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| Contrary to media interpretation of his claims, Professor Maduike Ezeibe said he had only found a “potentiate” for possible manufacturing of HIV drugs |
Francis Otunta, vice
chancellor of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Abia state, says a new
drug has been developed for the treatment and cure of HIV/AIDS.
TheCable
report continues:
The
vice chancellor of the university on Wednesday told journalists that the
discovery followed years of scientific research by the institution, reports
the Voice of Nigeria (VON).
Otunta
said the breakthrough was made by Maduike Ezeibe, a professor and researcher in
the university.
He
said Ezeibe had presented the drug to the university management, senate and
council, and had also explained the processes he undertook to arrive at his
finding.
“Prof.
Ezeibe is a researcher in Veterinary Medicine and one may wonder how he
discovered a drug to cure a human ailment,” he said.
The
vice chancellor said Ezeibe had brought “honour to the university” while
noting that the professor’s finding was not contradicted when he presented
the drug to his colleagues in the medical field.
Otunta
said that the university was in the process of mass producing the drug for
further clinical trials on persons living with HIV/AIDS in the country.
Ezeibe,
a professor of veterinary medicine and clinical virology, said that the drug
was produced with Aluminum Silicate and Magnesium Silicate (Synthetic
Aluminum-Magnesium Silicate).
He
said both minerals “are already in use as medicines for the treatment of
various animal and human diseases.”
The
professor said 10 persons living with the disease had volunteered and were made
to apply through their doctor to the VC.
“They
were treated daily with the Medicinal Synthetic Aluminum-Magnesium Silicate (50
mg/kg),” he said.
Ezeibe
said that the volunteers were subjected to monthly tests for viral loads and
CD4-lymphocyte counts.
“With
the antiviral effects of the medicine, its ability to reach all cells (as
nanoparticles) and the lymphocytes, there is no more hiding place (sanctuary)
for HIV,” he said.
He
said the medicine had been used to “potentiate Ampicilin, Chloroquine,
Piperazine and Sulphadimidin, among others, and could be a major foreign
exchange earner for Nigeria, if approved by relevant authorities.”
“Local
and international pharmaceutical companies would find the product as a
veritable raw material.”
Ezeibe
disclosed that he presented the research findings to the world virology
conference in Atlanta in 2015, and Antonio (Texas), in 2016.
Results
of the laboratory tests, he said, had been published in many international
scientific journals, including the British Journal of Medicine and Medical
Research.
The
researcher disclosed that he was about to sign a memorandum of understanding
with the US-based publishers of World Journal of AIDS, for the publication of
his book “How I came about the cure for HIV/AIDS.”
Ezeibe said
that the medicine was patented in August 2014 in Nigeria, and called on the
federal government to help him to secure international patency for the drug.
“If commercialize, the Medicinal Synthetic Aluminum-Magnesium Silicate would
become an alternative for petroleum to the Nigerian economy,” he said.
Health Minister
Denies Knowledge Of HIV Cure By Abia Professor
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| Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole |
TODAY News reports that the Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole, has said that he was
not aware of a cure for HIV/AIDS being reported by the majority of the Nigerian
media.
The
minister had reacted to the not-so-new claims of finding a cure for HIV being
made by a Professor of Virology at the Michael Okpara University of
Agriculture, Umudike in Abia State, Maduike Ezeibe.
Contrary
to media interpretation of his claims, Ezeibe said he had only found a
“potentiate” for possible manufacturing of HIV drugs.
As
reported by the media, the professor had said, “The medicine had been used to
“potentiate Ampicilin, Chloroquine, Piperazine and Sulphadimidin, among others…
“Local
and international pharmaceutical companies would find the product as a
veritable raw material…”
Technically
and as defined by the Merriam Webster dictionary, a “potentiate” is used to
augment the activity of (as a drug) synergistically. It is used to increase the
power, effect, or likelihood of (something, especially a drug or physiological
reaction).
And,
as explained by Ezeibe himself, his current product is a “raw material” for HIV
drugs if, as he also said, it is “approved by relevant authorities.”
Health
Minister Adewole, in a text message sent through the Director Media &
Public Relations at the Ministry of Health, Mrs. Boade Akinola, wrote, “I’m not
aware of his claims.
“There
are standard ways of disseminating such information.
“The
Nigerian Institute of Medical Research, in conjunction with the College of
Medicine University of Ibadan, has been mandated to verify two claims of cure
for HIV in Nigeria.
“We shall make our findings
public when ready.”
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