Serum-free medium (SFM) allows researchers to grow a specified cell type or execute a selected application without serum. Serum-free media promotes constant cell growth and helps minimize possible errors by lowering the proportion of unequal development among cell cultures. Consistency in cell culture paired with enhanced cell growth with increased productivity makes it easier to employ serum-free media for cell culture growth in biopharmaceutical production, research, and development.
Despite safeguards and personal cleanliness practices, the prevalence of infectious and chronic diseases is on the rise around the globe. Diet and nutrition are the most critical elements in chronic illness prevention. In contrast, the nutritional value of diets is worsening, which is the leading cause of the rising prevalence of chronic diseases globally, particularly in developing nations, such as Southeast Asian and Western European nations. Chronic diseases caused by incorrect nutrition over the long term include infectious disorders, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, many types of cancer, aging, and obesity.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) accounted for 57 percent of global fatalities in 2020, up from 46 percent in 2001. The rise in infectious disorders has also led to advances in serum-free media research and development, which is anticipated to propel the global serum-free media market. Developments in R&D of chronic and infectious disease treatments are causing the global serum-free media market to expand as a result of the need for precise, early, and timely information regarding basic cell biology and biochemistry and the interaction between cells and disease-causing agents such as viruses and bacteria to study the effect of drugs.
The specified nature of serum-free media frequently facilitates the purifying process compared to serum media, known as undefined media. In place of serum, a known composition of the serum-free medium often containing additional components for cell growth reduces the lengthy procedure and improves cell growth. It is known that the type and amount of each component added to serum-free media aid in the exact evaluation of each component added to it. However, the protein level is significantly reduced in serum-free media, making downstream processing easier than in serum media. It reduces contamination of subsequent processing and simplifies the cell environment in a serum-free medium.
The serum has a propensity to bind to other components of the medium, or it may begin to degrade on its own, increasing the likelihood of interaction and leading to inaccurate results. In the case of serum-free medium, the risk is eliminated. In the case of serum medium, the serum protein concentration may be higher than the recombinant protein produced by mammalian cells. If the serum protein and recombinant protein have a similar molecular structure, differentiation is challenging; nevertheless, in serum-free media, protein concentration is low, dramatically reducing the likelihood of this occurring. In light of these favorable characteristics, it is anticipated that the global serum-free media market will rise at a healthy rate over the next ten years.
Based on regions, the global serum-free media market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, South America & the Middle East, and Africa. North America accounted for the largest market share and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.6% during the forecast period. The established healthcare industry, refined healthcare, and medical infrastructure, high biopharma healthcare spending, the active presence of significant industry players, and the high number of firms with a strategic pipeline for serum-free media are influencing the growth trajectory of this region.
Europe is the second largest region. It is estimated to reach an expected value of USD 544 million by 2030 at a CAGR of 6.6%. In February 2016, the United Kingdom became the first nation to legalize the genetic editing of human embryos, with a substantial contribution from serum-free media and other relevant scientific breakthroughs. In Europe, serum-free media is a rapidly emerging area of biotechnology and biopharma that permits researchers to monitor and analyze the interaction between cells and disease-causing agents such as viruses and bacteria and examine the effect of medications and the aging process. The above factors are anticipated to boost the market for serum-free media in Europe over the forecast period.
Asia-Pacific is the fastest-growing region. Asia-Pacific serum-free media market is one of the world's fastest-growing markets. In Asia-Pacific, serum-free media technology is predominantly utilized in significant national needs, such as in China, India, Japan, Australia, and South Korea, where biopharmaceutical companies engage heavily in R&D. Due to the increasing number of R&D and clinical trial programs each year for chronic and severe diseases, Asia-Pacific is expected to generate lucrative revenue opportunities in the coming years. This is because the region has a vast potential for serum-free media development. As this technique is anticipated to be helpful in the prevention and treatment of complex diseases such as mental illness, cancer, heart disease, and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, the Asia-Pacific region is anticipated to generate lucrative growth opportunities, thereby bolstering the serum-free media market in the region.
The prominent players in the global serum-free media market are Thermo Fisher Scientific, Merck, Lonza, Rooster Bio, Sartorius, PromoCell, STEMCELL Technologies, Miltenyi Biotec, and Ajinomoto,