Human Biobanking Ownership Market

Biobanks are kind of repositories which store the biological samples for research and educational purpose. The samples are collected form general public based on various factors such as ethnicity, age, gender, lifestyle and geography. Biobanks collect the samples in various forms such as tissues, saliva, blood, etc. A purified genomic database is maintained in these biobanks, this data is significant in research and study purpose for understanding the environmental impacts and mutations, and diseases and disorders derived from them. The samples are stored in groups of specific traits to ease their application in research purposes. The samples are collected from donors after their consensus and most of the biobanks follow the practice of donor’s ownership and his consensus on use of his/her sample for any further research purpose by private entity or public organization. Biobanks play a vital role in research and development is healthcare industry.

The genetic and other biological data repository maintained by biobanks help researchers to understand the human trait associated diseases and disorders, and also the impact of environment and genetic variations on cell lines and human health. These biobanks provide extensive data based on these factors and on the basis of other demographical traits, which is expected to grow the human biobanking ownership market. The biobanks offer database of cross border population which makes its users time saving and effective resource, which is expected to increase uptake for biobanking services across the globe. However, high cost associated with human biobanks, as the genome sequencing is costly and tedious process, the human biobanking ownership market is expected to restrain the growth across the globe. Also stringent laws and regulations in biobanking and concern over the security and privacy of human biobanks across globe is another factor expected to bolster the growth for human biobanking ownership market. In the near future, the global human biobanking ownership market is expected to be governed by laws to protect the privacy of gene donors and establish their rights. For example, in Estonia, the Human Genes Research Act passed in 1999 provides donors full authority over who can access their data and establishes anonymity in clinical research. Such laws will help in the growth of the global human biobanking ownership market.

Based on the operator of the biobank, the human biobanks can be segmented in to academic & research Institutes, pharmaceutical and biotech industry, hospitals, and stand-alone biobanks. These biobanks serve various purposes such as diagnostics, forensic, organ transplantation, research, and others. By the ownership type the biobanks can be privately funded and operated, publically funded and operated, and public-private partnership funded and operated. Some of the Government agencies promote biobanks, so as to create database of population to support in strengthening the healthcare infrastructure. 

Geographically, global human biobanking ownership market is segmented in four major regions such as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Rest of the World. Asia Pacific has been driving the global market growth owing to the rapid growth of the private biobanks and clinical research organizations in the region. Demand witnessed in North America and Europe is also significantly aiding the growth of the market. In Europe, countries such as Estonia are focusing on collecting the DNA of every citizen in order to enrich their national biobank. In Estonia, the national biobank program started in 2000 by collecting DNA samples from a quarter of the country’s population. While these DNA samples are mostly used for clinical research, the government is planning to use this data to build a robust health care infrastructure by offering personalized care. The Government of Estonia has already started developing a system to make this genetic data available to citizens and doctors.

The major players operating in the market include ProMedDx, Affymetrix Inc., Abbott Laboratories, Acorda Therapeutics, Alpha Cord Inc., Autogen Inc., Biobank Ireland Trust, BioCision, Biokryo GmbH, BioLife Solutions Inc., Biomatrica Inc., BioStorage Technologies Inc., Cells4Life Ltd., Cesca Therapeutics Inc., China Cord Blood Corporation, Core Dynamics Inc., Cryo Bio System, and Sanford Health among others.