NEW DELHI: To identify variants of coronavirus, a genome sequencing laboratory is likely to start at Lok Nayak Hospital by the first week of July.
The machine required for genetic sequencing has already been imported from Singapore, officials said.
Earlier this month, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal had announced that two genome sequencing laboratories to identify variants of coronavirus will come up at Lok Nayak Hospital and Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences.
Setting up of these two laboratories is part of the Delhi government’s preparations to tackle a possible third wave of coronavirus, which many feel may be triggered by the Delta plus variant that has been declared as a “variant of concern” by the Union health ministry.
Around 40 cases of the Delta plus variant have been detected sporadically in Maharashtra, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh.
“We are planning to start the genome sequencing lab by the first week of July.
We have virology and microbiology departments here so we already have the manpower.
There are 10-15 ICMR projects going on at the hospital so we have the scientists here to carry out research,” said Dr Suresh Kumar, the medical director of the hospital.
He added that an order for the genome sequencing machine was placed by them two months ago.
“We realised the need for this machine when UK and Brazil variants were reported,” Dr Kumar said.
Lok Nayak Hospital was designated for Covid-19 management during the first and the second wave.
During this period, the hospital treated several patients, most of them with history of travel to other countries, who were confirmed positive for Covid-19 caused by the variants of SARS-CoV2 that were identified first in the UK and Brazil.
Genome sequencing allows tracking of small mutations in SARS-CoV2 virus so that chains of transmission can be identified.