In 2021, China ranked first among the world’s leading producers of mushrooms and truffles, with an estimated production of 41.1 million tons.
According to the USDA, the value of US mushroom crop sales from 2021 to 2022 was $1.02 billion.
Researchers at the University of Queensland in Australia have discovered that an active compound from the edible lion’s mane mushroom significantly stimulates nerve growth and improves brain cell memory, preventing Alzheimer’s.
Professor Frederic Meunier from the Queensland Brain Institute stated that the team had identified new active compounds from the Hericium erinaceus fungus: “Extracts from the ‘Lion’s Mane’ mushroom have been used in traditional medicine in Asian countries for centuries, but we wanted to scientifically determine its potential effect on brain cells,” says Professor Frederic Meunier, of the Queensland Brain Institute, in a statement from the University of Queensland.
It should be noted that this fungus is widely used in traditional Chinese and Korean medicine, and is also very common during the summer and fall in hardwoods, especially American beech, native to eastern North America.
Dr. Ramón Martínez-Marmol, co-author of the study, believes that this revelation could help develop several new treatments against neurodegenerative cognitive disorders such as Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia.
“Our idea was to identify bioactive compounds from natural sources that could reach the brain and regulate the growth of neurons, with the consequent improvement in memory formation,” Martínez-Marmol commented.
How does the mushroom work?
In a recent study, carried out at the University of Queensland (Australia), it has been shown that the active ingredients present in lion’s mane (hericenones and erinacin) can stimulate the generation of neurons and the communication between them in laboratory cultures. , which could improve memory. The authors believe that the lion’s mane mushroom could be used to protect against and treat Alzheimer’s disease.
According to Professor Frederic Meunier, the extract of the mushroom and its active compounds greatly increase the size of growth cones, which are important for brain cells to sense their environment and establish new connections with other neurons in the brain.
The researchers explain that the fungus has demonstrated its ability to stimulate “nerve growth factor”, which promotes the synthesis of new neurons and the construction of the myelin sheath.
Furthermore, regardless of the effect on the myelin sheath, the fungus protects nerve cells from death by the accumulation of beta-amyloid plaques and other stressors through a substance called dilinoleyl-phosphatidyl-ethanolamine.
Previous studies had already tested the effect of lion’s mane on intellectual abilities. For example, a double-blind, placebo-controlled study showed that participants with mild cognitive impairment given mushroom powder capsules for 16 weeks showed significantly improved mental abilities.
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