Description: <b>Mushroom Shiitake</b>, Active hexose correlated compound<br>
Extracted from Basidiomycete mushrooms (eg, shiitake [Lentinula edodes]) that is purported to improve immune function.<br>
Summary:<br>
- Can significantly inhibit carcinogenesis and improve anti-tumor effects, thus increasing the effectiveness of cancer immunotherapy.<br>
- Enhanced abundance of Akkermansia in the intestine of those who responded positively to the ICI(immune checkpoint inhibitors).<br>
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-Eat fermented foods then fibre to maintain them. Fruits and vegs for fibre Chicory
root for fibre (inulin which is main prebiotic)<br>
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AHCC is mainly derived from the mycelium of Shiitake mushrooms.<br>
• It is rich in polysaccharides that are believed to enhance immune function.<br>
• The compound may influence various pathways in cancer, including boosting NK cell activity, modulating cytokine production, influencing the NF-kB inflammatory pathway, and reducing oxidative stress.<br>
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Pathways:<br>
-Stimulate cytokine production (e.g., interleukins, tumor necrosis factor) and enhance the function of macrophages and dendritic cells.<br>
<a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28727820/" > https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28727820/ </a>
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<table>
<tr>
<th>Component class</th>
<th>Specific compound / fraction</th>
<th>Typical source within shiitake</th>
<th>Main structural type</th>
<th>Approximate amount</th>
<th>Main relevance</th>
<th>Notes</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Beta-glucan</td>
<td><b>Lentinan</b></td>
<td>Fruiting body cell wall; enriched by hot-water extraction</td>
<td>β-(1→3) backbone with β-(1→6) branches; often triple-helix in active preparations</td>
<td>About <b>4.1–5.5 mg/g dry weight</b> in one quantified fruiting-body study; broader practical range often cited around <b>0.4–1.3% of dry weight</b></td>
<td>Best-known shiitake anticancer / immunomodulatory beta-glucan</td>
<td>This is the main named shiitake β-glucan. Amount varies a lot with strain, storage, and assay method.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Beta-glucan</td>
<td><b>Total β-glucans</b></td>
<td>Whole fruiting body, especially cap and stem cell walls</td>
<td>Mixed fungal β-glucan pool, mostly β-linked wall glucans</td>
<td>Pileus about <b>20.1–44.2% dry matter</b>; stipe about <b>29.7–56.5% dry matter</b> across cultivars</td>
<td>Broad immune, fiber, and functional-food relevance</td>
<td>Total β-glucan is much higher than lentinan alone. “Total β-glucan” should not be confused with lentinan content.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Beta-glucan</td>
<td>β-(1→3),(1→6)-glucan fraction</td>
<td>Purified polysaccharide fraction from shiitake</td>
<td>Branched fungal β-glucan</td>
<td>Usually reported as an isolated fraction rather than a fixed natural percentage</td>
<td>Most likely to carry the classic lentinan-like immune activity</td>
<td>This is the dominant medicinally relevant shiitake β-glucan architecture.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Beta-glucan</td>
<td>β-(1→6)-glucan fraction</td>
<td>Minor purified glucan fraction</td>
<td>More linear / differently linked β-glucan fraction</td>
<td>No reliable simple whole-mushroom percentage found</td>
<td>Possible supportive bioactivity</td>
<td>Reported in fractionation studies, but less emphasized than the β-(1→3),(1→6) fraction.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Alpha-glucan</td>
<td>α-(1→3)-glucan fraction</td>
<td>Cell-wall associated polysaccharide fraction</td>
<td>α-glucan</td>
<td>No simple whole-mushroom percentage established here</td>
<td>Structural / possible adjunct bioactivity</td>
<td>Important because shiitake contains more than just β-glucans.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Low-molecular-weight bioactive</td>
<td><b>Eritadenine</b></td>
<td>Free small molecule in caps, stems, and mycelium</td>
<td>Purine-like alkaloid / adenine derivative</td>
<td>Commonly reported around <b>50–70 mg/100 g dry weight</b> in caps and <b>30–40 mg/100 g dry weight</b> in stems; some reports are much higher depending on method</td>
<td>Best known for cholesterol-lowering and methylation-related metabolic effects</td>
<td>Not a glucan. Often listed among the major distinctive shiitake actives.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Sterol</td>
<td><b>Ergosterol</b></td>
<td>Membrane sterol in fruiting body tissues</td>
<td>Fungal sterol; vitamin D2 precursor</td>
<td>Examples around <b>294–478 mg/100 g dry weight</b>; other reports extend into the low mg/g dry-weight range</td>
<td>Nutritional relevance; precursor for UV-generated vitamin D2</td>
<td>Not a β-glucan, but one of the main recognized shiitake actives.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Organosulfur precursor</td>
<td><b>Lentinic acid</b></td>
<td>Present in dried shiitake; precursor pool changes with drying / rehydration</td>
<td>Sulfur-containing flavor precursor</td>
<td>Highly process-dependent; no single stable food-table value</td>
<td>Precursor to aroma compounds and possible ancillary bioactivity</td>
<td>Main importance is as precursor to lenthionine during processing and rehydration.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Organosulfur volatile</td>
<td><b>Lenthionine</b></td>
<td>Generated during drying / rehydration / processing from lentinic acid</td>
<td>Cyclic organosulfur volatile</td>
<td>One induced-cultivation study reported about <b>88.2 μg/g</b> at peak conditions</td>
<td>Characteristic shiitake aroma; possible antimicrobial / bioactive relevance</td>
<td>More important as a flavor-signature compound than as the main medicinal constituent.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Phenolics / other metabolites</td>
<td>Phenolics, terpenoids, sterols, peptides</td>
<td>Distributed through fruiting body and extracts</td>
<td>Mixed secondary-metabolite pool</td>
<td>Usually reported as extract-dependent totals rather than stable whole-mushroom values</td>
<td>Antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and supportive nutraceutical effects</td>
<td>Real but less standardized than lentinan, eritadenine, and ergosterol.</td>
</tr>
</table>