Euphorbia peplus
Euphorbia peplus
Safety & Hazards
The latex causes irritation of the skin, eyes and mucous membranes. Due to the toxicity of the latex, it is advised to use the plant topically only[ 299 Title Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. Publication Author Website http://www.prota.org Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa. ]. Lactating goats, which fed on the aerial parts of this plant mixed with their usual green fodder, showed symptoms of general poisoning. The main toxic effects were seen in the heart, lung and liver. The milk of these goats, when consumed by their offspring, caused poisoning and even death, with signs similar to those observed in the adults. The toxicity is caused by ingenane type diterpenes[ 299 Title Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. Publication Author Website http://www.prota.org Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa. ].
Botanical Description
Euphorbia peplus is an erect, annual plant growing up to 30cm tall[ 299 Title Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. Publication Author Website http://www.prota.org Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa. ]. The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a medicine. This species is one of several in the family Euphorbiaceae that have attracted attention as a potential treatment for a range of cancers. It is cultivated in Australia for the extraction of its anti-cancer compounds, but overall quantities are unknown[ 299 Title Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. Publication Author Website http://www.prota.org Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa. ]. It is potentially suitable for large-scale agricultural production[ 299 Title Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. Publication Author Website http://www.prota.org Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa. ].