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Saline Gargle RT-PCR Method'            

13th September, 2021 Science and Technology

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Context

  • Nagpur-based National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) under the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has transferred the know-how of indigenously developed Saline Gargle RT-PCR technique, used for testing COVID-19 samples.

 

About

  • It is simple, fast, cost-effective, patient-friendly and comfortable; it also offers instant results and is well-suited for rural and tribal areas, given minimal infrastructure requirements.
  • The method is non-invasive and so simple that the patient herself can collect the sample.

 

Method

  • Collection methods like nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swab collection require technical expertise; they are also time-consuming.
  • In contrast, the Saline Gargle RT-PCR method uses a simple collection tube filled with saline solution.
  • The patient gargles the solution and rinses it inside the tube.
  • This sample in the collection tube is taken to the laboratory where it is kept at room temperature, in a special buffer solution prepared by NEERI.
  • An RNA template is produced when this solution is heated, which is further processed for Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR).
  • This particular method of collecting and processing the sample enables to save on the otherwise costly infrastructural requirement of RNA extraction.

 

https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1722373