However, not all innovations are equal and nor do they follow a constant upward trend. Instead, their evolution takes the form of an S-shaped curve that reflects their typical lifecycle from early emergence to accelerating adoption, before finally stabilising and reaching maturity.

Identifying where a particular innovation is on this journey, especially those that are in the emerging and accelerating stages, is essential for understanding their current level of adoption and the likely future trajectory and impact they will have.

110 innovations will shape the pharmaceutical industry

According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which plots the S-curve for the pharmaceutical industry using innovation intensity models built on over 756,000 patents, there are 110 innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.

Within the emerging innovation stage, cell therapy for ocular disorders, coronavirus vaccine components, and DNA polymerase compositions are disruptive technologies that are in the early stages of application and should be tracked closely. Adeno-associated virus vectors, alcohol dehydrogenase compositions, and antibody serum stabilisers are some of the accelerating innovation areas, where adoption has been steadily increasing. Among maturing innovation areas are anti-influenza antibody compositions and anti-interleukin-1, which are now well established in the industry.

Innovation S-curve for the pharmaceutical industry

Cytokine-activated T-cell based compositions is a key innovation area in pharmaceuticals

Cytokines are proteins secreted by certain immune and non-immune cells, which influence the immune system. Certain cytokines trigger the immune system, while others pacify it. They help the body fight cancer, infections, and other diseases.T cells are the major effector cells in cellular immunity, produce cytokines in immune responses to mediate inflammation and regulate other types of immune cells. There are two types of T-cells: Killer T-Cells and Helper T-cells.

GlobalData’s analysis also uncovers the companies at the forefront of each innovation area and assesses the potential reach and impact of their patenting activity across different applications and geographies. According to GlobalData, there are 320+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established pharmaceutical companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of cytokine-activated T-cell based compositions.

Key players in cytokine-activated T-cell based compositions – a disruptive innovation in the pharmaceutical industry

‘Application diversity’ measures the number of different applications identified for each relevant patent and broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators.

‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of different countries each relevant patent is registered in and reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’.

Patent volumes related to cytokine-activated T-cell based compositions

Immatics is one of the leading patent filers for cytokine-activated T-cell based compositions. Immatics is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of T-cell immunotherapies to fight against cancer. Immatics combines the discovery of targets for cancer immunotherapies with the right T-cell receptors enabling a robust and specific T-cell response against the selected targets.

In terms of application diversity, Mycenax Biotech is the top company, followed by AiCuris Anti-infective Cures and MediGene. By means of geographic reach, Otsuka holds the top position, while ImmunityBio and AbbVie stand in second and third positions, respectively.

To further understand the key themes and technologies disrupting the pharmaceutical industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Pharmaceutical.

GlobalData, the leading provider of industry intelligence, provided the underlying data, research, and analysis used to produce this article.

GlobalData’s Patent Analytics tracks patent filings and grants from official offices around the world. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.