THSTI at Biotech Start-up 2022 9th-10th June 2022, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi

18 Jun 2022

To celebrate 10 years of Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC), Department of Biotechnology organized a Biotech Start-up Expo 2022 on 9th-10th June 2022. The expo was inaugurated by Honorable Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji on 9th June 2022. Translational health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI) was a part of this expo and put up a stall showcasing its research achievements as posters and products. During the COVID-19 pandemic, THSTI leveraged its research capabilities to industry and academia which contributed significantly in the regulatory approvals of SPUTNIK, COVAXIN, ZyCovD and CORBEVAX which became the focal points of the posters. Also, the research resource platforms viz., the Bioassay Lab, Biorepository, Small Animal Facility, Sequencing Facility and Immunology Core Lab showcasing their contributions in the pandemic were the highlights for the COVID-19 posters. Various clinical cohorts, sero-surveillance studies, vaccine effectiveness studies carried out by THSTI were also showcased. THSTI also highlighted the indigenous technologies developed in-house viz., vaccines, monoclonal antibodies and diagnostic kits. The collaboration between THSTI and Panacea Biotec which recently has been granted $12.5 million funding from Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness and Innovations (CEPI) for the Pan-beta corona virus vaccine development was one of the key highpoints of the stall. In addition to posters, THSTI displayed a corona kit for detecting SARS-CoV-2 variants, a highly sensitive rapid point of care test for malaria, dengue and other febrile illnesses and indigenously developed sample transport medium for transporting faecal / swab samples. Prof Pramod Garg, ED, THSTI led the team of faculty, scientists and students of the institute who were present at the stall. The stall was one of the most visited stall by the inquisitive visitors. The expo helped institutes like THSTI to showcase the research capabilities that have been offered to biotech industries. It also provided the scientists a platform to enhance the connect with academia and industries.