medicinal fungi

Chennog story

Chennog Is a mythical ancestor of Chinese medicine “ Divine farmer and Sage king”

Invented the plow, hoax, and various other items of civilization

Believed to be immoral; horns from immortal tortoises

Credited with teaching people farming practices and said to have tested hundreds of herbal drugs for human benefit

Discovered reishi mushrooms and delivered to people

Peach festival of the Queen mother of the West

Queen mother was one of the most important goddesses of the traditional Chinese pantheon

Famous for giving immortality to some people (Journey to see emperor woo of the Hyundai Dynasty and presented him with several magical peaches that when ripe which happens every 3,000 yrs would provide immortality)

As people assembled and travel to celebrate Queen Mother‘s birthday, several palace, women and boys were seeing harvesting ripe peaches (possibly for gifts for people)

What are Reishi mushrooms

Ganoderma lucidum

Type of medicinal mushroom with long history, abuse in Chinese and Japanese medicine; mushrooms of immortality

Have a distinctive kidney or family cap shaped with the reddish brown black color; believed to have various help promoting properties, including potential immune system support, antioxidant affects an anti inflammatory benefits; benefits attributed to bioactive compounds, including polysaccharides and ganoderic acids

Tale of the seven lucky stars

There’s a poor wood cutter that goes into the deep forest to for mushrooms; finds Beautiful bread, mushrooms, and ask the Forest God to humbly take the mushroom; He takes it and cooks it into a stew; mushroom in the pot starts to glow into seven dots/7 stars and starts dancing. He sees as a blessing because he asked humbly.

How is the tail of the seven stars partly true

If you eat the mushroom without being cooked, you cognate and see little elves; Everyone sees the same hallucination and there’s no chemical compound inside so people do not know why they have hallucinations

Magu Goddess of longevity

Magu is the Chinese Goddess of Longevity who represents immortality and healing. She is associated with Reishi mushrooms because legend says she used them to make a special wine believed to promote long life.

The tale of the Mountain Spirit

In Japanese folklore, there’s a belief that should talk mushrooms are favored by the mountain spirit. they thrive in deep shady forests and I said to be a gift from the mountain spirit. Stories of people who venture into the woods and are blessed with abundance of shiitake

What are the three route routes to a fungal medicine?

Natural product (fungal molecule)

Semi synthetic derivative (modified fungi scaffold)

Biological inspiration (useful biological lead)

Penicillin

Block bacterial cell walls; prevent crossing of bacterial cell walls by inhibiting PBPs

Lovastatin

Lowers cholesterol synthesis; the active hydroxy acid form inhibits MHG CoA reductase

Cyclosporine

Suppresses T cell responses, and is used in organ transplants to suppress transplant rejection

Echinocandins

Target the fungus cell wall; inhibit B1, 3 glucan synthase (humans lack this)-> can help with antifungals

Ergot Alkaloids

Therapeutic effects and toxicity depend on derivative, target, and dose

Cannot be assigned, one shared from a logical effect

Myriocin

Inhibits serine palmitoyltransferase; It’s synthetic descendants fingolimod modulates s1p receptors

Shiitake mushrooms

Has both food and medicinal tradition; cooked mushroom, purified lentinan and extracts different in composition (Labeled dose may not predict exposure)

Preparation and route change exposure

Lions mane

chemical compounds depending on their tissue and developmental stage. Therefore, medicinal effects demonstrated in one part or preparation of the mushroom cannot automatically be applied to another.

Remember: Different tissue = different chemicals = potentially different medicinal effects.

Cordycepin

Cordyceps fungi that can alter cellular nucleotide balance and activate AMPK, an enzyme that regulates energy metabolism. However, demonstrating a cellular mechanism does not prove clinical benefits in humans.

Shittake dermatitis

Raw or uncooked shittake can cause an itchy streak like rash

Evaluate harms and interactions alongside potential benefit, benefits of using certain mushrooms or fungal medicines like shiitake

Where the next fungal medicine may begin

Genome mining allows scientists to search fungal DNA for biosynthetic gene clusters that may produce medicinal compounds. However, identifying genes does not prove that the compounds are produced, biologically active, safe, or effective as medicines.

Remember: DNA → Gene cluster → Chemical compound → Biological testing → Potential medicine.

Take away

Fungi produce many biologically active compounds, some of which have become important medicines, including antibiotics and statins. Although mushrooms have a long history of traditional medicinal use, scientists must identify the specific compounds, understand their mechanisms, and test their safety and effectiveness before making medical claims.