Fruiting bodies of selected edible mushrooms as a potential source of lovastatin

Abstract

Agaricus bisporus, Cantharellus cibarius, Imleria badia, and Lentinula edodes are among the most popular species of edible mushrooms in Poland. These edible mushrooms are an important source of biologically active substances exhibiting beneficial (e.g., antioxidant, antitumor, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory) effects on the human body. The fruiting bodies of edible mushrooms are also a valuable source of lovastatin, which belongs to a group of compounds, called statins, commonly used as cholesterol-lowering drugs. Due to the presence of lovastatin, edible mushrooms can be useful in the prevention of hypercholesterolemia. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the content of lovastatin in the selected species of edible mushrooms and to evaluate its release into artificial digestive juices. This study was the first to determine the release of lovastatin into digestive juices after the extraction of materials obtained from edible mushrooms. The largest amount of lovastatin was found in the fruiting bodies of C. cibarius (67.89 mg/100 g d.w.), and the smallest in those of L. edodes (0.95 mg/100 g d.w.). The amount of lovastatin released from the extracts of the examined species into digestive juices was found to be relatively low. The highest content after incubation in artificial gastric juice was detected for the fruiting bodies of L. edodes (0.02 mg/100 g d.w.) and after incubation in the intestinal juice for the mycelium from the in vitro cultures of L. edodes (0.51 mg/100 g d.w.). Thus, the results of the present study showed that due to its ability to accumulate lovastatin from culture medium, L. edodes mycelium can be used to obtain a product with increased hypolipidemic activity.

Culinary–medicinal mushrooms: a review of organic compounds and bioelements with antioxidant activity

“…Apart from the compounds described in the previous sections, there is another molecule originating from mushrooms called lovastatin [69,70]. It acts as a precursor for a group of medicines used in the treatment of various diseases including atherosclerosis and dyslipidemia.…”

Ethnomycological Investigation in Serbia: Astonishing Realm of Mycomedicines and Mycofood

“…Polysaccharides have also displayed beneficial effects as neuroprotection agents [ 49 ]. Cantharellus cibarius , in a study by Kala et al [ 50 ], was the richest source of lovastatin among all the mushrooms, indicating its potential application in the prevention of hypercholesterolemia.…”

“…Its role in the prevention of high cholesterol blood levels ( Table 2 ) could be attributed to the presence of lovastatin, a cholesterol-lowering drug, in its fruiting bodies [ 50 ] and the hypocholesterolemic molecule eritadenine [ 76 ]. Furthermore, a β -glucan-enriched extract of this mushroom was able to profoundly reduce the levels of cholesterol in a mouse model [ 77 ].…”

Use of the Versatility of Fungal Metabolism to Meet Modern Demands for Healthy Aging, Functional Foods, and Sustainability

“…Spermidine (39) ( Figure 4 ) produced by several species [ 89 ], proved capable of prolonging the life of mice by reducing histone acetyltransferase EP300 [ 90 ], while epidemiological evidence indicates that spermidine (39) intake may also contribute to the reduction of human mortality [ 91 ]. Considerable amounts of the metabolite lovastatin (40) ( Figure 4 ), a drug registered as low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol lowering, were detected in the widely consumed mushrooms Agaricus bisporus (30.79 mg/100 g dry weight), Cantharellus cibarius (67.89 mg/100 g dry weight), Imleri abadia (6.21 mg/100 g dry weight), and L. edodes (0.95 mg/100 g dry weight) [ 92 ].…”