Primary Cell Culture Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Product (Reagents & Supplements, Media), By Application (Virology, Vaccine Production), By Separation Methods, By Cell Type, By Region, And Segment Forecasts, 2021 - 2028

Report Overview

The global primary cell culture market size was valued at USD 3.4 billion in 2020 and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.6% from 2021 to 2028. The market growth can be primarily attributed to the increasing prevalence of chronic conditions, such as cancer, infections, autoimmune diseases, diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases, and nephrological diseases. This has led to an increase in research, facilitating the high adoption of primary cell cultures.

According to the American Cancer Society, there are an estimated 16.9 million cancer patients/survivors in 2020. According to the WHO (2020), 71.0 million people worldwide are suffering from chronic hepatitis C infection. Hence, the rising number of chronic disorders being diagnosed is driving the demand for research on advanced therapies, which is expected to boost the market growth in the coming years.

In addition, the rising usage of primary cell cultures for in-vitro testing and drug screening can be further attributed to the growth of the market for primary cell culture. These are derived from tissues, which facilitates researchers to study cellular structure in the in vivo state, showcasing their normal functioning. As a result, they are used as model systems to study cell biochemistry and physiology, aging processes, signaling studies, and metabolic processes, as well as the effect of toxic compounds and drugs.

COVID-19 pandemic is acting as a positive catalyst for the growth of the market for primary cell culture. Researchers are increasingly using primary cell culture for understanding the infection. Standardized and characterized epithelium cell culture models are facilitating the understanding of the physical barrier destroyed by the coronavirus. These models can help mimic the functions and properties of the respiratory tract, leading to a breakthrough for a research outcome turning into a medical application.

Moreover, the primary immune cell culture has been proven to be very beneficial in the study of immune repertoire to produce antibodies and antigens for the COVID-19 virus. As per the findings by the scientists from the German Primate Center in Gottingen, the COVID-19 virus could block the infection in lung cells with TMPRSS2, an inhibitor for serine protease. The results have been validated with the experiment using primary cell culture.

Product Insights

The reagents and supplements segment dominated the market for primary cell culture and accounted for the largest revenue share of 34.0% in 2020. The growth in the segment is owing to its routine application in research and manufacturing involving primary cell culture. Since primary cells are fragile in nature, the reagents and supplements are considered very crucial for their growth.

In addition, the development of innovative products such as growth factors and cytokines is further contributing to the segment growth. For instance, in October 2020, iBio, Inc., a U.S.-based biotechnology company, signed a strategic agreement with Safi Biosolutions, Inc. for the development of growth factors and cytokines using iBio’s FastPharming System.

The primary cells segment is expected to witness the fastest CAGR of 11.8% over the forecast period. This growth can be attributed to the rising identification of primary cells for treating different diseases. For instance, in February 2021, researchers at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research identified a novel bone cell type that may generate new therapeutic targets and approaches for osteoporosis and other skeletal diseases. Hence, such robust research initiatives in the space are expected to significantly boost segment growth.

Separation Methods Insights

The enzymatic degradation segment dominated the market for primary cell culture and accounted for the largest revenue share of 33.3% in 2020. The large share of the segment is owing to its high preference over other techniques for separation of primary cells due to the advantages such as less damage to cultures, comparatively fast, and high yield of a representative sample.

In enzymatic degradation, trypsin dominated the market for primary cell culture in terms of revenue share in 2020 owing to its high application for enzymatic disaggregation of tissues. The enzyme has wide application for dissociation of cells from tissues, processing of adhesive cells from flasks, and rapid passaging of large cell suspension.

The mechanical separation segment is expected to witness a lucrative CAGR of 11.7% over the forecast period owing to the advancements in the mechanical separation process. For instance, in October 2020, a group of researchers in France cultured primary skin cells from systemic sclerosis patients by using mechanical extraction combined with immuno-magnetic cell sorting. The study concluded that the technique allowed a purity rate of around 80% for human dermal microvascular endothelial cells as compared to conventional techniques.

Application Insights

The vaccine production segment dominated the market for primary cell culture and held the largest revenue share of 12.2% in 2020. This growth is owing to the increasing use of primary animal cultures for virus production that is later used for producing several vaccines such as measles, and hepatitis B. In addition, this has also led to cost reduction associated with the use of animal models for vaccine testing.

The stem cell therapy segment is expected to witness a lucrative CAGR of 11.9% over the forecast period. The growth of the segment is attributed to the growing attention of scientists over the world for conducting various research projects using stem cells. Research studies using embryonic, induced, and adult stem cells are rapidly changing the way researchers perceive primary cells. In addition, stem cell-based therapies have shown great potential and applications in neurodegenerative diseases, ocular diseases, diabetes, dentistry, and others. Hence, the increasing application of such therapies is further anticipated to drive the market.

Cell Type Insights

The animal cells segment dominated the market for primary cell culture and accounted for the largest revenue share of 58.6% in 2020. The growing applications of animal origin primary cells for vaccine development are major factors fueling the segment growth. Animal-derived primary cultures have been used for the development of vaccines against rabies, polio, measles, chickenpox, and hepatitis B.

In addition, the wide product offering of animal-origin primary cells by companies such as Lonza; Merck KGaA; and Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. can be further attributed to the segment growth. These include mouse, rat, rabbit, and monkey-derived fibroblasts; hepatocytes; keratinocytes; and immune, hematopoietic, meningeal, mesangial, and adipose stem cells.

The human cells segment is expected to witness substantial growth over the forecast period. The growth in the segment is majorly due to the rising application of human-derived primary cultures for cancer research. Primary human cancer cells are sourced from a variety of tissue types such as brain, muscle, and connective tissue to facilitate the physiologically relevant study of cancer. These cultures closely resemble the behavior and phenotype of cancer tissues, serving as a valid tool for preclinical and clinical analyses in cancer research.

Regional Insights

North America dominated the primary cell culture market and accounted for the largest revenue share of 52.6% in 2020 and is expected to continue this trend over the forecast period. The growth in this region can be attributed to high healthcare expenditure, growing geriatric population, rising incidence of chronic diseases, and supportive government funding. In addition, the increasing focus of market participants for innovating cell culture applications, instrumentation, availability of different types of cells, and their cellular interactions is further contributing to market growth in the region.

Asia Pacific is expected to be the fastest-growing region over the forecast period. The growth is primarily owing to the lower costs associated with stem cell transplantation in the region, thereby contributing to the high demands. In addition, researchers are conducting extensive R&D activities which can be further attributed to the region’s growth. For instance, in March 2020, researchers at China’s Centre for Disease Control (CDC) grew lung airway cells from human tissue culture systems to propagate SARS-CoV-2.

Key Companies & Market Share Insights

The companies are launching new and advanced products for primary cell culture. For instance, in January 2021, Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. launched a new medium for the expansion of human T lymphocytes for allogeneic cell therapies. The new Gibco CTS OpTmizer Pro SFM helps in enhancing donor T (lymphocyte) cell proliferation. It is a new media solution for targeting the metabolism of healthy donors, for the efficient production of cost-effective cell therapies. Some of the prominent players in the primary cell culture market include:

• Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.

• Lonza

• Merck

• Corning Incorporated

• Danaher  

• PromoCell GmbH

• ATCC

• FUJIFILM Irvine Scientific, Inc.

• Mattek

• Axol Bioscience Ltd.

Primary Cell Culture Market Report Scope

Segments Covered in the Report

This report forecasts revenue growth at global, regional, and country levels and provides an analysis of the latest industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2017 to 2028. For this study, Grand View Research has segmented the global primary cell culture market report based on product, separation methods, cell type, application, and region:

• Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2028)

  • Primary Cells

    • Fat

    • Blood

    • Nerve

    • Bone

    • Endothelial

    • Skin

    • Muscle

    • Stem

    • Others

  • Reagents and Supplements

    • Attachment Solutions

    • Buffers and Salts

    • Freezing Media

    • Sera

    • Growth Factors and Cytokines

    • Other

  • Media

    • Fat Cells Media

    • Blood Cells Media

    • Nerve Cells Media

    • Bone Cells Media

    • Endothelial Cells Media

    • Skin Cells Media

    • Muscle Cells Media

    • Stem Cells Media

    • Others 

• Separation Methods Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2028)

  • Explant Method

  • Enzymatic Degradation

    • Trypsin

    • Collagenase

    • Protease

    • Pronase

    • Dispase

    • Hyaluronidase

    • Neuraminidase

    • Elastase

    • DNase

    • Papain

    • Accutase

    • Others

  • Mechanical Separation

  • Others

• Cell Type Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2028)

  • Animal

  • Human

• Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2028)

  • Tissue Culture & Tissue Engineering

  • Vaccine Production

  • Gene Therapy and Regenerative Medicine

  • Toxicity Testing and Drug Screening

  • Cancer Research

  • Model System

  • Virology

  • Prenatal Diagnosis

  • Stem Cell Therapy

  • Others

• Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2017 - 2028)

  • North America

    • U.S.

    • Canada

  • Europe

    • Germany

    • U.K.

  •  Asia Pacific

    • China

    • Japan

  •  Latin America

    • Brazil

    • Mexico

  •  Middle East & Africa

    • South Africa