The first batch of 30,000 COVID KAVACH ELISA Tests manufactured by Zydus Diagnostics, a unit of Cadila Healthcare Limited, has been supplied to Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), free of cost. These test kits have been manufactured in technology transfer with ICMR-NIV of Pune for surveillance purposes.
Robust antibody tests are critical for surveillance and understanding the proportion of population exposed to SARSCOV- 2 infection.
ICMR-NIV, Pune has successfully developed an indigenous IgG ELISA test for antibody detection for COVID-19. The test was validated at two sites in Mumbai and has been found to have high sensitivity and specificity. In addition, the test will have the advantage of testing 90 samples together in a single run of 2.5 hours. Moreover, ELISA based testing is easily possible even at district level. After development at ICMR-NIV, Pune, technology has been commercialised by Zydus Cadila for mass scale production. The test kits then manufactured at Zydus Cadila were validated by NIV and were found to have high sensitivity & specificity.
The test named as ‘COVID KAVACH ELISA’ have been manufactured in just four days of receiving all necessary materials from ICMR – NIV, Pune. Speaking on the development, Chairman, Mr. Pankaj R. Patel, said, “This reaffirms our commitment to do everything that we can to help the nation fight this healthcare challenge. We believe that the need of the hour is to be prepared in every way that we can with the latest diagnostic technologies and that is why we are providing the initial supplies at no costs.”
Earlier, the Company had partnered with ICMR to be better equipped against infectious disease outbreaks, and help people, who are at high risk, particularly in distant, remote areas of the country. The Company has been manufacturing and marketing a range of ELISA kits for detection and surveillance of rare and neglected diseases in humans and livestock. Zydus Diagnostics has manufactured kits for Chandipura Virus (ELISA), Kyasanur Forest Disease Virus KFDV (ELISA), Hepatitis E Virus (ELISA), Crimean Congo Haemorrhagic fever (IgM and IgG tests) and Measles (IgM) for human testing and Crimean Congo Haemorrhagic fever (ELISA kits for sheep, goat and cattle) and Japanese Encephalitis (ELISA kits for mosquitoes).
