One of the great things about the healthcare market is that there's constant innovation going on. With a massive market—especially given the sheer numbers of the baby boom generation that's rapidly getting into a retirement posture—needing a variety of goods and services, it's the kind of market that can really make a company's bottom line into a thing of beauty. A new report out from Frost & Sullivan, meanwhile, details just one part of the huge array of new services set to hit the healthcare sector: cell imaging.
The report in question, entitled “The Untapped Potential in Live Cell Imaging,” shows that such techniques—which in turn allow for an immediate look at a variety of cells ranging from DNA and RNA to proteins and various other types of cells—could represent a massive opportunity in the field for businesses to get in on what could be a major new market. There are several points at which firms could get involved, according to reports, starting with the optimization of microscopic settings, as well as the selection of various fluorescent components involved.
Several technologies are also currently in place to address the field of live cell imaging, ranging from high resolution imaging systems geared toward molecular models to live cell testing systems. Such technologies have been seen in use around everything from cancer research to neuroscience, giving those who get involved in the fields a variety of points to work with.
There are, however, some critical points here beyond the market that need to be considered in order to get this market up and running to its fullest extent, as the Frost & Sullivan study notes. First is the need to ensure proper stakeholder collaboration. This is still comparatively early-stage stuff, so there's going to be quite a bit in the way of need for investment and outright capital to help ensure balance in the market. Second is the need to ensure that patents are available on a timely basis to help protect the discoveries made in the field, and to help ensure that, overall, the market remains competitive. Specifically, Frost & Sullivan's technical insights senior research analyst Cecilia Van Cauwenberghe notes the need for “intellectual property regimes promoting integration between academia and industry in order to deliver new solutions...”
Indeed, this is a field that's going to require a lot of research, as much of the innovations here will be developed from the ground up. That means a lot of capital that may not seen an immediate return on investment, or even see one for several years. But the return here could be staggering, especially if a technology is developed that becomes a new standard. Live cell imaging is no different, as it not only has uses in the diagnostic field, but it also has use in the research field, being directly applicable not only to others' work, but to the patient as well.
Between the sheer benefit involved in producing a technology that helps a lot of people and the benefit of being top of class in a major growth sector, that's a lot of reason to get in on healthcare research in general, and live cell imaging in particular. With the ability to watch the effects that a drug or a treatment would have on sample cells, this is a technology with a variety of future implications. Live cell imaging may not be an easy market to get involved in, but it's potentially one of the biggest.
Edited by
Cassandra Tucker
