"Lingzhi" is a mushroom that has been renowned in China for more than 2,000 years because of its claimed medicinal properties plus its symbolic fortune. "Lingzhi" has high economic value mostly as a dietary supplement in the modern market especially in East Asia, and its medicinal functions have become a hot study topic. For over a century, the highly prized medicinal fungus, known as "Lingzhi" in East Asia, has been assigned to Ganoderma lucidum, a species originally described from Europe. Molecular studies in recent years have revealed that the commercially cultivated 'G. lucidum' ("Lingzhi") in East Asia is a different species from the true G. lucidum. The present study aims to clarify the species identity of "Lingzhi" based on morphological studies and analysis of rDNA nuc-ITS sequences, and additional gene fragments of mt-SSU, RPB1, RPB2, and TEF1-alpha of "Lingzhi" were provided. All Ganoderma species that mostly resemble "Lingzhi" in phylogeny and /or morphology were included for analysis. We propose a new species G. lingzhi for "Lingzhi", which has an East Asia distribution. The most striking characteristics which differentiate G. lingzhi from G. lucidum are the presence of melanoid bands in the context, a yellow pore surface and thick dissepiments (80-120 mu m) at maturity. G. curtisii is most closely related to G. lingzhi in phylogeny and is from North America. Ganoderma flexipes, G. multipileum, G. sichuanense, G. tropicum and 'G. tsugae', are also closely related with G. lingzhi and are reported from China. These species are compared and discussed. 'Ganoderma tsuage' reported from China is determined as conspecific with G. lucidum, hence the distribution of G. lucidum extends from Europe to northeastern China.

“Lingzhi” is one of the most important medicinal fungi, and it has been renowned and utilized in China for more than 2,000 years. Ganoderma lucidum was originally described for Britain specimens by William Curtis as Boletus lucidus in 1871. Patouillard first reported Ganoderma lucidum from China in 1907. Thereafter this scientific name (binomial name) has been used for the Chinese medicinal “Lingzhi” for more than 100 years. However, the recent taxonomical studies indicated the Chinese “Lingzhi” is different from G. lucidum in both phylogeny and morphology. The Chinese “Lingzhi” is an independent species, and its valid scientific name is G. lingzhi rather than G. lucidum. Ganoderma lingzhi has a wide distribution in warm temperate and subtropical East Asia, and it differs from G. lucidum by its pale yellow to sulphur yellow pore surface when fresh, the presence of melanoid bands in the context and thick dissepiments (80–120μm) at maturity, while G. lucidum has a distribution mostly in Europe, but also in northeast, northern, central and highland of southwest China, and it lacks melanoid bands in the context, and has a white to cream pore surface and thin dissepiments (40–80μm). Ganoderma sichuanense was originally described from Panzhihua of Sichuan Province, China. Based on the ITS sequence of its holotype, it differs from G. lingzhi in phylogeny. In addition, it was also recently found in Guangdong Province, China.

Ganoderma lucidum is one of the most extensively studied mushrooms due to its medicinal properties. Herein, a systematic study was carried out in order to compare the antioxidant activity of phenolic and polysaccharidic extracts from fruiting body, spores and mycelium, obtained in three different culture media, of G. lucidum from Northeast Portugal. Phenolic extracts were characterized using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to photodiode array detection, while polysaccharidic extracts were hydrolysed and further characterized using HPLC and refraction index detection. In general, the phenolic extracts (Ph) proved to have higher antioxidant potential than their corresponding polysaccharidic extracts (Ps). Amongst phenolic extracts, FB-Ph provided the highest antioxidant activity (EC50 <= 0.6 mg/ml) and the highest content in total phenolics (similar to 29 mg GAE/g extract) and phenolic acids (p-hydroxybenzoic and p-coumaric acids). S-Ps was the polysaccharidic extract with the best antioxidant activity (EC50 <= 2="" mgml="" nevertheless="" the="" highest="" levels="" of="" total="" phenolics="" were="" obtained="" in="" fb-ps="" similar="" to="" 56="" mg="" gaeg="" extract="" while="" the="" highest="" levels="" of="" total="" polysaccharides="" similar="" to="" 14="" mg="" peg="" extract="" and="" individual="" sugars="" were="" observed="" in="" mycelia="" obtained="" from="" solid="" culture="" media="" m-pda-ps="" and="" m-smmn-ps.="" the="" free="" radical="" scavenging="" properties="" reducing="" power="" and="" lipid="" peroxidation="" inhibition="" of="" g.="" lucidum="" seemed="" to="" be="" correlated="" with="" phenolic="" compounds="" mostly="" in="" a="" free="" form="" but="" also="" linked="" to="" polysaccharides.="" c="" 2011="" elsevier="" ltd.="">

Oleamide is an endocannabinoid-like, fatty acid amide with structural similarities to anandamide. The cardiovascular effects of anandamide are enhanced in hypertension and we have now examined how hypertension affects responses to oleamide. Vasorelaxant responses to oleamide were significantly (P<0.001) enhanced="" in="" aortic="" rings="" from="" spontaneously="" hypertensive="" rats="" shrs="" such="" that="" the="" maximal="" relaxation="" to="" oleamide="" was="" 40.3="" -="" 3.5="" compared="" to="" 15.7="" -="" 3.9="" in="" normotensive="" wistar="" kyoto="" wky="" controls.="" the="" augmented="" responses="" to="" oleamide="" in="" shr="" arteries="" were="" unaffected="" by="" either="" inhibition="" of="" nitric="" oxide="" synthase="" 300="" mu="" m="" l-name="" or="" fatty="" acid="" amide="" hydrolase="" 1="" mu="" m="" urb597="" and="" independent="" of="" cannabinoid="" cb1="" receptors="" or="" the="" endothelium.="" the="" enhanced="" responses="" to="" oleamide="" were="" opposed="" by="" pre-treatment="" with="" capsaicin="" such="" that="" r-max="" was="" reduced="" to="" 9.8="" -="" 1.5="" and="" this="" occurred="" independently="" of="" trpv1="" receptor="" and="" sensory="" nerve="" activity="" as="" the="" trpv1="" antagonist="" capsazepine="" 1-5="" mu="" m="" and="" the="" cation="" channel="" inhibitor="" ruthenium="" red="" 10="" mu="" m="" had="" no="" effect="" the="" responses="" to="" oleamide.="" however="" inhibition="" of="" cyclooxygenase="" 10="" mu="" m="" indomethacin="" enhanced="" the="" responses="" in="" the="" wky="" aortae="" such="" that="" the="" responses="" were="" comparable="" to="" those="" in="" the="" shr.="" the="" results="" suggest="" that="" the="" cyclooxygenase="" pathway="" has="" a="" role="" in="" modulating="" vasorelaxation="" caused="" by="" oleamide="" in="" normotensive="" aortae="" and="" that="" this="" is="" lost="" in="" hypertension="" possibly="" as="" an="" adaptation="" to="" the="" increase="" in="" blood="" pressure.="" c="" 2012="" elsevier="" b.v.="">

In this work, the effects of a pair of positional isomer of ganoderic acids (GAS), namely ganoderic acid Mf (GA-Mf) and ganoderic acid S (GA-S) purified from the fermented mycelia of Ganoderma lucidum, on induction of cell apoptosis and the apoptotic pathway in HeLa cells were investigated. The results demonstrate that both isomers decreased cell population growth on various human carcinoma cell lines by MTT assay, while GA-Mf had better selectivity between normal and cancer cells. The flow cytometry analysis indicated that treatment of HeLa cells with GA-S caused cell cycle arrest in the S phase, while GA-Mf caused cell cycle arrest in the G1 phase. Compared with GA-S. GA-Mf had more potent increase in the number of early and late apoptotic cells. Treatment of HeLa cells with each isomer decreased the mitochondria membrane potential and caused the release of cytochrome c from mitochondria into the cytosol. In addition, stimulation of caspase-3 and caspase-9 activity was observed. The Bax/Bcl-2 ratio was also increased in GA-treated HeLa cells. The results demonstrated that both isomers GA-Mf and GAS induced apoptosis of human HeLa cells through a mitochondria mediated pathway, but they had the different cell cycle arrest specificity. The findings will be helpful to the development of useful cancer chemopreventive compounds from G. lucidum. (C) 2010 Elsevier GmbH.

灵芝是最重要的药用真菌之一，在我国已有2,000多年的记载和利用历史。虽然早在一百多年前法国真菌学家Patouillard就有给中国的灵芝冠上Ganoderma lucidum这一学名，并沿用至今，但随着分子生物学技术的不断发展，人们认识到过去外国人的定名并不正确。实际上，G. lucidum 是1871年由William Curtis根据采自英国的标本描述的新物种。最近的研究表明，我国广泛分布和栽培的灵芝与产于欧洲的G. lucidum不同，是一个独立的种，其合法的拉丁学名应为G. lingzhi。鉴于“灵芝”这一名称在中国已使用2,000余年，故建议“G. lingzhi”的汉语学名为“灵芝”（俗称赤芝），而灵芝属的模式种G. lucidum的汉语学名改为“亮盖灵芝”（俗称白肉灵芝或白灵芝）。灵芝Ganoderma lingzhi广泛分布于东亚暖温带和亚热带，其主要形态特征是孔口表面新鲜时浅黄色至硫磺色、成熟时菌肉中有黑褐色区带、管口壁厚度为80–120μm。亮盖灵芝G. lucidum主要分布于欧洲和亚洲，在我国分布于东北、华北、华中和西南海拔较高地区，其孔口表面新鲜时白色至奶油色、成熟时菌肉中无黑褐色区带、管口壁厚度为40–80μm。四川灵芝G. sichuanense尽管其担孢子与灵芝G. lingzhi相似，但基于其模式标本ITS序列的系统发育研究表明，该种与灵芝不同，是个独立的种，且在广东也有发现。