A knowledge-based company has produced high quality diagnostic and research antibodies that are cheaper than their foreign counterparts.
Sina Biotech Company has succeeded in meeting the domestic needs of the health sector by producing monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies, according to the company’s CEO.
“Domestic antibodies, produced with advanced technologies, are mainly used by laboratory kit manufacturing companies,” Mohammad Mehdi Amiri was also quoted as saying by the news portal of the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology.
He stated that antibodies have numerous uses in medical research and laboratory diagnosis.
Noting that Iranian companies generally buy antibodies from foreign companies, Amiri noted that Sina Biotech became a pioneer in producing high-quality antibodies to eliminate the need for imports.
“Due to the requisite advanced technology, the production of these antibodies is expensive and requires specialized tools,” he said.
“We are among leaders in the field of diagnosis and research. While the antibodies produced in this company are cheaper than their foreign counterparts, they match them in terms of quality.”
The CEO stated that the possibility of returning them to the company in case of a problem is the main advantage of domestic antibodies, as foreign counterparts do not have official representatives in Iran.
“The domestic demand for these products, sanctions, the high cost of imports and the lack of research budget motivated the knowledge-based company to produce antibodies,” he said.
Amiri said executive organizations could play an effective role by supporting capable domestic companies.
“Identifying manufacturing companies and supporting them by increasing the customs duty on the import of similar products, stopping the allocation of subsidized foreign currency to importers and giving the same to manufacturing companies can help knowledge-based companies and domestic producers of health products,” he said.
Domestic Genetic Diagnostic Kits Cost-Competitive
Another domestic knowledge-based company has produced medical products that are considerably cheaper than their foreign counterparts.
Kawsar Biotech Company is geared to meet domestic needs in the fields of medicine, identification and genetic testing kits, according to the company’s CEO.
“The company has been able to produce a strategic medicine, i.e., the production of rabbit polyclonal antibody against human thymus,” Sirous Zeynali was also quoted as saying by the news portal of the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology.
“The medicine has been marketed since the fiscal 2021-22 with the permission of the Food and Drug Administration of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the approval of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education.”
The CEO noted that the company is one of five producers of molecular identification kits in the world.
“In the field of genetic testing, the company has developed a variety of kits for the diagnosis of pregnancy syndromes, male infertility, peripheral joint disease [PJD] and other kinds of human diseases, which are supplied to genetic laboratories and scientific centers,” he added.
Zeynali said the horse identification kit of this company is considered one of the finest domestically produced products in this field.
“Since these kits are effective in diagnosing genetic diseases and determining the genetic identity of people, they are used in genetics and identification laboratories such as police and forensic medicine laboratories,” he said.
“The domestic products’ prices are 4 to 10 times lower than their foreign counterparts. The price of the company’s products is four to eight times higher in the international market.”
Zeynali said the company has more than 70 full-time employees and indirectly employs hundreds of people.
“If supported, the medicine produced by this company can prevent the currency outflow of €6 million from importing similar products annually,” he said.
First Indigenous Production of Reverse Transcriptase Enzyme
A knowledge-based company has produced reverse transcriptase, a widely used multifunctional enzyme used in the field of biotechnology.
Dena Zist Asia Company has developed an enzyme used at high temperatures for reverse transcription and for the preparation of cDNA from all types of short and long molecules with simple and complex RNA structures, according to the CEO of the company.
“This and other enzymes that we have produced are used in biotechnology, as well as molecular biology and diagnostics,” Hesam Dehqani was also quoted as saying by the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology.
Since such an enzyme was not produced in Iran, the company decided to undertake its production for the first time in the country to meet domestic demand, he added.
The CEO said those who are active in the fields of molecular biotechnology and diagnostics are customers of the domestic reverse transcriptase enzyme.
Referring to the advantages of the domestic enzyme, Dehqani said the speed of cDNA synthesis by the enzyme produced in Dena Zist Asia Company is 10 minutes, which is shorter than that of its foreign counterparts.
The CEO noted that the enzyme activity temperature is above 50 degrees, which can guarantee the synthesis of cDNA from RNAs with all its structure.
“The price of providing this enzyme to the market is about one-tenth of imported enzymes, which do not have all the required characteristics, including very speedy and high temperature activity,” he said.
“The company has succeeded in making several other enzymes used in molecular biotechnology. Currently, eight specialists are working in this company, but more jobs will be created with the rise in production of enzymes used in molecular diagnosis.”
According to Dehqani, in addition to the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology, other institutions are also supporting the development of products using advanced technology.
“This is because the growth of production is possible by mastering advanced and key technical knowhow in different fields,” he said.
