HIV/AIDS: Nigeria researcher calls for clinical trial of his drug

A researcher, Prof. Madubuike Ezeibe, has called on the Federal Government to carry out a clinical trial of the drug he indented, Aluminum-Magnesium Silicate (AMS), for the treatment of HIV/AIDS.

Ezeibe, a professor of Veterinary Medicine, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike (MOUAU), made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Umuahia on Monday.

Clinical trial is a study that explores whether a medical strategy, treatment, or device is safe and effective for humans.

It shows which medical approaches that work best for certain illnesses or groups of people.

According to the don, he presented a paper on the potential of the drug as both antiviral and raw material, at a world conference on Ethnopharmacology in Chicago, United States, on May 2, 2016.

He said that more than one year after he invented and presented his findings at different international conferences, no authority anywhere in the world had disputed the research findings.

“I therefore appeal to the federal government to institute an inter-ministerial committee to carry out clinical trial of the drug in six centres across the country without further delay.

“The committee should comprise federal Ministries of Health, Education, Environment as well as Science and Technology, with, at least, 1000 sample patients from each state of the federation.

“Some of the findings of the research include that silicates have molecules that are 0.96 nanometer in size while HIV has molecules as big as 110 nanometer.

“The particles of AMS are positively and negatively charged, while HIV-infected cells are positively charged.

“The AMS are immune stimulants; one can use simple sugar (glucose) to transport charged molecules across the mucus membrane to the blood.

“Glucose helps to transport the drug to any part of the body, including ‘the sanctuary’, where other drugs cannot reach to attack the HIV-infected cells.

“So, if these findings are true and nobody has challenged the claims of the research, let the federal government set up an inter-ministerial committee to conduct clinical trial of the medicine,’’ he said.

Ezeibe expressed joy that the Vice Chancellor of MOUAU, Prof. Francis Otunta and the University Senate had investigated his claims and given their approvals.

He said that aside from the support from the university, the Abia Government also sponsored the publication of the book on AMS which, according to him, is now available for sale.

The researcher said that no fewer than 500 HIV cases within and outside Nigeria had been referred to him which he treated.

“All the HIV cases were referral from a medical doctor to the Medical Director of MOUAU. I have also handled referrals from different parts of African and Asian continents,’’ Ezeibe said.