Prion deactivation technologies a gold mine for suppliers - Products & Services

The critical need to control the transmission of deadly, infectious human prion diseases is stirring enormous demand for technologically advanced sterilizers/sterilants that can render prion pathogens inactive, according to recent analysis from San Jose, CA-based market researchers Frost & Sullivan. Their research shows that this market generated $647 million in 2001 and is estimated to reach $929 million by 2008.

Current sterilization techniques are ineffective in deactivating prions, the causative pathogens of four communicable and fatal human prion diseases. Consequently, there exists significant opportunity for manufacturers to devise an effective sterilization technology that can inactivate prions and prevent contagion.

"The effective solution is expected to be a combination of new methods in existing product line with some additional technology," says Frost & Sullivan industry analyst Dhiraj Ajmani. "The industry is expected to develop something that customers already have or something they can modify, thus facilitating uptake and driving growth."

The development of a prion indicator designed to reveal if prions are present and/or if they have been deactivated after sterilization, he says, presents an allied growth opportunity for suppliers.

Meanwhile, Ajmani says that sterilization supplies should continue accounting for the largest revenue share in the total disinfection and sterilization market, while biological indicators are poised to evolve into the highest growth area in sterilization supplies. In particular, rapid readout biological indicators are being hyped as the market of the future. Other areas within the sterilization supplies market poised to register strong growth are sterilization containers and metal trays.

Sterilization wraps are expected to grow at a slower rate than sterilization containers as hospitals and surgical centers slowly shift to sterilization containers, as metal trays are expected to gain in popularity over plastic trays. Demand for disinfection and sterilization technologies is likely to receive impetus from the expanding usage of endoscopes.

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