Category Archives: Gene Medicine

The argument for continued investment

C> is a high potential and maturing sector, and is an already crowded environment, playing host to numerous start-ups and now, through M&A, recognised big pharma firms. Much like the rush to find a COVID-19 vaccine that dominates headlines worldwide, not every company involved will be able to succeed.

But finnCaps finnLife watch list of 50 leading AIM-listed biotech companies demonstrates that there is room for numerous companies to contribute to, and profit from, C>. Examining three entirely different approaches to CAR-T therapy, it is possible to see just how much space there is for this exciting sector, therefore displaying the case for continued investment.

Innovative CAR-T therapy demonstrates the depth of C> potential

CAR-T therapy in its existing form is a relatively new and specialised approach at treating cancer. It takes T cells from a patients bloodstream and genetically modifies them in a laboratory. These T cells are then injected back into the bloodstream with the aim of targeting and killing cancer cells.

While it has been shown to be an effective treatment, there are risks and side effects. One is the two-step autologous process (the slow time it takes for cell expansion sometimes as long as two weeks) while another is cytokine release syndrome (CRS), which occurs when cytokine molecules are inadvertently released, but too quickly to target just the tumours and instead target healthy cells.

The next generation of CAR-T treatments shows that there is space for a multitude of start-ups to be active in the C> space as they all help find varied solutions to these problems without negating the effectiveness of CAR-T.

One example is Horizon Delivery, a company that is developing its CYAD-02 project, which will help transport T cells more effectively to the tumour via the use of SMARTvector products.

The product underwent its first phase 1 trial test in January 2020 with a patient who was suffering from acute myeloid leukaemia. Horizon Delivery is also an industry leader in CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) screenings, meaning they can identify key genes or genetic sequences that draw out specific functions of a cell type from thousands of potential variants.

In a cancer context, this means they can route out and exclusively eliminate problematic cells that may have shown signs theyd resist a future cancer treatment.

Another example is Maxcyte, a global cell- based therapies and life sciences company that is developing its CARMA process, where a patients peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) are removed and modified. The modified cells can then be used to target an array of different cancers.

Currently the company is conducting a phase 1 trial for advanced ovarian cancer in a dose escalation trial that will treat four separate cohorts the fourth of which was administered in March 2020.

Another example which shows the versatility of new CAR-T innovation is provided by Oxford Biomedica, a gene and cell therapy company specialising in the development of gene-based medicines.

Rather than a contained project or platform, its contribution to CAR-T is through a contract manufacturing development organisation. Collaborating with pharma companies, Oxford Biomedica uses its infrastructure to produce other companies licensed products, including Novartis Kymriah treatment (alongside other undisclosed CAR-T-related products).

With fast-moving innovation finally allowing multiple C> treatments to gain regulatory approval, along with a huge pipeline of upcoming therapies and an influx of funding and M&A activity, investing in C> no longer entails taking a bet on potential the future is finally here.

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After years of potential, cell and gene therapy is ready for the pharmaceutical mainstream - PMLiVE

Cryptocurrency. Gene editing. 5G. Drones. We hear and report on these terms often.

But for the average person whos not well versed in these topics, they might just sound like tech-y jargon, or technology that exists solidly in the future. On the latter point: Yes, but not exclusively.

In a year when Bitcoin is much more than a buzzword, gene-editing tool CRISPR is influencing COVID-19research, 5G is frequently flashing on our screens and a kid you know probably got a drone for Christmas, these concepts must be widely understood.

Inspired by Explain like Im 5 genre of subreddit,Technical.ly spoke to four experts about what these technologies are and what they mean for our futures.

Dr. Eric Kmiec, the director of the ChristianaCare Gene Editing Institute in Newark, Delaware, says gene editing is a form of genetic medicine with the goal of correcting DNA mutations that lead to inherited disorders or cancer. Diseases such as sickle cell disease, cystic fibrosis and Pompes disease have been the early targets for clinical trials. In particular, the sickle cell disease trials going on have shown great promise.

Kmiec said gene editing could be looked at as a genetic spellchecker. Chromosomes are like the words in a sentence, and gene editing can help correct those words to make that sentence coherent, or in this case, healthy without the mutant or misspelled gene in the chromosome.

Lets say that the first word of the sentence is misspelled, that is the first gene along a string of genes in a chromosome, he said. We can design a CRISPR molecule to fix the misspelling of the gene in the chromosome with high precision and high efficiency. So far, the challenge has been that the CRISPR tool may occasionally act to aggressively and secondarily alter a single letter in the last word of the sentence, or a single base in the last gene along the string in the chromosome.

Dr. Eric Kmiec, director of the ChristianaCare Gene Editing Institute. (Courtesy photo)

The field of gene editing is more than 30 years old, but Kmiec said the emergence of gene-editing tool CRISPR has made gene editing more accessible to people of various backgrounds.

Previously, the efficiency and precision with which mutations were repaired in the human chromosome were at a level that was not clinically relevant, he said. Today, CRISPR is changing that and molecular geneticists now believe that this tool will help us translate gene editing into a clinical reality.

Kmiec sees gene editing as an opportunity to change how health care is delivered to people. With many genetic diseases and forms of cancer currently lacking successful treatments, repairing genes at their roots could be the future of healthcare. With gene editing, healthcare pros will be able to attack health issues at their core.

Making this service equitable for all members of society is central to Kmiecs work at the Gene Editing Institute.

One big challenge lies in making sure that all socioeconomic levels of patients have access to such breakthrough technologies and that it is not simply reserved for those who can pay the price, he said. At ChristianaCares Gene Editing Institute, we have integrated a strong diversity and ethical approach to patient care as we further develop these gene editing technologies. The future of gene editing should also include a humanistic side because it is not just about the technology. Its ultimately about the patient.

Many popular commercials from leading cellular service companies like AT&T tout 5G as the latest achievement in cellular technology. While it is an advancement over its predecessor, Connectify cofounder and CEO Alexander Gizis said its not as large of a step forward as may be advertised.

5G is the most current generation of cellular tech and standards, following 4G, which gave cell phone users LTE. LTE was an integral part of the process that gave us internet on our smartphones and tens of megabits to support phone calls and texting.

Alexander Gizis. (Photo via LinkedIn)

5G is taking it to the next level of new technology, said Gizis, whose Philly-based networking software company makes an app to boost your mobile connection. But its not a disruptive technology. The innovator dilemma is to create all these opportunities for startups and 5G is mostly sustaining tech to help Verizon, AT&T and Apple do smartphone things even better.

Gizis explained that while 5G allows for faster speeds and better latency the time between user action and response its success is predicated upon the certain number of frequencies that cellular companies are allowed to employ.

The good bands like 1800 megahertz are full, he said. When you run 5G there is only so much bandwidth.

Gamers and fans of video calls are most likely to notice the difference between 4G and 5G service. Gizis said that 5G sends big blocks of data, allowing for faster responses in gaming. He predicts that a lot more smart devices like the Apple Watch will emerge in the next couple of years as technologists better understand and have the technology capable of taking advantage of 5G.

Exyn Technologies COO Ben Williams defines drones by their independence relative to tech systems. Regular drones are remotely controlled systems with active pilots for all or most of its actions. The term drone generally refers to a non-thinking device reliant upon direct input from a human operator or pilot.

When systems gain the capability to respond to their environments is where things get interesting. According to Williams, as drones become more autonomous, they begin to take on the capabilities of a robot.

The more clear-cut case is where a system is completely autonomous and no pilot is involved at any point of the flight; this type of autonomous system is a robot, he said.

Williams, whose Pennovation-based company uses drones and ground-based robots to collect data from places where GPS isnt accessible, said the significance of drones in terms of the future of technology exists in their potential as autonomous systems. He considers these systems to be the next obvious success of software that will enable digital processing.

Many modern companies are digital-first companies that can take advantage of massive distributed computing resources and highly advanced algorithms and systems to utilize data from across every aspect of their companies, he said. However these benefits are only within reach for those companies (like Google, Facebook, etc.) that can get all of that data into a computer system, and where the actions they want to take are digital in nature.

An image of Exyns technology. (Courtesy photo)

While digital-first companies will be at an advantage in employing autonomous systems, Williams said more traditional and analog companies that mostly exist in the physical world will have a harder time making the adjustment. Getting input data is difficult and acting upon can be even harder.

Exyn uses autonomous systems to gather massive datasets for analog industries that include mining, construction and logistics. Autonomous warehouse robots and delivery systems are seeing significant growth as their technology becomes more efficient.

Williams expects to see commercial and industrial companies begin to acquire thousands of these autonomous systems to collect data and take action based on the data acquired. Beyond digital systems, Exyn is already using robots to perform in dirty and dangerous environments.

One common use case for Exyn here is in underground mines where survey teams simply cant access some of the very dangerous environments without autonomous robots, he said. These systems allow the survey teams to greatly expand their access to previously inaccessible or very dangerous areas of the mines.

Mike McCoy, associate director of emerging technologies at health insurance company Humana, is passionate about the rise of cryptocurrency for good: He lectures on blockchain for health care,organizes the local and is the former Philly-based campus engagement lead at Brooklyn blockchain company ConsenSys.

He defines cryptocurrency as a monetary, digital asset that can be exchanged for value, like the U.S. dollar. It is protected by cryptography, and anyone worldwide can access it with a digital tool like a mobile device, laptop or browser using a digital node, or server. It is the first decentralized currency with no owner to be exchanged for goods and services in human history, he said.

Mike McCoy. (Courtesy photo)

McCoy said that cryptocurrency is the internets currency and provides more freedom than fiat (government-issued) currency like the American dollar. Just as tech startups have built profitable enterprises off of intangible concepts, cryptocurrency allows anyone to exchange value regardless of their race, ethnic background, gender or national origin.

Because cryptocurrency is sovereign resistant and designed to be decentralized, it does not need the power of any state or geographic body to enforce its value. McCoy said this allows for it empower the people that use it.

It allows for trustless transactions between humans without some king or authority or government or corporation having to be the validator of a transaction, he said. Its able to distribute wealth creation, wealth storage, and wealth protection from the state. And thats what cryptocurrencies really enable.

Bitcoin is currently the worlds best-known form of cryptocurrency, and McCoy considers it the digital gold standard. According to McCoy, people can divide up shares of Bitcoin to as many people as possible, as opposed to gold, which has a physical limit of who and how many people can have access to it. Its possibilities as a programmable currency also make it more flexible in distributing to others.

Privacy is one of cryptocurrencys advantages but also brings its own issues, McCoy said. While parts of it are private, it is not completely private and is barely a decade old, still leaving much to the imagination for people interested in its use.

Its only from 2009, he said. People dont know if itll be around forever. But every year Bitcoin and cryptocurrency survives and goes through one of the various challenges facing it and the currency becomes more valuable as people entrust more of their time, computational power and native currencies into it.

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We asked 4 experts how cryptocurrency, gene editing, 5G and drones will influence the future - Technical.ly

NEW YORK and CLEVELAND, Dec. 21, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Abeona Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: ABEO), a fully-integrated leader in gene and cell therapy, today announced that abstracts detailing new interim results from its ABO-102 Phase 1/2 Transpher A study for MPS IIIA and ABO-101 Phase 1/2 Transpher B study for MPS IIIB have been accepted for platform oral presentations during the late-breaking abstract session at the 17th Annual WORLDSymposium being held February 8-12, 2021.

Children born with MPS IIIA and MPS IIIB experience progressive neurodevelopmental decline and loss of motor function that is life-threatening, said Michael Amoroso, Chief Operating Officer of Abeona. We are excited to share new analyses from the Transpher A study that will add to the understanding of the potential for ABO-102 to help preserve neurocognitive development in patients with MPS IIIA when they are treated at a young age, and new results from the Transpher B study that will provide insights into ABO-101s biologic effect in patients with MPS IIIB.

Presentation Details

Title: Updated Results of Transpher A, a Multicenter, Single-Dose, Phase 1/2 Clinical Trial of ABO-102 Gene Therapy for Sanfilippo Syndrome Type A (Mucopolysaccharidosis IIIA)Abstract Number: 390Presenter: Kevin Flanigan, M.D., Center for Gene Therapy at Nationwide Childrens HospitalDate/Time: Friday, February 12, 2021, time to be determined

Title: Updated Results of Transpher B, a Multicenter, Single-Dose, Phase 1/2 Clinical Trial of ABO-101 Gene Therapy for Sanfilippo Syndrome Type B (Mucopolysaccharidosis IIIB)Abstract Number: 407Presenter: Maria Jose de Castro, M.D., Hospital Clnico Universitario Santiago de CompostelaDate/Time: Friday, February 12, 2021, time to be determined

About the Annual WORLDSymposium The WORLDSymposium is designed for basic, translational and clinical researchers, patient advocacy groups, clinicians, and all others who are interested in learning more about the latest discoveries related to lysosomal diseases and the clinical investigation of these advances. For additional information on the 17th Annual WORLDSymposium, please visit https://worldsymposia.org/.

About the Transpher A Study The Transpher A Study (NCT02716246) is an ongoing, two-year, open-label, dose-escalation, Phase 1/2 global clinical trial assessing ABO-102 for the treatment of patients with Sanfilippo syndrome type A (MPS IIIA). The study, also known as ABT-001, is intended for patients from birth to 2 years of age, or patients older than 2 years with a cognitive developmental quotient of 60% or above. ABO-102 gene therapy is delivered using AAV9 technology via a single-dose intravenous infusion. The study primary endpoints are neurodevelopment changes and safety, with secondary endpoints including behavior evaluations, quality of life, enzyme activity in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and plasma, heparan sulfate levels in CSF, plasma and urine, and brain and liver volume.

About the Transpher B Study The Transpher B Study (NCT03315182) is an ongoing, two-year, open-label, dose-escalation, Phase 1/2 global clinical trial assessing ABO-101 for the treatment of patients with Sanfilippo syndrome type B (MPS IIIB). The study, also known as ABT-002, is intended for patients from birth to 2 years of age, or patients older than 2 years with a cognitive developmental quotient of 60% or above. ABO-101 gene therapy is delivered using AAV9 technology via a single-dose intravenous infusion. The study primary endpoints are neurodevelopment changes and safety, with secondary endpoints including behavior evaluations, quality of life, enzyme activity in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and plasma, heparan sulfate levels in CSF, plasma and urine, and brain and liver volume.

About ABO-102 ABO-102 is a novel gene therapy in Phase 1/2 development for Sanfilippo syndrome type A (MPS IIIA), a rare lysosomal storage disease with no approved treatment that primarily affects the central nervous system (CNS). ABO-102 is dosed in a one-time intravenous infusion using a self-complementary AAV9 vector to deliver a functional copy of the SGSH gene to cells of the CNS and peripheral organs. The therapy is designed to address the underlying SGSH enzyme deficiency responsible for abnormal accumulation of glycosaminoglycans in the brain and throughout the body that results in progressive cell damage and neurodevelopmental and physical decline. In the U.S., Abeona holds Regenerative Medicine Advanced Therapy, Fast Track, Rare Pediatric Disease, and Orphan Drug designations for the ABO-102 clinical program. In the EU, the Company holds PRIME and Orphan medicinal product designations.

About ABO-101 ABO-101 is a novel gene therapy in Phase 1/2 development for Sanfilippo syndrome type B (MPS IIIB), a rare lysosomal storage disease with no approved therapy that primarily affects the central nervous system (CNS). ABO-101 is dosed in a one-time intravenous infusion using a self-complementary AAV9 vector to deliver a functional copy of the NAGLU gene to cells of the CNS and peripheral tissues. The therapy is designed to address the underlying NAGLU enzyme deficiency responsible for abnormal accumulation of glycosaminoglycans in the brain and throughout the body that results in progressive cell damage and neurodevelopmental and physical decline. In the U.S., Abeona holds Fast Track and Rare Pediatric Disease designations for ABO-101 and Orphan Drug designation in both the U.S. and EU.

About Sanfilippo Syndrome Type A (MPS IIIA) Sanfilippo syndrome type A (MPS IIIA) is a rare, fatal lysosomal storage disease with no approved treatment that primarily affects the CNS and is characterized by rapid neurodevelopmental and physical decline. Children with MPS IIIA present with progressive language and cognitive decline and behavioral abnormalities. Other symptoms include sleep problems and frequent ear infections. Additionally, distinctive facial features with thick eyebrows or a unibrow, full lips and excessive body hair for ones age, and liver/spleen enlargement are also present in early childhood. MPS IIIA is caused by genetic mutations that lead to a deficiency in the SGSH enzyme responsible for breaking down glycosaminoglycans, which accumulate in cells throughout the body resulting in rapid health decline associated with the disorder.

About Sanfilippo syndrome type B (MPS IIIB) Sanfilippo syndrome type B (MPS IIIB) is a rare and fatal lysosomal storage disease with no approved therapy that primarily affects the central nervous system and is characterized by rapid neurodevelopmental and physical decline. Children with MPS IIIB present with progressive language and cognitive decline and behavioral abnormalities. Other symptoms include sleep problems and frequent ear infections. Additionally, distinctive signs such as facial features with thick eyebrows or a unibrow, full lips and excessive body hair for ones age and liver/spleen enlargement are also present. The underlying cause of MPS IIIB is a deficiency in the NAGLU enzyme responsible for breaking down glycosaminoglycans, which accumulate throughout the body resulting in rapid decline associated with the disorder.

About Abeona Therapeutics Abeona Therapeutics Inc. is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing gene and cell therapies for serious diseases. Abeonas clinical programs include EB-101, its autologous, gene-corrected cell therapy for recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa in Phase 3 development, as well as ABO-102 and ABO-101, novel AAV-based gene therapies for Sanfilippo syndrome types A and B (MPS IIIA and MPS IIIB), respectively, in Phase 1/2 development. The Companys portfolio also features AAV-based gene therapies for ophthalmic diseases with high unmet medical needs. Abeonas novel, next-generation AIM capsids have shown potential to improve tropism profiles for a variety of devastating diseases. Abeonas fully functional, gene and cell therapy GMP manufacturing facility produces EB-101 for the pivotal Phase 3 VIITAL study and is capable of clinical and commercial production of AAV-based gene therapies. For more information, visit http://www.abeonatherapeutics.com.

Forward-Looking StatementsThis press release contains certain statements that are forward-looking within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and that involve risks and uncertainties. These statements include statements about the Company exploring all strategic options, including the sale of some or all of its assets or sale of the Company. We have attempted to identify forward-looking statements by such terminology as may, will, believe, estimate, expect, and similar expressions (as well as other words or expressions referencing future events, conditions or circumstances), which constitute and are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, numerous risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to the potential impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business, operations, and financial condition, the outcome of the strategic review, continued interest in our rare disease portfolio, our ability to enroll patients in clinical trials, the outcome of any future meetings with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or other regulatory agencies, the impact of competition, the ability to secure licenses for any technology that may be necessary to commercialize our products, the ability to achieve or obtain necessary regulatory approvals, the impact of changes in the financial markets and global economic conditions, risks associated with data analysis and reporting, and other risks disclosed in the Companys most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and other periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise the forward-looking statements or to update them to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this press release, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as required by the federal securities laws.

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Abeona Therapeutics Announces Acceptance of Late-Breaker Abstracts Highlighting New Clinical Data for Novel AAV-based Gene Therapies in MPS IIIA and...

When did you first start using AAV vectors in your gene therapy work?

It came about 10 years ago when I was helping the Gates Foundation develop an approach for preventing HIV. Any attempt to use a traditional vaccine, where you inject a component of the virus to activate the immune system to develop proteins such as antibodies, had been challenging for HIV. Regardless of what you used to immunizebecause the virus changed so muchmost of it would escape. Once the field realized that, we started to look at other approaches, and it turns out its possible in the lab to engineer an antibody that could be effective against many types of HIV.

HIV represents a different type of pandemic than COVID-19. When did you turn to AAV vectors as a potential approach for other kinds of pandemics?

About eight years ago I started thinking about this as a countermeasure for a pandemic. The pandemics that we worry about are primarily transmitted through a respiratory route. If it were direct contact like Ebola virus, its not as dangerous because you can avoid touching one another. But if you cant even be in the same room, thats a problem.

Respiratory viruses enter our body through the nose and throat. Thats how we get infected. We proposed delivering the vector through a nasal mist or spray to engineer the cells that line the nose and throat to express the antibody. If you can localize this at that site to prevent the virus from going farther, then you dont need the whole body to express the antibodies.

The antibodies youre using, called casirivimab and imdevimab, are monoclonal antibodies, meaning they were created in a lab. Can you describe how they work?

Regeneron developed these. Theyre highly active and potent against SARS-CoV-2. For treatment, antibodies can be useful. If youre starting to get sick, you get an infusion or two of the antibodies and then you dont get sicker. But what do you do with 99% of the population who isnt sick and never gets sick? Our idea was to use an AAV vector expressing the antibodies to engineer someones cells to produce the antibodies. If we do this right, the expression could go on for a long period of time. Its a one-time vector infusion.

We were able to show in animal models that an AAV sprayed into the nose that expresses an antibody is effective against flu virus that causes respiratory diseases and has the potential to cause a pandemic. The treated animals were completely protected when exposed to flu virus. Its all about having the right antibody and then engineering a delivery system to have this blockage. We call it a bioshield. It could be a way to stop COVID-19 in its tracks.

Would this approach replace COVID-19 vaccines or be used in conjunction with them?

Theoretically, it could be used in place of a vaccine, but I suspect that traditional vaccines are going to succeed for a lot of people. We see our approach being deployed in individuals for which traditional vaccines may not work as well, patients with diseases that compromise their immune system such as cancer, patients who are on immune-modulating drugs, or even the elderly.

Early data seem to suggest that the elderly have some level of response to the active COVID-19 vaccine, but, like with many other vaccines, older people dont mount the same immune response as those who are younger. That said, I dont see any reason why receiving a traditional vaccine would preclude one from using our nasal spray because they do two different things.

The other possibility is that the COVID-19 vaccines we have become less effective because the virus changes. I dont think this will happen, and I hope it doesnt, but, if it does, the question becomes, Would the antibodies that Regeneron created become a backup? When we roll out an active vaccine based on a single spike protein into large populations, it creates pressure on the SARS-CoV-2 to change and potentially become resistant. I hope a variant doesnt emerge, but I do think it behooves us to have some redundancy in place to squelch a potential second wave due to resistant coronaviruses.

What is your projected timeline?

We are conducting one final experiment over the holiday break and in early January before we submit our request to the FDA for clinical trials. Weve had discussions with the FDA and have already done some of the initial testing, including safety testing in nonhuman primates, as well as preparing to manufacture the product. Conducting this in the Gene Therapy Program is beneficial since we are comfortable with AAV vectors and moving them into clinical trials. We support up to eight traditional AAV gene therapy programs a year, and we have the staff and technology to move pretty quickly.

If we get the go in January, I think our technology could contribute to the global response in eliminating COVID-19. And you have to understand, until we eliminate it globally, we havent actually eliminated it.

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Repurposing a proven gene therapy approach to treat, prevent COVID-19 - Penn Today

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The "Lab Automation in Genomics Market - Growth, Trends, and Forecast (2020 - 2025)" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The Global Lab Automation in the Genomics market is expected to register a CAGR approximated at around 7.5% during the period of 2020-2025.

With the technological advancements and increasing computational capacities, there has been significant improvement in knowledge of genome sequencing in terms of data analytics advances that show unknown correlations, hidden patterns, and other insights, especially when it comes to testing data sets a large scale.

Moreover, novel advances in medicine are being made at a rapidly increasing pace, largely due to recent developments in genome analysis. DNA sequence analysis provides a clearer understanding of how genetic variation leads to disease and will ultimately lead to new cures. Also, laboratory automation has proved to make room for great flexibility, higher throughputs, and affordable solutions. It offers faster handling and process can be expedited without the worry for lack of reliability and precision. Genotyping and DNA sequencing have been very affordable, due to which the rate of growth is robust.

Advances in DNA sequencing technology have made it cost-effective and more accessible than before, which has led to a flurry of genetic testing start-ups. To bring the price down, companies, such as Color Genomics and Counsyl, have built their sequencing labs and analytics software from scratch, using robots and machine learning to optimize operations.

Various genomics applications that can integrate automation in their processes include nucleic acid isolation, RNAi screening, CRISPR analysis, PCR, and gene expression analysis. Players/Vendors in the laboratory automation are designing tools that cater to these application needs. For instance, Explorer G3 integrated workstations are developed by PerkinElmer, an American company focused in the business areas of life science research, and industrial testing, to meet customers' automation needs for genomics applications.

Moreover, the companies' other kind of product launches through partnerships, which is increasing the market share of automation in the genomics. For instance, in January 2020, pentrons Labworks, Inc. and Swift Biosciences, Inc. announced the launch of the most affordable fully-automated workstation for next-generation sequencing (NGS) library preparation ever put on the market.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 epidemic, labs have been converting their spaces and resources into COVID-19 testing facilities, leading to increased adoption of automation equipment. The labs at the University of Washington were the first ones to do this. The Broad Institute followed an announcement of the conversion of their clinical processing lab into a large-scale COVID-19 testing facility.

Key Market Trends

Automated Liquid Handlers to Witness High Growth

Cross contamination is a major problem in the genomics laboratory, which can be avoided by implementing automated systems to manage the reagents and reaction mixtures. It is believed that taking out human intervention helps in achieving more consistency.

North America Occupies the Largest Market Share

North America has been a pioneer in clinical research for years. This region is home to some major pharmaceutical companies, like Pfizer, Novartis, GlaxoSmithKline, J&J, and Novartis. The region also has the highest concentration of contract research organizations (CROs). Some of the significant CROs are Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings, IQVIA, Syneos Health, and Parexel International Corp.

Owing to the presence of all the major players in the industry and stringent FDA regulations, the market is very competitive in the region. To gain an advantage over competitors, the genomics research organizations in the region are increasingly adopting robotics and automation in labs.

Competitive Landscape

The lab automation in the genomics market is a competitive market, owing to the presence of many small and big players exporting products to many countries. The key strategies adopted by the major players are a technological advancement in the product, partnerships, and merger and acquisition.

Some of the major players in the market are Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., Becton Dickinson, Siemens Healthineers AG, and Tecan Group Ltd, among others.

Key Topics Covered:

1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Study Assumptions & Market Definition

1.2 Scope of the Study

2 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

4 MARKET DYNAMICS

4.1 Market Overview

4.2 Industry Attractiveness - Porter's Five Forces Analysis

4.3 Market Drivers

4.3.1 Growing Trend of Digital Transformation for Laboratories with IoT

4.3.2 Effective Management of the Huge Amount of Data Generated

4.4 Market Restraints

4.4.1 Expensive Initial Setup

4.5 Impact of COVID-19 on the Lab Automation Market

5 MARKET SEGMENTATION

5.1 By Equipment

5.1.1 Automated Liquid Handlers

5.1.2 Automated Plate Handlers

5.1.3 Robotic Arms

5.1.4 Automated Storage and Retrieval Systems (AS/RS)

5.1.5 Vision Systems

5.2 By Geography

5.2.1 North America

5.2.2 Europe

5.2.3 Asia-Pacific

5.2.4 Rest of the World

6 COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

6.1 Company Profiles

6.1.1 Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.

6.1.2 Danaher Corporation / Beckman Coulter

6.1.3 Hudson Robotics, Inc.

6.1.4 Becton, Dickinson and Company

6.1.5 Synchron Lab Automation

6.1.6 Agilent Technologies Inc.

6.1.7 Siemens Healthineers AG

6.1.8 Tecan Group Ltd

6.1.9 Perkinelmer Inc.

6.1.10 Honeywell International

6.1.11 Eppendorf AG

7 INVESTMENT ANALYSIS

8 MARKET OPPORTUNITIES AND FUTURE TRENDS

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/nnxcio

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Lab Automation in Genomics Market - Global Growth, Trends, and Forecast 2020-2025 with Thermo Fisher Scientific, Becton Dickinson, Siemens...