New Elisa Covid test kit can deliver result in just 3 hours

New breakthrough

A new Elisa-type antibody testing kit designed by Syngene, the Biocon’s research arm, could potentially alter Covid testing in the future.

While the RT-PCR, the standard testing method at present, takes up to eight hours to deliver results on nasal samples, Elisa (Enzyme-Linked Immunoassay) kits can deliver results in one to three hours.

The test works by sampling collected material from Covid-19 test subjects for the presence of Sars-Cov-2 antibodies, primarily Immunoglobulins G and M. This would, in turn, confirm that the test subject had been exposed to the virus. Immunoglobulin G is the most common type of antibody.

For virologists and epidemiologists, the advantage of Elisa technology is that it will help identify the scale of the subclinical infection (or early-stage or mild infection) within the general population.

"Some 80% of all Covid-19 infections are subclinical. What IgG antibody testing will help with is in identifying and certifying protected individuals, who are no longer susceptible to infection. Since they pose no risk to others, they can be free to rebuild all locked-down socioeconomic functions,” said Dr T Jacob John, a noted virologist who formerly headed ICMR’s Centre for Advanced Research in Virology.

Dr John has been critical of testing programmes in India for only testing for the virus and not antibodies. He told DH that there is no sense of gauging the true scale of subclinical infection in the general population until we test everyone for IgGs.

Meantime, the Bengaluru-based Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms (C-Camp), Department of Biotechnology, described the development of the new kits as timely.

“Given the emphasis on indigenous manufacturing and self-reliance, this is an exciting development with potentially far-reaching impact on our testing capacity,” said C-Camp Director Dr Taslimarif Saiyed.

Syngene is a member of the National Biomedical Resources Indigenisation Consortium (NBRIC), which was hosted and convened by C-Camp.

“Most of these antibody kits were hitherto being imported. But supply chains worldwide are seriously hampered and diverted and grave misgivings have recently surfaced about quality and the efficacy of these imported kits,” C-Camp said in a statement.

A spokesperson for C-Camp added that the kits will be sent to National Institute of Virology, Pune, for validation. Syngene has tied up with HiMedia Laboratories to manufacture and distribute the kits.