The development and nutritional quality of Lyophyllum decastes affected by monochromatic or mixed light provided by light-emitting diode.

Edible fungi has certain photo-sensitivity during the mushroom emergence stage, but there has been few relevant studies on the responses of Lyophyllum decastes to different light quality. L. decastes were planted in growth chambers with different light qualities that were, respectively, white light (CK), monochromatic red light (R), monochromatic blue light (B), mixed red and blue light (RB), and the mixture of far-red and blue light (FrB). The photo-sensitivity of L. decastes was investigated by analyzing the growth characteristics, nutritional quality, extracellular enzymes as well as the light photoreceptor genes in mushroom exposed to different light treatments. The results showed that R led to mycelium degeneration, fungal skin inactivation and failure of primordial formation in L. decastes. The stipe length, stipe diameter, pileus diameter and the weight of fruiting bodies exposed to RB significantly increased by 8.0, 28.7, 18.3, and 58.2% respectively, compared to the control (p < 0.05). B significantly decreased the stipe length and the weight of fruiting body, with a decrease of 8.5 and 20.2% respectively, compared to the control (p < 0.05). Increased color indicators and deepened simulated color were detected in L. decastes pileus treated with B and FrB in relative to the control. Meanwhile, the expression levels of blue photoreceptor genes such as WC-1, WC-2 and Cry-DASH were significantly up-regulated in mushroom exposed to B and FrB (p < 0.05). Additionally, the contents of crude protein and crude polysaccharide in pileus treated with RB were, respectively, increased by 26.5 and 9.4% compared to the control, while those in stipes increased by 5.3 and 58.8%, respectively. Meanwhile, the activities of extracellular enzyme such as cellulase, hemicellulase, laccase, manganese peroxidase, lignin peroxidase and amylase were significant up-regulated in mushroom subjected to RB (p < 0.05), which may promote the degradation of the culture materials. On the whole, the largest volume and weight as well as the highest contents of nutrients were all detected in L. decastes treated with RB. The study provided a theoretical basis for the regulation of light environment in the industrial production of high quality L. decastes.

Selected detrimental and essential elements in fruiting bodies of culinary and toxic medicinal macroscopic fungi growing in the Bohemian Forest, the Czech Republic.

Selected wild-growing edible fungi (Boletus edulis, Neoboletus luridiformis, Cantharellus cibarius, Macrolepiota procera, Amanita rubescens, Russula virescens, Lycoperdon perlatum, and Flammulina velutipes) along with the poisonous medicinal species Amanita muscaria were collected from five sites in the Bohemian Forest, the Czech Republic and analyzed regarding the contents of 19 elements (Ag, Al, As, Be, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Li, Mg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Rb, Se, Tl, and Zn) in their fruiting bodies. The contents of the elements as well as bioconcentration factors (ratios of the element content in dry matter of the mushroom to the content in the soil; BCF) were significantly species dependent. In general, the analysis revealed the most intensive accumulation of Cd, Rb, Ag, Cu, Se, and Zn in the studied mushrooms. B. edulis accumulated Ag, Se, Cd, Rb, Cu, and Zn with average BCF of 31, 25, 18, 13, 3.9, and 2.6, respectively. On the other hand, A. rubescens accumulated Cd, Rb, Ag, Cu, Zn, and As (BCF of 41, 27, 4.8, 3.3, 2.1, and 1.4). The data concerning the detrimental elements in sporocarps of edible mushrooms indicate no negative effect on human health if the fungi are consumed occasionally or as a delicacy.

Novel Post-Harvest Preservation Techniques for Edible Fungi: A Review.

Edible fungi are well known for their rich nutrition and unique flavor. However, their post-harvest shelf-life is relatively short, and effective post-harvest preservation techniques are crucial for maintaining their quality. In recent years, many new technologies have been used for the preservation of edible fungi. These technologies include cold plasma treatment, electrostatic field treatment, active packaging, edible coatings, antimicrobial photodynamic therapy, and genetic editing, among others. This paper reviews the new methods for post-harvest preservation of mainstream edible fungi. By comprehensively evaluating the relative advantages and limitations of these new technologies, their potential and challenges in practical applications are inferred. The paper also proposes directions and suggestions for the future development of edible fungi preservation, aiming to provide reference and guidance for improving the quality of edible fungi products and extending their shelf-life.

Degradation of edible mushroom waste by Hermetia illucens L. and consequent adaptation of its gut microbiota.

The edible fungus industry is one of the pillar industries in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, China. The expansion of the planting scale has led to the release of various mushroom residues, such as mushroom feet, and other wastes, which are not treated adequately, resulting in environmental pollution. This study investigated the ability of black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens L.) larvae (BSFL) to degrade mushroom waste. Moreover, this study analyzed changes in the intestinal bacterial community and gene expression of BSFL after feeding on mushroom waste. Under identical feeding conditions, the remaining amount of mushroom waste in Pleurotus ostreatus treatment group was reduced by 18.66%, whereas that in Flammulina velutipes treatment group was increased by 31.08%. Regarding gut microbial diversity, compared with wheat bran-treated control group, Dysgonomonas, Providencia, Enterococcus, Pseudochrobactrum, Actinomyces, Morganella, Ochrobactrum, Raoultella, and Ignatzschineria were the most abundant bacteria in the midgut of BSFL in F. velutipes treatment group. Furthermore, Dysgonomonas, Campylobacter, Providencia, Ignatzschineria, Actinomyces, Enterococcus, Morganella, Raoultella, and Pseudochrobactrum were the most abundant bacteria in the midgut of BSFL in P. ostreatus treatment group. Compared with wheat bran-treated control group, 501 upregulated and 285 downregulated genes were identified in F. velutipes treatment group, whereas 211 upregulated and 43 downregulated genes were identified in P. ostreatus treatment group. Using Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes and Gene Ontology enrichment analyses, we identified 14 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) related to amino sugar and nucleotide sugar metabolism in F. velutipes treatment group, followed by 12 DEGs related to protein digestion and absorption. Moreover, in P. ostreatus treatment group, two DEGs were detected for fructose and mannose metabolism, and two were noted for fatty acid metabolism. These results indicate that feeding on edible mushroom waste can alter the intestinal microbial community structure of BSFL; moreover, the larval intestine can generate a corresponding feedback. These changes contribute to the degradation of edible mushroom waste by BSFL and provide a reference for treating edible mushroom waste using BSFL.

[Application of CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing technology in edible fungi: a review].

The CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing system is a versatile technology for modifying gene, playing a crucial role in the study of functional genes and genetic breeding of plants, animals, fungi, and microorganisms. This review provides a comprehensive analysis of the application of this technology in gene research and genetic breeding of edible fungi. The review covers various aspects, including the delivery and expression strategies of Cas9 and sgRNA, genetic transformation methods, mutant screening, and repair strategies for target sites following DNA double-strand breaks. Additionally, the review summarizes the main challenges and optimization strategies associated with the application of this technology in edible fungi. Lastly, the future application potential of this technology in edible fungi research is discussed, drawing from the authors' personal research background.

Bidirectional Solid-State Fermentation of Highland Barley by Edible Fungi to Improve Its Functional Components, Antioxidant Activity and Texture Characteristics.

In food industry, the characteristics of food substrate could be improved through its bidirectional solid-state fermentation (BSF) by fungi, because the functional components were produced during BSF. Six edible fungi were selected for BSF to study their effects on highland barley properties, such as functional components, antioxidant activity, and texture characteristics. After BSF, the triterpenes content in Ganoderma lucidum and Ganoderma leucocontextum samples increased by 76.57 and 205.98%, respectively, and the flavonoids content increased by 62.40% (Phellinus igniarius). Protein content in all tests increased significantly, with a maximal increase of 406.11% (P. igniarius). Proportion of indispensable amino acids increased significantly, with the maximum increase of 28.22%. Lysine content increased largest by 437.34% to 3.310 mg/g (Flammulina velutipes). For antioxidant activity, ABTS radical scavenging activity showed the maximal improvement, with an increase of 1268.95%. Low-field NMR results indicated a changed water status of highland barley after fermentation, which could result in changes in texture characteristics of highland barley. Texture analysis showed that the hardness and chewiness of the fermented product decreased markedly especially in Ganoderma lucidum sample with a decrease of 77.96% and 58.60%, respectively. The decrease indicated a significant improvement in the taste of highland barley. The results showed that BSF is an effective technology to increase the quality of highland barley and provide a new direction for the production of functional foods.

Rare earth contamination of edible vegetation: Ce, La, and summed REE in fungi.

The increasing and diversified use of rare earth elements (REE) is considered a potential source of pollution of environmental media including soils. This work documents critically overview data on the occurrence of REE in the fruiting bodies of wild and farmed species of edible and medicinal mushrooms, as this was identified as the largest published dataset of REE occurrence in foodstuff. Most of the literature reported occurrences of cerium (Ce) and lanthanum (La), but a number of studies lacked data on all lanthanides. The Ce, La, and summed REE occurrences were assessed through the criteria of environmental geochemistry, analytical chemistry, food toxicology, mushroom systematics, and ecology. Ce and La accumulate similarly in fruiting bodies and are not fractionated during uptake, maintaining the occurrence patterns of their growing substrates. Similarly, there is no credible evidence of variable REE uptake because the evaluated species data show natural, unfractionated patterns in accordance with the Oddo-Harkins' order of environmental lanthanide occurrence. Thus, lithosphere occurrence patterns of Ce and La as the first and the third most abundant lanthanides are reflected in wild and farmed mushrooms regardless of substrate and show that Ce is around twice more abundant than La. The current state of knowledge provides no evidence that mushroom consumption at these REE occurrence levels poses a health risk either by themselves or when included with other dietary exposure. Macromycetes appear to bio-exclude lanthanides because independently reported bioconcentration factors for different species and collection sites, typically range from < 1 to 0.001. This is reflected in fruiting body concentrations which are four to two orders of magnitude lower than growing substrates. KEY POINTS: •Original REE occurrence patterns in soils/substrates are reflected in mushrooms •No evidence for the fractionation of REE during uptake by fungi •Mushrooms bio-exclude REE in fruiting bodies.

Enhanced production of mycelium biomass and exopolysaccharides of Pleurotus ostreatus by integrating response surface methodology and artificial neural network.

This study aimed to enhance the production of mycelium biomass and exopolysaccharides (EPS) of Pleurotus ostreatus in submerged fermentation. Response Surface Methodology (RSM)sought to optimize culture conditions, whereas Artificial Neural Network (ANN)aimed to predict the mycelium biomass and EPS. After optimization of RSM model conditions, the maximum biomass (36.45 g/L) and EPS (6.72 g/L) were obtained at the optimum temperature of 22.9 °C, pH 5.6, and agitation of 138.9 rpm. Further, the Genetic Algorithm (GA) was employed to optimize the cultivation conditions in order to maximize the mycelium biomass and EPS production. The ANN model with an optimized network structure gave the coefficient of determination (R2) value of 0.99 and the least mean squared error of 1.9 for the validation set. In the end, a graphical user interface was developed to predict mycelium biomass and EPS production.

Formation of special odors driven by volatile compounds during the growth and maturation in edible fungi (Phallus impudicus).

Composition and content of volatiles, the important factors in flavor formation of edible fungi, are affected by growth process. GC-MS was performed and a total of 102 volatiles were identified in Phallus impudicus. Almost all identified volatile compounds showed an obvious upward trend at four growth period, and reached the maximum at fourth stage (PIII), of which the transition from first stage (ZP) to second stage (PI) achieved a breakthrough for 88 volatile compounds from scratch. The PCA and HCA results showed that the four stages were completely separated and appeared different, among which third stage (PII) and PIII might be the two dramatic change nodes in aroma quality. In addition, the top 50 differential metabolites were screened by OPLS-DA and PLS-DA, and correlation analysis showed that 6-undecyl alcohol, α-terpine-7-al, 2, 4-decenol, and 2-cyano-2-ethyl-butanamide, might co-regulate the flavor formation of Phallus impudicus through synergistic action of other chemical components.

Postharvest of fresh white shimeji mushroom subjected to UV-C radiation.

This study aimed to evaluate the postharvest characteristics of edible fresh white shimeji mushrooms under different UV-C radiation doses. The experimental design used was fully randomized, in a 5 × 8 factorial scheme (UV-C radiation dose: 0 (control), 1, 2, 3, and 4 kJ m-2 x day of analysis), with 3 replications of 70 ± 1 g mushrooms each. After exposure to different doses, they were stored at 2 ± 0.5 °C and 60 ± 3.8 % RH. Data were subjected to permutational multivariate analysis (PERMANOVA) (p ≤ 0.05). There was no significance for interaction, nor the factor day, only for the UV-C radiation doses factor. Regarding PCA, among the doses applied, the dose of 2 kJ m-2 was effective in maintaining the quality of mushrooms with greater lightness, greater whiteness index, a greater amount of total extractable polyphenols, and total antioxidant activity. In conclusion, the dose of 2 kJ m-2 was effective in maintaining the postharvest quality of white shimeji mushrooms.

Characterization and mechanism of simultaneous degradation of aflatoxin B1 and zearalenone by an edible fungus of Agrocybe cylindracea GC-Ac2.

Contamination with multiple mycotoxins is a major issue for global food safety and trade. This study focused on the degradation of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and zearalenone (ZEN) by 8 types of edible fungi belonging to 6 species, inclulding Agaricus bisporus, Agrocybe cylindracea, Cyclocybe cylindracea, Cyclocybe aegerita, Hypsizygus marmoreus and Lentinula edodes. Among these fungi, Agrocybe cylindracea strain GC-Ac2 was shown to be the most efficient in the degradation of AFB1 and ZEN. Under optimal degradation conditions (pH 6.0 and 37.4°C for 37.9 h), the degradation rate of both AFB1 and ZEN reached over 96%. Through the analysis of functional detoxification components, it was found that the removal of AFB1 and ZEN was primarily degraded by the culture supernatant of the fungus. The culture supernatant exhibited a maximum manganese peroxidase (MnP) activity of 2.37 U/mL. Interestingly, Agrocybe cylindracea strain GC-Ac2 also showed the capability to degrade other mycotoxins in laboratory-scale mushroom substrates, including 15A-deoxynivalenol, fumonisin B1, B2, B3, T-2 toxin, ochratoxin A, and sterigmatocystin. The mechanism of degradation of these mycotoxins was speculated to be catalyzed by a complex enzyme system, which include MnP and other ligninolytic enzymes. It is worth noting that Agrocybe cylindracea can degrade multiple mycotoxins and produce MnP, which is a novel and significant discovery. These results suggest that this candidate strain and its enzyme system are expected to become valuable biomaterials for the simultaneous degradation of multiple mycotoxins.

First Report of Aspergillus niger causing rot of Morchella sextelata in China.

As an important edible mushroom, morel mushroom (Morchella spp.) has been widely spread and cultivated in China. However, between 2022 and 2023, a rot disease with a natural incidence of 28% occurred in morel mushroom farms in the Qingpu district of Shanghai (N30°97', E121°06'), China. High temperatures (>20℃) and high humidity (>70%) provide conditions conducive to the spread of this disease. First, a small white mold-like symptoms appeared on the surface or the pinnacle of pileus. The tissues in the infected parts stop growing and developing.Then the lesion developed to encircle the pileus and spread gradually to the stipe, seriously affecting its yield and quality. The infected tissue of morel fruiting body at the edge of the lesions was isolated and cultivated on potato dextrose agar (PDA) at 28℃ in the dark. After 3 days, monospore cultures formed black cottony colonies. In order to reliably identify, isolates were transferred to Czapek Yeast Autolysate agar (CYA) (Samson et al, 2014). On CYA fungal colonies consisted of a white mycelium, covered by a layer of black conidiophores. Scanning electron microscope analysis revealed that mature mycelia produced conidiophores ended with numerous metula and phialides. The phialides showed the number of conidia bearing rounded spores, which coincides with previous research(Silva et al, 2020). To confirm the identity of the pathogen, the genomic fragments for the internal transcribed spacer (ITS), beta-microtubulin (BenA), calmodulin (CaM), and RNA polymerase II second largest subunit (RPB2) gene of the isolate were amplified by PCR (White et al. 1990; Glass et al. 1995; Hong et al. 2005; Liu et al. 1999). The resulting sequence was deposited in GenBank with accession OQ931346.1, OR393310, OR393311, and OR393312, respectively. PCR results and morphological observations indicated the isolated strain was a pure culture and the strain was designated as MOR02. Comparison results indicated that the sequences with accession numbers KF305756.1, MK450794.1, HQ285594.1, and HQ285594.1 have high identity with the molecular sequences of A. niger MOR02, which is 99%, 98%, 98%, 99%, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis with ITS and RBP2 genes of the isolated strain and 9 Aapergillus spp. strains were performed using MEGAX software with Neighbor-Joining (NJ) method. Based on the results of growth habits, morphological observations, and phylogenetic analysis, the pathogen was identified as A. niger. A spore suspension of the A. niger strain MOR02 (1 x107 conidia/mL) was inoculated back to healthy morel mushrooms. Five healthy fruit bodies of M. sextelata were injected, and another five healthy morels were treated with potato dextrose broth（PDB） medium as controls. Morels were incubated for 7 days at 20℃ and 85% to 90% relative humidity. The pathogen successfully infected the morel showing a similar white mold-like lesion as the natural occurrence disease. The controls remained healthy without any symptoms. The pathogen was reisolated from the affected lesions and identified as A. niger MOR02 based on its morphological characteristics and phylogenetic marker genes. To our knowledge, this is the first report of A. niger causing rot disease of M. sextelata. This study confirms that A. niger is the pathogenic fungus causing morel rot on the Qingpu farm in Shanghai. The disease occurs under conditions of high humidity and high-temperature conditions. Better production management is the most important to prevent the disease.

Flavor characteristics of large yellow croaker soup served with different dried edible fungi.

The effects of different edible fungi on the flavor profiles of fish soups were analyzed by sensory evaluation, non-volatile and volatile flavor compounds. The sensory attributes of fish soups were modified by adding edible fungi, with the highest total scores obtained for AAFS and DFS. Compared with pure fish soup, the amounts of free amino acids, nucleotides, organic acids and inorganic ions were increased with fungi addition, especially AAFS. The different mushroom fish soups could be clearly distinguished by E-nose analysis, and a total of 52 flavor compounds, mainly composed of aldehydes (27), ketones (11), alcohols (8), esters (4), and others (2), were then identified by GC-IMS. Eventually, fish soup samples were classified into three groups based on OPLS-DA analysis: Ⅰ (LEFS), Ⅱ (BFS and BEFS) and Ⅲ (ABFS, AAFS and DFS). The results showed that Agrocybe aegerita had high suitability for improving the flavor of Large yellow croaker soups.

Pollen food allergy syndrome secondary to molds and raw mushroom cross-reactivity: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Pollen food allergy syndrome (PFAS) is an immunoglobulin E (IgE) mediated reaction that causes oropharyngeal pruritus or angioedema due to homologous proteins present in the culprit food as well as a sensitizing aeroallergen. This cross-reactivity has been well established between pollen and fruits/vegetables. Given the evolutionary similarity between all fungi; cross-reactivity between spore forming microfungi and edible macrofungi have been suggested, however only a limited number of case reports have ever been published on this phenomenon. We present a case of a patient who experiences pollen food allergy syndrome-like symptoms following lightly cooked mushroom ingestion who otherwise was able to tolerate cooked mushrooms. We then review the literature to highlight the limited studies of an underrecognized PFAS cross-reactivity between molds and mushrooms. CASE PRESENTATION: A 15-year-old male presents with symptoms of seasonal and perennial allergic rhinitis was found to have multiple environmental sensitizations to molds via skin prick testing (C. gramineum, A. Pullulans and B. cinerea) and ImmunoCAP serum-specific IgE (A. alternata, C. herbarum, and P. notatum). He developed throat pruritus and subjective throat tightness following ingestion of mushroom containing pizza. ImmunoCAP serum specific IgE to whole mushroom was negative but fresh food prick testing to fresh portobello mushroom and cremini mushroom were both positive with a negative test to canned mushroom. The patient then underwent a graded oral challenge and successfully tolerated canned mushrooms. CONCLUSION: This case highlights the potential cross-reactivity between microfungi aeroallergens and edible fungi, leading to PFAS-like reactions in susceptible individuals. The patient's ability to tolerate canned mushrooms suggests a possible heat-labile protein as the cause of the reaction, similar to PFAS patients tolerating cooked but not raw fruits/vegetables. Positive skin prick test to both spore-forming fungi and edible fungi with negative and whole mushroom IgE results further support the hypothesis of cross-reactivity and sensitization. Further research is needed to identify the specific allergenic proteins involved in these cross-reactions and the susceptible species of mold and mushroom. Understanding these components will contribute to improved diagnosis and management of mold and mushroom allergies, and enhance our knowledge of allergenic cross-reactivity in general.

First Report of Lecanicillium aphanocladii Causing Rot of Sparassis crispa in China.

Sparassis crispa, also known as cauliflower mushroom, is a new popularly edible mushroom in China, also a medicinal mushroom, which possesses various biological activities, such as immunopotentiation, anti-diabetes, anti-cancer, and anti-inflammatory effects. (Han et al., 2018). In recent years, the artificial cultivation of S. crispa has gained considerable public attention in China. In 2023, approximately 20% of S. crispa (about 0.05 ha of the planting area) showed obvious rot with white molds symptoms in mushroom hothouse, located in Shuangliu county, Sichuan province, China (GPS, 104°7'51"N, 30°25'2"E). Infected fruiting bodies were covered by white mycelia that later turned red or fuchsia. In the final stages of infection, the S. crispa fruiting bodies turned dark red or brown before rotting. The pathogen was isolated from the margin of the lesions by plating onto potato dextrose agar (PDA), and incubated at 25℃ in the dark for a week. Five pure culture fungal isolates were obtained. Collected isolates with similar morphology were described as Lecanicillium spp. (Zare et al., 2001). The colonies were raised, covered with white, the reverse side were violet brown, produced diffusing reddish-purple pigment. Conidiogenous cells produced singly, in pairs, verticillate or in dense irregular clusters on prostrate hyphae, at first flask-shaped, tapering into threadlike neck, with a size of 3.0-6.2×0.8-2.2 µm. Conidia were solitary, oval to subglobose, and 2.3-4.0×1.1-2.1 µm in size, similar to L. aphanocladii (Higo et al., 2021). For pathogenicity testing, ten fruiting bodies of S. crispa (planted in the bottles) were selected. Fungal cake of the isolate Bx-Ljb of L. aphanocladii were applied to the fruiting body of S. crispa, whereas pieces of sterile PDA medium were used as controls. All the bottles were incubated at 19±1℃, 85-100% relative humidity, and 18 h of light in the mushroom hothouse. A week later, the inoculated fruiting bodies developed brown spots and gradually expanding, with symptoms similar to the original diseased fruiting bodies. The controls remained healthy. The same fungus was reisolated from the infected fruiting bodies and subsequently identified by morphological characteristics and DNA sequence analysis. The pathogenicity test was repeated three times with similar results. For molecular identification, the DNA of the isolates was extracted using a Fungi Genomic DNA Extraction kit (Solarbio, Beijing). The SSU, LSU, and TEF1-α genes were amplified with the primer as previously described (Zhou et al., 2018). The generated sequences were deposited in GenBank with accession numbers OR206377, OR206378, and OR204702, respectively. BLASTn analyses showed >99.2% identity with previously deposited sequences of L. aphanocladii. Based on the maximum likelihood method, phylogenetic analysis revealed 99% bootstrap support values with L. aphanocladii. The fungus was identified as L. aphanocladii based on morphological and multilocus phylogenetic analyses. To our knowledge, there are two reports of L. aphanocladii on fruiting bodies of Tremella fuciformis and Morchella sextelata in China, and this is the first report of this fungus causing rot of S. crispa in China. It may be a reminder that the risk of L. aphanocladii in mushroom production in China is gradually increasing. These results will contribute to developing managemental strategies for this disease in S. crispa.

Biochar obtained from alkaline earth metal-treated mushroom residue: Thermal behavior and methyl orange adsorption capability.

To achieve the resource utilization of edible fungi residue and obtain efficient adsorbents for treating dyeing wastewater, biochars were prepared from mushroom residue (MR) with the introduction of alkaline-earth metals (AEMs) and used for methyl orange (MO) wastewater treatment. The thermal behavior of the AEM-treated MR was analyzed using thermogravimetric analysis. The physicochemical properties of the biochars obtained from AEM-treated MR (MRCs) were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, laser particle size analyzer, N2 adsorption/desorption, and scanning electron microscopy. The adsorption performance of MRCs on MO was also investigated. The involvement of AEMs was found to obviously move the main pyrolysis zone of MR to a low temperature region and reduce the temperature corresponding to the maximum weight loss rate and activation energy, which is highly dependent on the concentration of AEMs, the anion and cationic species of the AEMs. Moreover, the addition of AEMs resulted in a decrease in oxygen-containing functional groups (-OH, CO, or C-O), a weakening of surface negative charges, an enhancement in aromatic functional groups, and an increase in specific surface area of the MRCs. The adsorption performance of MO on MRCs was significantly improved with the introduction of AEMs as well. Among them, MR pre-treated with 5 mmol/g MgCl2 (MR-MgCl2-5) shows the lowest temperature corresponding to the maximum weight loss rate and the lowest activation energy of 278.52 °C and 4.28 kJ/mol, respectively. The biochar prepared from MR-MgCl2-5 under 400 °C (MR-MgCl2-5-400C) has the weakest surface negative charge and the highest adsorption capacity for MO. The adsorption isotherms, adsorption kinetics, and thermodynamic analysis results showed that the adsorption of MO on MR-MgCl2-5-400C was a spontaneous, chemically dominant monolayer adsorption, with a theoretical maximum adsorption capacity of 81.30 mg/g. This study suggests that AEMs treatment, especially with 5 mmol/g MgCl2, can readily transform edible fungi residue into a low-cost, high-efficient dyeing wastewater adsorbent.

Draft genome sequence of Monascus ruber strain FM39-7.

In China, certain Monascus ruber strains are traditionally used as edible fungi. We sequenced the genome of M. ruber FM39-7 strain, an isolate from fermented rice. The genome is 25.89 Mb with a G + C content of 48.86%, containing 8485 annotated genes.

Recent insights into glucans biosynthesis and engineering strategies in edible fungi.

Fungal α/ß-glucans have significant importance in cellular functions including cell wall structure, host-pathogen interactions and energy storage, and wide application in high-profile fields, including food, nutrition, and pharmaceuticals. Fungal species and their growth/developmental stages result in a diversity of glucan contents, structures and bioactivities. Substantial progresses have been made to elucidate the fine structures and functions, and reveal the potential molecular synthesis pathway of fungal α/ß-glucans. Herein, we review the current knowledge about the biosynthetic machineries, including: precursor UDP-glucose synthesis, initiation, elongation/termination and remodeling of α/ß-glucan chains, and molecular regulation to maximally produce glucans in edible fungi. This review would provide future perspectives to biosynthesize the targeted glucans and reveal the catalytic mechanism of enzymes associated with glucan synthesis, including: UDP-glucose pyrophosphate phosphorylases (UGP), glucan synthases, and glucanosyltransferases in edible fungi.

Nondestructive detection of Pleurotus geesteranus strain degradation based on micro-hyperspectral imaging and machine learning.

In the production of edible fungi, the use of degraded strains in cultivation incurs significant economic losses. Based on micro-hyperspectral imaging and machine learning, this study proposes an early, nondestructive method for detecting different degradation degrees of Pleurotus geesteranus strains. In this study, an undegraded strain and three different degradation-level strains were used. During the mycelium growth, 600 micro-hyperspectral images were obtained. Based on the average transmittance spectra of the region of interest (ROI) in the range of 400-1000 nm and images at feature bands, feature spectra and images were extracted using the successive projections algorithm (SPA) and the deep residual network (ResNet50), respectively. Different feature input combinations were utilized to establish support vector machine (SVM) classification models. Based on the results, the spectra-input-based model performed better than the image-input-based model, and feature extraction improved the classification results for both models. The feature-fusion-based SPA+ResNet50-SVM model was the best; the accuracy rate of the test set was up to 90.8%, which was better than the accuracy rates of SPA-SVM (83.3%) and ResNet50-SVM (80.8%). This study proposes a nondestructive method to detect the degradation of Pleurotus geesteranus strains, which could further inspire new methods for the phenotypic identification of edible fungi.

Morphological and Phylogenetic Characterization of Three Novel Thaxterogaster (Cortinariaceae) Species from China with an Emphasis on Their Subtropical Distribution.

Three new phlegmaciod species of Thaxterogaster, T. borealicremeolinus, T. rufopurpureus, and T. sinopurpurascens spp. nov., from subtropical China were described based on their morphological characteristics and molecular data. Thaxterogaster borealicremeolinus belongs to the sect. Cremeolinae and differs from the other species in this section in its larger basidiospores and its habitat in the Northern Hemisphere associated with Quercus sp. trees. Thaxterogaster rufopurpureus and T. sinopurpurascens belong to sect. Purpurascentes, in which T. rufopurpureus is characterized by a pileus with a reddish-brown coloration when mature and a clavate stipe, while T. sinopurpurascens is characterized by a violet basidiomata, except for a greyish orange to brown pileus, the distinctly marginate bulb of its stipe, and its distribution in subtropical China. The phylogenetic analyses were performed based on nrITS, and detailed descriptions of the new species are provided herein.