The Nano Science Diagnostics, Inc, a start up diagnostics and food testing kit manufacturing firm based in the US and with an office in Bangalore, is planning to set up a manufacturing facility to offer its patented testing kits at competitive prices in both the countries.

The company has already developed medical diagnostic kits which includes reagents developed through nanotechnology, cartridges, reader and software, all with portability. The products will be launched simultaneously in India and US, said Dr Sri Satyanarayana, founder and chief executive officer, Nano Science Diagnostics, Inc.

The company claims that the portability of its products, the patented technology proven on bacterial, viral and protein platforms with ability to provide results within 15 minutes and the comparatively lower cost of the product would give a competitive edge in the market. A single test for medical diagnostics could be around Rs 200, with the product.

"We are planning to launch the food testing kit in next six months and the medical diagnostics kit would be ready for launch in an year's time. We are currently raising funds of around US$ 3 to 5 million to set up manufacturing facilities, both in India and US," said Satyanarayana. The company would market the product both directly and through distributors in these countries. "Talks with some of the major healthcare service providers in India are already on," he added.

The immunoassay market is estimated at US$ 8 billion and growing at 8 per cent per annum. However, at present, almost 95 per cent of diagnostic testings are done in the centralized lab format, which will take two to three days to deliver the report.

The diagnostics and pathological labs services market in India is expected to reach Rs 13,900 crore by 2012, according to a report from the business consulting firm, Cygnus Research. Almost 70 per cent of the treatment decisions are based on lab results and there are around 40,000 independent path labs in the country, he added.

The point of care format of Nano Science Diagnostics' product would provide an advantage to both the doctors and patients by saving the time consumed for tests. The company has also plan to expand its market to the rural areas. "We are targeting profitability for the business in next three years," said Satyanarayana.

With the government healthcare initiatives targeting the diseases like tuberculosis, malaria, dengue, typhoid and cholera, the surge of diagnostics labs and the increased reliance on diagnostics by doctors, the company is expecting a large growth in the Indian diagnostics market.