Commercial microarray market penetration at 81 percent

ARLINGTON, Va.—A recent survey by market research and consulting firm BioInformatics LLC entitled "The Market for DNA Microarrays: Core Lab & End-User Perspectives" shows that Affymetrix continues to be the dominant supplier in the DNA microarray market, which includes DNA microarrays, microarray scanners, and data analysis software. The survey found that 81 percent of researchers use commercial DNA microarrays, either exclusively or in addition to arrays printed in the lab or in a core facility. Among these commercial array users, 75 percent of scientists use Affymetrix arrays. However other suppliers —such as Agilent Technologies and Applied Biosystems—are making inroads into this growing market, particularly in the areas of microarray scanners and data analysis software.

 

BioInformatics LLC based its findings on a 29-question survey of 563 scientific customers who currently use DNA microarrays. The report assesses researchers' experimental parameters, current and future levels of sample throughput and choice of supplier for DNA microarrays, scanners and software. Additionally, researchers were asked about how suppliers should work to improve the technology and how best to ensure the use of DNA microarrays in clinical applications.

 

The survey further shows 45 percent of researchers expecting an increase in throughput over the next year. Additionally, 68 percent of scientists at core labs plan to increase their throughput over the same period. Interestingly, respondents who use both commercial arrays and arrays printed in-house are more likely to expect increased throughput. "Given that this group of users demonstrate preference for both commercial and in-house arrays, suppliers who focus on understanding the circumstances in which such users select each source will be best positioned to transition those users to a higher proportion of commercial microarray utilization," according to Dr. Robin Rothrock, director of market research at BioInformatics LLC.

 

Satisfaction is generally high among scientists using DNA microarrays and data analysis software. Forty-nine percent of researchers are highly satisfied with DNA array performance. Overall satisfaction for data analysis software is high, as well; however, there is a significant difference in satisfaction between researchers who use in-house custom software and those who use commercial software. Fifty-three percent of in-house software users were highly satisfied with the performance of their software, while 43 percent of researchers who use commercial software were highly satisfied.

 

"In this growing but highly competitive market, a supplier who can find a way to enhance microarray quality in order to provide accurate and reproducible results —especially in the area of data standardization and integration—is the one who will succeed," predicts Dr. Rothrock.