HIV detection test kit to be made in India

HIV detection test kit to be made in India
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

New Delhi, March 12: The indigenously-developed Western Blot test kit for detection of HIV-I and II will be manufactured by a Delhi firm under technology developed by the Cancer Research Institute, Mumbai, a release from the company said.

At present there are two foreign suppliers of the Western Blot kit. The indigenous manufacture of the detection kit would help save foreign exchange worth crores of rupees, the release said.

The test has been developed from an Indian strain of HIV virus and is ideally suited for Indian samples and is extremely sensitive and spective, it said.

The kit is user-friendly, safe and simple to perform in all types of labs and blood banks, including those with limited facilities, the release said.

To perform the essay, the test strip is reacted with patient serum or plasma diluted in a buffer. Antibodies to HIV-I and II, if present, bind to viral agents coated on the strip. Unbound material is washed off. Thereafter the strip is incubated and treated with colouring agent.

In case of HIV positive sample, visible bands develop on the strip while no such band is visible in case of HIV negative samples.