Pro-Health and Anti-Cancer Activity of Fungal Fractions Isolated from Milk-Supplemented Cultures of Lentinus (Pleurotus) Sajor-caju

Antioxidative and Antibacterial Hydro-Ethanolic Fraction from an Asian Edible Mushroom Lentinus sajor-caju (Agaricomycetes) Suppresses Inflammatory Responses by Downregulating COX-2 and iNOS Expression

Mushrooms are prevalently important sources of pharmaceutically active metabolites. Various mushroom species belonging to the Lentinus genus are recognized for their nutritional and therapeutic properties. One such species is L. sajor-caju, which is renowned in Southeast Asian nations for its culinary value. The primary goal of this study is to investigate the potential medicinal properties of L. sajor-caju, specifically its antioxidant, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory effects. A hydroethanolic extract was formulated using dried basidiocarps, which exhibited a high phenolic content of approximately 14% and a flavonoid content of approximately 2.7%. The extract demonstrated significant antioxidant potential in in vitro reactions. The extract is sufficiently capable of scavenging free radicals (DPPH and ABTS) and chelate Fe2+ with EC50 values spanning from 186 to 390 μg/mL. In addition, considerable antimicrobial activity against tested pathogenic microorganisms was observed, as indicated by low MIC50 values (256-358 μg/mL). Moreover, the fraction was found to prevent heat-induced protein denaturation which signifies its anti-inflammatory potential. When tested on the RAW 264.7 cell line, reduction in the nitrite production, and downregulation of COX-2 and iNOS mRNA expression was observed which are the key regulator of inflammatory signalling systems. The study, therefore, recommends the use of L. sajor-caju in the medical and pharmaceutical industries for the benefit of humanity.

Evaluating the role of polysaccharide extracted from Pleurotus columbinus on cisplatin-induced oxidative renal injury

This research aimed to examine the antioxidant polysaccharide activity (PsPc-3) derived from Pleurotus columbinus (P. columbinus) on oxidative renal injury (ORI) induced by cisplatin (CP). The principal components of crude polysaccharide were assessed. We studied the preventive impact of polysaccharide on cisplatin-induced renal damage in this study. For 21 days, we employed the CP-induced ORI rat model and divided the rats into four groups: control, CP alone, polysaccharide post CP (100 mg/kg) orally, and CP + polysaccharide (pre and post). The chemical characterization of the polysaccharide fraction PsPc-3 stated that protein was not present. PsPc-3 contained 7.2% uronic acid as assessed as 0% sulfate. PsPc-3 hydrolysate structured of Galacturonic:Glucose:Xylose and their molar proportions were 1:4:5, respectively. The average molecular weight (Mw) and molecular mass (Mn) per molecule of PsPc-3 were 5.49 × 10⁴ g/mol and Mn of 4.95 × 10⁴ g/mol respectively. DPPH radical scavenging activity was demonstrated by the polysaccharide of 65.21-95.51% at 10 mg/ml with IC50 less than 10 mg/ml. CP increased serum urea to 92.0 mg/dl and creatinine up to 1.0 mg/dl, with a concurrent decrease in the levels of total protein to 4.0 mg/dl. Besides, Also, CP-induced ORI raised levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and renal hormones (renin and aldosterone), with a decline in antioxidants compared to control rats. In addition, in the presence of CP, interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) levels increased. PsPc-3 decreased these changes dramatically. PsPc-3 improves pathological renal damage caused by CP and decreases tubular apoptosis measured by DNA ladder formation and cleaved caspase- 3. These findings showed that PsPc-3 isolated from P. columbinus protects and inhibits tubular apoptosis in cisplatin-induced ORI. Furthermore, PsPc-3 has no influence on the anticancer efficacy of CP in rats. Thus, PsPc-3 derived from P. columbinus might provide a novel therapy method for cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity.

Electric Cell-Substrate Impedance Sensing (ECIS) as a Convenient Tool to Assess the Potential of Low Molecular Fraction Derived from Medicinal Fungus Cerrena unicolor in Action on L929 and CT-26 Cell Lines

The increase in the incidence of cancer has contributed to the search for new therapeutic methods. In recent years, the use of preparations of natural origin from medical fungi has increased. One such active substance is the extracellular, low molecular active fraction obtained from the medicinal fungus Cerrena unicolor. This study aimed to monitor the pharmacokinetics of different concentrations of substances isolated from the medicinal fungus Cerrena unicolor (ex-LMS) using the ECIS technique. In the study, mouse L929 fibroblasts and colon cancer CT26 cell lines were treated with different concentrations of the active fractions obtained from Cerrena unicolor: C1 = 2.285 (μg/mL); C2 = 22.85 (μg/mL); and C3 = 228.5 (μg/mL). This study demonstrated that the tested preparation from Cerrena unicolor had no considerable effect on the resistance, capacitance, and impedance of L929 fibroblast cells, which was an indicator of no significant effect on its physiological processes. At the same time, those parameters exhibited a decrease in colon cancer cell viability. Following our previous and current studies on Cerrena unicolor, ex-LMS extracts can be safely used in anticancer therapy or chemoprevention with no significant harmful effects on normal cells.