Public Agenda (Accra)
Isabella Gyau Orhin
26 April 2004
Accra — The Head of the Virology Department at the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR), Professor Nana Kofi Ayisi has warned that he is closing research on eight Ghanaian medicinal plants which have the potential of being developed into an HIV and other Sexually Transmitted Infections preventive drug as a result of lack of funding.
He said although the USAID funded the initial research that led to the discovery of the plants, further funding which will make clinical research possible have not been fourth coming.
He also said he had to abandon a patent right he was pursuing for the drugs after spending seven thousand dollars of his own money in vain.
Speaking at an inaugural lecture at the University of Ghana, Legon on Thursday, Prof. Ayisi said, "This inaugural lecture puts closure on my work in the anti-viral chemotherapy at MMIMR until further funding is available."
The lecture was on the topic Sex, Viruses and Grief: A deadly combination that poses the greatest threat to human health in the 21st Century.."
Prof. Ayisi said the eight selected plants were given to him by a friend whose ailment he had earlier assisted to diagnose.
The eight selected plants include Ficus Polita-HIV, HSV, GHX-36-HIV, HVS, Ocimum gratissimum-HIV, HVS, Alchornea Cordifolia-HIV, HVS and Elaeophorbia drupifera-HIV.
Three of them he said have the potential of being developed into vaginal microbicides which is widely accepted as the best form of HIV and vaginal herpes prevention.
According to him, Elaeophorbia drupifera-HIV kills HIV cells at a rate that will not affect normal cells.
"It may be useful in the prevention of the cells associated with infections.
Prof. Ayisi who is also an expert in Microbiology and Toxicology said big pharmaceutical companies are making millions out of a single drug that is discovered.
He said although the research now appears to be expensive, only societies that invest in science will reap from the benefits of science.
"It is not an exaggeration to say that a single medicinal plant that is moved into mainstream medical practice has the potential to pay for the entire health budget of the nation and make the cash and carry system redundant," he said.
"We owe it to our to ourselves, our country and our children yet unborn to develop our medicinal plants," Prof. Ayisi said adding, "we are losing our forests and plants at a faster rate and the people with knowledge in medicinal plants are dying without leaving any knowledge behind."
According to Prof. Ayisi, Ghana could develop a more effective medicine from the eight selected plants if funding is available.
He said Africa is the most natural resource endowed region in the world.
"If we do not handle our talent well, like the parable of the Talents in the Bible, the Master will collect it from us and give it to those who are prepared to do it," he said with reference to the developed countries.
He told his audience that it is just a matter of time that the advanced countries will start investigations in medicinal plants and if that happens they will not need ours and Africa will not make any money from its resources in the area of medicinal plants.
He said the drugs for treating HIV, some of which are available in the country aims at prolonging the life of HIV patients. Some of the drugs may be effective for a cure only after 100 years of administration.
He said the Virus that causes HIV in Europe and North America are different from that of Africa and therefore there is the need for Africa to do its own research on the viruses and find its own remedies.
The way Asia responded to the Sars epidemic and the bird flu should be a lesson to Ghana.
"They relied on their own scientists and within a matter of weeks brought the diseases under control.
"Are we prepared?" he asked.
According to him, Ghana should set up a rapid response team of scientists and researchers and not administrators.
Anti retroviral research is not done in boardrooms and committee meetings neither is it a beer nor tea party. 'Those who claim to be experts should roll up their sleeve, it is time for those who claim to be experts to roll up their sleeve and get to the laboratories," he said.
Prof. Ayisi also warned about the dangers of some vaginal micorbicides on the international market.
He said some micobicides such as Savvy and Caneegenan have no convincing pre clinical scientific basis for clinical trials.
Both drugs he said are potentially dangerous to humans.
Prof. Ayisi further told his audience that there is also the case of a vaginal microbicide Nanoxinol-9 that has been discovered to rather increase HIV infection rather than decrease it.
According to him condoms lubricated with Nanoxinol 9 could be the cause of rapid spread of HIV infection in Southern and Eastern Africa.
Should such condoms appear in Ghana, the fight against HIV will be difficult," he said.
"We must therefore not open our doors too wide to drugs that are not properly and clinically tested to come in.'
He said the country has not got the capacity to evaluate the data on the safety of drugs before allowing their use in the country.
'Also the devastating effects of some of the diseases in our part of the world weaken the nation's resolve in so many ways to question the efficacy and safety of drugs."
Added to this is the negative international publicity that is associated with the quest to know more about the efficacy and safety of drugs.
He said an example is the incident in Northern Nigeria's questioning on the effect of polio vaccine. He said kano has been a victim of drug testing before and therefore has theright to be apprehensive about any drug they are not sure of.
Prof. Ayisi further explained that as a result of animal rights campaign issues in advanced countries, scientists and pharmaceutical companies there have now turned their clinical trials on human beings in Africa and other poor third world countries.
"Developing countries have become trial cases for new drugs.
He said there are instances where children in hospitals at certain parts of Africa are tested with drugs without their parents consent.
Responding the Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Prof. Kwadwo Asenso Okyere pleaded with Prof.f Ayisi not abandon his research but to continue sourcing for funding.
As a Senior research fellow, one of his duties is to look for funding and that should not be too difficult,' he said.
He also said the University is in the process of developing a patent policy under the World Trade Organisation's TRIPS agreement.
He said a Committee has been set up to work on it to prevent the situation where individual researchers will have to sue their own money in securing patent rights.
Prof. Asenso Okyere said Ghana should invest one percent of its GDP in research.
"Are we going to sit here for others to use us specimen?"
He said laboratories are full of dilapidated equipment and asked how the country can train scientists and encourage them to stay and train others under such circumstances.
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