Research Use Only

01Our statement

This policy forms part of our Terms of Sale and applies to every order, every buyer, and every product in our catalog without exception. We take it seriously, and we enforce it.

02What “Research Use Only” means

“Research Use Only” (RUO) is a regulatory designation for materials supplied for laboratory investigation that have not been evaluated or approved for use in humans or animals. An RUO material is a research reagent in the same sense that a buffer, a stain, or an antibody is a reagent.

An RUO designation means the material:

• Has not been assessed for safety, purity, or efficacy in any living subject by any regulatory authority.
• Carries no approved dosage, route of administration, indication, or contraindication — because none has ever been established.
• Is not manufactured under pharmaceutical Good Manufacturing Practice and is not sterile, pyrogen-free, or otherwise qualified for administration.
• May be handled only by trained personnel in an appropriately equipped laboratory setting.

Our Certificates of Analysis document identity and purity for laboratory purposes. A high purity figure says nothing about safety in a living organism, and must never be read as implying it.

03Prohibited uses

You may not, and may not permit any other person to:

• Administer any product to a human or animal by any route, including ingestion, injection, inhalation, topical application, or implantation.
• Use any product in, on, or as a food, beverage, cosmetic, supplement, drug, or medical device.
• Use any product for clinical diagnosis, treatment, prevention, mitigation, or cure of any condition.
• Compound, formulate, or repackage any product for administration to a living subject.
• Resell, gift, or otherwise transfer any product to a person who you know or reasonably should know intends any of the above.
• Market, advertise, or describe any product in a manner that suggests, implies, or invites use in humans or animals.
• Use any product in violation of any applicable law, regulation, or institutional policy.

These prohibitions apply regardless of the quantity purchased, the purchaser’s professional qualifications, or any personal assumption of risk. There is no permitted human use of an ASCND Research product.

04Regulatory status

Our products have not been approved, cleared, licensed, or otherwise authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the European Medicines Agency, or any comparable authority in any jurisdiction, for any use in humans or animals.

No statement made by ASCND Research — on this website, in product documentation, in correspondence, or elsewhere — should be construed as a claim that any product diagnoses, treats, cures, mitigates, or prevents any disease or condition, or that it is safe or effective for any such purpose.

Certain products may additionally be scheduled, controlled, or restricted in your jurisdiction. Determining the legal status of a material where you are, and obtaining any licence or permit required to possess or use it, is your responsibility alone. See our Terms of Sale for export and import obligations.

05Buyer obligations

By purchasing, you undertake to:

1. Use the products exclusively for legitimate in-vitro laboratory research within an appropriately equipped facility.
2. Ensure that every person who handles the products is trained in the safe handling of research chemicals and has access to the relevant safety documentation.
3. Maintain the products under the storage conditions stated on the label and Certificate of Analysis, secured against access by unauthorized persons.
4. Obtain and maintain all approvals, licences, and institutional authorizations your research requires.
5. Comply with all applicable health, safety, environmental, and controlled-substance laws.
6. Never transfer a product to any person or entity that has not agreed to equivalent restrictions.

06Your certification at checkout

Every order requires you to affirmatively check the Research Use Declaration before payment. That checkbox is not a formality. By checking it you certify, and we rely on your certification, that:

• You are a qualified researcher or an authorized institutional buyer.
• The products will be used for laboratory research purposes only.
• You have read, understood, and accept this RUO Policy and our Terms of Sale.
• You will not administer the products to any human or animal, nor permit anyone else to.

A false certification is a material breach of contract and may constitute fraud. We record the certification with each order.

07Handling and disposal

Treat every product as a chemical of unknown toxicity. Use appropriate personal protective equipment, work in ventilated conditions suitable to the material and scale, and avoid inhalation of lyophilized powder and contact with skin, eyes, and mucous membranes.

Reconstitution, aliquoting, and storage should follow the guidance on the product’s Certificate of Analysis. Where a Safety Data Sheet is available for a product, it takes precedence and should be reviewed before handling.

Dispose of unused material, reconstituted solutions, and contaminated consumables as laboratory chemical waste in accordance with your institution’s waste stream and applicable local regulations. Do not dispose of products in domestic refuse or drainage.

08Labeling and documentation

Every vial ships bearing a lot identifier and the Research Use Only designation. Do not remove, obscure, or alter this labeling, and do not transfer material into unlabeled containers.

Each lot is accompanied by a Certificate of Analysis recording identity and purity as determined by our analytical methods. The CoA describes the material as supplied at the time of release; it makes no representation about the material after reconstitution, after storage outside stated conditions, or beyond any stated retest date. Further detail is available on our Quality & Testing page.

09Enforcement

We reserve the right, at our sole discretion and without liability, to:

• Refuse, limit, delay, or cancel any order, before or after acceptance.
• Request evidence of institutional affiliation or research purpose before shipping.
• Decline to ship to residential addresses or to jurisdictions where supply would be unlawful.
• Suspend or permanently close the account of any buyer we believe has breached this policy.
• Report suspected unlawful conduct to the relevant authorities.

Breach of this policy voids all warranties, terminates any right to refund or replacement, and triggers the indemnity in our Terms of Sale. We accept no liability of any kind for harm arising from use of a product outside its RUO designation.

10Reporting misuse

If you become aware of any person marketing, reselling, or using ASCND Research products for human or veterinary consumption, please tell us at orders@ascndresearch.com. Reports may be made anonymously and are investigated.

11Contact

Questions about this policy, or about the appropriate research use of a specific product, may be directed to orders@ascndresearch.com or to 1415 Fulton Rd #205, Ste #343, Santa Rosa, CA 95403.

We may update this policy from time to time; the version in effect when you place an order governs that order. Related policies: Terms of Sale · Privacy Policy · Shipping Policy.