DRAP approves first made-in-Pakistan testing kit for Covid-19

Sci-tech minister congratulates scientists at NUST, says this will significantly reduce cost of coronavirus tests

The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) has approved the first indigenously made testing kit for novel coronavirus, developed by the scientists at National University of Science and Technology (NUST) Attaur Rahman School of Applied Biosciences (ASAB).

The news was shared on Twitter by Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry, where he congratulated the developing team.

“You people have made us proud... this will bring significant cost reduction of Covid-19 tests and will also save huge import bill,” he wrote on his official handle.

Another landmark achieved.... DRAP has approved Pakistan first COVID testing kit, Congratulations to @Official_NUST and our brilliant scientists ...you people have made us proud ... this ll bring significant cost reduction of COVID tests also ll save huge import bill

— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) June 12, 2020

The testing kit is developed in collaboration with Wuhan Institute of Virology China, DZIF Germany, Columbia University USA and Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP) Rawalpindi.

These testing kits will cost one-fourth the current price for the kits used for detecting the Covid-19.

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According to NUST, these assays have been developed at a time when the world is in the grip of an unprecedented pandemic novel coronavirus – and scientists and researchers are sparing no effort to ascertain remedies to this incurable disease.

According to the NUST, the assays include both conventional and real time PCR-based methods of Sybr Green and Taqman.

The testing kits have been efficiently tested on laboratory controls and patient sample.

These indigenously established assays are robust, sensitive to the target, and would soon be available at one fourth the price of imported ones.

The team comprises Associate Professor Dr Aneela Javed and Assistant Professor Dr Ali Zohaib from NUST ASAB, who have been working on establishment of these assays for diagnosis of the pandemic the country is bracing itself for.