Tata Sons to help CSIR make ‘Feluda’
Tata Sons have signed a memorandum of comprehending with the CSIR for the ‘licensing of knowhow’ and help make a paper test kit for COVID-19, named ‘Feluda’, which might make the mass screening.
The kit is developed by the Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (IGIB), New Delhi- CSIR’s constituent laboratory, and the kit is called FNCAS9 Editor Linked Uniform Detection Assay or ‘Feluda’, after the imaginary detective developed by Bengali filmmaker and author Satyajit Ray.
The “transfer of the knowledge for scaling up the know-how in the form of a kit” shall be included in the license, that can be released for COVID-19 testing on the ground as early as the end of May.
“We are happy to participate in a collaboration with IGIB-CSIR for additional development and commercialization of CRISPR-based technology for COVID-19 detection,” said Banmali Agrawala, President, Infrastructure and Defence & Aerospace, Tata Sons.
” It utilizes a test method that is simple to carry out as well as very easy to analyze, making it possible for results to be made available to the clinical fraternity in relatively minimal time, as compared to various other testings methods. Our team believes
that CRISPR is an advanced technology that can additionally be set up for the detection of various other pathogens in such situations”“CSIR labs like CSIR-IGIB have been working on deep science as well as developing cutting edge technology and I am happy to see that the Tata team is collaborating towards its deployment,” said Shekhar Mande, Director General, CSIR.
About ‘Feluda’
This test strip – ‘Feluda’ was invented at CSIR-IGIB by a team led by 2 Bengali-origin researchers – Dr. Souvik Maiti and Dr. Debojyoti Chakraborty.