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Molecular diagnosis, made accessible to all.

Lightening Lives is a healthcare technology company in Hyderabad. We develop REASSURED genetic tests for inherited disorders: simple, affordable and usable outside specialised laboratories.

Explore a partnership See the tests

Tests are supplied to institutions and public health programmes.

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The Lightening Lives emblem as a paper sculpture: a yellow sun with amber rays, a dark figure with raised arms at its centre, and five folded green leaves fanning above the figure, each part casting a soft shadow.
The leaves

A genetic test for any inherited condition you need to screen for.

Each of our tests began with a programme that needed one. There are five so far, and the next can be yours.

  • Sickle cell anaemia
  • Thalassaemia
  • Spinal muscular atrophy
  • Duchenne muscular dystrophy
  • Blood coagulation disorders
  • Any other, on request
See the tests so far
A closer view of the five folded paper leaves above the figure's raised arms, one for each test developed so far, with a small new leaf opening beside them for the next.
At the centre

Every test is for a person. We reach them through institutions.

We work with hospitals, laboratories and clinicians, with district health officers and government programmes, and with NGOs and CSR funders. Most of that work starts as a collaboration.

See who we work with
A close view of the figure at the centre of the emblem, cut from dark card, arms raised, against the yellow paper sun.

We design genetic tests the other way round.

Genetic tests have traditionally needed large equipment, specialised laboratories and trained staff, so they rarely reach the people who need them most. Ours start from where they will be used.

  1. Collect

    A few drops of blood on a card. A dried blood spot is simple and minimally invasive to collect.

  2. Process

    No separate DNA extraction step. The workflow is automation-friendly, suits high-throughput screening and needs minimal laboratory infrastructure.

  3. Read

    Results come back quickly, and our tests are designed so that reading them doesn't call for specialised training.

The result is genetic testing that is scalable and affordable enough for large public health programmes.

We develop the test your programme needs.

For any inherited condition. These five are the tests we have developed so far, each for a programme that asked for one.

  • Our flagship · Sickle cell anaemia

    LitLife™-SCA

    A simple dried blood spot test for detecting sickle cell anaemia, developed for the National Sickle Cell Anaemia Elimination Mission.

    • Validated by ICMR
    • MOU with CSIR-CCMB
    • Dried blood spot sample

    In India, sickle cell disease is most common among tribal communities. The Government of India launched the Elimination Mission in July 2023, aiming to eliminate the disease as a public health problem by 2047.

  • Thalassaemia

    Carriers are usually healthy and often unaware of their status. Genetic testing supports carrier screening, diagnosis and family counselling.

  • Spinal muscular atrophy

    Treatments work best when started early, ideally before symptoms appear. Our dried blood spot test is adaptable and affordable for large-scale newborn screening.

  • Duchenne muscular dystrophy

    Diagnosis often comes late. An earlier genetic diagnosis allows timely care, and lets families find out whether relatives are carriers.

  • Blood coagulation disorders

    In bleeding disorders such as haemophilia, genetic testing confirms the diagnosis, identifies carriers and supports family counselling and care planning.

REASSURED: nine criteria, and we design for all nine.

REASSURED is a published set of criteria for diagnostic tests that work in low-resource settings. Developing genetic tests that meet it is what we do best.

  1. Real-time connectivity

    Results can be read or shared digitally with decision-makers.

  2. Ease of specimen collection

    Samples are simple and minimally invasive to collect.

  3. Affordable

    Affordable for the people tested and for the health system.

  4. Sensitive

    Few false negatives.

  5. Specific

    Few false positives.

  6. User-friendly

    Simple to perform, with minimal training.

  7. Rapid and robust

    Quick results; tests survive transport and storage without special conditions.

  8. Equipment-free or simple

    No special equipment, or only simple devices.

  9. Deliverable to end-users

    Reaches the people who need it most.

SourceLand et al., Nature Microbiology (2019). REASSURED updates the earlier ASSURED criteria from the World Health Organization's tropical disease research programme.

What stands behind the tests.

  • Validated by ICMR

    LitLife™-SCA, our sickle cell anaemia test, is validated by the Indian Council of Medical Research.

  • Working with CSIR-CCMB

    An MOU with the CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad, covers developing and commercialising the sickle cell assay.

  • Built for national programmes

    Tests developed for Government of India health programmes, including the National Sickle Cell Anaemia Elimination Mission.

  • Made by a certified manufacturer

    Our tests are produced by a third-party manufacturer that holds a quality certification.

  • Used in the field

    Our field work has taken us to Nandurbar, Kothagudem and Jharkhand.

A monsoon-green gorge with a thin waterfall dropping down red basalt cliffs at Toranmal, Nandurbar district, Maharashtra.
Nandurbar, Maharashtra
Still water of the Kinnerasani reservoir with a forested island, Bhadradri Kothagudem district, Telangana.
Kothagudem, Telangana
A hill road winding through forest above the Patratu reservoir, Patratu Valley, Jharkhand.
Patratu Valley, Jharkhand

We work with institutions.

Tests are supplied in bulk to institutions and government programmes. We don't test individuals.

  • Hospitals, laboratories and clinicians

    Genetic tests for inherited conditions, designed to need minimal laboratory infrastructure and to suit an automated workflow.

  • District health officers and government programmes

    Tests developed for national health programmes, for screening whole populations.

  • NGOs and CSR funders

    A technology partner for large, population-level screening.

Awareness and counselling, alongside the tests

A result helps only when people understand it. We run awareness and counselling programmes, mostly on behalf of the government: explaining inherited conditions and screening to communities, and helping families understand results and carrier status.

For individuals

Looking for a test for yourself or your family? We supply institutions only. Please speak to your doctor or visit your nearest government health facility.

Tell us what your programme needs.

Choose where you would like to begin. Each option opens an email to our team.

Write or calladmin@lighteninglives.in+91 91825 88191

Order details are discussed per request, based on your institutional or regulatory requirements.