Polyclone Bioservices has inked a pact with a German company, which is a European pioneer in Molecular Diagnostics to offer Nucleic Acid Testing (NAT) technique.

Through this tie-up, Polyclone will have access to more than 150 disease assays giving it one of the widest test portfolios across infectious, chronic, cancer and genetic diseases, Sanjay Bettadpura, Chief Business Officer, Polyclone Bioservices Pvt Ltd told Pharmabiz.

"We will now be able to offer accurate, fast and affordable diagnostic services through NAT technique. More than a million Indians succumb annually to cancer, TB, and heart ailments, primarily because only 30 per cent of the cases are diagnosed in time for effective treatment," he added.

While the assays would be licensed from the German partner, Polyclone would offer these services on a centralized model from its lab at Dharwad in Karnataka. The objective is to ensure that these critical diagnostic services can be accessed by all over a period of time. In this regard, it is also in a dialogue with pathology labs, both the small independent ones as well as the larger chains, to ensure a wide distribution network.

While there are a few NAT based diagnostic service providers in India, the access and affordability pose a huge concern. Current, NAT based test market in India is valued at around Rs 50 crore, which is only 3 per cent of the in-vitro diagnostic market, but is registering a growth rate of 25 per cent annually.
Even though 75 per cent of all prescriptions made by doctors in India are based on diagnostic reports, only 3 per cent of these are NAT-based. While other techniques like immunoassay and histochemistry, which are effective and affordable, in many cases like breast or cervical cancer, these tests may not detect the presence of disease till a later stage, making treatment ineffective.

Polyclone's initial focus would be to make available affordable tests for infectious diseases like TB, HBV & HCV and cancers like cervical and breast. This would be followed by a more comprehensive portfolio including tests for genetic and chronic diseases.

As a follow up to the diagnostic services, Polyclone would conduct genotyping research on various disease strains and individuals. The aim of the study would be to facilitate for the most suitable first-line drug prescription based on an individual's genetic make-up and for the design of new drugs & therapies specific to the Indian race.

Last year, the company bagged the DSIR (Department of Scientific and Industrial Research) certification for its laboratory located within the Dharward University. The certification will now allow the company to go in for Dept of Biotechnology and Dept of Science and Technology funding to pursue its micro array research initiatives too. The company's partnership with the State University of New York has been finalized. It has also set up representative offices in US and Germany.

In the area of bioinformatics, Polyclone's Eprime is marketed through German major Eppendorf Limited is doing well. The product is going through the development of a new version that will be launched in August.