''Polyozellus multiplex'' is a species of fungus first described in 1899, and is commonly known as the blue chanterelle, the clustered blue chanterelle, or, in

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...

, the black chanterelle. The distinctive

fruit body In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

of this species comprises blue- to purple-colored clusters of vase- or spoon-shaped

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Ja ...

with veiny wrinkles on the undersurface that run down the length of the stem. It was considered the monotypic species of ''Polyozellus'' until recent molecular work split the species complex into five species. The genus name is derived from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

''poly'' meaning ''many'', and ''oz'', meaning ''branch''. The specific epithet ''multiplex'' means "in many pieces", referring to the compound nature of the fruit body. ''P. multiplex'' may be found growing on the ground in

coniferous forests Conifers are a group of cone-bearing seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single extant class, Pinopsida. All exta ...

, usually under spruce and fir trees. It is an

edible An edible item is any item that is safe for humans to eat. "Edible" is differentiated from "eatable" because it does not indicate how an item tastes, only whether it is fit to be eaten. Nonpoisonous items found in nature – such as some mushroo ...

species, and has been harvested for commercial purposes. ''P. multiplex'' contains the

bioactive compound A bioactive compound is a compound that has an effect on a living organism, tissue or cell, usually demonstrated by basic research in vitro or in vivo in the laboratory. While dietary nutrients are essential to life, bioactive compounds have not ...

polyozellin Polyozellin is a chemical which occurs in the mushroom ''Polyozellus multiplex''. It inhibits prolyl endopeptidase, an enzyme that has a role in processing proteins (specifically, amyloid precursor protein) in Alzheimer's disease. Chemicals that ...

, shown to have various physiological properties, including suppressive effects on stomach cancer.

Description

''Polyozellus multiplex'' is part of the group of fungi collectively known as cantharelloid mushrooms (which includes the genera ''Cantharellus'', ''Craterellus'', '' Gomphus'', and ''Polyozellus'') because of the similarity of their

structures and the

morphology Morphology, from the Greek and meaning "study of shape", may refer to: Disciplines * Morphology (archaeology), study of the shapes or forms of artifacts * Morphology (astronomy), study of the shape of astronomical objects such as nebulae, galaxies ...

of the spore-producing region (the

hymenophore A hymenophore refers to the hymenium-bearing structure of a fungal fruiting body. Hymenophores can be smooth surfaces, lamellae Lamella (plural lamellae) means a small plate or flake in Latin, and in English may refer to: Biology * Lamella (myc ...

) on the underside of the caps. The fan- or funnel-shaped fruit bodies of the black chanterelle grow clustered together on the ground, often in large masses that may reach aggregate diameters of up to , although they are usually up to . The individual

, wide and almost as long, are violet-black, with edges that are initially whitish, and with a glaucous surface—a white powdery accumulation of spore deposit. The upper surface may be

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