Nuohai Life Science Co.

What Nuohai Life Science Co. does

Nuohai Life Science Co. (锘海生物科学仪器（上海）有限公司), founded in 2004 and headquartered in Shanghai's Songjiang District, is a privately held Chinese high-tech enterprise specializing in biological tissue clearing and 3D light sheet microscopy imaging systems for life sciences research. The company's core platform combines proprietary reversible tissue clearing chemistry, fluorescent labeling techniques, and tiled light sheet microscopy — centered on the LS18 Series Tiled Light Sheet Microscope — to enable 3D fluorescence imaging of intact biological tissues at sub-cellular resolution (~70 nm) across scales from micrometers to 10 cm, with whole-mouse-brain imaging completed in approximately 10 seconds. The integrated product ecosystem includes 15+ categories of self-developed tissue clearing reagent kits, automated instruments (TCS-23 tissue clearing stainer, TCM-23-A transparency detector, NHQ-01 vibratome), NH-DSAP hierarchical data storage, AMIRA 3D visualization software, and distributed international lines (RegenHU bio-3D printers, GATTA nano-calibration rulers, RISystem orthopedic consumables, Cellendes hydrogels).

The company generates revenue through three streams: (1) one-time hardware sales of proprietary and third-party scientific instruments, (2) recurring reagent kits and consumables tied to the installed base, and (3) one-stop CRO research services covering perfusion, tissue clearing, immunofluorescence staining, light sheet 3D imaging, and data analysis. Its go-to-market is sales-led with event-driven demand generation (CSITF exhibitions, university training at Tsinghua) and content marketing via WeChat and a publication track record. Target customers are Chinese universities, research institutes, hospitals, and pharmaceutical companies in neuroscience, oncology, developmental biology, pathology, and nucleic acid drug delivery. The company reports adoption by 500+ institutions, 10,000+ samples processed, 1,000+ service orders, 30+ microscope buyers, and 100+ published research papers including top-tier journals, supported by 50+ patents and recognition as a National High-Tech Enterprise and Specialized and Novel Enterprise.

Name

Nuohai Life Science Co.

Legal name

锘海生物科学仪器（上海）有限公司

Website

https://nuohailifescience.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Life Sciences Instrumentation

NAICS

Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing (3345), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Nanotechnology and Biotechnology) (541715)

SIC

Laboratory Analytical Instruments (3826), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Microscopy, Imaging & Flow Cytometry Instruments (HLAGAIAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Scientific Data Management & Data Platforms (SDMS/Data Lakehouse for R&D) (HLAGAJAC)

Keywords

• Tissue clearing microscopy
• Light sheet microscopy
• 3D fluorescence imaging
• Tissue clearing reagents
• Microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis

Headquarters

HQ city

Songjiang

HQ country

China

HQ region

Asia

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, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Scientific Instrument Sales: Sale of proprietary and third-party scientific instruments including LS18 tiled light sheet microscopes, tissue clearing instruments, microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis systems, animal imaging systems, and 3D biological printers. Hardware products are sold as one-time capital equipment purchases.
2. Reagent Kits and Consumables: Sale of tissue clearing reagent kits (hydrophilic, enhanced, embryo, expansion, skin, bone, plant, whole mouse, living skull, etc.), fluorescent dyes (YOYO-1, TOTO-3), PBS buffers, PFA fixatives, antibody products, mRNA nucleic acid products, and FlowOrigin M LNP reagent kits.
3. CRO Research Services: One-stop research services covering perfusion sampling, tissue clearing, immunofluorescence staining, light sheet 3D fluorescence imaging, data analysis, and data storage. Also includes single-cell spatial omics, high-throughput proteomics, c-Fos whole-brain detection, and custom nucleic acid synthesis/packaging services.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Nuohai Life Science Co. develops and manufactures whole-organ tissue clearing instruments, tiled light-sheet 3D fluorescence microscopy imaging systems (LS18), tissue-clearing reagent kits (e.g., FlowOrigin M), and microfluidic continuous-flow nanoparticle synthesis platforms (Microflow T/S/M/G), and provides 3D imaging contract research services for life-science researchers. Its offering spans the complete workflow from sample preparation and clearing chemistry to 3D imaging, visualization, and quantitative analysis.

Product overview

Nuohai Life Science Co. (锘海生物科学仪器（上海）有限公司) is a high-tech enterprise specializing in biological tissue clearing and 3D light sheet microscopy imaging solutions. The company offers an integrated portfolio centered around its core LS18 Series Tiled Light Sheet Microscope, complemented by a comprehensive ecosystem of tissue clearing reagents and kits, automated instruments (TCS-23 tissue clearing stainer, TCM-23-A transparency detector, NHQ-01 high-frequency vibratome), and one-stop research services. Additionally, the company provides Microflow series microfluidic nanoparticulate drug delivery platforms (T/S/M/G scales) for mRNA and nucleic acid drug development, FlowOrigin M reagent kits, and mRNA nucleic acid products. Supporting products include near-infrared II in vivo imaging systems, RegenHU bio-3D printers, AMIRA 3D visualization software, fluorescent dyes (YOYO-1, TOTO-3), perfusion equipment, and consumables. The company also offers CRO services for tissue clearing, staining, 3D imaging, and data analysis.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• LS18系列平铺光片显微镜: 锘海自主研发的平铺光片显微镜产品线，支持从微米级到厘米级样本的亚细胞级三维成像
• LS-COMPACT光片显微镜
• DeepSight 3D 光片显微镜系列
• 铭汰Microflow系列
• FlowOrigin M 试剂盒

Products and services

• LS18 Tiled Light Sheet Microscope Nuohai's flagship tiled light-sheet 3D fluorescence imaging microscope for whole-organ cleared-sample imaging, targeted at university research labs, research institutes, and pharma R&D imaging groups.
• Tissue Clearing Stainer TCS-23 Automated tissue clearing and staining instrument that standardizes sample preparation prior to 3D imaging, intended for life-science research labs and core imaging facilities.
• Transparency Detector TCM-23-A Device for quantifying tissue transparency during and after clearing, used by researchers to validate and standardize clearing protocols.
• High-frequency Vibratome NHQ-01 High-frequency vibratome for sectioning biological tissue samples as part of the Nuohai clearing and imaging workflow.
• In Vivo Circulation System NHL-01 In vivo circulation/perfusion system for animal research applications, supporting tissue preparation workflows.
• Microflow Continuous-flow Microfluidic Nanoparticle Synthesis Platform (T / S / M / G) Microfluidic chip-based continuous-flow nanoparticle synthesis platform offered in micro-scale (T), milli-scale (S), liter-scale (M), and GMP-grade (G) variants, for mRNA therapeutics and drug delivery nanoparticle formulation by pharma/biotech R&D teams.
• FlowOrigin M Tissue Clearing Reagent Kit Proprietary tissue clearing reagent kit used together with Nuohai's clearing instruments to render biological samples transparent for 3D imaging.
• mRNA Nucleic Acid Products and Customization Services Custom mRNA nucleic acid products and customization/technical support services for therapeutic and research customers developing mRNA-based applications.
• AMIRA 3D Visualization and Analysis Software 3D visualization and quantitative analysis software for cleared-sample imaging data, used by researchers running the Nuohai imaging workflow.
• Near-Infrared II In Vivo Imaging System SWIR 1.0 Small-animal in vivo imaging system based on Near-Infrared II (NIR-II / SWIR) fluorescence, supporting biodistribution and preclinical imaging studies.
• Tissue Clearing Backlight Platform NH210901 Backlight illumination platform for tissue clearing, used to support clearing workflows for clinical and translational research samples.
• Perfusion Equipment NH1000 Perfusion equipment for animal and tissue sample preparation, used in hospital, clinical, and translational research workflows.
• One-Stop Tissue Clearing and 3D Imaging Research Services (CRO) Contract research service offering end-to-end tissue clearing, 3D imaging, and analysis for academic and pharma customers that prefer to outsource the workflow.
• Tissue Clearing Reagent Kit Series Broader family of tissue-clearing reagent kits offered alongside the FlowOrigin M kit, used to prepare biological samples for 3D imaging.
• YOYO-1 Green Fluorescent Dye and TOTO-3 Far-Red Fluorescent Dye Nucleic acid fluorescent dyes (YOYO-1 green; TOTO-3 far-red) used as labeling reagents in cleared-tissue and 3D imaging workflows.
• Mouse Implant Consumables Implant consumables for in vivo small-animal imaging studies, used as accessories in Nuohai's imaging workflows.
• Hierarchical Data Storage Solution for Microscopy (including High-Speed SSD) Data storage infrastructure (including high-speed SSD) marketed as a hierarchical storage solution for large-scale 3D microscopy datasets.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100+ peer-reviewed publications using Nuohai products, with nearly 50 IF>10 papers including Nature, Science, STTT, Nature Photonics, Nature Communications, and others.
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability3 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered moderate and core.

• Tsinghua University Biomedical Testing CentermoderateImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 12 June 2025Tsinghua University's Biomedical Testing Center hosts Nuohai tissue clearing and tiled light sheet microscopy training sessions, providing lectures, hands-on practical training, and interactive Q&A for researchers.
• Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Biomedical EngineeringcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 April 2025Co-partner with Nuohai in the National Key R&D Program 'Biological Whole Tissue 3D Imaging Pre-processing Device' (2024YFF0728200). Shanghai Jiao Tong University's School of Biomedical Engineering collaborates on this major national science instrument project.
• Harbin Institute of TechnologycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 April 2025Co-partner in the National Key R&D Program 'Biological Whole Tissue 3D Imaging Pre-processing Device'. Harbin Institute of Technology contributes to this major national science instrument development project.
• Renji Hospital (仁济医院)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 April 2025Co-partner in the National Key R&D Program 'Biological Whole Tissue 3D Imaging Pre-processing Device'. Renji Hospital contributes clinical research perspectives to this major national science instrument development project.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Leica Microsystems: Part of Danaher, offering the TCS SP8 DLS light sheet module and confocal/STED systems. Competes with Nuohai LS18 and TCS-23 in advanced fluorescence imaging and tissue clearing-compatible microscopy for life sciences.
• Miltenyi Biotec: Major life sciences tools company offering tissue clearing reagents (MACS Clearing), flow cytometry, and cell biology instruments. Comparable to Nuohai through tissue clearing reagent and instrument overlap, though Miltenyi operates a much broader portfolio.
• Carl Zeiss Microscopy: Global microscopy incumbent offering the Lightsheet 7 system. Competes with Nuohai's LS18 in light sheet microscopy for neuroscience and developmental biology research, but as part of a much broader microscopy portfolio.
• Bruker (Luxendo): Acquired Luxendo and offers MuVi SPIM and LCS SPIM light sheet microscopes. Competes with Nuohai LS18 in live and cleared-tissue 3D imaging applications across global academic and pharma research markets.

Emerging players

• MBF Bioscience: Provider of microscopy image analysis software (Neurolucida, Stereo Investigator) used in neuroscience and cleared-tissue 3D imaging. Overlaps with Nuohai's AMIRA 3D visualization offering for the same downstream researcher workflow.
• LaVision BioTec: Light sheet microscopy specialist (UltraMicroscope series, now part of Miltenyi) competing with Nuohai LS18 in whole-organ 3D imaging for cleared tissue samples across neuroscience, oncology, and developmental biology.

Direct peers

• LifeCanvas Technologies: Provider of SHANEL, PEGASOS, and other tissue clearing protocols plus 3D imaging services for academic and pharmaceutical research. Direct competitor in tissue clearing chemistry and whole-organ 3D imaging workflows.
• Visikol: US-based company providing tissue clearing reagents (Histo clearing), 3D imaging CRO services, and reagents for drug discovery. Directly comparable to Nuohai's tissue clearing + CRO + reagent business model and overlapping neuroscience/oncology customer base.
• Precision Nanosystems (Cytiva): Now part of Cytiva, Precision NanoSystems developed the NanoAssemblr microfluidic platform for LNP/mRNA formulation. Directly comparable to Nuohai's Microflow T/S/M/G microfluidic nanoparticle synthesis platform for nucleic acid drug delivery.
• Logos Biosystems: Korean manufacturer of the X-CLARITY tissue clearing system and CLARITY-optimized reagents and instruments. Directly competes with Nuohai's tissue clearing reagent kits (hydrophilic, enhanced, etc.) and automated clearing instruments.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nuohailifescience

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 Nuohai Life Science Co.