Global Small Molecule Discovery Market Size, Segmentation, Trends and Growth Analysis Forecast by 2030

Small Molecule Market Overview and Analysis:

The Small Molecule Market is currently valued at USD 60.9 billion in the year 2022 and is expected to register a CAGR of 8.96% over the forecast period.

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Small molecule drug discovery represents all the costs incurred by a drug discovery company during the discovery phase. A small molecule is a substance that can enter cells quickly as it has a low molecular weight. These are used as drugs for therapeutic purposes and include chemically synthesized drug molecules and all biologically synthesized drug molecules. 

The rise in demand for small-molecule drugs, an increasing number of contract organizations for research and development, and increasing usage of small molecules in the treatment of chronic diseases are expected to drive the growth of the market. The increasing number of chronic diseases propels the market's growth. 

Small Molecule Market Latest Trends:

Small molecule drug development is experiencing increasing numbers of molecules in the pipeline on expedited regulatory pathways being developed by small and emerging pharma companies and a trend towards greater complexity of chemical structures and enabling technologies.

Another important development in 2022 was the reduced share of small molecules in new drug approvals. In 2022, 59% of the new drug approvals by FDA’s CDER were small molecules, significantly down from recent years—when small molecules accounted for approximately three-fourths of new drug approvals. In 2022, 22 of the 37 new drug approvals were small molecules, representing 59% of new drug approvals. In comparison, between 2018 and 2021, small molecules averaged 74% of new drug approvals. Thus, the market is expected to witness significant growth over the forecast period.

Segmentation:

The Small Molecule Drug Discovery Market is Segmented

By Therapeutic Area

• Oncology
• Central Nervous System
• Cardiovascular
• Respiratory
• Metabolic Disorders
• Gastrointestinal
• Other

By Process/Phase

• Target ID/Validation
• Hit Generation and Selection
• Lead Identification
• Lead Optimization

Geography

• North America
• Europe
• Asia-Pacific
• Middle East
• Africa
• South America 

The report offers the value (in USD million) for the above segments.

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Drivers: 

Rise in Demand for Small Molecule Drugs and Increasing Number of Contract Organizations for R&D

Healthcare costs are the main driver of the small molecule drug discovery industry. By providing medicines and vaccines for various medical operations, the pharmaceutical industry contributes significantly to healthcare. Therefore, the annual healthcare spending from corporate companies and government budgets has a big impact on the expansion of the drug discovery process. Healthcare expenses are rising quickly globally as a result of expanding insurance coverage. Due to an increase in patients, hospitals are increasingly in demand.

Furthermore, the recent developments are expected to fuel the growth of the studied market. For instance, in February 2020, a study published in Pharmaceuticals claimed that the FDA had approved the active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) for three peptides. Using artificial intelligence for medication research in the pharmaceutical industry is growing swiftly, according to a study published in BioPharma Trend 2020. This aspect is expected to boost the significant investment in R&D activities for identifying innovative therapeutic targets that will fuel market expansion.

Small Molecules in the Treatment of Chronic Diseases

Small molecule medicines can reach therapeutic targets inside cells. To treat a disease, a medicine must be able to reach a specific therapeutic target which in most cases is a protein associated with a specific biological process that can cause disease if it isn't functioning properly. The prevalence of numerous diseases like cancer/oncology, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases is rising as a result of changing lifestyles, changing consumption patterns, poor eating habits, rising pollution levels, and physical inactivity. The International Agency for Research on Cancer estimates that there will be around 10.3 million cancer deaths and 19.3 million new cases of cancer worldwide in 2022. Thus, such instances are fueling the growth of the studied market.

Restraints:

High Drug Development Costs and Strict Regulations

In 2019, the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development estimated the cost of bringing a new drug from discovery to submission for approval at USD 6.6 billion. Thus, the high cost of drug development and stringent regulation may slow down the growth of the studied market.

COVID-19 Impact and Analysis

Segmentation Analysis

Target ID/Validation Segment is Expected to Witness High Growth Over the Forecast Period

Target identification is made to identify a small molecule's direct molecular target, such as protein or nucleic acid. In the case of clinical pharmacology, target identification is aimed at finding out the efficacy of the target of the drug molecule. The main objective of target validation is to identify and access the chances of a molecular target in achieving the development of pharmaceuticals for therapeutic application. Three key distinct and complementary approaches are used for target identification and validation: genetic interaction, direct biochemical, and computational interference. In many cases, combinations of multiple approaches may be required to characterize the target entirely. Thus, the segment is expected to witness significant growth over the forecast period.

The Oncology Segment is Expected to Witness Significant growth Over the Forecast Period

For the tumour cell, small molecules bind to proteins or nucleic acids and are designed to regulate the activity of the target by inhibiting its function or by disrupting specific protein-protein interactions. Thus, the use of small molecules in the treatment of cancer and the growing number of cancer cases is expected to drive the growth of the studied segment over the forecast period.

North America is Expected to Witness Significant growth Over the Forecast Period

North America currently dominates the overall market for small molecule drug discovery market owing to the rising cases of various chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, etc., and increasing approval of new small molecules in the region. According to the American Cancer Society's 2022 statistics, it is estimated that in 2022, there will be 1,918,030 new cases of cancer in the United States, of which 983,160 will be among males and 934,870 will be among females. Furthermore, according to the Canadian Cancer Society 2022, there will be 233,900 new cancer cases in Canada in 2022. Such a high burden of cancer is expected to drive the market's growth as small molecules are primarily employed in the treatment of cancer.

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Competitive Landscape:

The small molecule drug discovery market is moderate in nature due to the presence of a few companies operating globally as well as regionally. The competitive landscape includes an analysis of a few international as well as local companies that hold market shares and are well-known including

• Pfizer Inc.
• Bristol-Myers Squibb Company
• Merck KGaA
• Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH
• GlaxoSmithKline
• among others.

Recent Developments:

1) August 2022: BioDuro-Sundia and X-Chem, a DEL technology pioneer in small molecule drug discovery, launched DNA Encoded Compound Library (DEL) technology services in China to help more innovative pharmaceutical companies quickly discover small molecule drugs.

2) July 2022: RxCelerate launched RxNfinit. It is a new small molecule discovery platform that leverages machine learning, in silico structure modeling, and combinatorial chemistry in a novel workflow to offer significant advantages over the current generation of tools to identify small molecule drugs against a wide range of protein targets.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) :

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