Euphorbia tirucalli L. (Family, Euphorbiacae) a succulent cactus-like plant growing to a height of about 10 m, was introduced from Africa as a garden plant. E. tirucalli Grows in arid zones as well as zones that are more mesophytic, the species makes a good living fence post. The plant grows well in dry regions or land that is not suitable for growing food. E. tirucalli is called petroleum plant because it produces a hydrocarbon substance very much like gasoline. Whole plant harvesting is worthwhile from energy point-of-view with rubber, petroleum, and alcohol as energy products and resins, which may find use in the linoleum, oilskin, and leather industries. The charcoal derived there from can be used in gunpowder.

Many pharmacological activities of Euphorbia tirucalli has been documented by many workers as molluscicidal activity (Jurberg et al., 1985; Tiwari et al., 2003), antibacterial activity (Lirio et al., 1998), antiherpetic activity (Betancur-Galvis et al., 2002) and anti-mutagenic (Rezende et al., 2004). Latex also shows co-carcinogenic (Gscwhenot and Hecker, 1969) and anticarcinogenic activities (Hecker, 1968). The inhibition of the ascitic tumor in mice has also been reported by Valadares et al. (2006). In the northeast region of Brazil, the latex of Euphorbia tirucalli is used; as an antimicrobial; a laxative agent; to control intestinal parasites; to treat asthma, cough, earache, rheumatism, verrucae, cancer, chancre, epithelioma, sarcoma, skin tumors and as a folk remedy against syphilis (Correia, 1994; Betancur-Galvis et al., 2002).

Exposure to Euphorbia tirucalli has been suggested as an important environmental risk factor for African Burkitt’s lymphoma (Van den Bosch et al., 1993; Imai et al., 1994; MacNeil et al., 2003). In E.tirucalli 4-deoxyphorbol ester, has been clinically documented to enhance Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection, causing damage to immune cell’s DNA and induce rearrangement in the chromosomes, particularly in chromosome 8, which causes a suppression of the immune system (Aya et al., 1991; Jurberg et al., 1985; Almeida, 1993; Costa, 2002; Tiwari et al., 2003).