Chemical quality evaluation of Antrodia cinnamomea fruiting bodies using phytomics similarity index analysis.

The fruiting body of Antrodia cinnamomea is used as a medicinal mushroom in Taiwan and is found on the inner cavity of the endemic species Cinnamomum kanehirai. In this study, phytomics similarity index (PSI) analysis was employed for the chemical quality evaluation of the A. cinnamomea fruiting bodies from different strains, and grown on various substrates. The results indicated that the different types of A. cinnamomea fruiting bodies contain eight index compounds, and that it was difficult to discriminate between them solely on the basis of those index compounds. In our research, we used PSI scores to assess the metabolite similarity of the fruiting bodies of A. cinnamomea. It was revealed that fruiting bodies from various A. cinnamomea strains grown on different culture substrates produce distinct PSI scores. We concluded that PSI analysis had good selectivity on the different types of A. cinnamomea fruiting bodies.

Coenzyme Q0 from Antrodia cinnamomea in Submerged Cultures Induces Reactive Oxygen Species-Mediated Apoptosis in A549 Human Lung Cancer Cells.

We investigated the anticancer effects of Antrodia cinnamomea, a medicinal mushroom from Taiwan, on A549 human lung cancer cells using the ethyl acetate extract from submerged culture filtrates. Our results showed that 2,3-dimethoxy-5-methyl-1,4-benzoquinone (coenzyme Q0; CoQ0) derived from A. cinnamomea submerged culture filtrates has anticancer activity. CoQ0 treatment reduced the viability of A549, HepG2, and SW480 cancer cell lines. Furthermore, CoQ0 induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and apoptosis in A549 cells, which was inhibited by the antioxidant ascorbic acid. To our knowledge, these data demonstrate for the first time that CoQ0 derived from A. cinnamomea submerged culture filtrates exerts its anticancer effect through the induction of ROS-mediated apoptosis in A549 human lung cancer cells.