Abstract
Mushrooms for ages have been used by humans, not only as a source of food, but medicinal resources as well. They were used as a part of traditional medicine, first of all in the civilizations of the East and recentlly in Western civilizations. The mushrooms constitute 16,000 species worldwide with more than 2000 species identified as safe. Among these mushrooms, 1000 are edible, while others have been used as a source of biofuel, in medicinal formulation, as biochemicals, and for other purposes. Mushrooms have also huge potential, such as a “mushroom pharmaceuticals” wuth 130 medicinal functions. Therefore, they have been considered as potential source of antioxidant, antitumor, antiviral, antimicrobial, and immunomodulatory agents. This review focuses on the antimicrobial and analgetic activities of some medicinal mushrooms.
Highlights
Fungi are group of organisms belonging to separate kingdom according to Whittaker (1969) classification
Medicinal mushrooms (MM) can be defined as macroscopic fungi, which are used in the form of extracts or powder for prevention, alleviation or healing multiple diseases, and/or in balancing a healthy diet
There is a total more than 130 medicinal functions produced by MMs and fungi (Gargano et al, 2017)
Summary
Fungi are group of organisms belonging to separate kingdom according to Whittaker (1969) classification. The mushrooms are low in total fat but with a high proportion of unsaturated fatty acids, and have no cholesterols They have been used as a source of delicious foodstuff and as a source of food flavoring substances but medicinal resource as well. Many species of mushrooms are used in traditional medicine, but the following are the most valuable: Ganoderma lucidum, Lentinus edodes, Trametes versicolor, Schizophyllum commune, Flammulina velutipes, Pleurotus ostreatus, Agaricus bisporus, A. brasiliensis, Tricholoma matsutake, Auricularia auricula, Grifola frondosa, Cordyceps sinensis, Coprinus comatus, Inonotus obliquus, Phellinus linteus, Laetiporus sulphureus, and Hericium erinaceus. These and other species are referred as "medicinal mushrooms" due to their long history of medical use. The special attention is paid on antimicrobial activities of selected mushrooms and their positive analgetics effect of in the treatment of pain
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