CCMB, Meril tie up to make Covid test kits

Hyderabad CSIR- Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) here on Wednesday said it has tied up with Meril Life Sciences for commercially scaling up its dry swab-based tests for detecting Covid-19.

The premier research institute, in a press release, said the dry swab-based direct RT-PCR for Covid-19 testing has been developed by the CCMB and has been approved by ICMR based on their independent validation. This method is a simple variation of the existing gold standard RT-PCR method and can easily scale up the testing by two to three folds with no new investment of resources. Rakesh Mishra, Advisor, CSIR-CCMB, said RNA extraction, even with automation, usually takes four hours for roughly 500 samples. The viral transport medium (VTM) and RNA extraction both add a significant burden on money and time required for mass testing for coronavirus.