Mumbai Startup Develops Universal Disease Test For All Infections, First Of Its Kind
The company, dubbed HayStack Analytics, is backed by the Department of Science and Technology as well as numerous private healthcare firms.
A startup based in Mumbai has developed a first-of-its-kind universal infectious diseases gene test to identify existing as well as emerging infections.
Representational Image: Unsplash
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The company, dubbed HayStack Analytics, is backed by the Department of Science and Technology as well as numerous private healthcare firms.
The plight of inaccurate diagnosis of infections
The company in the past has teamed up with numerous diagnostic centres as well as over 20 hospitals to introduce their sequencing-based clinical products for tuberculosis and COVID.
While working on these infectious diseases the startup understood the burden of inaccurate diagnosis of infectious diseases that continue to affect India.
Specifically, our nation accounts for the largest number of sepsis cases and sepsis-related deaths globally -- at around 11.3 million and 2.9 million respectively, based on a 2020 Lancet study.
The condition worsens despite access to antibiotics and antifungal medication, resulting in organ failure and death if not treated in time.
Reuters
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Accurately and effectively diagnosing infections
To accurately identify infections, the company makes use of Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) technology and AI while also offering information on drug resistance to support and identify correct treatment options for patients.
The Universal Infectious Diseases test is expected to roll out with their current partners in phases that would span over the course of three months.
It will first be used for treatment of sepsis in ICU patients and will be made available to anyone suffering from fever of unknown origin without requiring need to take multiple tests.
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Dr Anirvan Chatterjee, Co-Founder and CEO of Haystack Analytics said, ¡°The test enables rapid (within hours) and comprehensive (covering nearly all known bacterial and fungal pathogens) screening in a near to point of care deployment. Leveraging the power of next-generation sequencing and AI, the team of scientists and engineers at Haystack has been able to eliminate the need for a redundant and expensive battery of tests with a single test.¡±
He added, ¡°Our single point focus is to prevent each and every death caused due to treatable infections. Genomics has the potential to reduce trial and error in disease management and bring equality of access to high-quality healthcare.¡±
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