Purification, characterization, and modification of T lymphocyte-stimulating polysaccharide from spores of Ganoderma lucidum. (1/41)

The hot-water extract of the spores of Ganoderma lucidum was shown to have a stimulating effect on concanavalin A-induced mitogenic activity of T lymphocytes. Bioassay-guided separation led to the isolation of a polysaccharide with potent T lymphocyte-stimulating activity by ethanol fractionation, anion-exchange, and size-exclusion chromatography. Based on the composition and methylation analyses, periodate oxidation, Smith degradation, and NMR spectroscopy, the native polysaccharide was shown to be a beta-D-(1-->3)-glucan with branches of terminal glucosyl residues substituted at C-6 of the glucose residues in the main chain. The branching ratio is approximately 20%. A series of sulfated or carboxymethylated derivatives were prepared and their structural features were elucidated by chemical and spectral analyses. The solution conformation and T lymphocyte proliferation effect of the glucans before and after derivatization were compared and discussed. The data obtained indicate that the introduction of ionic groups would significantly affect the original conformation of the native glucan in aqueous solution and further affect T lymphocyte-stimulating activity. The triple-helical structure of the glucans, the nature of the ionic groups, and the density of negative charge were considered to be closely related to this activity.  (+info)

Quantitative determination of bitter principles in specimens of Ganoderma lucidum using high-performance liquid chromatography and its application to the evaluation of ganoderma products. (2/41)

For quantitative determination of 19 triterpene constituents, including six ganoderma alcohols (1-6) and 13 ganoderma acids (7-19), in the products of Ganoderma lucidum, an analytical system was developed using high-performance liquid chromatography with an ODS column. The mobile phase was a linear gradient of 1% AcOH/H(2)O-CH(3)CN and 2% AcOH/H(2)O-CH(3)CN, and the elution profile was monitored at 243 and 250 nm for ganoderma alcohols and acids, respectively. The relative standard deviations of this method were less than 2.35% and 2.18% (n=5) for intraday and interday assays, and the recoveries were 90.9-100.8% and 93.4-103.9% for constituents of alcohol and acid groups, respectively. This system was applied to a quantitative determination of the constituents in 10 different products of G. lucidum: six usual umbrella forms of the fruiting bodies, three antlered forms of the fruiting bodies and spores, and eight specimens from the same G. lucidum strain, which was parasitized on logs from different plants or different fungus beds. The analytical results indicated that the quantity and composition of these triterpenes differed appreciably among various specimens, but the relative ratio of the alcohols and acids was not significantly different when the same strain of G. lucidum was used.  (+info)

Aldose reductase inhibitors from the fruiting bodies of Ganoderma applanatum. (3/41)

The isolation and characterization of rat lens aldose reductase (RLAR) inhibitors from the fruiting bodies of Ganoderma applanatum were conducted. Among the extracts and fractions from G. applanatum tested, the MeOH extract and EtOAc fraction were found to exhibit potent RLAR inhibition in vitro, their IC50 being 1.7 and 0.8 microg/ml, respectively. From the active EtOAc fraction, seven compounds with diverse structural moieties were isolated and identified as D-mannitol (1), 2-methoxyfatty acids (2), cerebrosides (3), daucosterol (4), 2,5-dihydroxyacetophenone (5), 2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid (6), and protocatechualdehyde (7). Among them, protocatechualdehyde (7) was found to be the most potent RLAR inhibitor (IC50=0.7 microg/ml), and may be useful for the prevention and/or treatment of diabetic complications.  (+info)

5alpha-reductase inhibitory effect of triterpenoids isolated from Ganoderma lucidum. (4/41)

5alpha-Reductase inhibitory activity-guided fractionation of the EtOH extract of the fruiting body of Ganoderma lucidum (LEYSS.:FR.) KARST. (Ganodermataceae), which is called Reishi, or Mannentake in Japan and Lingzhi in China, led to the isolation of two active compounds which were ganoderic acid DM and 5alpha-lanosta-7,9(11),24-triene-15alpha,26-dihydroxy-3-one with an IC(50) of 10.6 microM and 41.9 microM respectively. A carboxyl group of side chain of ganoderic acid DM is essential to elicit the inhibitory activity because of much less activity of its methyl ester.  (+info)

Identification of medicinal mushroom species based on nuclear large subunit rDNA sequences. (5/41)

The purpose of this study was to develop molecular identification method for medical mushrooms and their preparations based on the nucleotide sequences of nuclear large subunit (LSU) rDNA. Four specimens were collected of each of the three representative medicinal mushrooms used in Korea: Ganoderma lucidum, Coriolus versicolor, and Fomes fomentarius. Fungal material used in these experiments included two different mycelial cultures and two different fruiting bodies from wild or cultivated mushrooms. The genomic DNA of mushrooms were extracted and 3 nuclear LSU rDNA fragments were amplified: set 1 for the 1.1-kb DNA fragment in the upstream region, set 2 for the 1.2-kb fragment in the middle, and set 3 for the 1.3-kb fragment downstream. The amplified gene products of nuclear large subunit rDNA from 3 different mushrooms were cloned into E. coli vector and subjected to nucleotide sequence determination. The sequence thus determined revealed that the gene sequences of the same medicinal mushroom species were more than 99.48% homologous, and the consensus sequences of 3 different medicinal mushrooms were more than 97.80% homologous. Restriction analysis revealed no useful restriction sites for 6-bp recognition enzymes for distinguishing the 3 sequences from one another, but some distinctive restriction patterns were recognized by the 4-bp recognition enzymes AccII and HhaI. This analysis was also confirmed by PCR-RFLP experiments on medicinal mushrooms.  (+info)

Enhanced production of exopolysaccharides by fed-batch culture of Ganoderma resinaceum DG-6556. (6/41)

The objectives of this study were to optimize submerged culture conditions of a new fungal isolate, Ganorderma resinaceum, and to enhance the production of bioactive mycelial biomass and exopolysaccharides (EPS) by fed-batch culture. The maximum mycelial growth and EPS production in batch culture were achieved in a medium containing 10 g/l glucose, 8 g/l soy peptone, and 5 mM MnCl(2) at an initial pH 6.0 and temperature 31 degrees C. After optimization of culture medium and environmental conditions in batch cultures, a fed-batch culture strategy was employed to enhance production of mycelial biomass and EPS. Five different EPS with molecular weights ranging from 53,000 to 5,257,000 g/mole were obtained from either top or bottom fractions of ethanol precipitate of culture filtrate. A fed-batch culture of G. resinaceum led to enhanced production of both mycelial biomass and EPS. The maximum concentrations of mycelial biomass (42.2 g/l) and EPS (4.6 g/l) were obtained when 50 g/l of glucose was fed at day 6 into an initial 10 g/l of glucose medium. It may be worth attempting with other mushroom fermentation processes for enhanced production of mushroom polysaccharides, particularly those with industrial potential.  (+info)

Redox potentials of the blue copper sites of bilirubin oxidases. (7/41)

The redox potentials of the multicopper redox enzyme bilirubin oxidase (BOD) from two organisms were determined by mediated and direct spectroelectrochemistry. The potential of the T1 site of BOD from the fungus Myrothecium verrucaria was close to 670 mV, whereas that from Trachyderma tsunodae was >650 mV vs. NHE. For the first time, direct electron transfer was observed between gold electrodes and BODs. The redox potentials of the T2 sites of both BODs were near 390 mV vs. NHE, consistent with previous finding for laccase and suggesting that the redox potentials of the T2 copper sites of most blue multicopper oxidases are similar, about 400 mV.  (+info)

Cloning and sequence analysis of a glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase gene from Ganoderma lucidum. (8/41)

A cDNA library of Ganoderma lucidum has been constructed using a Zap Express cloning vector. A glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase gene (gpd) was isolated from this library by hybridization of the recombinant phage clones with a gpd-specific gene probe generated by PCR. By comparison of the cDNA and the genomic DNA sequences, it was found that the complete nucleotide sequence encodes a putative polypeptide chain of 338 amino acids interrupted by 6 introns. The predicted amino acid sequence of this gene shows a high degree of sequence similarity to the GPD proteins from yeast and filamentous fungi. The promoter region contains a CT-rich stretch, two CAAT boxes, and a consensus TATA box. The possibility of using the gpd promoter in the construction of new transformation vectors is discussed.  (+info)