Reducing the use of non-renewable resources is a key strategy of a circular economy. Mycelium-based foams and sandwich composites are an emerging category of biocomposites relying on the valorization of lignocellulosic wastes and the natural growth of the living fungal organism. While growing, the fungus cements the substrate, which is partially replaced by the tenacious biomass of the fungus itself. The final product can be shaped to produce insulating panels, packaging materials, bricks or new-design objects. Only a few pioneer companies in the world retain a significant know-how, as well as the ability to provide the material characterization. Moreover, several technical details are not revealed due to industrial secrecy. According to the available literature, mycelium-based biocomposites show low density and good insulation properties, both related to acoustic and thermal aspects. Mechanical properties are apparently inferior in comparison to expanded polystyrene (EPS), which is the major synthetic competitor. Nevertheless, mycelium-based composites can display an enormous variability on the basis of: fungal species and strain; substrate composition and structure; and incubation conditions. The aim of the present review is to summarize technical aspects and properties of mycelium-based biocomposites focusing on both actual applications and future perspectives.

Frailty is a geriatric syndrome associated with both locomotor and cognitive decline, implicated in both poor quality of life and negative health outcomes. One central question surrounding frailty is whether phenotypic frailty is associated with the cognitive impairment during aging. Using spontaneous behavioral tests and by studying the dynamic change during aging, we demonstrated that the two form of vulnerability, locomotor and recognition memory decline, develop in parallel and therefore, integration of the motoric and cognitive evaluations are imperative. We developed an integrated frailty index based on both phenotypic and recognition memory performances. Hericium erinaceus (H. erinaceus) is a medicinal mushroom that improves recognition memory in mice. By using HPLC-UV-ESI/MS analyses we obtained standardized amounts of erinacine A and hericenones C and D in H. erinaceus extracts, that were tested in our animal model of physiological aging. Two-month oral supplementation with H. erinaceus reversed the age-decline of recognition memory. Proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and doublecortin (DCX) immunohistochemistry in the hippocampus and cerebellum in treated mice supported a positive effect of an H. erinaceus on neurogenesis in frail mice.

Hericium erinaceus (Bull.) Pers. is a medicinal mushroom capable of inducing a large number of modulatory effects on human physiology ranging from the strengthening of the immune system to the improvement of cognitive functions. In mice, dietary supplementation with H. erinaceus prevents the impairment of spatial short-term and visual recognition memory in an Alzheimer model. Intriguingly other neurobiological effects have recently been reported like the effect on neurite outgrowth and differentiation in PC12 cells. Until now no investigations have been conducted to assess the impact of this dietary supplementation on brain function in healthy subjects. Therefore, we have faced the problem by considering the effect on cognitive skills and on hippocampal neurotransmission in wild-type mice. In wild-type mice the oral supplementation with H. erinaceus induces, in behaviour test, a significant improvement in the recognition memory and, in hippocampal slices, an increase in spontaneous and evoked excitatory synaptic current in mossy fiber-CA3 synapse. In conclusion, we have produced a series of findings in support of the concept that H. erinaceus induces a boost effect onto neuronal functions also in nonpathological conditions.

Epidemiological data indicate that subjects affected by obesity have an increased risk of developing mood disorders. The relationship between obesity and mood disorders is bidirectional. We assessed whether a Hericium erinaceus treatment improved depression, anxiety, sleep, and binge eating disorders after 8 weeks of supplementation in subjects affected by overweight or obesity under a low calorie diet regimen. Looking for a possible clinical biomarker, we assessed the serum balance between brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and its precursor pro-BDNF before and after H. erinaceus supplementation. Seventy-seven volunteers affected by overweight or obesity were recruited at the offices of the Department of Preventive Medicine, Luigi Devoto Clinic of Work, Obesity Centre, at the IRCCS Foundation Policlinico Hospital of Milan (Italy). Patients were recruited only if they had a mood and/or sleep disorder and/or were binge eating as evaluated through self-assessment questionnaires. We used two different enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays kits to discriminate circulating levels of pro-BDNF and BDNF. Eight weeks of oral H. erinaceus supplementation decreased depression, anxiety, and sleep disorders. H. erinaceus supplementation improved mood disorders of a depressive-anxious nature and the quality of the nocturnal rest. H. erinaceus increased circulating pro-BDNF levels without any significant change in BDNF circulating levels.

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We summarize the effects of bergamot (extract, juice, essential oil, and polyphenolic fraction) on cardiovascular, bone, inflammatory, skin diseases, mood alteration, anxiety, pain, and stress. This review included a total of 31 studies (20 studies on humans with 1709 subjects and 11 in animals (rats and mice)). In humans, bergamot‐derived extract (BE) exerts positive effects on hyperlipidemia with an oral dose from 150 mg to 1000 mg/day of flavonoids administered from 30 to 180 days, demonstrating an effect on body weight and in modulating total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL, and HDL. Studies in animals confirm promising data on glucose control (500/1000 mg/day of BE with a treatment lasting 30 days) are available in rats. In animals models, bergamot essential oil (BEO, 10 mg/kg or 20 mg/kg daily for 20 weeks) increases bone volume, decreases psoriatic plaques, increases skin collagen content, and promotes hair growth. Bergamot juice (20 mg/kg) is promising in terms of pro‐inflammatory cytokine reduction. In humans, aromatherapy (from 15 to 30 min) does not appear to be useful in order to reduce stress, anxiety, and nausea, compared to placebo. Compared to baseline, BE topical application and BEO aromatherapy reduce blood diastolic and systolic pressure and could have a significant effect on improving mental conditions.

Fomitopsis officinalis, also known as Laricifomes officinalis, is a medicinal polypore used for millennia (Agarikon) to contrast several diseases, particularly the pulmonary ones. A rich literature has dealt with its ethno-mycological aspects, but isolation and chemical characterisation of single compounds has only recently significantly developed, as well as in vitro tests for bioactivity. According to several reports there is evidence of a broad-spectrum antibacterial and antiviral activity by F. officinalis, including pathogens like Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Yersinia pseudotuberculosis and Staphylococcus aureus, as well as Ortopox virus. Chlorinated coumarins from mycelia and lanostane triterpenoids from basidiomes have been demonstrated to be directly responsible for antiviral-antibacterial and trypanocidal activity, respectively. A wider literature deals instead with crude extracts including an undetermined mixture of metabolites, whose efficacy in vitro is yet far from being standardised as extraction and treatment methodology are highly variable. Nevertheless, in vivo tests on bees provided promising results in order to develop sustainable solutions against the pathogens responsible for colony collapse disorders. Despite increasing attention has been paid to other medicinal aspects of this polypore, such as immune-tropic or antitumor, this review rationally reports and critically analyses the available knowledge by focusing on aspects of antimicrobial properties.

Inonotus hispidus (Bull.) P. Karst. has been used as traditional medicine for the treatment of dyspepsia, cancer, and diabetes. Numerous studies have confirmed the antimicrobial, antiviral, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory, antiproliferative and cytotoxic biological activities of extracts from this species. The purpose of this study was a comparative analysis of the antioxidant and the antimicrobial activities of methanol extracts from fruit and liquid-cultured mycelia. Four compounds (N-butylbenzenesulfonamide, lauramidopropyl betaine, 3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxybenzaldehyde, and uplandicine), determined by hybrid HRMS, were found only in mycelia culture extracts. Free radical scavenging, measured by DPPH assay on methanol extracts, showed an activity of about 17.2% and 22.1% of Trolox in fruiting bodies and mycelia, respectively. The I. hispidus methanol extracts from fruit and mycelia culture were found to have varying degrees of antibacterial and antifungal effects against the pathogenic microorganisms tested (minimum inhibitory concentration from 0.17 to 2.56 μg mL −1 ). ARTICLE HISTORY