PHARMACOGNOSTIC AND PHYTOCHEMICAL EVALUATION AND ANTIPYRETIC ACTIVITY OF LEAVES OF LANTANA CAMARA LINN.

Abstract

Lantana camara is a heavily branched shrub that can grow in compact clumps, dense thickets or as a climbing vine. The plant is Antidiabetic, Antiseptic, Anti-inflammatory, Antipyretic, Carminative, Anti-spasmodic, Diphoretic and are useful for cuts, wounds, ulcers, swelling, tumours and rheumatism. Evaluation of fresh, powdered and anatomical sections of the leaves was carried out to determine the morphological, microscopical and
phytochemical profiles. Leaves of L.camara Linn. are dark green with characteristic odour, opposite, blade ovate, 4-10cm long, with coarse surfaces and toothed margins etc.
Microscopy shows covering trichomes, Sclerenchyma, collenchyma, xylem, phloem etc. Phytochemical evaluation revealed the presence of alkaloids, triterpenoid, essential oil,
flavanoids, carbohydrates, tannins and saponins. The investigations also included evaluation of physical parameter such as the moisture content, ash values, and extractive value.
Concerning on the Antipyretic activity, Lantana camara ethanolic and ethyl acetate extract start lowering the body temperature from 1.5th hour, while between 2nd and 3rd hour both the
extract showed significant (P 0.01) Antipyretic activity when compared with the negative control group by one way ANOVA followed by dunnett t-test.