SyngeneInternationalopens COVID-19 testing lab in Bengaluru

Research and development services firmSyngene International on Monday said it hasopened a COVID-19 testing laboratory at its Bengaluru site to support hospitals in the city.

The companyhas repurposed one of its laboratories to conduct the RT-PCR tests. A dedicated team of scientists has been trained to perform these tests as per the guidelines prescribed by national and global regulatory authorities, Syngene said in a statement.

"Our COVID-19 testing laboratory, using RT-PCR technology, will work with local hospitals to expand the testing capacity in Bengaluru and help reduce the spread of the virus in the community,"Syngene International COOMahesh Bhalgat said.

The laboratory will be scaling up to operate round-the-clock sample processing and all tests will be offered free of charge, he added.

The company isalso working to supply reagents, primers and probes for COVID-19 diagnostic testing to clients, as well as working on research projects related to vaccine development which could represent a longer-term solution for fighting the coronavirus pandemic, Syngene said.