A review of the noxious plant Lantana camara

Lantana camara is one of the ten most noxious weeds in the world. It is toxic to animals and exerts allelopathic action on neighbouring vegetation. The pathological and biochemical effects of the lantana plant in cattle, sheep and guinea pigs have been determined. The chemical nature of lantana toxin(s) and the precise mechanism by which lantana induces cholestasis have not yet been defined clearly. Lantana toxicity is manifested in three phases: the release and absorption of toxins in the gastrointestinal tract; the hepatic phase resulting in cholestasis, hyperbilirubinaemia, hyperphylloerythrinaemia, and finally the tissue phase wherein cell injury results from the accumulation of bilirubin and phylloerythrin. Thus, therapeutic measures should be aimed at arresting one or more of these phases. The different means for control of lantana viz. mechanical, cultural, chemical and biological are discussed with regards to their effectiveness. A number of potential uses of lantana plant have been suggested but none has been exploited on a large scale. Future research is required in order to identify the lantana toxin, antidotes against lantana poisoning, cell-bilirubin/phylloerythrin interactions, cheaper weedicides, allelochemics and finally to obtain more effective phytophagous insects for fighting the lantana menace.