Preliminary report on Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) research conducted in Yobe State has indicated heavy metal presence in samples of water consumed by residents of Gashua town.

Prof. Mahmoud Maina, the Lead Researcher and Director, Biomedical Research and Training Centre (BioRTC), Yobe State University, Damaturu, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Damaturu on Monday.

NAN reports that Gashua, Jakusko and other communities along the Yobe river are badly hit by decades-old renal failure burden, which has resulted in high mortality and morbidity rates in the areas.

Maina, a neuroscientist and Adviser to Gov Mai Mala Buni on Science, Research and Innovation, noted that metals like cadmium, lead and arsenic were potential triggers of CKD and should not be near the environment in normal circumstances.

“If you find them close to your environment, then know that they can result in not only kidney disease but also other conditions like cancer and dementia,” he said.

The director said the report also revealed that CKD was significantly driven by known conditions like diabetes and hypertension, adding that fishermen in the area were mostly affected by the disease as compared to others.

He said BioRTC, in collaboration with a 50-man team of scientists from the US, UK, Ghana, among others, collected over 3,000 human and environmental samples, including urine, blood, food items, farm soil, river and borehole water for the research.

The director listed the experts who participated in the state government-sponsored research to include nephrologists, geologists, chemists, physicians, geneticists and environmental scientists.

Maina, the recently turbaned “Shettima Ilmube” of the Damaturu Emirate Council, however, emphasised that a more detailed and comprehensive report on the research would be made available in January 2026.

On dementia research recently launched by the centre in Damaturu, he said, life style information, blood samples and skin biopsies of 1,200 high-risk individuals were collected for genetic analysis and screening for biomarkers.

Dementia is a condition associated with memory loss that gradually progresses into confusion, hallucination and the inability to manage oneself. (NAN) (Daily Trust)

• Prof. Mahmoud Maina, Lead Researcher/Director, Biomedical Research and Training Centre (BioRTC), Yobe State University, Damaturu