CrisprBits Private Limited, a molecular diagnostics start-up founded by former IISc professor and biotech entrepreneur Dr. Vijay Chandru, has inaugurated a cutting-edge laboratory to develop diagnostics for rare diseases, including hospital-acquired infections and antimicrobial resistance, using CRISPR gene editing technology. The facility, located at the University of Agricultural Sciences campus, opened on January 15.
“This state-of-the-art CRISPR lab marks a major milestone in our mission to deliver affordable, high-quality solutions addressing critical health needs with significant commercial and social impact,” said Dr. Chandru, founder of CrisprBits.
Pioneering Innovation
Founded in 2020, CrisprBits is one of India’s first companies leveraging CRISPR technology for life sciences applications. The start-up, co-founded by Dr. Chandru and BITS Pilani alumni Sunil Arora, Dr. Rajeev Kohli, Bharat Jobanputra, and Aditya Sarda, aims to create affordable diagnostics and industrial microbiology solutions.
Incubated at the Center for Cellular and Molecular Platforms (C-CAMP) for four years, the company is developing a rapid, point-of-need molecular diagnostics platform. In the coming months, CrisprBits plans to launch tests for rare disease diagnostics and hospital-acquired infections, including antimicrobial resistance.
Future Plans
Over the next six months, CrisprBits aims to expand its offerings with applications of CRISPR technology in creating induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) models for rare diseases and targeted editing of cell lines and microbes for industrial microbiology applications.
Leadership and Vision
As reported by indianexpress, the scientific team is led by genomic science and diagnostics experts Vaijayanti Gupta, Reety Arora, and Vandana Hegde, reflecting the company’s commitment to advancing molecular diagnostics with diverse expertise.
CrisprBits is Dr. Chandru’s fourth tech venture, following innovations like Simputer, Strand Life Sciences (acquired by Reliance), and Yantri Labs. This latest initiative underscores his vision of merging cutting-edge science with real-world impact.