Pharmacognosy: the oldest modern science.

The use of drugs goes back to time immemorial, ever since primitive man resorted to the world around him to derive remedies which could alleviate pain and cure illnesses. The knowledge of drugs has developed together with the evolution of scientific and social progress. After a rapid historical review on the use of medicinal drugs in the diverse civilizations and on the origin and introduction of the term Pharmacognosy, the acquisitions of modern experimental Pharmacognosy in different countries of the world, and its contribution to therapy are briefly discussed.