Fig 1.
The valorization & technology transfer cycle depicts the steps in the innovation process for infectious diseases control: From disease emergence to development and marketing of medical countermeasures [16].
The upstream phases (steps 1–7) in the cycle overlap with infectious disease surveillance and initial outbreak response, while downstream phases (steps 8–14) overlap with product development as medical countermeasures to control infectious diseases.
Fig 2.
Saturation of ownership barriers for MGR sharing was reached after 14 interviews (a). Representation of KOLs across stakeholder sectors and domains (b).
The choice in stakeholders’ sectors and domains reflects their main area of expertise, since the KOLs can be active across two or more domains and sectors.
Fig 3.
Root-cause analysis of the seven barriers classified under the category “compliance to regulations” (A).
Columns represent barriers, causes and root causes, and rows represent the causal argumentation of the KOLs. The barriers are shaded and numbered following the thematic classification in barriers types as the following: compliance to regulations (A, #1–7 are light grey), negative consequences (B, #8–10 are dark grey), self-interest (C, #11–14 are white) and insufficient incentives for compliance (D, #15 is black).
Fig 4.
Root-cause analysis of the three barriers classified under the category “negative consequences” (B).
Columns represent barriers, causes and root causes and rows represent the causal argumentation of the KOLs. The barriers are color-coded and numbered following the thematic classification in barriers types as the following: compliance to regulations (A, #1–7 are light grey), negative consequences (B, #8–10 are dark grey), self-interest (C, #11–14 are white) and insufficient incentives for compliance (D, #15 is black).
Fig 5.
Root-cause analysis of the four barriers classified under the category “self-interest” (C).
Columns represent barriers, causes and root causes and rows represent the causal argumentation of the KOLs. The barriers are color-coded and numbered following the thematic classification in barriers types as the following: compliance to regulations (A, #1–7 are light grey), negative consequences (B, #8–10 are dark grey), self-interest (C, #11–14 are white) and insufficient incentives for compliance (D, #15 is black).
Fig 6.
Root-cause analysis of the barrier classified under the category “insufficient incentives for compliance” (D).
Columns represent barriers, causes and root causes and rows representing the causal argumentation of the KOLs. The barriers are color-coded and numbered following the thematic classification in barriers types as the following: compliance to regulations (A, #1–7 are light grey), negative consequences (B, #8–10 are dark grey), self-interest (C, #11–14 are white) and insufficient incentives for compliance (D, #15 is black).
Fig 7.
The barriers predominantly influence the scientific domain and the transition between the market & society to the scientific domain.
Color codes and numbering correspond to the main barriers and underlying causes in the root-cause analysis trees, in Figs 3–6: A) compliance to regulations (light grey), B) negative consequences (dark grey), C) self-interest (white), and D) insufficient incentives for compliance (black).
Fig 8.
Ownership barriers for timely sharing and open-access to MGR predominantly hamper the innovation process for infectious diseases in the phases from sampling through proof of principle.
Color codes and numbering correspond to the main barriers and underlying causes in the root-cause analysis trees, in Figs 3–6: A) compliance to regulations (light grey), B) negative consequences (dark grey), C) self-interest (white), and D) insufficient incentives for compliance (black).
Fig 9.
Publication priority was the most frequently mentioned barrier.
Barriers are ranked according to their frequency of occurrence in absolute numbers (n KOLs) and in decreasing order. Color codes and numbering correspond to the main barriers and underlying causes in the root-cause analysis trees, in Figs 3–6: compliance to regulations (A#x light grey), negative consequences (B#x dark grey), self-interest (C#x white), and insufficient incentives for compliance (D#x black). The asterisk identifies barriers that persist in the downstream phases of the innovation cycle (Fig 7).
Fig 10.
The commercial sector (CS) differentiated substantially from the other stakeholder groups in the quantification of the mentioned barriers.
The order generated by the frequency of occurrence as mentioned by the national surveillance centers (NSC) is taken as a reference, to which the behavior of the curves representing the commercial sector (CS), research institutes (RI), and supranational organizations (SO) is compared. Barriers are numbered according to the root-cause analysis (Figs 3–6) and the asterisk identifies barriers that persist in the downstream phases of the innovation cycle (Fig 7).