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.
Highlights
The interest in edible mushrooms has been constantly growing since the last decade due to their prohealth and therapeutic activities which are proved in many scientific experiments
The use of highperformance liquid chromatography (HPLC) allowed determining the amount of lovastatin in the methanol extracts, which were obtained from the fruiting bodies of A. bisporus, C. cibarius, I. badia, and L. edodes as well as from the in vitro mycelial cultures of these species, and artificial digestive juices
The amount of lovastatin in the methanol extracts obtained from the fruiting bodies of the studied species was estimated as follows: A. bisporus—30.79 mg/100 g d.w., L. edodes—0.95 mg/100 g d.w., C. cibarius—67.89 mg/100 g d.w., and I. badia—6.21 mg/100 g d.w
Summary
The interest in edible mushrooms has been constantly growing since the last decade due to their prohealth and therapeutic activities which are proved in many scientific experiments. Edible mushrooms are a source of valuable biologically active substances, including phenolic and indolic compounds, carotenoids, flavonoids, sesquiterpenoids, glucans, glycoproteins, triterpenoids, sterols, tocopherols, antibiotics, vitamins, and bioelements, which are present in them in significant quantities and often act synergistically. Lovastatin is a precursor, which during enzymatic reactions is transformed from the form of lactone to hydroxy acid that competitively blocks 3-hydroxy 3-methyl-glutaryl-coenzyme A (HMGCoA) reductase. The transformation of HMGCoA to mevalonate, which is a key stage in the synthesis of cholesterol, is blocked. This mechanism leads to a reduction in cholesterol synthesis, and its concentration in the liver, and increases the expression of the low-density lipoprotein receptor on the hepatocyte cell membrane, which is captured from the blood, and decreases its plasma level [17, 18]. It has been stated that the pathophysiology of atherosclerosis is associated with the induction of inflammatory processes in the vascular wall and, statins play an important role in the prevention and treatment of this disease
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