This portable Made in India machine can test different types of viruses
2 min read . Updated: 26 Feb 2023, 06:50 AM IST
Premium- It can test for respiratory diseases, and other different viruses in the blood or gastrointestinal
A company in Hyderabad has reportedly designed a small real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT PCR) machine that can test different types of viruses. As per a report by the ANI news agency, the standalone device is portable and is touted to take around 30 minutes to conduct the test. It can test for respiratory diseases, and other different viruses in the blood or gastrointestinal, Huwel Lifesciences claimed. The device has also been showcased at BioAsia 2023.
Mint could not individually test the device.
The CEO of Huwel Lifesciences, Rachana Tripathi told ANI, "We are situated in the Medical Devices Park, Hyderabad. We are manufacturers of diagnostic kits and instruments. We also have many licensed molecular diagnostic kits. This is a small real-time PCR machine with a POCT (point of care testing) kind of system. This can be used anywhere either in the physicians' room, in hospitals, or on fields wherever required. It does not require any specific environment or trained person to perform the test. The accuracy of the machine is as good as real-time PCR."
Tripathi said that the machine, during its nascent period, will be installed at primary healthcare centres, physicians' clinics and gynecologists' clinics.
"Everything including the sensitivity accuracy is equivalent to real-time PCR but the ease of operation is very much like the antigen test. It only takes around 30 minutes to conduct a single test. We are not giving it for house testing or individual testing at present. We are focusing more on primary healthcare centres, physicians' clinics, and gynaecologists' clinics as we can test for Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) in this," she added.
Besides, the machine can also be installed at corporate companies, according to Tripathi. "We have a panel of different viruses and we can test all the viruses in the office itself and make sure of the kind of infection. It can test any reagent including viruses, bacteria, or fungi we put inside the cartridge. It can test for respiratory diseases, cancer, different viruses in the blood or gastrointestinal," she said.
The Co-founder of Huwel Lifesciences, Dr Shesheer said, "We are launching a new product. This is point-of-care equipment that goes into every nook and corner of the physician's tables or corporate hospitals. It can go into any place because it's standalone equipment where you can do a single test with multiple parameters at a time. There would be several use cases of B2B and field testing. It can also be a home testing device in the future where you can test everything confirmatory test at home."