The Karnataka Government has decided to set up Genome Sequencing laboratories in 6 cities of the state. The new laboratories will be located at Bengaluru, Hubballi, Mysuru, Mangaluru, Vijayapura, and Shivamogga.
As the cases of Delta plus variant are increasing, the state government has decided to intensify testing and also emphasized Genome Sequencing. As of today, Karnataka has reported 2 cases of Delta plus variant one each in Bengaluru and Mysuru.
It has been decided that 5% of the sample tested positive under RT-PCR will undergo Genome Sequencing. According to the Health Department, around 3,000 samples have been sent to NIMHANS, Bengaluru for the purpose. Information courtesy: TNIE Karnataka
Genome Sequencing is the process of determining the entirety, or nearly the entirety, of the DNA sequence of an organism. It will be used as a research tool to study the variants of the SARS-CoV-2.