ICMR ready to transfer technology of a ‘breakthrough’ TB detection system

Contact Counsellor

Last Updated26/07/2024

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has begun work on spreading an affordable, faster and easy-to-use testing technology for detection of tuberculosis.

The council has invited an Expression of Interest from organisations, companies and manufacturers for “transfer of technology” for commercialisation of “a CRISPR Cas-based TB detection system”.
Developed by the ICMR Regional Medical Research Centre, Dibrugarh, the technology is touted as the “world’s cheapest TB testing system”.
It can detect the TB bacterium using DNA from saliva at a very low cost. It can identify the bacterium with preliminary symptoms, and test over 1,500 samples within two hours.
“It is so simple that it can be used even in the primary health center of a village,” say researchers at the center.
TB kills an estimated 4,80,000 Indians every year or over 1,400 patients every day. Additionally, the country has more than a million “missing” TB cases annually, which are not notified. Most remain either undiagnosed, or unaccountably and inadequately diagnosed and treated in the private sector.
A senior Health Ministry official had noted that India’s efforts to achieve rapid decline in the burden of TB morbidity and mortality, towards the elimination of the infection by 2025, have plateaued.
He added that there is now a move to rework the protocol to tackle the disease, specifically TB medication and its duration, to reboot the TB-free initiative with zero deaths, disease, and poverty resulting from the disease.

The ICMR has developed the “CRISPR Cas-based TB detection system” and is lawfully entitled to enter into any form of exclusive or non-exclusive agreements with eligible manufacturing companies through a defined agreement for licensing and commercialisation of the system, which shall be governed by the ICMR IP Policy.
Listing out its role, the council has noted that the Dibrugarh centre will provide expert guidance and technical support for the production of the system in all phases.
“The ICMR through its institutes would provide support and facilitation to conduct the R&D/clinical study of new technology/ product in India, in collaboration with the company/institutions in a professional and mutually agreed upon manner and timelines, which will be decided later under the Agreement.
It will also provide technical support in development of technology/product and will also facilitate the validation as per the terms & conditions of the agreement. It shall have no financial implications unless otherwise specified.