Although Agaricus bisporus mushroom is a popular mushroom consumed world-widely, the application of common bio-elements to verify its geographical origin remains highly limited. Therefore, this study aimed to verify whether the six cultivation regions in Korea of A. bisporus could be determined by the stable isotope composition analysis of bio-elements, which are unique and abundant in most living creatures. δ13C, δ15N, δ18O, and δ34S in A. bisporus were influenced by the region, cultivar, and the interactions between these two factors (P < 0.05). In particular, the effect of cultivation region was more significant to the isotope ratio profiles as compared to the mushroom cultivar effect. During the cultivation period of A. bisporus, the C, N, O, and S isotopic fractionation was observed between the mushroom and cultivation medium, note higher in the mushroom (P < 0.05). Two dimensional plot of δ15N, δ18O, or δ34S effectively distinguished the cultivation regions, Nonsan, Buyeo, Boryung, Daegu, and/or Gyeongju examined in this study. Further, these isotope ratio profiles measured in this study would be statistically analyzed with various chemometrics to provide isotope markers for the authenticity of geographical origin. Our preliminary case study improves our understanding of how the isotope composition of A. bisporus varies with respect to cultivation regions and cultivars. In conclusion, the analysis of stable isotope ratios is a suitable potential tool for discrimination between the cultivation origins of A. bisporus collected from Korea, with potential application to other countries after certain validation steps required.

Button mushroom is one of the popular agricultural products and it is cultivated in 70 countries. It has been cultivated more than 50 years in Korea because it is applied many Korean dishes as nutritional foods. The screening criterion for qualities of button mushroom is very strict and difficult for passing evaluation in Korea; therefore, the mushroom growers are burdened with difficulty in production and consumption in price as well. In this study, the contents of crude fat, fiber, ash, and protein were analyzed in three different qualities of button mushroom as normal, immature, and developed button mushrooms. The contents of crude fat, fiber, ash, and protein were 0.21% 8.68% 0.79% and 2.22% normal product, 0.23% 8.95% 0.86% and 2.41% in immature product, and 0.22% 7.79% 0.82% and 2.22% in developed product, respectively. There was no significant difference in basic nutritional values among the products. Therefore, it is expected that will be loosened the screen criterion of button mushroom, and the producers of button mushroom will be more economically benefits for production as well as the mushroom consumers are more economically consumption for button mushroom by reasonable price.

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether or not the antler-shaped fruiting body of Ganoderma lucidum (GL) has an anti-inflammatory effect on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)/interferon-γ (IFN-γ)-activated RAW 264.7 macrophage-like cells. To evaluate the anti-inflammatory effects of GL, we examined the inflammatory mediators such as the production of nitric oxide (NO) and the expression of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), activator protein 1 (AP-1), inducible NO synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and interleukin-6 (IL-6). LPS/IFN-γ-induced cellular NO production was significantly decreased in GL-treated RAW 264.7 cells. Moreover, Western blotting analysis results demonstrated that reduced protein expression of MAPK families (such as extracellular signal-regulated kinase, c-Jun amino-terminal kinase, and p38 MAPK) and AP-1-targeting inflammatory enzymes (iNOS, COX-2, IL-1β, and IL-6). These results indicated that GL modulates the MAPK/AP-1 signal pathway in inflammatory process. In conclusion, the present study provides important evidence that GL can potentially be used to reduce LPS/IFN-γ-induced inflammatory response by inhibiting the MAPK/AP-1 signaling pathways.

Ganoderma lucidum has been reported to have various biological activities including antioxidant activity. The objective of this study was to compare the antioxidant effects between Ganoderma lucidum (GL) and antler-shaped fruiting body of Ganoderma lucidum (AGL). In vitro antioxidant activities were examined by 2,2-diphenyl-picrylhydrazyl hydrate (DPPH) and 1,2,2-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) radical scavenging activities of GL and AGL ethanol extracts. In the DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activities of GL and AGL ethanol extracts, antioxidant activities of AGL extracts (IC50, 66.94 μg/ml and 131.23 μg/ml) was showed higher than GL extracts (IC50, 83.93 μg/ml and 164.54 μg/ml). Total polyphenol content and total flavonoid content (38.00 g GAE/kg extract and 11.58 g NE/kg extract) of AGL were found higher as compared to GL (34.23 g GAE/kg extract and 3.46 g NE/kg extract). In summary, the results of this study demonstrate that AGL extracts had higher antioxidant activities to GL.

Suillus granulatus is an ectomycorrhizal fungus that is associated with pine roots. S. granulatus is edible mushroom and known as the weeping bolete. S. granulatus is similar to S. luteus, but S. granulatus has a ringless stalk. We investigated in the growth characteristics of the 4 strains of S. granulatus with growth medium, temperature, and cellulase enzyme activities. NIFoS 1211 and 2701 showed the highest growth on PDA and NIFoS 1997 produced abundant mycelia on MMN. NIFoS 2615 was grown well on SDA. In spite of same species, the optimal media were different according to habitat of fruit body. The optimal temperature for mycelial growth of all strains was 25oC and NIFoS 2615 was also grown well at 30oC. All of strains on MMN liquid medium were typically grown at pH ranges from 5.8 to 6.2. The dry weights of S. granulatus strains were measured according to different inorganic nitrogen sources. All strains showed the highest dry weight on MMN and showed little difference on none contained nitrogen source, ammonium and nitrate media. We measured cellulase activity on carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) agar plates, and determined clear zone according to pHs. The 4 strains of S. granulatus showed the positive reactions in cellulase activity. All strains formed the height clear zone at pH 6.

Diets rich in flavonoid-containing foods are sometimes associated with cancer, neurodegenerative and cardiovascular disease prevention. β-glucan, one of the most important bioactive compounds in medicinal mushrooms, is used to boost the immune system, diabetes and cancer. In this study, we aimed to determine the content of two flavonoid compounds (naringenin and naringin) and β-glucan in Flammulina velutipes and Flammulina velutipe-gold strain. The naringenin, naringin, and β-glucan components from the Flammulina velutipes and Flammulina velutipe-gold strain were measured by the HPLC analysis. As a result, the contents of naringenin, naringin, and β-glucan were found to be much higher in Flammulina velutipe-gold strain than Flammulina velutipe. From the above results, we may suggest that Flammulina velutipe-gold strain might have useful as a material for functional food and pharmaceutics fir the pathological process of various human diseases.

β-glucan is a safe and highly potent biological response modifier that nutritionally activates the immune response through the Macrophage, Dendritic and additional immune cells to yield various therapeutic effects. Shiitake mushrooms (Lentinula edodes) contanining β-glucans may be beneficial for human health; they have been used in the treatment of cancer, hypertension, and high cholesterol levels. The effect of different substrates and various developmental stages (mycelium growth, primordium appearance, and fruiting-body formation) on β-glucan production in the edible mushroom L. edodes was studied. The cap of the mature mushroom showed the highest β-glucan activity, and β-glucan activity seemed to be influenced somewhat by some well-known inducers or sawdust. In this study, we utilized five strains (JMI 10022, 10036, 10077, 10079, 10080) of L. edodes regardless of origin and growth conditions. This experiment showed that the expression of β-glucan was induced by glucose bond, and increased with the growing of L. edodes. Quantitatively, reverse transcription PCR utilized pairs of primers specific for β-glucan gene expression shows that expressed genes were most commonly indentified during the process of fruiting-body formation. We suggest that the results will provide valuable information to assist L. edodes industry.

Lentinula edodes, a member of the Pleurotaceae, is a blood pressure and cholesterol lowering effect. Recently, research the reduction of irritation and the enhancement of function have been cultivation of natural resources using mushroom mycelium. For the development of food fermented with L. edodes mycelium of natural medicinal herb remnants, determined to be 20%, and the product were used after lyophilization. In this study, we were analyzed the contents of β-glucan and amino acids of fermented herb remnants by L. edoeds mycelials. β -Glucan is a type of polysaccharide that has immune-enhancing and is known to inhibit cancer cells. The content of β-glucan and total amino acids of fermented herb remnants by L. edoeds mycelials were 35.13% and 8,697.36 mg%, respectively. The content of essential amino acid from fermented herb remnants by L. edoeds mycelials was 3,226.85 mg%. Collectively, our findings suggest that fermented herb remnants by L. edoeds mycelials extract could be used as an chemo-preventive material for consumers.

The culture filtrate of Lentinula edodes showed potent antimicrobial activity against the plant pathogenic bacteria and fungi. To purify antibacterial compound, the culture filtrate was subjected to Octadecyl-silica (ODS) column chromatography and was eluted with different concentrations from 5 to 100% methanol and each 50 μL aliquot of the methanol elutes did not show antimicrobial effect on the bacteria, but the water fraction that passed through the column maintained antibacterial activity on the bacteria. The pH of the passed fraction was 3.9, speculating the low pH can be caused by an organic acid. Qualitative analyses of organic acids from culture filtrate of L. edodes were carried out by high-performance liquid chromatography(HPLC). Nine organic acids including oxalic acid, phytic acid, malonic acid, and fumaric acid were identified and oxalic acid was a dominant component in culture filtrate of L. edodes and it made up 50% from HPLC analysis data. Oxalic acid concentrations over 300mg/L exhibited antimicrobial activities on eight phytopathogenic bacteria and different fungi. The quantitative analysis by HPLC revealed that the content of oxalic acid was more highly detected in water extract from spent mushroom substrate than that of liquid culture.

The purpose of this study was to expand the utility of the Polygonum multiflorum. Also, we fermented P. multiflorum by mushroom mycelial, and analyzed for chemical compositions and biological active of fermented P. multiflorum root. The crude protein content did not show a significant difference between control and fermented P. multiflorum root, crude fat, ash and crude fiber content of fermented P. multiflorum root were lower than control. The content of soluble nitrogen free extract of P. multiflorum root was significantly higher than fermented P. multiflorum root. The major amino acids of P. multiflorum root were determined the arginine. The content of arginine and glutamic acid were 586.67 mg%, and 283.78 mg%, respectively. Sixteen kinds of amino acids were detected in fermented P. multiflorum root, and the major amino acids were determined the arginine and threonine. The total amino acid contents of control and fermented P. multiflorum root were 3,469.03 mg%, and 3,630 mg%, respectively. As the results of antioxidant activity test, the antioxidant capacity of fermented P. multiflorum had a higher than the control. As the mushroom fermentation progresses, it is confirmed that the amino acid content and antioxidant capacity were increased, and it is expected to develop the product using the fermented P. multiflorum using mushroom mycelials.

The purpose of this study was to understand the effects of mushroom occurrence by forest thinning in the Pinus koraiensis stand. The leaf area index, air temperature and relative humidity, soil water content, and amount of throughfall were measured in the P. koraiensis stand. The more throughfall of 72 mm / year and about 1 °C higher soil temperature were observed in the P. koraiensis stand than non-treatment stand. Relative humidity and soil water content were positively correlated with the occurrence of mushrooms in the P. koraiensis stand. The correlation coefficient of throughfall and ectomycorrhizal mushrooms was 0.93 in the thinned stand of P. koraiensis. 6 less species of ectomycorrhizal mushrooms and 7 more species of saprophytic mushrooms were observed in the thinned stand than in the non-treatment stand of P. koraiensis. Suillus pictus, an ectomycorrhizal mushroom, was found in a distribution of 100 pieces in the non-treatment stand and 69 pieces in the thinned stand of P. koraiensis. But the species diversity index of ectomycorrhizal mushrooms was 0.823 in the non-treatment stand and 0.911 in the thinned stand of P. koraiensis. In conclusion, forest thinning increased throughfall by decreased crown density. Accordingly it increased the number of ectomycorrhizal mushrooms. An increase of felled trees in the forest thinned sites caused an increase of saprophytic mushrooms.

Polygonum multiflorum (Polygonaceae family) is effective to cholesterol lowering effect, increased immunity effect and whitening effect. P. multiflorum root is used for medicinal herb that can be used as raw material for food. In this study, acetic acid fermentation was adding extracts of P. multiflorum root (0%, 1%, 3%, 5%) for the developing healthy beverage. In this study, we investigated the contents of free sugars, organic acids and inorganic components of P. multiflorum root. As a result of free sugars from P. multiflorum root analysis, three kind of free sugars were determined the glucose, sucrose and lactose by HPLC. Four kind of organic acids were found in lactic acid fermented P. multiflorum root. And oxalic acid, lactic acid and succinic acid were detected in organic acids. The content of lactose and lactic acid in lactic acid fermented P. multiflorum root was the highest among the free sugars and organic acids. The content of minerals were in high orders of sodium > calcium > magnesium in P. multiflorum by acetic acid fermentation. The content of inorganic components was highest in lactic acid fermented solution with 5% and proportional to the content of P. multiflorum

The antioxidant and antitumor properties of natural products, often recognized in traditional medicine systems, represent therapeutic modalities to reduce or prevent uncontrolled oxidation processes which in turn potentially ameliorate or tumor based symptoms of chronic diseases. We have studied the antioxidant and antitumor effects of Amanita muscaria (A. muscaria) in vitro and examined whether the A. muscaria has synergistic effects on antioxidant and antitumor properties. Although A. muscaria induced a dose-dependent increase in antioxidant activity, the latter has a consistently higher antioxidant effect. In mouse monocytes, the lipopolysaccharide- (LPS-) induced tumor necrosis- (TNF-) synthesis was significantly inhibited by A. muscaria in a dose dependent manner and synergistic effects were clearly demonstrated with the A. muscaria on TNF- inhibition. A. muscaria effect was also evident on inhibition of nuclear factor-kappa B activity, cyclooxygenase-II activity, and lipid peroxidation in mouse monocytes. This presented results may be a starting point for a comprehensive characterization of biological effects of A. muscaria.

Mushrooms have been valued as a traditional source of natural bioactive compounds for centuries and have recently been exploited for potential components in cosmetics industry. Numerous mushrooms and their ingredients have been known to be beneficial to the skin and hair. The representative ingredients are as follows: phenolics, polyphenolics, terpenoids, selenium, polysaccharides, vitamins and volatile organic compounds. These compounds show excellent antioxidant, anti-aging, anti-wrinkle, skin whitening, and moisturizing effects which make them ideal candidates for cosmetics products. This review provides some perspectives of mushrooms (and/or extracts) and their ingredients presently used, or patented to be used, in both cosmeceuticals for topical administration and nutricosmetics for oral administration. With the small percentage of mushrooms presently identified and utilized, more mushroom species will be discovered, verified, and cultivated in the future, boosting the development of relevant industry. Combining with progress in genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and systems pharmacology, mushrooms can find their way into cosmetics with multiple approaches.

Mushrooms have antioxidant, antitumor and antimicrobial activities, so they and their extracts including purified ingredients are being used as a great source of functional food, drugs and especially nutraceuticals. They have many bioactive compounds such as polysaccharides (mainly β-glucans), glycoproteins, nucleotide analogs, terpenoids and polyphenols. These compounds have biological activities such as anti-cancer, anti-viral, anti-obesity, immunomodulating activity and etc. In this review, we discussed the current bioactivity information related to 10 famous mushrooms in Korea. Mushrooms and active compounds derived from mushrooms were summarized as well as mushroom products such as foods, functional foods, and medicines. It can provide good information for scientists and customers who want to develop a new product and to promote health and life quality.

Food fortification is defined as the addition of nutrients at levels higher than those found in the original food to improve nutritional quality. Oyster mushrooms generally contain low calcium. This present study focused on the Ca absorption efficacy of Pleurotus florida using eggshell powder, oyster shell powder and agricultural lime. Various concentrations (0%, 2%, 4%, 6%, 8% and 10%) of different calcium sources were added to the rice straw – based formulation. Duration of days from inoculation to mycelial colonization, primordial formation, fruiting body development were evaluated. Furthermore, the effect of Ca sources on the total yield and biological efficiency were also noted. Results revealed that addition of Ca sources on the formulated substrates generally lengthens time of mycelial ramification, primordial formation and fruiting body development. ESP-supplemented substrate generally increased the size of the cap but not greatly affected the stipe length and diameter of the fruiting bodies. On the other hand, the influence of addition of OSP increases cap size but decreases stipe length and diameter. Finally, for the incorporation of AGL, it was observed that size of cap of the fruiting bodies generally decreased in size, shortened the stipe and influence of AGL to the stipe diameter may vary depending on the concentration. Moreover, Ca supplementation increases the yield, biological efficiency and Ca content of P. florida. The highest yield from the substrate supplemented with eggshell powder was recorded at 8% concentration with 194.80g and biological efficiency of 36.26%. Substrate with 8% oyster shell powder resulted with the highest yield of 176.80g with biological efficiency of 33.92%. For agricultural lime supplemented substrate, the highest yield was observed in 6% concentration with 186.40g and biological efficiency of 35.51%. Optimum Ca content absorbed by P. florida was recorded in 6% ESP (140mg/100g dried sample), 10% OSP (105mg/100g dried sample) and 8% AGL (170mg/100g dried sample). These findings imply that addition of Ca on rice straw-based substrate can significantly improve yield, biological efficiency, and Ca content of the fruiting bodies.

This study was conducted to investigation species of microbes collected form SMS(spent mushroom substrate) of oyster mushroom. SMS samples were collected from two farms and mushroom research Institute in Gyeonggi-Do. 52 microbial isolates form SMS of oyster mushroom were collected. 24 of these isolates identified Bacillus sp. By using 16s rDNA. Among the isolates, Bacillus sp. was the most abundant with 46% of total isolates, followed by Lactococcus sp. with 20% and Saccharomycetales contained Galactomyces sp. with 19%. To define the optimum conditions for the cell mass of major isolates collected from SMS of oyster mushroom, we have investigated optimum culture condition such as pH, temperature, and incubation time. Optimum initial pH, temperature and incubation time of Bacillus sp. were determined as pH 6.0, 25°C and 48 hours, respectively. In the Lactococcus sp, optimum initial pH 6.0, optimum initial temperature 35°C and optimum growth period 48 hours. Optimum initial conditions of Saccharomycetales were investigated as pH 7.0, temperature 25°C and growth period 36 hours, respectively.

This study was carried out to develop the technology to manage the growth management of mushroom which was cultivated by long-term knowledge based on the quantified data. In this study, it was developed hardware to monitor and control the growth environment of mushroom cultivation house and an algorithm to automatically grow mushroom. Environmental management for the growth of mushrooms was made possible by cultivation sites, computers and smart phones. In order to manage the environment of mushroom cultivation house, environmental management data of farmers cultivating the highest quality mushrooms in Korea was collected, and a growth management database was created based on the collected data. The management environment for the mushroom cultivation was controlled at ±0.5 °C for temperature, 7 % for upper limit and 3 % for lower limit for relative humidity, and ±10% level for carbon dioxide concentration based on database value. As a result of cultivating mushrooms in such an environment, it was possible to produce mushrooms at almost the same level as those cultivated in farms with the best technology. Therefore, it was considered that the environmental management of the mushroom house managed by the technology based on the long experience could be managed based on the sensor data.

Light is a necessary environmental factor for stroma formation and development of Cordyceps militaris, a well-known edible and medicinal fungus. In this study, photo morphogenesis and the blue-light receptor gene were studied using five representative strains of C. militaris. The results suggest that light was essential for colony pigmentation and could promote conidia production. Cmwc-1 gene inactivation results in thicker aerial hyphae, disordered fruit body development, a significant reduction in conidial formation, and carotenoid and cordycepin production. These characteristics were restored when the ΔCmwc-1 strains were hybridized with wild-type strains of the opposite mating type. A genomewide expression analysis revealed that there were 1042 light responsive genes in the wild-type strain and only 458 in the ΔCmwc-1 strain. Among five putative photoreceptors identified, Vivid, cryptochrome-1, and cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer photolyase are strongly induced by light in a Cmwc-1- dependent manner, while phytochrome and cryptochrome-2 were not induced. The transcription factors involved in the fungal light reaction were mainly of the Zn2Cys6 type. CmWC-1 regulates adenylosuccinate synthase, an important enzyme for adenosine de novo synthesis, which could explain the reduction in cordycepin production. Some G proteincoupled receptors that control fungal fruit body formation and the sexual cycle were regulated by CmWC-1, and the cAMP pathway involved in light signal transduction in N. crassa was not critical for the photoreaction in the fungus here. A transcriptional analysis indicated that steroid biosynthesis was more active in the ΔCmwc-1 strain, suggesting that CmWC-1 might switch the vegetative growth state to primordia differentiation by suppressing the expression of related genes.

Auricularia polytricha has strong decomposition ability on wood fiber and a wide range of temperature adaptation as mid-high temperature mushroom. In addition, Auricularia polytricha does not require light in the mycelial growth period, but it is cultivated in the field because the light promotes the differentiation of fruiting bodies and affects the pigment formation. This study was conducted to investigate the possibility of the cultivation of Auricularia polytricha (Mont.) Sacc. "Geoni" which was bred at Jeonnam Agricultural Research Institute in 2012 at a simple-typed PE film mushroom house, and to compare the quality characteristics of the Auricularia polytricha (Mont.) Sacc. "Geoni" cultivated at air-conditioned mushroom house. Auricularia polytricha (Mont.) Sacc. "Geoni" was cultivated with sawdust-based media (0.9 kg) every 3 days from June 15 to July 13 at air-conditioned mushroom house and PE film mushroom house, and harvested until July 26th. The temperature and the humidity of the air-conditioned mushroom house was maintained at 23°C and 90-9 %. The Irrigation was conducted 1 time per day and 2 to 3 times per day at air-conditioned mushroom house and PE film mushroom house respectively. The harvesting period were the same for each treatment. The fruiting body was 6.0 ㎝ and 5.1 ㎝ in major axis and 4.6 ㎝ and 4.0 ㎝ in minor axis at PE film mushroom house and air-conditioned mushroom house respectively, as a result the size of the fruiting body grown at PE film mushroom house tended to be larger. The thickness of fruiting body was 0.85㎜ and 1.24㎜ at PE film mushroom house and air-conditioned mushroom house respectively. These results are considered to be due to the difference in the humidity control conditions between each treatment. The number of fruiting bodies per bag was 4.3 at PE film mushroom house and more tendency than 3.7 at air-conditioned mushroom house. The springiness of the fruiting body was 1.23 ± 0.21 and 1.01 ± 0.17. the chewiness was 620 ± 89 and 507 ± 128, and the resilience was 0.49 ± 0.03 and 0.35 ± 0.07 at PE film mushroom house and air-conditioned mushroom house respectively. As a whole, it was judged that the physical properties of the fruiting body grown at PE film mushroom house were excellent. Also, when comparing the chromaticity of fruiting body, L(lightness)-a(red color)-b(yellow color) value was 30-5.5-3.9 and 39-6.5-7.5 at PE film mushroom house and air-conditioned mushroom house respectively. The yields did not show differentiated tendency by cultivation time. However, the weight of fruiting body per bag was 308g and 252g at PE film mushroom house and air-conditioned mushroom house respectively. Therefore, according to these result, Auricularia polytricha (Mont.) Sacc. "Geoni" was judged to be a suitable cultivar at PE film mushroom house for summer.