A major breakthrough in the field of SARS-CoV-2 testing is underway as a Kashmiri researcher has developed a Saliva-based testing kit. Once approved for production and use, it will bring revolution in the speedy testing of the suspects at throwaway costs.
Dr. Tanveer Ahmad, 37, an assistant professor in Jamia Millia’s Multidisciplinary Centre for Advanced Research and Studies (MCARS), along with his aides Dr. Mohan Joshi and Dr. Javaid Iqbal, has developed a chemical formulation kit which identifies whether the virus is present in the salivary sample of a person or not.“The Jamia has been in talks with a number of companies for its production at mass scale. “I hope the company will be finalized early next week. Once that happens, the company will approach the concerned authorities (ICMR or the drug control authorities) and then it will be available in the market for use.”
After the news was out about the evolution of a special simple and cost-effective kit, a number of companies have shown their interest in its production. Talks are reported to be underway for the technology transfer.
How To Test?
“The procedure is very simple. The kit will provide a tube in which the individual collects his saliva,” Ahmad said. “After that, a chemical formulation has to be added to the tube containing saliva. After the saliva reacts with the chemical formulation, the
CRISPR-Cas enzymes identify the virus.”
The doctor also said that once the person completes the first step, after that the solution has to be put on a paper testing strip which accompanies the test kit. The strip will manifest bands of color.
The patient after that has to upload a picture of the strip on the ‘MI-SEHAT’ application. The application, after uploading the image, will instantly determine the result.
