CSIR & Lal PathLabs partner on diagnostic tests for rare genetic diseases

New Delhi: In an example of public-private partnership, the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research’s Delhi-based Institute of Genomics & Integrative Biology (CSIR-IGIB) has signed an agreement on licensing of the genetic tests with Dr Lal PathLabs, which has a large network of network of diagnostic centres across the country. The set of 27 genetics tests it has developed over the years, are expected to be launched in phases over the year.

It is estimated that over 70 million Indians are affected due to rare diseases. In majority of the cases, an appropriate diagnosis is not arrived at mainly due to lack of access and high-cost of appropriate genetic diagnostic services, apart from lack of lack of general awareness on genetic diseases.

A better diagnostic infrastructure could also potentially help prevent transmission of genetic diseases to future generations through counseling, prenatal genetic diagnostics and other measures.

As per Dr Girish Sahni, Director General, CSIR, the genetic tests licensed would provide the much-needed support system to doctors in diagnosing identified genetic disorders and would thus help the patients.

IGIB’s unique outreach programme, GOMED (Genomics and other Omics technologies for Enabling Medical Decision), provides a platform for clinicians to tap into the rich and varied expertise of CSIR-IGIB in disease genomics to solve clinical problems. Through this effort, over 14,000 genetic tests have been carried out, benefiting about 4,000 patients through a clinical network encompassing over 25 major medical centres spanning the length and breadth of the country. These tests cover a variety of diseases/disorders including movement disorders, motor neuron disease, mitochondrial disorders, developmental and inborn error of metabolism, and leukodystrophies.