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No 'Miracle Cure' for Coronavirus Until Clinical Trials Prove Madagascar's
Herbal Medicine

Salem Solomon

   WASHINGTON - Scientists are putting an herbal remedy from Madagascar,
   purported to cure COVID-19, to the test.

   Researchers at Germany's Max Planck Institute of Colloids and
   Interfaces, in Potsdam, are collaborating with a U.S. company,
   ArtemiLife, to test an extract from the plant Artemisia annua [1]to
   determine its effectiveness in speeding recovery from the virus.

   "We are working with two independent laboratories to ensure the highest
   possible quality and exclude any bias in the results," Peter Seeberger,
   lead researcher, told VOA in an email response.

   Seeberger is hopeful the first results will be back soon. "We have
   collected a significant body of data but are again repeating the work
   to make sure any results are reproducible multiple times," he said.
   "Within the next couple of weeks, we will be in a position to speak
   with certainty to the activity of this class of compounds. Logical next
   steps will be human clinical trials, provided that we have a positive
   outcome of our current studies."

   Several scientists in African countries, including South Africa and
   Senegal, are currently performing tests as well. The World Health
   Organization has also pledged to conduct a study into the plant's
   effectiveness.

References

   1. https://www.mpg.de/14663263/artemisia-annua-corona-virus

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