Kerala institute develops quicker, cheaper COVID-19 test kit

After excelling in COVID-19 control measures and care, Kerala is also setting models in COVID-19 treatment and diagnosis.

The Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) in Thiruvananthapuram, a pioneer institution in medical research and development under the Department of Science and Technology, has developed a COVID-19 test kit which could deliver results in a quicker and cheaper manner.

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SCTIMST spokesperson said that the Indian Council of Medical Research's nod for the kit is expected shortly as it was successfully tested at the National Institute of Virology unit in Kerala and found accurate.

While the Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) test being conducted now would take at least six to seven hours to get results, in the new kit developed by SCTIMST based on Loop Mediated Isothermal Amplification method, the sample to result time is around two hours only.

The cost of the new test would be around Rs 1,000 while the RT-PCR test would be around Rs 4,000. Cost of the device for LAMP testing is around Rs 2.5 lakh, the spokesperson said.

Faster test results are a key factor in COVID-19 control as it could reduce the number of persons being kept on quarantine with suspected COVID-19 infection.

Rapid test using blood specimen for quick preliminary detection of infection could not take off due to unavailability of kits. Even in Kerala, as many as 1,000 test results are pending.

SCTIMST has named the new kit as Chitra GeneLAMP-N. Up to 30 samples can be tested in a single batch in a single machine.

Dr Anoop Thekkuveettil, a senior scientist of the Biomedical Technology wing of the Institute and Scientist-in-charge of the division of molecular medicine under the Department of Applied Biology, and his team developed the kit in the last three weeks.

SCTIMST had recently initiated a project for treating acute COVID-19 infected patients using antibodies from those who recovered from COVID-19.

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ICMR has already approved it and is awaiting the final nod of the ethics committee. The institute also developed examination booths that would help doctors examine patients without direct contact and disinfection gateway for decontamination of people.

Kerala has already garnered international attention for swiftly flattening the COVID-19 curve by bringing down the number of infected persons and having a high recovery rate and low fatality rate. Recovery of a COVID-19-infected couple, aged around 90, was also a highlight of Kerala's health facilities.