Since 1981 when the Human Immunodeficency Virus (HIV ) was first clinically observed in the United States, the world has , ever since then , been held down by the belief that the Virus has conferred on humans , the most incurable pandemic ever recorded in human history . In the worst affected regions notably Sub- Saharan Africa , million of lives have been affected and this steadily progressing catastrophe threatens to become a calamity of cataclysmic proportions.

However, the good news now is that, with the recent development of Antiretroviral Drug-Aluminium Magnesium Silicate (AMS), by Maduike Ezeibe , Professor of Veterinary Medicine , Michael Okpara University of Agriculture Umudike (MOUAU ) Abia State, People living with HIVAIDs will now have the cause to smile again. Science Editor , STANLEY CHIBUIHEM AMALAHA , in an interview with the don in the university, reports
Professor Maduike Ezeibe , a renowned Nigerian scientist and Head , Department of Veterinary Medicine, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture , Umudike, Umuahia , Abia State, Nigeria has found what could be a novel treatment for Human immunedeficiency virus (HIV ) infections infection that may slash the current cost of treatment .

Ezeibe , after 19 years of intensive research has been able to show that synthetic Aluminum- Magnesium Silicate (AMS ) has antiretroviral effects that could lay a perfect track for affordable and effective therapy for HIV.

Results of his work titled ‘Assessment of Antiretroviral Effects of a Synthetic Aluminum- Magnesium Silicate’ published in the British Journal of Medicine & Medical Research (BJMMR 4 (8 ): 1672 - 1679 , 2014 ) and featured on SCIENCEDOMAIN international (www.sciencedomain.org), shows a significant reduction in the titres of the virus when HIV positive plasma was incubated with AMS .

Chemistry of the action
Ezeibe said this could provide an ultimate cure for the virus that has defiled so many scientific efforts to curtail it in the past. He reacted Aluminium Silicate with Magnesium Silicate to obtain the synthetic Aluminum- Magnesium Silicate devoid of impurities as show in the chemical equation below
A 14 ( SiO 4 ) 3 + 3 Mg2 SiO4 . – – 2 Al 2 Mg 3 ( SiO4 ) 3
Giving further details on AMS , the distinguished don said, “Molecules of Aluminum– Magnesium Silicate have platelets that possess both negative and positive electrical charges on their surfaces and their edges. HIV on the other hand is negatively charged . So the simple scientific understanding that opposite charges attracts ensures that the HIV virus binds to the AMS and is discharged from the body alongside . ”

An existing medicine
“AMS is normally used as a stabilizing medicine that does not really have toxic effect on the patient , so it makes it a suitable agent for mopping up HIV virus from the body, ” he said. Writing in the journal, he stated that “possession of both negative and positive electrical charges makes AMS a broad spectrum antiviral medicine. AMS, if used in combination of selected antibiotics and immune stimulant may achieve a ‘cure’ for HIV,” says the researcher .

He further highlighted that , “When a significant number of particles of invading viruses adsorb onto its (AMS ) molecules instead of onto their hosts cells , viral infections are terminated.

Similarly , platelets of AMS molecules are only 0.96 nm thick. So, it is made of Nanoparticles, which makes it possible for them to pass physiological barriers. Therefore , AMS may get to and adsorb to HIV particles in any organ of infected persons.”

The author also noted that “Adsorbing out HIV means that millions of new virions usually released from each infected cell would be inhibited from establishing new infections in more cells , ” adding, “Thus, HIV would be prevented from overwhelming the body immune systems and the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) stage may be prevented .

When the AIDS stage is prevented , the immune systems have advantage over HIV infections and clear viral particles that escape the AMS molecules,” in which case Ezeibe said a cure could be achieved.

Not one of those claims
This may be another HIV cure claim, but Ezeibe said this is quite unlike in previous cases.

“We have tested the medicine on Bird flu virus, Measles virus, Peste des petit virus of sheep and goats , Canine parvovirus of dogs , Newcastle disease virus, Infectious bursal disease virus, Fowl pox virus and Eggs drop syndrome virus of chicken , a process that was missing in previous claims, ” he disclosed.

He further stated “the animals were experimentally infected and treated with AMS in a students’ project that were examined at the Department and Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture before the university ’s senate considered and approved them. The problem those who made claims of cure for HIV earlier had is that , there were no routine in vitro (laboratory ) tests for HIV titre.

So they could not measure effects of their medicines. This is a problem all over the world. ” In a description of the methodology used , Ezeibe commented “Plasma that tested positive to HIV and the AMS were mixed , on equal volume to weight basis, incubated one hour at room temperature and centrifuged for ten minutes at 3 , 000 revolutions per minute .

These procedures were repeated on each supernatant. HIV titres of the two sets of supernatants and the titres in portions of the plasma , not incubated with the AMS were assessed by direct passive hemagglutination test. ”

A reason to believe
Results of this , as published in the journal shows that initial incubating with it caused an increase in their viral titres, but a repeat incubation with the AMS reduced HIV titres in all the samples . The 99 . 60 per cent reduction of HIV titre in the specimen that had its HIV titre increased more than 4096 , following the repeat incubation , is significant.

“It has been reported that when antimicrobial drugs achieve 95 per cent reduction of infection rate or above, the patient would be cured of the infection. So, the reduction of the virus titre by as much as 99 . 60 per cent suggests that the AMS may lead to effective treatment of HIV infections ,” the researchers noted .

Professor Ezeibe has earlier disclosed that Aluminium- Magnesium Silicate could be used to cure chickens of Bird flu when there was an out - break of the disease in Nigeria in 2008. On why it took this long to ascertain the same effect with HIV , he said, “ Testing the AMS on HIV delayed till now because electrical charges on HIV (not HIV antibodies ) were not known until 2012 . We could not until recently , when we developed Direct Passive Hemagglutination test for HIV, which was published by the journal, Health 5 (9 ) at www.scrirp.org. ”

Verification and validity of his claim
On the validity of his claim, Ezeibe said: “he has sent a request for further verification to the Nigerian Academy of Sciencethe highest scientific body in Nigeria . Having been investigated by the Presidential Standing Committee on Inventions and Innovations set up by the Federal Government of Nigeria , he has been making frantic, but futile efforts to take this finding to the next stage that could ensure human clinical trials.

Cost effectiveness
It was concluded that the AMS has antiretroviral effects and could be an inexpensive antiretroviral therapy for regular treatment to reduce high rate of HIV infection among low income groups because the two essential minerals – Aluminum Silicate (kaolin) and Magnesium Silicate, used in the production of the therapy, have large deposits in Umuahia and other parts of Abia State. This, he said, would make the therapy cheaper and more affordable than the old anti - retroviral drug.

He added that the therapy would take an average of two to three months or more to cure HIV / AIDS patient depending on the viral load in the patient .

Micheal Okpara University of Agriculture Umudike ( MOUAU)
Following directives from the Vice Chancellor of MOUAU , to the Medical Director of the University to verify Ezeibe ’s claim, a team from the University went into collaboration with the Basic Health Clinic Abuja for an Independent Clinical trial of AMS . It was discovered that after Eight months of administration of AMS to HIV patients , three out of the 10 HIV patients , are now HIV negative.

Two more would recover this month (June ) after nine months of treatment with regard to reduction in their viral load ; while the remaining five patients are expected to be cured next month July.

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