A new oak mushroom cultivar ‘K815’ was bred from monokaryotic strains of ‘Jadam-2’ and ‘LE191732-118’. The optimal temperature for mycelial growth of ‘K815’ was 25oC, and the temperature for primordia formation and fruiting body development was 15~20oC. The fruiting body morphology is hemispherical and the fruiting form is sporadic. Total cultivation period of the new cultivar, from inoculation to its first harvest, was 133 days, which was 3 days longer than control cultivar ‘Jadam’ (129 days), with 32 days for spawn running, 89 days for browning, 4 days for primordia formation, and 8 days for fruiting body development. In the fruiting body, the thickness and diameter of pileus of the new cultivar were 32.2 mm and 58.3mm, respectively, and the length of stipe was 35.6 mm. Compared to the control cultivar ('Jadam', 'L808'), the pileus of the new cultivar was thicker and smaller and the length of stipe was shorter. The total number of fruiting bodies of ‘K815’ was 58.9, which was higher than the control varieties and total yield of 2 crop cycle of ‘K815’ was 580 g (per 3 kg substrate), which was similar to the control variety.

We investigated the anti-inflammatory effects of shiitake mushroom and kelp (SMK) mixture extracts in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated murine RAW 264.7 cells. Treatment of RAW 264.7 cells with LPS significantly increased NO (nitric oxide) production, pro-inflammatory cytokines (tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interferon (IFN)-γ, interleukin (IL)-6, and IL-1β), and inflammation-related genes (COX-2 and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS)). In cytotoxicity testing using RAW 264.7 cells, SMK mixture extracts in the range of 1-16 μg/mL did not inhibit cell proliferation. However, SMK mixture extracts significantly inhibited NO production in a dose-dependent manner (p<0.05). SMK treatment significantly decreased TNF-α, IL-6, IFN-γ, and IL-1β levels compared to the LPS group, and similarly, pro-inflammatory cytokine mRNA levels also decreased. SMK mixture extracts reduced the mRNA expression of COX-2 and iNOS in RAW 264.7 cells compared to LPS (p<0.05). The above results show that SMK mixture extracts suppressed the inflammatory response induced by LPS. In particular, the extracts were shown to regulate the inflammatory response by suppressing the expression of inflammatory cytokines and inflammation-related enzymes.

We aimed to develop outstanding domestic varieties suitable for both columnar and cylindrical-shape substrates, aiming to replace foreign varieties. and bred a high-quality new strain named ‘Charmjon’, using genetic resources collected from Japan and China. The optimal cultivation temperature for Charmjon’s mycelial growth was found to be 25°C, and its mycelial growth at 15°C and 25°C was superior to the control variety. In terms of mycelial growth characteristics based on the substrate, Charmjon exhibited excellent mycelial strength on PDA medium compared to the control variety. Through columnar and cylindrical-shape substrates cultivation, we assessed the quantity and morphological characteristics of the fruiting bodies. The results confirmed that Charmjon can be produced stably using both cultivation methods, and it showed higher yields and individual weights than the control variety. In addition, the color of the pileus was notably darker, and the shape of the pileus varied depending on the cultivation method. The test of genetic diversity revealed that Charmjon has distinct genetic characteristics compared to the control varieties.

This study was conducted to investigate the reasons for the decreased importation of fresh Shiitake mushrooms into Korea after implementation of the Korea–China Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Monthly time-series data from January 2009 to December 2022 were analyzed using regression analysis and vector autoregression (VAR) models to determine the relationship between the amounts of fresh and spawn Shiitake mushrooms imported. The analysis revealed that a major reason for the decreased importation of fresh Shiitake mushrooms was an increase in mushroom spawn imports after Korea–China FTA implementation. The same results were obtained from the VAR model analysis. However, in terms of the dynamic changes in amount of fresh shiitake mushrooms imported, it was confirmed that the impact of the change in mushroom spawn imports could increase the amount of Shiitake mushrooms imported.

The effects of punching treatment on mycelial culture and fruiting body productivity were investigated in a new Lentinula edodes cultivar, “Jadam”, in sawdust medium for the stable production of oak mushroom. As the punching volume and number increased, the weight loss rate and color difference increased and the L value decreased. After spawn inoculation, the sawdust medium temperature and CO2 concentration reached their highest values at 33 and 19 days of incubation, respectively. The O2 concentration showed the lowest value on the 14th day of incubation, which was the opposite pattern to the CO2 concentration. As the punching volume and the number increased, the medium temperature and O2 concentration increased, and the CO2 concentration decreased. Higher punching volumes and numbers resulted in higher temperatures and lower CO2 concentrations. The best fruiting body yield was 5 × 70 mm - 30 (punching diameter × depth - number), and the total yield after three cycles was 644.7 g.

A new spore-less cultivar Lentinula edodes ‘Daedam’ was bred from monokaryotic strains of ‘LE15401-24’ and ‘LE192118-10’. The optimum temperature for mycelial growth of ‘Daedam’ on potato dextrose agar was 22~25oC. Total cultivation period of the new cultivar, from inoculation to its first harvest, was 134 days, similar to that of the control cultivar ‘Hwadam’. Total yield of ‘Daedam’ was 222g per 3kg substrate, and was lower than that of control cultivar(266.0g). The fruiting body of ‘Daedam’ had a thick and small pileus and a longer stem compare to control cultivar. As a result of a analyzing the productivity of ‘Daedam’ on the different substrate types, the biological efficiency was 26.7% in the 1.2kg cylindrical substrate(CS), which was higher than that of the 3kg rod-type substrate(RS). 'Daedam' had a similar yield compared to 'Hanacham' in first fruiting body production, but the cultivation period was 40 days shorter. Therefore, 'Daedam' can only harvest fruiting bodies once, it is thought that it can be used as spore-less oak mushroom cultivar for short-term cultivation instead of 'Hanacham' in mushroom farms.

In this study, the growth characteristics of Lentinula edodes were confirmed by bean sprout waste(BW) as an alternative raw material for rice bran. The mycelium growth of Sanjo701, a major cultivation variety of L. edodes, was compared between a medium mixed with 8:2(v/v) of oak sawdust and a medium mixed with BW 50% and BW 100%. The mycelium growth in BW 50% was 13.5 cm. Compared to the control, BW 50% increased the diameter of the pileus by 1.6 cm. Additionally, the length of the pileus decreased by 0.4 cm when comparing the growth of the fruit body. In contrast, at BW 50%, the diameter of the pileus decreased by 9.6 cm and the length of the stipe decreased by 1.4 cm. According to analysis of the constituent amino acids, BW 50% showed a lower overall nutritional content than the control, whereas BW 100% had a lower amino acid content than the control. However, glutamic acid and aspartic acid, which are flavor-enhancing ingredients, were observed at levels of 3.954 mg/g and 1.436 mg/g, respectively, in BW 100%. Therefore, if bean sprout by-products are efficiently processed and utilized, it is believed that they will be beneficial to farmers as a substitute for rice bran and reduce the cost of manufacturing substrate

The objective of this study was to achieve biological control of green mold disease in Pyogo mushrooms using antagonistic microorganisms. Bacillus subtilis BSM320 cells inhibited mycelial growth by 48–60% against three Trichodermaisolates including T. hazianumisolated from the substrates of Lentinula edodes, showing their antifungal activity.The bacteria were cultured to a high density of 4.2 x 109±113.7 cfu/mlin aqueous extract of composted spent mushroom substrates of L. edodes containing 1% glucose and showed a higher growth rate than that observed when using the commercial medium, Luria-Bertani broth. The bacterial culture showed a 75% protective effect without damaging the mushroom fruiting bodies. These results suggest that B. subtilis BSM320culture is suitable for biological control of green mold disease during mushroom cultivation.

This study aimed to replace the imported Chinese complete medium for Lentinula edodes with a newly-developed complete medium that is suitable for export as well. Three media compositions that supported fast mycelium growth and higher density, compared to that in the control, were chosen. Culture in the T13 medium reduced the incubation period for ‘Nongjingo’ by 12 days and for ‘Cham-aram’ by 10 days, compared to that required for the control; in addition, the number of days required for browning was greatly reduced for both varieties. The quantity of each mixed medium was increased according to the composition from the 1st to the 5th cycle by 5.9% for ‘Nongjingo’ and 12.6% for ‘Cham-aram’ in T13, compared to that in the control. A mixed medium comprising oak sawdust + Douglas fir sawdust + corn flour (40:40:20, v/v) was selected as the most suitable complete medium.