‘We want to help end TB through research’

Misitura Lawal-Arowona is a PhD student at the University of Ilorin (Unilorin). She is at the moment on DBT-TWAS (Department of Biotechnology, India and The World Academy of Sciences, Italy) fellowship programme at The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda (MSU), India. She recently discovered an anti-tuberculosis drug in the course of her research work. In […]

Misitura Lawal-Arowona is a PhD student at the University of Ilorin (Unilorin). She is at the moment on DBT-TWAS (Department of Biotechnology, India and The World Academy of Sciences, Italy) fellowship programme at The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda (MSU), India. She recently discovered an anti-tuberculosis drug in the course of her research work. In this interview, she speaks on her work and future plans. Excerpts:

 

Daily Trust: How did you discover the drug?

Misitura Lawal-Arowona:  As you know, research is all about trying and retrying on certain endeavours of life; until you get to the root and virtually to a logical conclusion which can be beneficial to humanity. Through consistency and further studies, as well as wider consultations, I was able to get to where I am at the moment on the discovery, although there is still more to be done. It will interest you to hear that I had earlier visited the Universiti Tecknologi Malaysia, (UTM) in Johor Bahru on TETFund Scholarship via Kebbi State University where I spent six months on the same research work.

DT: You had the breakthrough in far away India, why not in Nigeria?

Misitura: I had my breakthrough in India because the instruments required for my research were readily available at my doorsteps but already, I had a proposal on Tuberculosis and anti-tuberculosis Drugs designed by me and my able supervisor Prof. Joshua Ayoola Obaleye of  the Department of Chemistry, University of Ilorin, where I had registered for my PhD programme. It is in partial fulfillment of my PhD programme that I travelled to foreign universities to carry out extensive research and laboratory analysis work in order to ensure dynamism and quality outcome in the programme. While in Malaysia in 2018, I participated in several international seminars and conferences and now in India, I have also attended some conferences and First DBT-TWAS Fellows Conclave held in Chennai, where I emerged 3rd position in Poster Presentation. All these experiences added together made the research a success.

DT: Don’t we have facilities for such research in Nigeria?

Misitura: Well, most of the instruments required for my own research work were not available in Nigeria but I can’t say for other research fellows. However, the few available ones are very expensive and this factor has over the years made research very difficult in Nigeria, coupled with other factors such as lack of constant electricity supply among others.

DT: What challenges did you face in making the discovery?

Misitura: There were lots of challenges but the adage that says two heads are better than one was what assisted me and I never gave up hope.  So, glory be to God almighty.

DT: Apart from Tuberculosis, what other ailments are you planning to research on?

Misitura: Maybe, in the nearest future, I may research on another diseases but presently I want to focus my research on tuberculosis and see how this disease can be totally eradicated in Nigeria, African and Indian, with the support of my supervisor Prof. Joshua Ayoola Obaleye of the University of Ilorin, Nigeria and Prof. Rajendrasinh Jadeja of Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Gujarat, India.

DT: Did you get support from Unilorin and the Nigerian government or any other body for the research?

Misitura: I got the fellowship from an Italy based fellowship called TWAS- DBT (The World Academy of Sciences and Department of Biotechnology, India) with the guidance of my supervisor Prof. Joshua Ayoola Obaleye. But Unilorin is the bedrock of my knowledge and research capacity because I had my Bachelor of Science and Master Degrees in Chemistry from Unilorin and now I am in the process of completing my PhD in the same university. Most importantly, I got the best of assistance (Moral Support) which is so germane to me from my husband, Mallam Abdulazeez Arowona, my children – Modibbo and Sultan, and beloved mother and late father for bearing with me through the period of my research sojourn.

DT: What are your future plans?

Misitura: My future plan is to extend my sensitization on tuberculosis as an infectious disease through the help of my NGO, Foundation for Advocacy and Sensitization on Tuberculosis (FAST) to the rural areas where there is little or no knowledge about the contagious disease. We have another type of bacteria called Mycobacterium bovis. People are most commonly infected with M. bovis by eating or drinking contaminated, unpasteurized dairy products like cattle milk and meat. Both bacterias can be spread directly from person to person when people with the disease in their lungs cough or sneeze. But with proper sensitization and handling, the disease will be totally cut down. Prevention is better than cure.

DT: How can your discovery contribute to Nigeria’s development?

Misitura: Nigeria, being a developing country, is facing serious challenges especially in the area of consistency in government programmes and actions. Majority of Nigerian citizens find it very difficult to meet up with drug prescriptions when diagnosed of ailments in hospitals because some of the drugs are either expensive or not readily available in the stores.  This has led to untimely and avoidable deaths of many innocent and promising Nigerians. But when this ongoing discovery is finally completed, there would be alternative for the poor and effectiveness will also be guaranteed.

DT: What’s your advice for other PhD students on research?

Misitura:  My advice is for them to search for Fellowships Grants outside the country for better exposure and knowledge. They should spend more time in the laboratory, library, dig into literatures and also do wider consultations. It is unfortunate that despite huge sums of money earmarked by the government to fund the education sector as we always hear during budget presentation, Nigerian universities are still mere structures and fast becoming museums where you only find things that are no longer useful to the present generations. Our laboratories are not befitting – no modern equipments and the environments are not enabling enough for research work. Imagine that you are in a laboratory with no 10 hours guaranteed power supply! So, there is need for the Federal Government to provide more funds for the advancement of research.