MedGenome, a leader in clinical genomic testing and a provider of genomic solutions for personalized healthcare in India, and Natera, a global leader in non-invasive genetic testing, have entered into an exclusive agreement to bring non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) to India. As part of the agreement, MedGenome will have exclusive license to develop the capacity and perform the Panorama test in India.

Natera’s test, known as Panorama, is a non-invasive prenatal screening test that examines fetal DNA in the mother’s blood to assess whether a developing baby is at high risk for having an abnormality in the chromosomes. Panorama uses a simple blood draw from the mother to screen for trisomy 21 (Down’s syndrome), trisomy 18 (Edwards syndrome), trisomy 13 (Patau syndrome) and select sex chromosome abnormalities, such as monosomy X (Turner syndrome).

Panorama is the only screening test in the world that detects triploidy status in the fetus (69 chromosomes rather than 46 chromosomes), and reports whether a “vanishing” twin was present, i.e. there was a twin but it got absorbed, and is no longer detectable by ultrasound. Panorama can be performed from as early as 9 weeks gestation. In contrast to traditional prenatal genetic testing like chorionic villus sampling and amniocentesis, which are invasive tests, Panorama does not pose any risk for the fetus.

The company also stated that in accordance with Indian law, Panorama will not be used to reveal the sex of the fetus.

“As per estimates, chromosomal abnormalities occur in about 1 of 200 live births. Infants with these abnormalities have mental retardation and suffer from malformations and disabilities. Due to the large number of births  which is estimated at 26 million per year, India has the largest number of babies born with chromosomal disorders in the world accounting for almost 130,000 per year.  Our partnership  with Natera will help us provide Panorama, a superior second-generation non-invasive prenatal test, compared to its peers. Through our partnership with Natera, we hope to bring about significant changes in the way pregnancies are managed in India, said Sam Santhosh, CEO, MedGenome.

“We are committed to sharing its unique and proprietary technologies with laboratories worldwide who share our philosophy of clinical leadership and quality control,” said Solomon Moshkevich, vice president - marketing & business development, Natera.