Max Healthcare Joins Global COMBAT Dengue Research Initiative

Max Healthcare Institute Ltd has joined a global dengue research initiative under the Indo-European COMBAT initiative to advance dengue science and pandemic readiness.

The Max Healthcare dengue research initiative is supported by the Department of Biotechnology and the European Commission, bringing together leading institutions from India and Europe to build technology-led solutions for mosquito-borne diseases.

The consortium has secured a major grant to drive research focused on improving how dengue and related infections are understood, diagnosed, and managed. The programme blends clinical insights with cutting-edge tools to deliver faster and more precise interventions.

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Representing Max Healthcare are principal investigators Dr. Sandeep Budhiraja, group medical director, and Dr. Atul Thatai, director – molecular diagnostics and cytogenomics. The collaboration is facilitated by Dr. Ujjwal Neogi, Associate Professor at the Karolinska Institute and is being led in India by the BRIC National Institute of Biomedical Genomics.

The project integrates multi-omics technologies, clinical datasets, and artificial intelligence to map disease progression, identify predictive biomarkers, and enable early diagnosis. This Max Healthcare dengue research initiative aims to strengthen response systems while improving patient outcomes.

Commenting on the collaboration, Dr Sandeep Budhiraja, group medical director, Max Healthcare, said, “Dengue remains a significant public health challenge in India, and this collaboration enables us to combine clinical expertise with advanced technologies to improve early diagnosis and patient outcomes. It is a vital step toward building more resilient healthcare systems.”

Highlighting the global significance, Dr Ujjwal Neogi, Associate Professor at the Karolinska Institute, said, “This initiative brings together European scientific strength and India’s clinical depth to develop data-driven, scalable solutions for infectious diseases. Such partnerships are critical to strengthening global preparedness for future health threats.”

Max Healthcare’s role signals its growing presence in global research and its push for data-driven healthcare innovation.