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Lentinan
Lentinan is a polysaccharide isolated from the fruit body of shiitake mushroom (''Lentinula edodes'' mycelium). Chemistry Lentinan is a β-1,3 beta-glucan with β-1,6 branching. It has a molecular weight of 500,000 Da and specific rotation of +14-22° (NaOH). Research Preclinical studies An ''in vitro'' experiment showed lentinan stimulated production of white blood cells in the human cell line U937. Lentinan is thought to be inactive in humans when given orally and is therefore administered intravenously. The authors of an ''in vivo'' study of lentinan suggested that the compound may be active when administered orally in mice. Human clinical trials Lentinan has been the subject of a limited number of clinical studies in cancer patients in Japan; however, evidence of efficacy is lacking. Adverse effects Lentinan has been reported to cause shiitake mushroom dermatitis. See also *Medicinal mushrooms Medicinal fungi are fungi that contain metabolites or can be induced to produc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Medicinal Mushrooms
Medicinal fungi are fungi that contain metabolites or can be induced to produce metabolites through biotechnology to develop prescription drugs. Compounds successfully developed into drugs or under research include antibiotics, anti-cancer drugs, cholesterol and ergosterol synthesis inhibitors, psychotropic drugs, immunosuppressants and fungicides. History Although fungi products have long been used in traditional medicine, the ability to identify beneficial properties and then extract the active ingredient started with the discovery of penicillin by Alexander Fleming in 1928. Since that time, many potential antibiotics were discovered and the potential for various fungi to synthesize biologically active molecules useful in various clinical therapies has been under research. Pharmacological research identified antifungal, antiviral, and antiprotozoan compounds from fungi. '' Ganoderma lucidum'', known in Chinese as líng zhī ("spirit plant"), and in Japanese as mannentake ("10 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shiitake
The shiitake (alternate form shitake) (; ''Lentinula edodes'') is an edible mushroom native to East Asia, which is now cultivated and consumed around the globe. It is considered a medicinal mushroom in some forms of traditional medicine. Taxonomy and naming The fungus was first described scientifically as ''Agaricus edodes'' by Miles Joseph Berkeley in 1877. It was placed in the genus ''Lentinula'' by David Pegler in 1976. The fungus has acquired an extensive synonymy in its taxonomic history: *''Agaricus edodes'' Berk. (1878) *''Armillaria edodes'' (Berk.) Sacc. (1887) *''Mastoleucomychelloes edodes'' (Berk.) Kuntze (1891) *''Cortinellus edodes'' (Berk.) S.Ito & S.Imai (1938) *''Lentinus edodes'' (Berk.) Singer (1941) *''Collybia shiitake'' J.Schröt. (1886) *''Lepiota shiitake'' (J.Schröt.) Nobuj. Tanaka (1889) *''Cortinellus shiitake'' (J.Schröt.) Henn. (1899) *''Tricholoma shiitake'' (J.Schröt.) Lloyd (1918) *''Lentinus shiitake'' (J.Schröt.) Singer (1936) *''Lentinu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shiitake Mushroom Dermatitis
Shiitake mushroom dermatitis is an intensely pruritic dermatitis characterized by disseminated 1mm erythematous micropapules seen in a linear grouped arrangement secondary to Koebnerization due to patient scratching. It is caused by the ingestion of shiitake mushrooms and was first described in 1977 by Nakamura. Although it is rarely seen outside of China and Japan due to a lower incidence of shiitake consumption outside these regions, there is a well-established association between flagellate dermatitis and shiitake mushroom (Lentinula edodes) ingestion. Bleomycin ingestion may also cause similar findings. On physical exam, one key difference between the two is that post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation changes are usually seen with bleomycin-induced flagellate dermatitis and are not typically present with shiitake mushroom induced flagellate dermatitis. The median time of onset from ingestion of shiitake mushrooms is typically 24 hours, ranging from 12 hours to 5 days. Most patie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Polysaccharide
Polysaccharides (), or polycarbohydrates, are the most abundant carbohydrates found in food. They are long chain polymeric carbohydrates composed of monosaccharide units bound together by glycosidic linkages. This carbohydrate can react with water (hydrolysis) using amylase enzymes as catalyst, which produces constituent sugars (monosaccharides, or oligosaccharides). They range in structure from linear to highly branched. Examples include storage polysaccharides such as starch, glycogen and galactogen and structural polysaccharides such as cellulose and chitin. Polysaccharides are often quite heterogeneous, containing slight modifications of the repeating unit. Depending on the structure, these macromolecules can have distinct properties from their monosaccharide building blocks. They may be amorphous or even insoluble in water. When all the monosaccharides in a polysaccharide are the same type, the polysaccharide is called a homopolysaccharide or homoglycan, but when more t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fruit Body
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the Ovary (plants), ovary after flowering plant, flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propagated using the movements of humans and animals in a Symbiosis, symbiotic relationship that is the means for seed dispersal for the one group and nutrition for the other; in fact, humans and many animals have become dependent on fruits as a source of food. Consequently, fruits account for a substantial fraction of the world's agriculture, agricultural output, and some (such as the apple and the pomegranate) have acquired extensive cultural and symbolic meanings. In common language usage, "fruit" normally means the seed-associated fleshy structures (or produce) of plants that typically are sweet or sour and edible in the raw state, such as apples, bananas, grapes, lemons, Orange (fruit), ora ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mycelium
Mycelium (plural mycelia) is a root-like structure of a fungus consisting of a mass of branching, thread-like hyphae. Fungal colonies composed of mycelium are found in and on soil and many other substrate (biology), substrates. A typical single spore germinates into a Monokaryon, monokaryotic mycelium, which cannot reproduce sexually; when two compatible monokaryotic mycelia join and form a dikaryotic mycelium, that mycelium may form sporocarp (fungi), fruiting bodies such as mushrooms. A mycelium may be minute, forming a colony that is too small to see, or may grow to span thousands of acres as in ''Armillaria''. Through the mycelium, a fungus absorbs nutrients from its environment. It does this in a two-stage process. First, the hyphae secrete enzymes onto or into the food source, which break down biopolymers, biological polymers into smaller units such as monomers. These monomers are then absorbed into the mycelium by facilitated diffusion and active transport. Mycelia are v ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beta-glucan
Beta-glucans, β-glucans comprise a group of β-D-glucose polysaccharides ( glucans) naturally occurring in the cell walls of cereals, bacteria, and fungi, with significantly differing physicochemical properties dependent on source. Typically, β-glucans form a linear backbone with 1–3 β-glycosidic bonds but vary with respect to molecular mass, solubility, viscosity, branching structure, and gelation properties, causing diverse physiological effects in animals. At dietary intake levels of at least 3 g per day, oat fiber β-glucan decreases blood levels of LDL cholesterol and so may reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases. β-glucans are natural gums and are used as texturing agents in various nutraceutical and cosmetic products, and as soluble fiber supplements. History Cereal and fungal products have been used for centuries for medicinal and cosmetic purposes; however, the specific role of β-glucan was not explored until the 20th century. β-glucans were first discov ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
In Vitro
''In vitro'' (meaning in glass, or ''in the glass'') studies are performed with microorganisms, cells, or biological molecules outside their normal biological context. Colloquially called "test-tube experiments", these studies in biology and its subdisciplines are traditionally done in labware such as test tubes, flasks, Petri dishes, and microtiter plates. Studies conducted using components of an organism that have been isolated from their usual biological surroundings permit a more detailed or more convenient analysis than can be done with whole organisms; however, results obtained from ''in vitro'' experiments may not fully or accurately predict the effects on a whole organism. In contrast to ''in vitro'' experiments, ''in vivo'' studies are those conducted in living organisms, including humans, and whole plants. Definition ''In vitro'' ( la, in glass; often not italicized in English usage) studies are conducted using components of an organism that have been isolated fro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
U937 Cells
U-937 cells are a pro-monocytic model cell line used in biomedical research. They were isolated from the histiocytic lymphoma of a 37-year-old male patient in 1974. Due to the relative uniformity of expanded cultures and lower maintance requirements these cells have been since used as an important tool for studying phagocyte differentiation and different kinds of cell-to-cell interactions. U-937 cells mature and differentiate in response to a number of soluble stimuli, adopting the morphology and characteristics of monocytes, macrophages or dendritic cells. U-937 cells are of myeloid lineage and thus secrete a large number of cytokines and chemokines either constitutively (e.g. IL-1 and GM-CSF) or in response to soluble stimuli. TNFα and recombinant GM-CSF for example independently promote IL-10 production in U937 cells. This cell line is therefore widely used for cytokine level read-outs as a result of exposure to various chemical compounds. Namely, production of IL-1β, IL-6, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
In Vivo
Studies that are ''in vivo'' (Latin for "within the living"; often not italicized in English) are those in which the effects of various biological entities are tested on whole, living organisms or cells, usually animals, including humans, and plants, as opposed to a tissue extract or dead organism. This is not to be confused with experiments done ''in vitro'' ("within the glass"), i.e., in a laboratory environment using test tubes, Petri dishes, etc. Examples of investigations ''in vivo'' include: the pathogenesis of disease by comparing the effects of bacterial infection with the effects of purified bacterial toxins; the development of non-antibiotics, antiviral drugs, and new drugs generally; and new surgical procedures. Consequently, animal testing and clinical trials are major elements of ''in vivo'' research. ''In vivo'' testing is often employed over ''in vitro'' because it is better suited for observing the overall effects of an experiment on a living subject. In dr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Efficacy
Efficacy is the ability to perform a task to a satisfactory or expected degree. The word comes from the same roots as ''effectiveness'', and it has often been used synonymously, although in pharmacology a pragmatic clinical trial#Efficacy versus effectiveness, distinction is now often made between efficacy and effectiveness. The word ''efficacy'' is used in pharmacology and medicine to refer both to the maximum response achievable from a pharmaceutical drug in research settings, and to the capacity for sufficient therapeutic effect or beneficial change in clinical settings. Pharmacology In pharmacology, efficacy () is the maximum response achievable from an applied or dosed agent, for instance, a small molecule drug. Intrinsic activity is a relative term for a drug's efficacy relative to a drug with the highest observed efficacy. It is a purely descriptive term that has little or no mechanistic interpretation. In order for a drug to have an effect, it needs to bind to its t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
WebMD
WebMD is an American corporation known primarily as an online publisher of news and information pertaining to human health and well-being. The site includes information pertaining to drugs. It is one of the top healthcare websites. It was founded in 1998 by internet entrepreneur Jeff Arnold. In early 1999, it was part of a three way merger with Sapient Health Network (SHN) and Direct Medical Knowledge (DMK). SHN began in Portland, Oregon, in 1996 by Jim Kean, Bill Kelly, and Kris Nybakken, who worked together at a CD-ROM publishing firm, Creative Multimedia. Later in 1999, WebMD merged with Healtheon, founded by Netscape Communications founder James H. Clark. Traffic During March 2020, WebMD's network of websites reached more unique visitors each month than any other leading private or government healthcare website, making it the leading health publisher in the United States. In the fourth quarter of 2016, WebMD recorded an average of 179.5 million unique users per month, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
