QUALITATIVE DETERMINATION OF CHEMICAL AND NUTRITIONAL COMPOSITION OF CISSUSPETIOLATA LEAVES.

Qualitative determination of chemical and nutritional composition of the leaves of Cissus petiolata, an underexploited medicinal plant in Nigeria, was carried out.Cissus petiolata leaves were found to be rich in crude protein (20.03%), carbohydrate (47.31%), Ash (9.13%), fibre (9.18%) and fat (7.53%). Mineral analysis of the leaves showed that they contain the following essential minerals: Sodium (27.71mg/100g), Potassium (27.71mg/100g), Calcium (39.98mg/100g), Magnessium (33.60mg/100g), Zinc (48.96mg/100g), Iron (8.88mg/100g) and Phosphorus (142.91mg/100g).The phytochemical screening of the leaves revealed the presence of Tannins, Alkaloids, Saponin, Steroid, Flavonoids and Cardiac glycoside.