IIT Bombay researchers create affordable blood-smear device to detect anaemia and sickle cell disease

Key facts

• Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay), led by Prof. Mahesh Tirumkudulu of the Department of Chemical Engineering, have developed a low-cost point-of-care device that screens for anaemia and sickle cell disease using a drop of blood.
• The patented automated smearing device creates a uniform blood smear, and the test detects disease by measuring the length of the smear, since more viscous blood spreads less and produces a shorter, thicker smear.
• The test requires only a pipette, glass slides, an inexpensive chemical, vials for sickling treatment, and a ruler or imaging device to measure smear length, and can be manufactured cost-effectively.
• Dr. Mahrukh Mir, a former PhD scholar in Prof. Tirumkudulu's lab, is the first author of the study.
• Blood viscosity cutoffs vary among population groups because genetic differences affect how blood reacts when oxygen levels drop, and the anaemia test may miss patients with hyperviscosity syndrome, where blood plasma is unusually thick.
• The technology is licensed to IIT Bombay startup Rheoheme Private Limited, and the team is working with the National Institute for Research in Tribal Health, Jabalpur, and AIIMS Nagpur toward regulatory approval while exploring measurement of clotting time and glucose levels.