The global viral vectors & plasmid DNA manufacturing market size is expected to reach USD 1.1 billion by 2027, exhibiting a 14.52% CAGR, during the forecast period, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. Currently, more than 700 cell and gene therapies are in clinical trials and vectors are used in nearly 70% of these therapies. As a result, demand for vectors has exceeded the supply rate. Thus, an increase in the number of advanced therapy-based discovery programs initiated by biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies is expected to drive investments in the market.

Current production methods for viral vectors are considered tedious, as they are only applicable for scale-out but not for scale-up. Development of a proprietary CAP-GT technology-based cell suspension system by CEVEC Pharmaceuticals GmbH has effectively addressed the challenge of scaling-up by allowing easy handling and improved efficiency of cells.

Considering growing opportunities in vector production, the Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) are making focused efforts to gain a competitive advantage in the market. For example, the introduction of ready-to-run factory-in-a-box to accelerate the production of virus-based therapeutics by GE healthcare, as a solution to simplify and advance the manufacturing process.

Further key findings from the report suggest:

  • With high usage, attributed to its ability of high titer production and capability to induce strong humoral and T cell responses in various research applications, adenovirus held the leading viral vectors and plasmid DNA manufacturing market share in terms of revenue, in 2019
  • Lentivirus vector is anticipated to register the fastest CAGR over the forecast period. This can be attributed to constant growth in the lentivirus-based gene therapy pipeline program
  • Downstream processing held the dominant revenue share in 2019, owing to the fact that this process involves purification steps that account for the majority of the overall manufacturing cost. Employment of expensive equipment and requirement of trained personnel for product recovery has further driven revenue in the segment
  • Antisense and RNAi therapy production is estimated as the key application of vector manufacturing, resulting in the dominance of this segment over other applications
  • The high adoption rate of viruses for aptamers and oligonucleotide development in comparison to other applications has driven revenue in antisense and RNAi therapy segment
  • High usage of vectors for therapeutic production have contributed to the large revenue share of pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies. The number of biotech companies employing vector for therapies production is anticipated to multiply over the forecast period
  • Presence of a substantial number of advanced therapy products in the pipeline targeting various cancer forms has accelerated revenue share of the cancer segment over the years
  • Given the high number of biotech entities in parts of U.S., such as in California and Massachusetts, North America has maintained its dominance in terms of revenue. In addition, the active participation of regulatory bodies in improving the regulatory scenario for the market launch of advanced therapies has facilitated the high usage of vectors in U.S.
  • Merck, Cobra Biologics, Novasep, and uniQure N.V., are some key participants that are geared towards capitalizing the untapped opportunities in the market