Clinical Effects of a Commercial Supplement of Ophiocordyceps sinensis and Ganoderma lucidum on Cognitive Function of Healthy Young Volunteers

Abstract

Ophiocordyceps sinensis (= Cordyceps sinensis) and Ganoderma lucidum are medicinal mushrooms used in traditional Chinese medicine. The effects of O. sinensis and G. lucidum on cognitive function have been evaluated through the use of animal models and in vitro studies, which indicated beneficial effects. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of treatment with a commercially available supplement of O. sinensis and G. lucidum on cognitive function in young, healthy human participants. Physical education students (n = 96 [53 men, 43 women]; mean ± standard deviation age, 26.3 ± 3.21 years) were randomly divided into 3 treatment groups: highdose supplement (HD) group, low-dose supplement (LD) group, and a placebo (PL) group. Each group received the treatment, administered by a technician blinded to supplements/placebo, for 30 days. Participants were evaluated for various cognitive functions before and immediately after treatment. Evaluation of cognitive function domains-global cognitive score, memory, executive function, attention, information processing speed, visuospatial ability, verbal function, and motor skills-showed no significant differences between groups. These results indicate that a combination of O. sinensis and G. lucidum supplements for 30 days did not enhance cognitive function domains in young healthy participants.

Ganoderma tsugae prevents cognitive impairment and attenuates oxidative damage in d-galactose-induced aging in the rat brain

“…lucidum has mainly been used in clinical studies for cancer treatment [ 49 , 50 ] and immunomodulation [ 51 , 52 ]. Regarding cognitive function, which has been our key focus in this study, significant improvements have not yet been demonstrated in clinical research [ 53 , 54 ], and evidence from animal studies remains inadequate. The present study was conducted using Ganoderma tsugae , another species of Lingzhi, which has better antioxidant effects than G .…”

The biology of ergothioneine, an antioxidant nutraceutical

“…Thus, consuming 1•5 mushroom servings per week was associated with a halving of the incidence of mild cognitive impairment (a precursor of Alzheimer's dementia), while intake of nine servings per week was associated with a five-fold decrease (348) . Note, however, that at least one mushroom trial indicated no measurable benefits in healthy young physical education students (514) . Brain and serum ERG levels are also markedly different in Parkinson's disease (515) , reviewed in Hang et al (516) , Shao & Le (517) and Shah & Duda (518) , and even in sudden infant death syndrome (519) , and ERG has been shown to be protective against β-amyloid-induced neuronal injury (520) and cytotoxicity (521) .…”

Antioxidant Compounds from Edible Mushrooms as Potential Candidates for Treating Age-Related Neurodegenerative Diseases

“…However, it should be noted that there are still very few studies concerning the application of mushroom antioxidants on humans in the context of clinical trials on neuroprotection [197]. Furthermore, the few studies available in humans have been conducted on mushroom extracts/powders or whole mushrooms ingested with the diet [198][199][200][201] and not on isolated antioxidant compounds. Taking into account this aspect, future directions should be aimed towards conducting clinical studies in humans in order to evaluate the neuroprotective potential not only of whole mushrooms but also of the individual antioxidant compounds.…”