CATEGORIES

Diabetes Specialist Nurses – future ready health coaches

This World Diabetes Day (November 14, 2020) with the theme ‘Diabetes: Nurses Make The Difference’ focuses on empowering Diabetes Specialist Nurses (DSNs) to improve patient outcomes and deliver cost-effective diabetes care. Today nurses are increasingly becoming ‘health coaches’ and in future, they will play a significant role in preventive medicine.

Securing India's Pharma Industry From Cyber Risk

Increasing production in pharma manufacturing implies a higher convergence of IT and OT systems. While convergence between IT and OT brings about efficiency, it also expands the attacks surface. The only way to make this work safely is to have a unified, risk-based view of the IT and OT environments.

India Bracing For Mental Health Crisis

This year, the 29th World Mental Health Day is all the more important for the globe as we find ourselves in the midst of a global mental distress crisis brought by COVID-19. The theme ‘Mental Health for All: Greater Investment- Greater Access’ fits appropriately as the situation not only demands enhanced access to mental health by breaking the stigma but also strengthening investments in the space as supporting pillars.

“We have the capacity to produce over 10M COVID-19 tests per week globally”

Thermo Fisher Scientific, the world leader in serving science, is continuously working to expand global capacity and capabilities across its leading pharma services network to support customers in government, industry and academia as they accelerate development and production of COVID-19 vaccines, therapies and other treatments.

“We are in talks with Karnataka to deploy Vevra pods across the state”

To fight the ongoing pandemic and other contagious and airborne diseases, Bengaluru based company Vevra has allied with a Portugal based healthcare IoT company InnoWave Group to introduce artificial intelligence (AI) driven mobile hospital units called Vevra Pods. Primarily born as an answer for major medical crises of any form, these pods consist of a set of movable capsules that aim to efficiently assist in the infrastructure of hospitals across India. Mahesh Krishnahari, Director & Founder, Vevra Group, Bengaluru spoke to BioSpectrum in detail about this innovative solution. Edited excerpts;

“The biotechnology industry in India is entering a new era of growth”

The COVID-19 pandemic has unlocked several opportunities for the life sciences sector in India. And in response to this, the sector has taken the right plunge. KPMG’s new report on ‘Site selection for life sciences in Asia’ reveals the true potential has India possess. In an interview, Sanjay Singh, Partner – Deal Advisory, Head of Lifesciences, KPMG, Mumbai, expounds on the key findings of this study and shares insights on key market drivers. Edited excerpts;

Technology Adding Fuel To Drive Out Covid-19

The pressure on the healthcare sector to provide a solution for the COVID-19 pandemic is massive. As a result, the life sciences sector is adopting new technologies to quickly devise a way out to beat this crisis. Many companies and academic institutions in India are moving headfirst in this direction with support from the technology sector both locally and globally. Technology adoption is indeed playing a key role in better understanding and addressing the crisis with the right amount of fuel being added by the tech giants.

“We aim to make molecular diagnostics based on RT-PCR technology mainstream in India”

Backed by Serum Institute of India, Pune based startup Mylab Discovery Solutions is aggressively launching new products in the diagnostic testing space to overcome the challenges posed by the pandemic. After raising funds from the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and few private investors, the Mylab team has recently developed a fully-automated sample to-PCR-ready system for molecular diagnostics, which is a first in India. Founded in 2016, it is the first company in Asia and second company worldwide to develop and manufacture FDA approved ID-NAT kits for accurate detection of HIV, HBV, HCV and other infections. BioSpectrum India got in touch with Hasmukh Rawal, Managing Director, Mylab Discovery Solutions to find out more about the initiatives being taken up by the startup to combat COVID-19. Edited excerpts;

“Biotech will get woven into more diverse science education programmes”

Aiming to make India a global knowledge superpower, the government has recently announced the new National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. Being the first education policy of the 21st century, it is set to address the many growing developmental imperatives of our country. And out of these many imperatives, bridging the skill gaps in the biotechnology industry is one of them. To explore how NEP 2020 can benefit the biotechnology/life sciences (BT/LS) education in India, BioSpectrum interacted with Dr Ramgopal Rao S, Academic Manager, Biocon Academy, Bengaluru. Edited excerpts;

Reviving trends for healthcare economy

While COVID-19 has wreaked havoc on the larger economy, the healthcare sector is no exception. With healthcare sector experiencing operating loss to the tune of Rs 14,000 to 24,000 crore for the first quarter with private sector reporting a 90 per cent drop in revenue, it has been a roller-coaster of a ride so far.

SCHOTT AG delivers vials to package 2 Bn doses of COVID-19 vaccines

German glass manufacturing giant SCHOTT AG is supporting the world’s fight against COVID-19 with vials capable of holding up to 2 billion vaccination doses.

Mylan receives DCGI approval for TB drug pretomanid

Mylan, a global pharmaceutical company, recently announced that the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) has approved the anti-tuberculosis drug pretomanid for conditional access under the National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme (NTEP), making India the second country in the world to provide regulatory approval for this product.

INDIA INCHING TO BE GLOBAL PPE HUB

According to a report by Invest India, the domestic PPE industry grew 56 times in a span of 60 days. On March 1, two days before the World Health Organization (WHO) spoke of a global shortage of PPE, India had no PPE coveralls suitable for COVID-19. But a clear roadmap and prompt assistance by the Ministry of Textiles and all its allied bodies, ensured India becomes a world leader in PPE manufacturing amid a global shortage.

Gennova develops mRNA vaccine against COVID-19

The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) has facilitated the establishment of the first-of-its-kind mRNA based vaccine manufacturing platform in India.

Abbott joins hands with 1mg for CGM solutions

In a move to expand access and empower Indian patients to take charge of their health, American multinational medical devices and healthcare company Abbott and Gurugram based online pharmacy and healthcare startup 1mg have recently announced their collaboration to make Abbott’s continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) products available online, including its professional flash glucose monitoring system, FreeStyle Libre Pro.

A case of lost credibility?

The revelation was not merely shocking but was hitting the core of confidence built up among the professionals over the years by ‘The Lancet’ and the ‘New England Journal of Medicine’. The editors of the two prestigious medical journals appeared to have expressed their exasperation over the pressure put by pharma companies. They seemed to have used the word ‘criminal’ to describe the erosion of science in the process.

Covid-19 Unlocking India's Capacity In Life Sciences

Today, for India, the COVID-19 pandemic is a strong catalyst to re-inforce the Make in India initiative to facilitate investment, promote innovation, enhance skill development, protect intellectual property and build best in class manufacturing infrastructure in the life sciences sector. For fostering an innovation ecosystem or hub within India, interventions across three dimensions will be required which includes encouraging industry-academia collaboration; increasing R&D investment; and reinvigorating government support.

COVID-19 Likely To Linger On Till 2021?

Easy mode of transmission, nature of the virus, population density, environmental condition, social culture are the major contributors to the rapid spreading of COVID-19 across the globe. But in order to break the chain of transmission, one needs to understand the transmission dynamics of this ongoing pandemic, which is somehow unclear.

ICMR vaccine timeline - An unrealistic approach?

A letter written by the ICMR Director General Prof Balram Bhargava to the heads of 12 selected institutions for fast-track clinical trials of the indigenous COVID-19 vaccine, COVAXIN and launching it by August 15 has stirred waves of uncertainty across the country.

“Our technology can reduce SARSCoV-2 particles by more than 99.9%”

With the development of a medication to combat the novel coronavirus still in the works, it has become imperative to find an immediate solution for this global pandemic.

Building healthcare ecosystem around a digital nervous system

In 2003, when SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) was first reported, the origins of the virus were a mystery. Scientists suspected it may have come from bats, but it wasn’t until 2012 when the second major coronavirus (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome – MERS) outbreak was spreading across borders, that researchers confirmed its provenance. At the time of their discovery, they warned us of the outbreak potential of coronaviruses, urging the global community to learn from our past to help us prepare.

Repurposing Hepatitis Drugs For Covid-19 Treatment

While researchers are still finding novel ways to cure hepatitis, the virus has shown them a new direction. HCV shares similarity with the currently prevalent SARS-CoV-2 by having a single-stranded RNA, while HBV has a double-stranded DNA as its genetic material. As a result, repurposing of existing therapies has emerged as a major area of drug development for COVID-19 and selected hepatitis drugs among others are being studied for repositioning to manage the pandemic.

30 COVID-19 Vaccine Projects Afoot In India

When it comes to India that produces 60 per cent of the world’s vaccines and accounts for 60-80 per cent of the United Nations’ annual vaccine procurement, development of a new vaccine is a major task. But what works in India’s favour in the race for a vaccine is that a number of Indian firms are key players in the global vaccine industry. So, along with employing different technology platforms for vaccine development, India has adopted a cross-functional collaborative approach, globally and locally, wherein currently 30 vaccine projects are afoot against COVID-19.

“India should focus on healthcare innovation and access post-COVID-19”

As economies around the world are suffering from the impact of COVID-19, businesses are experiencing losses, workers are without jobs, and many face the challenge of a complete upheaval of lifestyle.

Vera Smart Healthcare amplifies COVID-19 surveillance

Hyderabad based startup Vera Smart Healthcare has launched Traveller Tracking System (TTS) to screen railways, bus stations, Hyderabad airport and will soon cover all district borders of entry to Telangana, to track plus monitor coronavirus contacts.

The Lancet HCQ study report: A knee-jerker during pandemic?

Praised as a potential miracle cure, hundreds of trials got initiated across the globe for HCQ. Scientists started trying the drugs in low and high doses; alone or combined with other drugs in patients with mild or severe disease. But this hope recently got struck by a big blow when a study came along claiming that these antimalarial drugs not only look ineffective but are downright deadly.

Rise of 3D printing to combat COVID-19

India is still in the early stages of 3D printing deployment and in the post-COVID-19 world, 3D printing and perhaps 3D bioprinting will play a major role in advancing and improving healthcare in India.

Time to end distancing of traditional and modern medicine

The COVID-19 pandemic is taking a toll on the entire country. As the number of cases is ever increasing, the flattened curve feels like a distant dream. The hospitals, emergency professionals and healthcare services have been burdened and have exhausted their services. Many patients have been left absolutely helpless as we hear stories of lack of proper infrastructure and management to cater to the needs of such a huge population. Is there a better way to manage this crisis? Is there a solution in our own backyard that we are ignoring?

Applications of controlled freeze-thaw system in the production of modern biologicals

Vikrant is M.Tech in Bioprocess Technology with an accomplished 10+ years of experience in bioprocess Industry with a major focus on technology transfer, scale-up & validation of vaccines and biosimilars molecules. He has expertise in validation, downstream processing unit operation viz. chromatography, filtration-Depth, TFF & Nano-filtration. He has also been engaged in designing and successful qualification of BSL 2 manufacturing facility.

Reshaping health behaviours

In the past three months, healthcare practices have advanced by several years. The year 2020 will be remembered as the year that reshaped health behaviours through accelerated use of digital technologies.