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Nigeria, China collaborate to develop anti-cancer agents from marine organisms

By Guardian Nigeria
23 April 2015   |   6:08 am
Anene Moneke, a professor of bioprocess physiology, is the Head of Department of Microbiology, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Enugu State. His research interests are in the optimal exploitation of production organisms in the advancement of bioprocesses, microbial ecology and biogeochemistry in oil polluted environments, bacterial degradation of aromatic compounds and man made environmental pollutants, evaluation of local raw materials in brewing and food industries and studies on biotransformation systems for the generation of useful compounds. In this interview with EMEKA ANUFORO, he speaks of his department’s recent pact with the Department of Pharmacology, Capital Medical University, China to develop cancer and other drugs using marine agents. Excerpts:

At sea enroute Ikorodu to Victoria IslandHow would you describe the relevance of your department in the contemporary development world?
My department is quite active research wise. At least we have been involved in some noble ideas, driving some noble discoveries. It is the late Prof. Njoku Obi developed the cholera vaccine in this department.

Also, you need to note too that the regiment for using sorghum to make beer was actually developed by a group from the department lead by Prof Barth Okolo, the immediate past Vice Chancellor. I was a member of that group.

We have been active research wise. We are also very active now in the area of renewable bio-energy and biofuel from renewable sources.

The renewable sources that we are talking about are the waste (tubers or plants that are of no food value and the waste that we generate from processing. We are also very active in drug discovery.

We are active in cassava processing and value addition. Of course, we are active in the area of pharmacology too.

What does the department hope to achieve for the country as a whole from this partnership with the Chinese?
The partnership that we envisage is a partnership that would help us solve critical societal problems. One of the problems we know that we are having is in the area of food security.

We produce a lot in Nigeria, but we can’t preserve them. We are trying to see how we can interface with our colleagues in China to take care of the processing aspects and value addition to the products that we get. We produce a lot of cassava in Nigeria.

If you harvest cassava today and you don’t process it will be rotten in two days. Mangoes, tomatoes and oranges are seasonal. But it doesn’t mean that they should not be available all year round.

We are trying to think of ways to process them so that they are available all year round and add value to the chain. We are also interested in the area of drug discoveries.

With the partnership that we envisage with the Capitol Medical University, Beijing, China, we are going to develop anti-cancer agents from marine organisms. That would be the focus. We are also looking at a lot of other areas to develop new drugs. We are also partnering in the area of bioinformatics.

We also believe that for us to achieve excellence in higher education there is need to collaborate with known and renowned universities all over the world, not just in China.

By so doing, our faculty and students will get exposed to global best practices. They will also help us to build our capacities, especially in the area of equipment. Once we do that, we will be in a lot better position to solve our specific societal challenges.

How long is the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and what would be each partner’s role?
We see ourselves as equal partners, in as much as we know that they are the senior partners, because they have the technological know-how. We are going to drive the research here in Nigeria.

When it comes to area like equipment, they will provide those. They will also expose us to new areas, new ways of doing things, the new technologies that are available to carry out analysis, and also expose us to global best practices. Like I said too, we are going to concentrate on areas where we have needs in Nigeria and China.

For instance, like I said earlier, we produce so much cassava, yet we don’t know how to preserve. The MoU will run for five years in the first instance. It is renewable.

What areas are both parties collaborating in curriculum development?
In terms of curriculum, we are talking about expose to best practices. Going to China and seeing what they are doing gives us a position to come back and review our curriculum so that they will be targeted, making sure that whatever we are producing are world class.

Producing world-class graduates is not about teaching them without technical exposure. Once we are exposed to these global practices, we will emphasis more on hands-on experience for our students. We will review our curriculum

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