DDT College of Medicine To Fasten their Process of Formulating to Launch Immune Booster Tea

DDT College of Medicine have joined other International universities and pharmaceutical researchers around the world to come up with potential solutions to combat the lethal COVID-19 pandemic.

This was said by the Chancellor of DDT College of Medicine Dr Derrick Tlhoiwe, on which he noted that his College has been in the process of producing an immune booster tea named Indigen as a pharmaceutical line of its Indigenous products, which it is launching today.. He said said they have been working on formulating the tea for five years, but then the COVID-19 pandemic motivated them to fasten their process.

“It is not like we started manufacturing this tea during COVID-19, no we just had to fasten our process during this pandemic period,” he said during the tea showcasing event which was held at the College main campus recently. Dr Tlhoiwe said DDT under its Faculty of Research Innovation Product Development and Industrialization (RIPDI) is establishing Indigenous Medicine Pharmaceutical Industry, termed INDIGEN, that is a wealth of Botswana that can potentially provide many treatments to diverse diseases. Many of the products studied, processed and manufactured by DDTCOM RIPDI come from folklore knowledge and involves Traditional Healers to also protect their interests.

“We should not look down on this folklore knowledge, it has treated Batswana for centuries, what is just needed is to study these products, determine and improve their safety profile on the human body and package them in allopathic ways that accentuate their effectiveness’ the Chancellor said.

“We should be very aware that big pharmaceutical companies are traversing Botswana and Africa trying to find these folklore knowledge to patent them as their own whilst trying to convince us they are of no use. However DDT is here to protect this wealth by turning it into a massive industry similar to the likes of Aryuvedic Medicine of India and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)” The Chancellor further elucidated.

“This tea contains many indigenous ingredients, some having been studied and found to be having immune boosting, antimicrobial (antiviral, antibacterial and antifungal) and anti inflammatory capabilities”

Dr Tlhoiwe nevertheless, noted that they are yet to determine the tea’s safety profiles especially its effect on the kidneys and the liver.” Because you might find out that it may have some side effects that may be insignificant or significant to warrant further processing to isolate the active ingredients and remove impurities for potentiation.. We also want to see if its benefits are short term and or long term.”

The Provost of DDTCOM, Mr Ogorogile Mokate, an ISO 9001: 2018 certified scientist, stressed that they are still in the preclinical stage and they will in the near future approach relevant authorities like BOMRA and Ministry of Health and Wellness to get clinical research approval. Meanwhile the College used indeginous local plants like Ntolwane and Lengana just to mention a few to come up with this Indigen Immune Boosting Tea.

The Director of RIPDI, Dr Larry Mweeta said DDT is putting natural folklore medicine to the rigour of scientific research to ‘showcase and legitimize it’ and churn many useful products that will assist mankind to tackle many ailments around the globe. He stated that as a College rooted in research, they innovate and pass on their products to the private sector to industrialize and commercialize.

DDT College is envisioned at solving big problems in the health and education sector to bring out the best medical professionals and supply them not only to the Botswana market where it was founded, but to the diaspora, being the SADC region and also globally. The Innovative College’s qualifications are recognized internationally as many of their graduating students have received admissions to International universities like University of Liverpool in UK and others in line with DDT’s motto of ONLY THE TOP: EDUCATING FOR GLOBAL SUCCESS