RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED
Research Donors Limited supplies fresh and frozen human blood biospecimens—including whole blood, leukopaks, PBMCs, isolated immune cells, plasma, serum, and red blood cells—to pharmaceutical, biotech, CRO, diagnostic, and academic researchers from its HTA-licensed London facility.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2003
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED does
Research Donors Limited is a UK-based biospecimen supplier that provides customised human blood products for biomedical and life science research. The company operates an integrated blood donation and processing facility in London, offering fresh and frozen whole blood, leukopaks, PBMCs, isolated immune cells, buffy coats, plasma, serum, and red blood cells sourced from a diverse pool of more than 5,000 healthy, medication-free UK donors. Its customers include pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, contract research organisations, diagnostic developers, and academic research institutions in the UK, continental Europe, North America, and Asia.
The company's technical platform centres on Spectra Optia apheresis systems operated by trained nurses, an on-site testing laboratory connected directly to the donation clinic, and rapid processing protocols that cryopreserve PBMCs and isolated cells within five hours of collection and plasma and serum within eight hours. Cryopreservation uses CryoStor CS10 with controlled-rate freezing to preserve viability, and specific immune cell subsets (CD19+ B cells, CD14+ monocytes, CD56+ NK cells, CD3+ Pan T cells, CD4+ T helper, and CD8+ cytotoxic T cells) are isolated via negative immunomagnetic separation. All donations undergo viral screening for HIV, Hepatitis B and C, and Syphilis and are confirmed negative before processing and release. The facility holds HTA Licence 12693, NHS HRA ethical approval as a research tissue bank, and ISO 9001:2015 certification, and operates with 11–50 employees.
Research Donors generates revenue through one-time sales of biospecimens and associated testing and processing services, with quote-based pricing that varies by sample type, donor specifications, and delivery requirements. The company reaches customers directly through an enterprise field sales motion with dedicated technical and customer service teams, and indirectly through eight exclusive regional distribution partners covering the UK/Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, the Nordics and Baltics, Benelux, Austria, Japan, and the rest of the world via Amsbio. Since 2022, Research Donors has operated as part of Europa Biosite Group, a privately held life science research products business.
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED
- Legal name
- Research Donors Limited
- Website
- https://researchdonors.co.uk/
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2003
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Research Donors Limited supplies fresh and frozen human blood biospecimens—including whole blood, leukopaks, PBMCs, isolated immune cells, plasma, serum, and red blood cells—to pharmaceutical, biotech, CRO, diagnostic, and academic researchers from its HTA-licensed London facility.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Biospecimen Supply
- NAICS
- Medical Laboratories (621511), Blood and Organ Banks (621991)
- SIC
- Services-Medical Laboratories (8071), Biological Products, (No Disgnostic Substances) (2836)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Plasma Collection & Donor Services (Plasmapheresis Centers) (HLAIAHAH)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Cell & Tissue Banking (biobanking, cord blood/tissue) (HLAAAGAE)
Keywords
Where RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Biospecimen Sales: Sale of human blood biospecimens including whole blood, leukopaks, PBMCs, isolated immune cells, buffy coats, plasma, serum, and red blood cells to researchers. Available in fresh and frozen formats with custom specifications.
- Testing and Processing Services: Additional revenue from sample processing, serology testing, HLA typing, full blood count, and cell viability testing services included with sample orders.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Early morning donation appointments (7:00-9:30am) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Standard donation appointments (9:45am onwards) |
| Others | Pay-as-you-go | Research biospecimens |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels8 records
Marketing channels4 records
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Research Donors Limited collects, processes, and supplies human blood biospecimens including whole blood, leukopaks, PBMCs, isolated immune cells, buffy coats, plasma, serum, and red blood cells to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, CRO, academic, and diagnostics organizations. All products are sourced from an ethically recruited donor panel under HTA licensing, ISO 9001:2015 quality management, and HRA Research Ethics Committee approval, with full chain-of-custody documentation.
Product overview
Research Donors Limited operates a biospecimen supply platform offering fresh and frozen human blood products for biomedical research. The product portfolio includes Whole Blood, Leukopaks, PBMCs, Isolated Immune Cells, Buffy Coats, Plasma, Serum, and Red Blood Cells—all sourced from a diverse pool of over 5,000 healthy, consented UK donors. The company provides customisable collection protocols with various anticoagulants and formats, processed in their ISO-accredited, HTA-licensed London facility. Samples are distributed globally through a network of regional distribution partners.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Whole Blood Ethically sourced whole blood samples collected from a registered donor panel for use in life science research, drug discovery, and diagnostics applications.
- Leukopaks Apheresis-derived leukopak products containing concentrated peripheral blood mononuclear cells for immunology, cell therapy, and translational research applications.
- PBMCs (Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells) Isolated peripheral blood mononuclear cells supplied to researchers for immunological assays, cell-based studies, and drug discovery workflows.
- Isolated Immune Cells Targeted immune cell populations isolated from donor blood for specialized immunology and immunotherapy research applications.
- Buffy Coats Buffy coat fractions prepared from whole blood donations, supplying concentrated leukocytes for research and diagnostic applications.
- Plasma Human plasma fractions derived from whole blood donations for use in research, assay development, and clinical diagnostics.
- Serum Human serum prepared from donor blood for use in cell culture, assay development, and life science research applications.
- Red Blood Cells Isolated red blood cell fractions from whole blood donations for research, transfusion-related studies, and diagnostic applications.
Quantifiable outcome
- Donor network exceeds 5,000 individuals with diverse demographics
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.
- Europa BiositeflagshipEuropa Biosite acquired Research Donors in 2022, making it part of a rapidly growing life science research products business. This partnership provides greater reach across Europe and supports rapid growth of the client base outside the UK.
- Amsbio LLCcoreWorldwide distributor for Research Donors biospecimens excluding territories covered by other regional distributors. Amsbio provides life science reagents and services to academics and biotech companies, serving US, Canada, Europe, and rest of world markets.
- BiomolcoreExclusive distributor for Germany with portfolio of 720,000+ products from 45 suppliers, supporting researchers in life science discoveries for over 50 years.
- Cambridge BiosciencecoreExclusive distributor for UK and Ireland, providing carefully selected products and services for biological research.
- LubioSciencecoreExclusive distributor for Switzerland offering 5M+ products from 120+ suppliers across life sciences research.
- Nordic BioSitecoreExclusive distributor for Nordic and Baltic regions (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway & Sweden) headquartered in Sweden since 1997.
- SanbiocoreExclusive distributor for Belgium, Luxembourg & The Netherlands, providing life science products and services for research and diagnostics.
- Szabo-ScandiccoreExclusive distributor for Austria with 58+ years of experience and 1.7M+ products in the Austrian life science marketplace.
- Central Link Co., Ltd.coreExclusive distributor for Japan, specializing in biospecimen import for in-vitro diagnostic reagent manufacturers, pharmaceutical manufacturers, and research institutions.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- BioIVT: One of the largest global suppliers of human biospecimens and disease-state samples for research. Directly comparable to Research Donors in offering whole blood, plasma, serum, PBMCs, and leukopaks to pharma, biotech, and academic clients, but at significantly larger scale and broader portfolio.
- HemaCare (Charles River Laboratories): Supplier of human blood components and apheresis-collected cell products, now part of Charles River. Directly comparable to Research Donors' leukopak and PBMC business, with broader parent-company distribution in cell and gene therapy CDMO markets.
- Precision for Medicine: Specialises in biospecimen collection and processing for clinical research and diagnostic development. Comparable to Research Donors in serving pharma/biotech with customised collection protocols and broad sample types, but with stronger clinical-trial orientation.
- SeraCare (LGC Clinical Diagnostics): Provides biological reference materials, plasma, serum, and disease-state samples for diagnostics development. Overlaps with Research Donors' plasma and serum product lines targeting diagnostic assay and biomarker validation.
Direct peers
- Discovery Life Sciences: Specialised biospecimen provider offering fresh and frozen human tissues, biofluids, and cell-based products for research. Highly comparable to Research Donors as a direct competitor in leukopak and PBMC supply, with overlapping customer base in pharma and biotech.
- StemCell Technologies: Provides primary cells, including PBMCs and immune cell subsets, alongside cell isolation and cryopreservation reagents. Comparable to Research Donors in the immune-cell subset offering (CD19+, CD14+, CD56+, CD3+, CD4+, CD8+) and researcher customer base.
- Cellero: Specialised supplier of fresh and cryopreserved primary immune cells, including leukopaks and isolated cell subsets, from healthy and diseased donors. Closely comparable to Research Donors in apheresis-collected leukopaks and PBMC cryopreservation workflows.
- ZenBio: Provides primary human cells, plasma, and serum for research applications. Comparable niche biospecimen supplier serving academic and biotech research customers, with similar customised collection offering.
- BBI Solutions: UK-based diagnostic and life science reagent supplier offering human blood-derived antigens, antibodies, and serum products. Comparable as a UK-based blood-product supplier for the diagnostics and research market, with some overlap in plasma/serum product lines.
Regional players
- Cambridge Bioscience: Exclusive Research Donors distributor for UK and Ireland, broader life science research product supplier. Comparable as a regional research supplier channel in the UK market, though not a direct competitor in biospecimen manufacture.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED social profiles
Digital presenceRESEARCH DONORS LIMITED compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED
What does RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED do?
Research Donors Limited collects, processes, and supplies human blood biospecimens including whole blood, leukopaks, PBMCs, isolated immune cells, buffy coats, plasma, serum, and red blood cells to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, CRO, academic, and diagnostics organizations. All products are sourced from an ethically recruited donor panel under HTA licensing, ISO 9001:2015 quality management, and HRA Research Ethics Committee approval, with full chain-of-custody documentation.
Is RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED a public or private company?
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED founded?
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED was founded in 2003. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED based?
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Biospecimen Sales are the primary driver. The others are testing and Processing Services.
Who are RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are BioIVT, HemaCare (Charles River Laboratories), Precision for Medicine and SeraCare (LGC Clinical Diagnostics). Direct peers are Discovery Life Sciences, StemCell Technologies, Cellero, ZenBio and BBI Solutions. Cambridge Bioscience is listed as a regional player.
Does RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED have an API?
No public API is recorded for RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED.
What industry is RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED in?
RESEARCH DONORS LIMITED's product category is Biospecimen Supply. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAIAHAH, Plasma Collection & Donor Services (Plasmapheresis Centers), with a secondary code of HLAAAGAE, Cell & Tissue Banking (biobanking, cord blood/tissue). Its NAICS code is 621511 and its SIC code is 8071.