What were the top 100 cited biochemicals of 2021?

5

Min Read

In this blog:

  • Which biochemical products were the most highly cited?
  • Which suppliers featured in this dataset?
  • How has the dataset changed since last year’s analysis?

Interested to find out more about the most used products and leading suppliers in the biochemicals market in 2021?

For the final ‘top 100’ blog in our series, we focus on the top 100 biochemicals of last year. You can read our analysis on the ‘top 100 antibodies’, ‘top 100 proteins’, ‘top 100 lipids’, and ‘top 100 cell lines’ that we have shared over the past few weeks over on our blog to learn more about other reagent markets we collect data on. 

Today, we uncover the leading supplier in this dataset, and delve into which product types feature. This year, the biochemicals dataset has expanded to include a broader range of products such as medias and buffers, which we explore further below. 

Infographic to show the key takeaways from the top 100 dataset analysis

What data have we used in this analysis?

Over the past year we have broadened the range of products included in this dataset, on top of growing the number of citations and suppliers. Due to this data expansion, we have seen an increase in the number of products in the top 100 list that are used for cell culture research. These products include buffers, mediums, stains and antibiotics, amongst others. 

Overall, the biochemicals dataset encompasses a wide variety of products, ranging from inhibitors to carbohydrates and lipids, to dyes, buffers and mediums. We recently focused on the top 100 lipids within this dataset, but today we broaden our view and take in the entire market. 

In its entirety, the biochemicals dataset includes 154 suppliers, 1.6 million products and 580,000+ citations. For this analysis, we took a look at the highly accurate citations we have collected from 2021 for a snapshot of the latest developments in the market.

By analysing this data, we can understand which products are seeing increasing use, which research areas are popular, and which suppliers are well used by researchers in this market segment. 

What are the most popular biochemical products?

Drilling down into the top 10 most cited products, we found a mix in the types of products.

The top cited product of the year was Thermo Fisher’s TRIzol™ Reagent. This reagent is used in the isolation of DNA, RNA or proteins from biological samples. A different TRIzol™ Reagent also features at number three, also supplied by Thermo Fisher, demonstrating its importance in research. 

Featuring at number nine is VECTASHIELD® Antifade Mounting Medium with DAPI, supplied by Vector Labs. This reagent enters the top ten for the first time this year. It is used in immunofluorescence and cellular imaging and is a popular choice due to its ability to preserve fluorescence by inhibiting photobleaching.

Coming in at tenth position we found tamoxifen, a bioactive compound and protein kinase C inhibitor. This compound has been used extensively in cancer research, and the catalogue product supplied by MilliporeSigma has over 2,700 citations in the CiteAb search. 

When we compare the top ten list to last year we see a greater mix in reagents due to how our data has expanded. For example, we noticed a reduction in protease inhibitor cocktails in the top ten: in 2020 four protease inhibitor cocktails featured, whereas this year we saw only one at position five, supplied by MilliporeSigma. We did find that two of these inhibitor cocktails popular in 2020 still featured in the top 100 dataset for 2021, showing that they are still important research products.

Products in the dataset this year range from chemical probes and their derivatives to what may be considered more basic everyday components of lab research. 

For the next stage of improvements to the biochemicals dataset, we are looking at adding cell culture classifications to allow greater granularity when analysing our data and to help researchers using the search for product selection.

Which suppliers featured in the dataset?

This year, we saw some changes in the suppliers featured and the amount of products they held in the top 100 as our dataset has broadened.

Firstly, there was a reduction in the number of suppliers compared to last year. Whilst 2020 featured 12 suppliers, this year that number had halved to six. 

MilliporeSigma previously held just over half of the products in the top 100. However in 2021, Thermo Fisher Scientific led the way with exactly half of the top 100 products. Millipore Sigma still hold a significant 42 of the top 100 biochemicals in the dataset, showing a continued dominant presence. 

Corning entered the dataset this year with their solubilised basement membrane preparations: matrigel matrices. A cell culture product proving popular in recent research, these matrigel matrices are extracted from mouse tumour and used in in vitro angiogenesis, cell invasion and further assays due to their ability to mimic the ECM in cancer and stem cell culture.

We also noted that the small molecule suppliers Tocris and lipid supplier Avanti Polar Lipids slipped out of the top 100 list as our dataset has broadened. It is worth noting, however, that we saw Avanti Polar Lipids continue in the top three in the top 100 lipids dataset, an important segment of the biochemicals market. Similarly, we also reported on the position of Tocris in the bioactive small molecule market a few months ago, finding they were a major player featuring in the top five. 

Our new Biochemical Market Insights package involves quarterly data set deliveries, the most recent of which was focused around ‘companies’, providing insights such as those discussed above. Do get in touch if you’d like to learn more about this package! 

Pie chart showing the number of products held by suppliers in the top 100 biochemicals dataset
Pie chart showing the number of products held by suppliers in the top 100 biochemicals dataset

Download data on the top 100 biochemicals…

By simply signing up below, you can download free data on the top 100 biochemicals of 2021. 

As ever, do get in touch with any questions or comments on this analysis, or on the full biochemicals dataset. Look out for blogs on the expanding biochemicals dataset in the future!

Check back in on our blog for the top 100 summary article in the next few weeks, which will wrap up all the key takeaways from the top 100 product blogs. We hope you have found the series informative and interesting! 

  • Rebecca and the CiteAb team

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