The Market for Chromatography Resins in Drug Discovery Is Projected to Reach $400 Million over the Next Five Years

Chromatographic packing materials used in drug discovery include ion exchange chromatography packing materials, affinity chromatography packing materials, hydrophobic interaction chromatography packing materials, volume exclusion chromatography packing materials, and multimodal chromatography packing materials. According to MarketsandMarkets, the market for chromatography resins used in drug discovery is projected to reach $401 million by 2022, growing at a CAGR of 6.65% from 2017 to 2022. This market growth is primarily driven by the increasing demand for therapeutic antibodies and the rapid growth of biopharmaceutical R&D.

Ion Exchange Resins Hold the Largest Market Share

The report analyzes that ion exchange chromatography packing materials hold the largest market share among packing materials used in drug discovery. The report points out that in 2016, ion exchange resins became the most widely used chromatography packing material for drug discovery, and this share is expected to grow at a considerable rate in the future. Ion exchange chromatography technology is widely used in biopharmaceutical purification processes. Industrial-scale purification of biopharmaceuticals and qualitative and characterization of drugs are key application areas for chromatography resins. The increasing use of chromatography to manufacture biopharmaceuticals, such as monoclonal antibodies and other recombinant proteins, is expected to drive the application of chromatography resins in drug discovery.

Natural Polymers Drive the Largest Demand

The report indicates that in 2016, the demand for chromatography resins in drug discovery was highest for natural polymers, particularly agarose, cellulose, and dextran. These polymers are characterized by a large number of hydroxyl groups in their structure, resulting in good hydrophilicity and providing suitable ligand coupling sites.

North America Largest, Asia Fastest Growing

Regionally, the market for chromatography resins used in drug discovery is primarily located in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and other regions. The report notes that the United States is the leading market for these resins, followed by Canada, mainly due to the strong growth in the monoclonal antibody therapy market in this region. Furthermore, the Asia Pacific region is projected to experience the fastest growth in the chromatography resin market for drug discovery from 2017 to 2022, driven by the growth of generic and biosimilar drugs in countries such as China, India, and South Korea. Numerous pharmaceutical companies worldwide are establishing R&D centers in these countries due to economic benefits and the availability of technical expertise.