The National Centre for Biological Sciences, a Bengaluru-based research organisation, has come out with a Covid-19 test that does not require a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) machine and can be altered to detect mutant strains of the virus.

PHANTOM efficiently detects the presence of viral RNA in human patient samples, with clear distinction from samples designated negative for the virus. This diagnostic tool was developed using RNA biosensors to detect SARS-CoV-2 RNA, based on “toehold switches”, sensors which can be designed to detect any sequence of interest.

Efficient detection of the virus that causes COVID-19 has been a question on the minds of many researchers worldwide since early 2020. NCBS researcher Dr Arati Ramesh, along with Dr Akash Gulyani from the University of Hyderabad, sought to tackle the pressing need for a rapid, accurate, and inexpensive testing method.

Efficient detection of the virus that causes COVID-19 has been a question on the minds of many researchers worldwide since early 2020. NCBS researcher Dr. Arati Ramesh, along with Dr. Akash Gulyani from the University of Hyderabad, sought to tackle the pressing need for a rapid, accurate, and inexpensive testing method. A team of students from NCBS and DBT-inStem joined their efforts to create PHANTOM (PHAsed NASBA-Translation Optical Method).