Lentinus, Shiitake, Xiang Gu 香菇

Golden Oak Mushroom, Black Forest Mushroom
Shiitake (Japan)
Xiang Gu (TCM)
Picture Dried Shiitake Mushroom (Adam, 2017)

Botanical name:


Lentinus edodes (syn. Lenticus edodes, Lentinan edodes, Lentinula edodes, Tricholomopsis edodes)

Parts used:


Mushroom, fresh or dried

Temperature & Taste:


Neutral. Sweet

Constituents:


Lentinin (beta-D-glucan), Heteroglucan-protein
Eritadenine
Ergosterol, Nucleic acids
All essential amino acids, rich in vitamins (D, B2, C, niacin), and minerals (potassium, magnesium, calcium)

Uses:


1. Strengthens Spleen, Tonifies Qi, Benefits Digestion:
-Qi deficiency with fatigue, poor digestion
-indigestion
-increases Immunity
-also for Blood deficiency and Night Sweats

2. Resolves Phlegm, Resists Poison, Resolves Masses:
-Tumors and Cancer, including Prostate, Lung,
-chronic Hepatitis
-anti-cancer effects as well as immune-stimulating effects
-the polysaccharide (Lentinin) has been used IV in cancer therapy in Korea and Japan.

3. Clears Wind, Resists Poison, Expels Rashes:
-non expression of rash in Measles
-Urticaria
-recently used for various viral diseases including HIV

4. Clears Damp, Promotes Urine:
-Edema
-Urinary incontinence


Dose:


Fresh Mushroom: 10–30 grams daily.
Dried Mushroom, 3–6 per day in soups etc.
As a food, it is added to Soups, Sauces, Pork and Vegetable dishes.

Comment:


Shiitake is both food and medicine and is one of the most cultivated Mushrooms in the world. However, its medicinal use is increasing as more research has verified its effects on the immune system in particular.

Main Combinations:


1. Cancer:
i. Shitake, Coriolus (Turkey tail), Ganoderm Ling Zhi
ii. Shiitake, Mung bean, Hedyotis Bai Hua She She Cao, Barbat Skullcap Ban Zhi Lian (called Sun’s Soup)
iii. Shiitake, Soy bean, Mung Bean, Chinese Red Date (Da Zao), Scallion, Hawthorn fruit, Ginseng, Dang Gui, Parsley (as a soup)

Major Formulas:



Cautions:


None noted

Main Preparations used:



1. GENERAL / REVIEW:
–Recent progress of research on medicinal mushrooms, foods, and other herbal products used in traditional Chinese medicine

1. ANTIBACTERIAL:
–The composition of a bioprocessed shiitake (Lentinus edodes) mushroom mycelia and rice bran formulation and its antimicrobial effects against Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Typhimurium strain SL1344 in macrophage cells and in mice

3. ANTI-VIRAL:
–A Laccase with HIV-1 Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitory Activity from the Broth of Mycelial Culture of the Mushroom Lentinus tigrinus
–Inhibition of Influenza Virus Infection by Lentinus edodes Mycelia Extract Through Its Direct Action and Immunopotentiating Activity
–Polysaccharide and extracts from Lentinula edodes: structural features and antiviral activity

4. ANTIOXIDANT:
–Extraction of polysaccharides under vacuum condition from Lentinus edodes stipe and their antioxidant activities in vitro

5. HYPERLIPIDEMIA, ANTI-FAT:
–Antihyperlipidemic Effect of Dietary Lentinus edodes on Plasma, Feces and Hepatic Tissues in Hypercholesterolemic Rats
–Lentinus edodes promotes fat removal in hypercholesterolemic mice
–Dietary Shiitake Mushroom (Lentinus edodes) Prevents Fat Deposition and Lowers Triglyceride in Rats Fed a High-Fat Diet
–Diets Containing Shiitake Mushroom Reduce Serum Lipids and Serum Lipophilic Antioxidant Capacity in Rats
–Anti-Obesity Effects of Medicinal and Edible Mushrooms

6. ANTI-ATHEROSCLEROTIC:
–Lentinula edodes (shiitake mushroom): An assessment of in vitro anti-atherosclerotic bio-functionality

7. IMMUNOMODULATORY:
–β-Glucan extracts from the same edible shiitake mushroom Lentinus edodes produce differential in-vitro immunomodulatory and pulmonary cytoprotective effects — Implications for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) immunotherapies
–In vivo anticancer and immunomodulating activities of mannogalactoglucan-type polysaccharides from Lentinus edodes (Berkeley) Singer
–Immunomodulatory β-Glucan from Lentinus edodes Activates Mitogen-activated Protein Kinases and Nuclear Factor-κB in Murine RAW 264.7 Macrophages
 8. INHIBITS IMMUNOSUPPRESSION:
–Polysaccharide from Lentinus edodes Inhibits the Immunosuppressive Function of Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells

9. INCREASES INTERFERON:
–Dietary supplementation with rice bran fermented with Lentinus edodes increases interferon-γ activity without causing adverse effects: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study

10. HEPATOPROTECTIVE:
–Protection of the Extracts of Lentinus edodes Mycelia against Carbon-Tetrachloride-Induced Hepatic Injury in Rats

11. PULMONARY PROTECTIVE EFFECT:
–β-Glucan extracts from the same edible shiitake mushroom Lentinus edodes produce differential in-vitro immunomodulatory and pulmonary cytoprotective effects — Implications for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) immunotherapies

12. DIABETES:
–A novel polysaccharide from Lentinus edodes mycelia protects MIN6 cells against high glucose-induced damage via the MAPKs and Nrf2 pathways

13. ANTI-TUMOR, ANTI-CANCER:
–In vivo anticancer and immunomodulating activities of mannogalactoglucan-type polysaccharides from Lentinus edodes (Berkeley) Singer
–Anti-tumor effect of β-glucan from Lentinus edodes and the underlying mechanism
–Lentinan inhibits tumor angiogenesis via interferon γ and in a T cell independent manner
BREAST:
–The β-glucan from Lentinus edodes suppresses cell proliferation and promotes apoptosis in estrogen receptor positive breast cancers
COLON:
–A polysaccharide from Lentinus edodes inhibits human colon cancer cell proliferation and suppresses tumor growth in athymic nude mice
LIVER:
–Cytotoxicity of some edible mushrooms extracts over liver hepatocellular carcinoma cells in conjunction with their antioxidant and antibacterial properties

13. ANTI-CARIES / ANTI-GINGIVITIS:
–The Anticaries Effect of a Food Extract (Shiitake) in a Short-Term Clinical Study
–The anti-adhesive mode of action of a purified mushroom (Lentinus edodes) extract with anticaries and antigingivitis properties in two oral bacterial phatogens
–Testing a Low Molecular Mass Fraction of a Mushroom (Lentinus edodes) Extract Formulated as an Oral Rinse in a Cohort of Volunteers
–Evaluation of Plant and Fungal Extracts for Their Potential Antigingivitis and Anticaries Activity