''Taiwanofungus camphoratus'', also known as stout camphor fungus, is a species of
fungus
A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from th ...
that is endemic to Taiwan, where it grows only on the endemic aromatic tree ''
Cinnamomum kanehirae
''Cinnamomum kanehirae'' (Chinese name niu zhang( 牛樟)), also known as small-flowered camphor tree, or stout camphor tree, is a tree within the genus '' Cinnamomum'' of the family Lauraceae endemic to Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the ...
'', causing a brown
heart rot
300px, The bracket fungus '' Fistulina hepatica'' is one of many that cause heart rot.
In trees, heart rot is a fungal disease that causes the decay of wood at the center of the trunk and branches. Fungi enter the tree through wounds in the bark ...
.
Traditional medicine
It is used in Taiwanese
traditional medicine
Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) comprises medical aspects of traditional knowledge that developed over generations within the folk beliefs of various societies, including indigenous peoples, before the ...
as a purported remedy for cancer, hypertension, and hangover. The annual market is worth over $100 million (US) in Taiwan alone. The 32.15 Mb
genome
In the fields of molecular biology and genetics, a genome is all the genetic information of an organism. It consists of nucleotide sequences of DNA (or RNA in RNA viruses). The nuclear genome includes protein-coding genes and non-coding ge ...
containing 9,254
gene
In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a ba ...
s has been sequenced.
''Taiwanofungus camphoratus'' has been found to produce anti-obesogenic, anti-inflammatory and antidiabetic effects in high-fat diet-fed mice.
Chemical constituents
Antcin B,
antrodioxolanone,
antrocamphin B,
antroquinonol,
antrocamphins,
zhankuic acids, and other
antcins have been reported as constituents of ''Taiwanofungus camphoratus''.
Ecological concern
Because of its use as an
herbal remedy
Herbal medicine (also herbalism) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. With worldwide research into pharmacology, some herbal medicines have been translated into modern remedies ...
, fruiting bodies of the fungus can fetch high prices. Good quality fruiting bodies were reported to cost as much as US$15,000/kg in 1997, before artificial cultivation methods were developed.
Some have illegally farmed the fungus in the forests of Taiwan by hollowing out endangered stout camphor trees (''Cinnamomum kanehirae''). This is despite the equal potency of ''T. camphotatus'' grown in a laboratory.
References
Further reading
*Chang, Tun-Tschu, and Wang, Wu-Rong. "Basidiomatal formation of ''Antrodia cinnamomea'' on artificial agar media." Botanical Bulletin of Academia Sinica 46 (2005).
*
*
*Chang, Tun-Tschu, and Wen-Neng Chou. "''Antrodia cinnamomea'' reconsidered and ''A. salmonea'' sp. nov. on ''Cunninghamia konishii'' in Taiwan." Botanical Bulletin of Academia Sinica 45 (2004).
External links
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Fungi described in 1990
Fungi of Taiwan
Fungal tree pathogens and diseases
Polyporales
Fungus species
{{Polyporales-stub