*1.2.1. Relevance of medicinal plants*

Medicinal plants are gaining popularity in usage due to a large number of people in search of health remedies with little or no side effect which is the problem of most chemically synthesized drugs. Considerable attention is presently given to the use of eco-friendly and biofriendly products from plant origin for the prevention and cure of human and animal health challenges (diseases) [9, 10]. This problem of side effects of most chemically based drugs has spurred the Western world to looking into natural products that are safe, effective, and affordable. It has been documented that 80% of the world's population has a strong belief in traditional medicine, especially drugs from plant origin for their primary health care [9, 10]. Medicinal plants, for example, neem leaves and stem bark (*Azadirachta indica*), pawpaw leaves (*Carica papaya*), mango leaves and stem bark (*Mangifera indica*), and Cinchona bark have been in use in one form or the other traditionally. No doubt, the plant kingdom is rich in diverse array of plants whose medicinal attributes (potencies) are yet to be unraveled [9, 10]. The various uses of some common medicinal plants from Nigeria used for treating various diseases highlighting the parts of the plants used are represented in **Table 1**.
