Pune scientist develops polymer swab for COVID-19 sample collection

A Pune based scientist, Dr Milind Kulkarni, has developed polymer swab for collecting samples of COVID-19 patients.It is pertinent to mention that India imports polymer swabs and the nationwide lockdown has affected its supply.

Speaking to ANI , Kulkarni said: "To prepare this polymer-based kit we have used polypropylene material to make the stick of the swab and polyester fiber to make the swab portion"

"India imports polymer swabs and due to the lockdown there is no supply of the kits in the country," he said.

He informed the kit will be sent to a collaborator in Bengaluru for a clinical trial.

"We will be sending prototype of the kit to our collaborator Dr KN Sridhar in Bengaluru where it will undergo a clinical trial," he said.

According to the Union Health Ministry and Family Welfare's latest bulletin, there 2902 positive COVID-19 cases in India, including 2650 active cases, 184 cured and discharged and 83 deaths.