Feluda, a new accurate, fast and low cost diagnostic test that uses the cutting edge CRISPR gene-editing technology to detect the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes the Covid-19 infection, has been launched in India. Feluda is the world's first diagnostic test to deploy a specially adapted Cas9 protein to successfully detect the virus. Explained: What is the Rs 500 ‘Feluda’ test for Covid-19 approved by India . “The Tata CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) test, powered by CSIR-IGIB (Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology) FELUDA, has met high quality benchmarks, with 96 per cent sensitivity and 98 per cent specificity for detecting novel coronavirus,” a CSIR statement said. The CSIR research team came about creating the new test kit while working under the sickle cell mission for genome diagnostics and therapeutics. They soon realised that the technology could be harnessed and repurposed to quickly develop a new diagnostic test for Covid-19.