Include mushroom in daily diet—A strategy for better hepatic health

High-Pressure Supercritical CO2 Extracts of Ganoderma lucidum Fruiting Body and Their Anti-hepatoma Effect Associated With the Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK Signaling Pathway

As a noted medicinal mushroom, Ganoderma lucidum (G. lucidum) has been reported to have a number of pharmacological effects such as anti-tumor and liver protection. Compared with the common ethanol reflux method, supercritical CO₂ extraction has obvious advantages in obtaining antitumor extracts from G. lucidum fruiting body such as short extraction time, low temperature and no solvent residue. However, Using high-pressure supercritical CO₂ without entrainer to obtain the antitumor extracts from G. lucidum and studying their anti-hepatoma effect have not been reported. In this study, high-pressure supercritical CO₂ extracts obtained under 65, 85, and 105 MPa pressure named as G65, G85, G105 respectively and ethanol reflux extract (GLE) were used to investigate their anti-hepatoma activity and the underlying molecular mechanism. The total triterpenoid content of G85 was significantly higher than that of G65 and GLE, but did not differ significantly from that of G105 by UV and high-performance liquid chromatography. GLE, G65, and G85 could inhibit cell proliferation, arrest cell cycle in G2/M phase, and induce apoptosis in two liver cancer cell lines (QGY7703 and SK-Hep1), of which G85 had the strongest effect. The results showed that the potency of their cytotoxicity of the high-pressure supercritical CO₂ extracts on human hepatoma carcinoma cells in vitro was consistent with their total triterpenoid content. G85 exhibited significant anti-hepatoma effect with low toxicity In vivo. Further mechanistic investigation revealed that the anti-tumor effect of these extracts was associated with their inhibition of Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK signaling pathway. Our findings suggest that the high-pressure supercritical CO₂ extraction of G. lucidum fruiting body can be used to obtain a triterpenoid-rich anti-tumor agent, which may have potential clinical significance for the treatment of human hepatoma.

Characterization and Inception of a Triterpenoid Astrakurkurol, as a Cytotoxic Molecule on Human Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells, Hep3B

Mushrooms are customary influential sources of pharmaceutically active metabolites. Usually lanostane-type triterpenoids from mushrooms had prospective for cancer disease treatments. Recently, a triterpenoid, astrakurkurol obtained from the fresh basidiocarps of the edible mushroom Astraeus hygrometricus, drew attention as a new cytotoxic therapeutic. The structural stability of this triterpenoid had been established with the amalgamation of density functional theory (DFT) calculations and study of single-crystal X-ray diffraction. To successfully manifest astrakurkurol as a potent cytotoxic therapeutics, a wide apprehension on the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying their action is prerequisite. On this account, our study was directed to scrutinize the influence of this triterpenoid on human hepatocellular cancer cell model Hep3B. Encapsulating all experimental facts revealed that astrakurkurol had significantly decreased cell viability in a concentration-dependent manner. This effect was unveiled to be apoptosis, documented by DNA fragmentation, chromatin condensation, nuclear shrinkage, membrane blebing, and imbalance of cell cycle distribution. Astrakurkurol persuaded the expression of death receptor associated proteins (Fas), which triggered caspase-8 activation following tBid cleavage. Moreover, tBid mediated ROS generation, which triggered mitochondrial dysfunction and activated the mitochondrial apoptotic events. Astrakurkurol cytotoxicity was based on caspase-8-mediated intrinsic apoptotic pathway and was associated with inhibition at Akt and NF-κB pathway. Astrakurkurol had also inhibited the migration of Hep3B cells, indicating its antimigratory potential. These findings led us to introduce astrakurkurol as a feasible and natural source for a safer cytotoxic drug against hepatocellular carcinoma.

Effect of medicinal mushrooms on blood cells under conditions of diabetes mellitus

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is the third most common non-infectious disease leading to early disability and high mortality. Moreover, the number of patients is growing every year. The main symptom of DM is hyperglycemia. Increased levels of blood glucose activate polyol, hexosamine, and protein kinase metabolic pathways cause the intensification of non-enzymatic glycosylation and nitration of macromolecules. This, in turn, leads to the development of oxidative and nitrative stresses and secondary complications, such as different kinds of micro- and macroangiopathies. Metabolic disorders caused by insulin deficiency in diabetes significantly impede the functioning of a homeostasis system, which change the physical, biochemical, morphological, and functional properties of blood cells. As a result, the oxygen-transport function of red blood cells (RBCs), rheological properties of the blood, and functions of immunocompetent cells as well as the process of apoptosis are primarily affected. Modern pharmacotherapy focuses on the search for new preparations that aim to decrease blood glucose levels. Undesirable side effects and adverse reactions caused by synthetic medicines led to the search and investigation of new preparations of natural origin. Medicinal mushrooms play an important role among such new preparations. They are a source of a large number of high- and low-molecular compounds with pronounced biological effects. Our investigations show pronounced hypoglycemic and anti-anemic action of submerged cultivated mycelium powder of medicinal mushrooms Agaricus brasiliensis (A. brasiliensis) and Ganoderma lucidum (G. lucidum) on streptozotocin-induced DM in rats. Also, we showed that mycelium powders have membrane protective properties as evidenced by the redistribution of RBC populations towards the growth of full functional cell numbers. Normalization of parameters of leukocyte formula and suppression of apoptosis of white blood cells in diabetic rats treated with A. brasiliensis and G. lucidum mycelia indicates pronounced positive effects of these strains of mushrooms. Thus, the use of medicinal mushrooms for treatment of DM and in prevention development of its secondary complications might be a new effective approach of this disease's cure. This article is aimed at summarizing and analyzing the literature data and basic achievements concerning DM type 1 treatment using medicinal mushrooms and showing the results obtained in our research.

Influence of extraction parameters on physico-chemical characters and antioxidant activity of water soluble polysaccharides from Macrocybe gigantea (Massee) Pegler & Lodge

Polysaccharides from mushrooms are potentially active pharmaceutical ingredients and their action is dependent upon conformation, composition, size etc. In this context, three water soluble crude polysaccharide rich fractions viz. hot water extracted polysaccharide (HWP), cold alkaline extracted polysaccharide (CAP) and hot alkaline extracted polysaccharide (HAP) have been isolated using varying extraction parameters from Macrocybe gigantea, a well-known edible mushroom collected from Gangetic plain of West Bengal and authenticated by DNA barcoding of nrDNA ITS region. Physico-chemical investigation revealed that the fractions were mainly composed of β-configuration in pyranose form of sugars conjugated with small amount of protein. Further analysis presented that polysaccharides were composed of same monosaccharide even in similar order of ratio (D-glucose > D-galactose > D-mannose > D-xylose). However, D-glucose as well as β-glucan were found to be in the highest amount in CAP. The helical structure was determined by Congo red assay which indicated that polysaccharides were in aggregate forms except HWP which consisted of tertiary structure. These diverse structural features may have imparted effect on free radical scavenging activity of polysaccharides where HWP was the most active in all assays. HWP was proved to be a good scavenger of free radicals, strong chelator of ferrous ion and had high reducing power. Thus it can be inferred that HWP may foster further studies for searching active compound which might be used as ingredients of functional foods, nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals. Moreover, to the best of our knowledge this is the first report on chemical composition and antioxidant activity of different crude polysaccharides from M. gigantea.