RNAi technology market is estimated to witness high growt,h owing to increasing research activities and growing applications in drug discovery
RNAi technology market is estimated to be valued at USD 2.70 Bn in 2024, exhibiting a CAGR of 14.8% over the forecast period 2024-2031. The market is witnessing high growth due to increasing research activities in RNAi technologies and growing applications of RNAi in drug discovery. Furthermore, increasing investment by government and private players to support development of RNAi-based therapies can also drive the market growth.
Market Dynamics:
The growth of the Global RNAi Technology Market is driven by increasing demand for RNAi-based drugs and therapeutics due to rising prevalence of chronic diseases. Over 7000 drugs are currently in the pipeline and many of these rely on RNAi technology. Additionally, increasing R&D investments by leading players to develop advanced RNAi tools such as customized siRNA and miRNA libraries for functional genomics and drug discovery applications is further propelling the market growth. However, the high costs associated with development and production of RNAi therapeutics remains a challenge. Technological advancements to enhance RNAi trigger design, delivery methods, and reduce production costs could provide potential opportunities for market players.
Research and Development Spending in RNAi Therapeutics
RNA interference (RNAi) therapeutics have the potential to treat a wide range of diseases. Pharmaceutical companies and biotech firms are actively investing in RNAi drug development to unlock this potential. For example, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, a leader in RNAi therapeutics, spent US$ 425 million on research and development in 2021 to advance its pipeline. Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals and Dicerna Pharmaceuticals also allocate a major portion of their budgets to R&D activities. This heavy investment in RNAi drug research is helping to expand scientific understanding and driving progress toward the development of novel RNAi-based medicines. As more RNAi drugs receive regulatory approvals and enter the market in the near future, these R&D expenditures can drive the global RNAi technology market growth.
Increasing Popularity of Outsourcing Services
Due to the niche and specialized nature of RNAi drug development, many small biotech companies outsource various research activities such as sequence design, synthesis and screening to dedicated contract research organizations (CROs). The outsourcing of RNAi services allows biotech firms to focus their in-house efforts and cut down expenses. Leading CROs offering RNAi services include Thermo Fisher Scientific, Merck, Qiagen and Horizon Discovery. Their client portfolio is growing as more companies leverage the outsourcing model. Besides research services, these also provide critical support in preclinical and clinical testing of RNAi candidates. Increasing popularity of the outsourcing model for RNAi research can drive the market growth.
High Production Costs
Due to the complexity involved, manufacturing RNAi therapeutics on a commercial scale requires sophisticated technologies and facilities. Setting up an mRNA/RNA production plant demands huge capital investments, which adds to the per-dose production costs. For instance, Alnylam's plant for producing Onpattro has a manufacturing cost of over US$ 300,000 per patient per year. Such high production costs pose financial challenges, especially for rare disease therapies with smaller patient populations.
Complex Delivery Mechanisms Limit Widespread Application
One of the biggest challenges in RNAi drug development is the efficient delivery of nucleic acid molecules to target tissues in the body. Naked RNA/mRNA is quickly degraded by intracellular enzymes. Efforts are ongoing to develop effective delivery technologies using novel carriers like lipid nanoparticles, protein-binding peptides and exosomes. However, designing delivery systems that can package RNA payloads, evade clearance pathways and release drugs at disease sites remains difficult. The lack of universally applicable delivery mechanisms prevents RNAi therapies from reaching their true commercial potential and wider clinical use.
Growing Interest in Gene Therapy Using mRNA
Messenger RNA (mRNA) is fast emerging as a promising platform for gene therapy. mRNA offers advantages over other gene therapy vectors as it does not require DNA integration into the genome to produce therapeutic proteins in cells. Researchers are actively exploring various mRNA-based approaches for treating genetic disorders. Novartis AG launched the first approved mRNA gene therapy for spinal muscular atrophy in 2021. More such gene therapy approvals in the future will boost commercial use of mRNA as a platform. This represents a major market opportunity for companies offering RNAi-related tools and services, thus, catering to the gene therapy sector.
Collaborations with Contract Manufacturers
To reduce the financial barriers posed by high production costs, RNAi drug developers are showing keen interest in outsourcing commercial-scale manufacturing through strategic partnerships with specialized contract manufacturers. For example, Alnylam signed multi-product manufacturing deals with PCI Biotech and BioNTech valued at over US$ 450 million. Such collaborations help pharmaceutical firms focus on drug development while ensuring large-scale, cost-effective production services. This emerging outsourcing trend for RNAi therapeutics manufacturing offer beneficial opportunity for both pharmaceutical as well as contract manufacturing companies.
Link: https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/market-insight/rnai-technology-market-5281
Key Development
- In April 2024, Phio Pharmaceuticals, a clinical-stage biotechnology company, revealed that its INTASYL siRNA gene silencing technology, aimed at enhancing immune cells' ability to combat tumor cells, will be featured in "Viewpoint," a national program hosted by Mr. Dennis Quaid
- In January 2024, Shanghai Argo Biopharmaceutical Co., Ltd. announced two exclusive license and collaboration agreements with Novartis Pharma AG. The first agreement grants Novartis an global exclusive licenses for a Phase 1 program, including a research collaboration.The second agreement provides Novartis with an exclusive ex-Greater China license for a Phase 1/2a clinical-stage program in cardiovascular disease. These assets, developed using Argo's RNAi platform technology, promise leading efficacy and durability in therapies.
- In August 2023, Sirnaomics Ltd., a prominent biopharmaceutical company specializing in RNAi therapeutics, completed all dosing regimens for its Phase I study of STP707. This therapy targets multiple solid tumors in patients with late-stage cancers resistant to previous treatments. Results showed that approximately 74% of evaluable patients achieved stable disease (SD), with some demonstrating reduced tumor burden according to RECIST criteria.
Key Players:
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, OriGene Technologies, Inc., Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, Silence Therapeutics, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Merck & Co. , Qiagen N.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific, Synlogic, Benitec Biopharma, Gradalis, Sirnaomics, Inc., Marina Biotech, Quark Pharmaceuticals, Regulus Therapeutics, GeneCare Research Institute Co., Ltd., ASC Therapeutics.
