Benefits of Erinacines from Different Cultivate Formulas on Cognitive Deficits and Anxiety-Like Behaviour in Mice with Trimethyltin-Induced Toxicity.

We investigated the neurological effects of the varied erinacine composition of different mycelia cultures in mice with trimethyltin (TMT)-induced neurodegeneration. Forty male ICR mice were randomly divided into five groups of Sham-veh, TMT-veh, TMT-EME, TMT-EMR and TMT-EME/R. The TMT groups received 2.6 mg/kg one-time intraperitoneal injections of TMT. Oral dosages of 200 mg/kg erinacine combination from each Hericium erinaceus mycelia (EM) cultivated formula (100% eucalyptus wood [E], 100% rubber wood [R], or 40% eucalyptus wood/60% rubber wood [E/R]) were given for two weeks. Spatial learning, memory, flexibility, and anxious behaviour were evaluated alongside brain tissues' oxidative status and histological analyses. Erinacine composition from EME/R exhibited significant positive effects on spatial learning, memory, flexibility, and anxiety (p < 0.05). These findings emerged concurrently with the significant mitigation of hippocampal lipid peroxidation, CA1 hippocampal, cortical neuron, and corpus callosum white matter degeneration (p < 0.05). These neurological benefits were associated with the EME/R composition of erinacine A, C, D, G, H, I, K and R. The best neuroprotective effect against TMT-induced neurodegeneration in mice is offered by the EME/R erinacine composition according to its anti-lipid peroxidation, its nurturing effect on neuronal and white matter, and mitigation of behavioural deficits.

In vitro cholesterol lowering activity of Ganoderma australe mycelia based on mass spectrometry, synchrotron Fourier-transform infrared analysis and liver-spheroid bioactivity.

Mycelia were cultivated from a Thai wild mushroom identified as Ganoderma australe based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and morphological analyses. The mycelial extracts were examined for their active ingredients using a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC‒MS/MS) method. This revealed the presence of lovastatin and tentative compounds including p-coumaric, nicotinamide, gamma-aminobutyric acid, choline, nucleosides, amino acids, and saccharides. The extracts had an inhibitory effect on the activity of HMG-CoA reductase in a concentration-dependent manner. At 2.5 mg/mL, the G. australe extracts did not interfere with the viability of HepG2 spheroids, but their biochemical composition was altered as determined by Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The lipid profile of the spheroids treated with the mycelial extract was distinct from that of the control and the 5 µM lovastatin treatment, corresponding with the production of cholesterol by the spheroids. The mycelia of G. australe increased the percentage of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) production to 71.35 ± 2.74%, compared to the control and lovastatin-treated spheroids (33.26 ± 3.15% and 32.13 ± 3.24%, respectively). This study revealed the superior effect of natural compound mixtures to pure lovastatin, and the potential use of Thailand's wild G. australe as a functional food to prevent or alleviate hypercholesterolemia.

Antibiofilm activity and bioactive phenolic compounds of ethanol extract from the Hericium erinaceus basidiome.

Biofilm formation has become a serious health and environmental problem. Mushrooms are now considered a valuable source of bioactive compounds with antimicrobial properties. The lion's mane mushroom (Hericium erinaceus [HE]) has been used as an antimicrobial for ulcers and gastritis in East Asian countries. However, studies on the antibiofilm activities of HE basidiome against biofilm-forming pathogenic bacteria and their bioactive compound profiles are still limited. The purpose of this study was to determine the antibiofilm activity of HE and to identify its phenolic compound profile. The HE inhibitory activities against bacterial growth and biofilm formation were performed against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella Typhimurium, Proteus mirabilis, and Staphylococcus aureus. Remarkably, P. mirabilis was the most susceptible bacteria to HE. The total phenolic content (TPC) of HE was 1652 ± 1.06 µg/ml, with protocatechuic acid and p-coumaric acid being the most abundant phenolic compounds as determined by high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrophotometry (HPLC-MS). This research highlights the possibility of HE as an antibiofilm agent that can be developed as a nutraceutical and natural food preservative.

Antagonistic activity of endo-ß-1,3-glucanase from a novel isolate, Streptomyces sp. 9X166, against black rot in orchids.

A total of 123 actinomycetes was isolated from 12 varieties of wild orchids and screened for potential antagonistic activity against Phytophthora, which causes black rot disease in orchids. In vitro and in vivo experimental results revealed that Streptomyces sp. strain 9X166 showed the highest antagonistic activity; its ß-1,3-glucanase production ability was a key mechanism for growth inhibition of the pathogen. PCR amplification and DNA sequencing of the 16S ribosomal RNA gene allowed the identification of this strain, with high similarity (99.93%) to the novel species Streptomyces similaensis. The glucanase enzyme, purified to homogeneity by anion exchange and gel filtration chromatography, showed a specific activity of 58 U mg(-1) (a 3.9-fold increase) and yield of 6.4%. The molecular weight, as determined by SDS-PAGE and gel filtration, was approximately 99 and 80 kDa, respectively, suggesting that the enzyme was a monomer. The purified enzyme showed the highest substrate specificity to laminarin, indicating that it was ß-1,3-glucanase. The hydrolyzed products of cello-oligosaccharides suggested that this enzyme was endo-type ß-1,3-glucanase. Streptomyces sp. 9X166 culture filtrate, possessing ß-1,3-glucanase activity, could degrade both freeze-dried and living mycelium. This is the first report on a ß-1,3-glucanase-producing Streptomyces sp. that could be an effective biocontrol agent for black rot disease in orchids.