The synthetic biology market is estimated to be valued at USD 17.88 Billion in 2024 and witness a CAGR of 22.3% over the forecast period (2024 – 2031). The growing demand for targeted therapeutics and personalized medicine is one of the key drivers fueling the growth of the market. Furthermore, synthetic biology tools are enabling more precision in drug discovery through biosimulation, biomanufacturing, and other techniques.
Market Dynamics:
The growth of the synthetic biology market is driven by a high demand for targeted therapeutics and personalized medicine. Targeted therapeutics aim to precisely deliver treatment to diseased cells while minimizing potential damage to healthy cells. This reduces the side effects of medications. Synthetic biology is enabling the design of novel therapeutics such as gene and cell therapies with high specificity. Additionally, synthetic biology allows analyzing genetic variations among individuals to develop personalized treatment strategies. Other drivers include increasing R&D investments by pharmaceutical companies in synthetic biology and advancement of gene editing tools such as CRISPR for developing therapies. While the technology holds tremendous potential, regulatory hurdles and ethical concerns surrounding genome editing could hamper market growth to some extent over the forecast period.
Increasing prevalence of chronic diseases
One of the major drivers for the synthetic biology market is the rising prevalence of chronic diseases globally. Synthetic biology finds extensive applications in developing therapies and diagnostics for chronic conditions like cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, etc. According to the World Health Organization, chronic diseases accounted for over 70% of all deaths worldwide in 2020. With chronic diseases on the rise, there is a growing demand for new treatment approaches like gene therapies, cell therapies, and precision medicines which rely on advancements in synthetic biology. This growing disease burden is expected to significantly drive the demand for synthetic biology solutions in the healthcare sector.
Advances in gene editing and engineering technologies
Rapid advancements in gene editing and engineering tools like CRISPR-Cas9 have enabled synthetic biologists to more easily engineer and modify biological systems. These technologies have opened up new possibilities for developing customized therapeutics, reprogramming cells, and engineering pathways. For instance, CRISPR is finding wide applications from correcting genetic defects to developing resistant crop strains. The healthcare sector is leveraging these powerful new tools to accelerate research in areas like genetic diseases, regenerative medicine and immunotherapy. Advances in foundational technologies continue to augment the scope and potential of synthetic biology in healthcare applications.
High costs associated with research & development
Synthetic biology is an interdisciplinary field that combines biology, engineering, computer science and many other domains. Designing and developing novel biologic solutions requires significant investments in infrastructure, skilled workforce, and long-term R&D. Many synthetic biology applications are still in the early stages of development and commercialization which carries a high level of technical risks. All these factors contribute to make R&D in synthetic biology an expensive undertaking. The high costs involved act as a key restraint for wider adoption, especially for industries in developing economies.
Ethical and regulatory challenges
While synthetic biology holds promise to revolutionize many domains, it also raises ethical concerns regarding biosafety, biosecurity, and impact on environment and society. There are regulatory gaps and ambiguity regarding the oversight of emerging synthetic biology technologies. For example, evolving gene editing tools like CRISPR require careful safety assessments to address concerns like off-target effects and germline modifications. Similarly, the synthesis of new pathogens or toxins needs tight regulations to prevent bio-terrorism. Navigating the ethical and regulatory landscape particularly for human therapeutics delays commercialization and acts as a restraint.
Personalized and precision medicine
Advances in synthetic biology, genomic sequencing, and computational tools are driving the future of personalized and precision medicine. Synthetic biology plays a key role in developing rapid, low-cost diagnostics as well as customized therapies and interventions targeted to an individual's unique genetic profile and medical history. This represents a massive market opportunity as personalized care models gain greater acceptance and coverage. Major players are making investments in synthetic biology to develop tools enabling personalized treatments for conditions like cancer.
Cell and gene therapies
Cell and gene-based regenerative medicine is one of the most promising applications of synthetic biology in healthcare. Areas like CAR-T cell therapies for cancer, therapeutic stem cells for regenerating damaged tissues and gene therapies for inherited conditions have witnessed significant progress. However, these novel treatment modalities still face major challenges like high development costs, complex manufacturing requirements, and delivery issues. Synthetic biology can help address these challenges by enabling standardized, scalable, and affordable production of next-gen cell and gene therapies, thus creating lucrative opportunities for market development over the forecasted period.
Link: https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/market-insight/synthetic-biology-market-112
Key Development
- On February 28, 2024, bit.bio, a company specializing in the coding of human cells for advanced therapies, and Ginkgo Bioworks, a leader in developing a premier platform for cell programming and biosecurity, announced bit.bio as the first partner of the Ginkgo Technology Network. This network comprises innovative technology partners committed to collaborating with Ginkgo to provide novel, integrated capabilities aimed at enhancing success in customer R&D initiatives.
- In July 2023, Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd., a prominent chemical company in Japan, and Ginkgo Bioworks unveiled a fresh initiative aimed at harnessing synthetic biology to create functional chemicals. This program builds upon their ongoing collaboration in biomanufacturing.
- In May 2023, Octarine Bio, a synthetic biology firm dedicated to pioneering sustainable bio-based ingredients, joined forces with Ginkgo Bioworks in a comprehensive collaboration. This partnership will focus on compounds within the tryptophan pathway, with the primary objective of engineering a strain capable of producing violacein and its derivatives. Violacein is a naturally occurring bis-indole pigment renowned for its robust bioactive properties, including antimicrobial, antioxidant, and UV protection capabilities.
- In January 2023, Twist Bioscience Corporation, a leading provider of high-quality synthetic DNA through its silicon platform, revealed the shipment of its inaugural products from its second manufacturing facility, the Factory of the Future, situated in Oregon, U.S.
Key Players: Thermo Fisher Scientific, Synbio Technologies, Merck KGaA, Agilent Technologies Inc., GenScript, Amyris, Eurofins Genomics GmbH, Integrated DNA Technologies Inc., Codexis Inc., EnBiotix Inc., Synthego, New England Biolabs (UK) Ltd., Scarab Genomics LLC, Genomatica Inc., Novonesis Group, Bota Bio, Creative Biogene, and Illumina, Inc.
