD46-based sperm quality diagnostics.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Institute of Biotechnology of the Czech Academy of Sciences is a public research institute that conducts fundamental and applied biomedical research across structural biology, molecular biology, cellular biology, reproductive biology, cancer metabolism, and bioinformatics. It sells fee-for-service research analyses and contract research to industry partners through its "Pro firmy" programme and operates shared core facilities (Centrum molekulární struktury and GeneCore Facility) providing cryo-EM, X-ray crystallography, and advanced PCR services. The institute also licenses proprietary technologies (including the CD46 sperm quality diagnostic commercialised via spin-off Molecule 46).

Product overview

The Institute of Biotechnology of the Czech Academy of Sciences (Biotechnologický ústav AV ČR) is a biomedical research institution that operates as a unified institute offering research services, core facilities, and technologies rather than commercial products. Its main offerings include the GeneCore Facility for PCR services, the Centre for Molecular Structure for biophysical and structural analysis, and specialized research laboratories. The institute also provides research services for external companies and offers technologies for licensing. The institution focuses on fundamental and applied biomedical research in areas including molecular therapy, structural biology, reproductive biology, and cancer research.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Research Services for Industry ("Pro firmy")

Quantifiable outcome

• 78% of publications in Q1 journals (vs 51% EU15 average); 22% in D1 journals (vs 18% EU15 average)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• Charles University (Univerzita Karlova)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Long-term strategic partnership with Charles University for the joint operation of the BIOCEV (Biomedical Centre) in Vestec. One of the largest joint projects of the Czech Academy of Sciences and a university in the Czech Republic, covering shared infrastructure, research programmes, and PhD student training. The partnership was formalised with the establishment of BIOCEV in 2016 and continues to drive biomedical research and education.
• Akademie věd ČR (Czech Academy of Sciences)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBTÚ is a public research institution (v. v. i.) under the Czech Academy of Sciences, receiving core institutional funding and participating in Academy-wide strategic initiatives, evaluations, and award programmes.
• ELIXIR Czech RepubliccoreTechnology or IntegrationBTÚ participates in ELIXIR, the European research infrastructure for biological data, as a node contributing to and accessing European bioinformatics resources and services.
• Instruct-ERICcoreTechnology or IntegrationBTÚ's Centrum molekulární struktury participates in Instruct-ERIC, the European research infrastructure for structural biology, providing access to advanced structural biology technologies across Europe.
• CIISB (Czech Infrastructure for Integrative Structural Biology)coreTechnology or IntegrationCIISB is the Czech national infrastructure for integrative structural biology, of which BTÚ's Centrum molekulární struktury is a key member, providing access to shared instrumentation and methodological expertise.
• Malaghan Institute of Medical Research (New Zealand)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing collaboration with Prof. Jiří Neužil's group on horizontal mitochondrial transfer (HMT) and cancer research. Joint publications in Cancer Cell and Cancer Research. Prof. Neužil received the Distinguished Collaborative Research Fellow Award from Malaghan Institute in 2026.
• Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry (IOCB) / Nadační fond IOCB TechcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBTÚ collaborates with IOCB and the IOCB Tech Foundation on the MIT-Czech Republic Seed Fund programme, technology transfer, and the Martina Roeselová Memorial Grant supporting young researchers with childcare needs.
• Molecule 46 (Spin-off company)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpin-off company founded by Kateřina Komrsková (BTÚ group leader) for the commercialisation of CD46-based sperm quality diagnostic products. BTÚ supported the IP transfer and company formation, with products targeted for animal insemination stations (2025) and human diagnostics (certification pending).
• University of CambridgeflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on progressive multiple sclerosis research, where BTÚ scientists (Lukáš Valihrach, Daniel Žucha) performed spatial transcriptomics analysis of post-mortem brain tissue for the international team led by Prof. Stefano Pluchino (Cambridge), published in Neuron 2025.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Institut Pasteur: Historic French biomedical research institute covering infectious disease, immunology, and structural biology. Larger scale but directly comparable as a top-tier publicly funded biomedical research institution.
• European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL): Larger pan-European molecular biology organization with multiple sites, of which BTÚ is a partner through ELIXIR. Provides a benchmark for organizational scale and the European research infrastructure model BTÚ participates in.
• The Francis Crick Institute: Larger UK biomedical research institute covering cancer, neuroscience, and structural biology. Comparable research portfolio but materially larger scale; useful peer for grant competitiveness and core facility models.

Direct peers

• MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology (MRC-LMB): Historic UK biomedical research institute with Nobel Prize lineage, focused on structural biology and molecular medicine. Closely comparable research portfolio (structural biology, cell biology) at slightly larger scale.
• Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics (MPI-CBG): German biomedical research institute of comparable scale, focused on molecular cell biology, genetics, and structural biology. Comparable public-research-institute model with similar core-facility infrastructure and grant-driven operations.
• Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP): Vienna-based molecular biology research institute sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim/Genentech. Comparable in scale and molecular biology/cancer research focus; useful peer for technology transfer model.
• Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB) Mainz: German molecular biology research institute of comparable size, focused on epigenetics, DNA repair, and quantitative biology. Similar scale and public-research-institute operating model.
• Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry (IOCB) Prague: Sister institute under the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague, jointly operating BIOCEV and the MIT-Czech Seed Fund programme. Most directly comparable peer given shared governance, funding model, and geographic co-location.
• Hubrecht Institute: Dutch biomedical research institute (KNAW) focused on developmental biology and stem cells, with structural biology components. Comparable scale and public-research-institute funding model.

Others

• Wellcome Sanger Institute:

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ibtcas

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Institute of Biotechnology of the Czech Academy of Sciences