• 동의생리병리학회지
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• 제16권4호
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• pp.684-692
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• 2002

Cordyceps militaris has been known as a Chinese traditional medicine for the treatment of tuberculosis, asthma, kidney disease, debility and fatigue etc. This study was attempted to investigate the therapeutic effect of C. militaris extract on the cytotoxic activity of HepG2, human hepatocellular carcinoma cells and the liver damage induced by carbon tetrachloride in SD rats. C. militaris extracts inhibited significantly the proliferation of HepG2 cells in vitro. Carbon tetrachloride(CCl₄) caused a significant an increase in liver weight, serum aspartate aminotransferase(AST) and alanine aminotransferase(ALT) activity, alkaline phosphatase(ALP), serum thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), microsomal TBARS, and decrease in microsomal detoxification enzymes (cytochrome P-450, P-450 reductase, cytochrome b5, b5 reductase). TBARS and ALP in serum pretreated with C. militaris extracts (300mg/kg/day, 600mg/kg/day) was significantly reduced compared to control group(CCl₄). Cytochrome b5 and b5 reductase activities were significantly increased in CM300 (300 mg/kg/day) and CM600 group(600 mg/kg/day), and cytochrome P-450 reductase was significantly increased in CM300 group. Pretreatment (100, 300, and 600 mg/kg/day for 7 days) of C. militaris with CCl₄ was significantly inhibited the accumulation microsomal TBARS and the significantly increased in the cytochrome P-450 activity. These results suggested that C. militaris (300mg/kg/day for 7 days) has appreciable therapeutic effect on CCl₄ induced hepatotoxicity.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• 제22권2호
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• pp.201-205
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• 2009

Effects of Cordyceps militaris mycelia on rumen microbial fermentation were determined by measuring in vitro gas production, cellulose digestion and VFA concentrations. C. militaris mycelia was added to buffered rumen fluid with final concentrations of 0.00, 0.10, 0.15, 0.20, 0.25 and 0.30 g/L and incubation times were for 3, 6, 9, 12, 24, 36, 48 and 72 h. At all incubation times, the gas production showed a quadratic increase with the supplementation of C. militaris mycelia; maximum responses were seen with 0.25 g/L supplementation. However, the gas production was significantly lower for the 0.30 g/L supplementation than for the 0.25 g/L supplementation from 9 h to 72 h incubation. The cellulose filter paper (FP) digestion showed a quadratic increase, as did the gas production except at 3 h incubation. The concentration of total VFA was significantly increased by the supplementation of C. militaris mycelia compared with the control treatment; the highest response was also seen with 0.25 g/L supplementation. This was true for responses in the concentration of acetic and propionic acids. As opposed to other responses, the responses of pH to the supplementation of C. militaris mycelia showed a quadratic decrease from 3 h to 36 h incubation. In conclusion, C. militaris mycelia alter the mixed rumen microbial fermentation with increases in the production of gas and VFA, and cellulose FP digestion.

• 약학회지
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• 제58권2호
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• pp.81-90
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• 2014

In order to determine the functional benefits of Cordyceps militaris in the immune system, we examined the immunomodulatory activities of C. militaris using an immunocompromised C57BL/6 mice, mouse spleen cells, RAW 264.7 macrophage cells, and A549 lung carcinoma cells. Mice were injected intraperitioneally with an immunosuppressive drug, cyclophosphamide, and then administered orally with 30, 100 and 300 mg/kg of 50% ethanol extract of C. militaris (CME 30, CME 100 and CME 300) for 14 days. CME increased splenocyte proliferation and natural killer (NK) cell activity compared to 3% hydroxypropyl methylcellulose-treated control mice. CME also increased the production of Th1 cytokines, IL-2 and TNF-${\alpha}$ in spleen cells isolated from CME-injected mice and in vitro, which suggested the enhanced cellular immunity in response to CME. CME also increased splenocyte proliferation, NK cell activity, and IL-2 and TNF-${\alpha}$ production compared to 1 ${\mu}M$ methotrexate-treated spleen cells in vitro. We examined whether C. militaris regulates the production of inflammatory mediators in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. CME inhibited LPS-induced NO production and iNOS expression in a dose dependent manner, while COX-2 expression was remained unchanged. In addition, CME also has free radical scavenging activity, indicating its antioxidant activity. These results indicate that C. militaris enhances immune activity by promoting immune cell proliferation and cytokine production.

• 한국버섯학회지
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• 제20권1호
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• pp.13-21
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• 2022

Cordyceps militaris, a well-known traditional Chinese medicine, has multiple health-promoting effects. It is used as a herbal remedy and health food in Asian countries. Cultured mycelia are often used as a substitute for natural C. militaris. In the present study, the mycelia and fruiting bodies of artificially cultured C. militaris were analyzed using a metabolomics approach. The protein and crude fat contents of the mycelia were substantially higher than those of the fruiting bodies. The top three abundant amino acids in the mycelia were proline (3.9 g/100 g), aspartic acid (2.9 g/100 g), and glutamic acid (2.7 g/100 g). The carbohydrate content was similar in the fruiting bodies and mycelia. Analysis revealed that both the fruiting bodies and mycelia are rich in phenolic compounds and exhibit antioxidant activity. Further, six metabolites were significantly different between the mycelia and fruiting bodies. The levels of Ca, glucose, Mg, and Se were higher in the mycelia than in the fruiting bodies. In contrast, mannitol and Zn were more abundant in the fruiting bodies. The current study provides a comprehensive metabolic profile of the mycelia and fruiting bodies of artificially cultured C. militaris. Such an exercise is potentially important for understanding the metabolism of C. militaris and facilitating the use of cultured mycelia as a supplement to C. militaris fruiting bodies in traditional Chinese medicine.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제13권1호
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• pp.49-54
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• 2009

The mushroom Cordyceps militaris has been used for a long time in eastern Asia as a nutraceutical and in traditional Chinese medicine as a treatment for cancer patients. In the present study, a cytotoxic antifungal protease was purified from the dried fruiting bodies of C. militaris using anion-exchange chromatography on a DEAE-Sepharose column. Electrophoretic analyses indicated that this protein, designated C. militaris protein(CMP), has a molecular mass of 12 kDa and a pI of 5.1. The optimum conditions for protease activity were a temperature of $37^{\circ}C$ and pH of $7.0{\sim}9.0$. The enzyme activity was specifically inhibited by the serine protease inhibitor phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride. Amino acid composition of intact CMP and amino acid sequences of three major peptides from a tryptic digest of CMP were determined. CMP exerted strong antifungal effect against the growth of the fungus Fusarium oxysporum, and exhibited cytotoxicity against human breast and bladder cancer cells. These results indicate that C. militaris represents a source of a novel protein that might be applied in diverse biological and medicinal applications.

• 한국버섯학회지
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• 제20권3호
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• pp.93-101
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• 2022

Cordyceps militaris mycelium extracts containing high amounts of cordycepin were evaluated in vitro for their anti-inflammatory and tumor cell growth-inhibitory activities. All extracts dose dependently inhibited the increased production of inflammatory mediators including reactive oxygen species (ROS), nitric oxide (NO), and 𝛽-hexosaminidase in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated inflammatory cells. All extracts were evaluated for anti-proliferative activity against normal RBL-2H3 cells and diverse types of cancer cell lines, including HCT, MC5-7, U-87MG, AGS, and A549 cells. The extract showed the strongest growth inhibition (IC₅₀ = 28.13 ㎍/mL) relative to vehicle-treated control cells against fibrosarcoma (MC5-7). We have demonstrated anti-inflammatory activity of C. militaris via inhibition of NO, ROS production, and 𝛽-hexosaminidase release in activated cells. C. militaris mycelium extract was also evaluated mechanistically and found to exert six types of anti-cancer activity, confirming its pharmacological potential. Our study suggests C. militaris use as a potential source of anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer agents. C. militaris may also be considered a functional food.

• 한국균학회지
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• 제37권1호
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• pp.86-90
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• 2009

KACC에서 분양받은 C. militaris 4균주와 야생에서 채집된 6균주 그리고 교배 육성한 4균주를 대상으로 DNA분석에 의한 분류동정을 시행하였다. 표준균주 10균주와 교잡균주 4균주에서 조사된 전 부위(ITS1, 5.8S rDNA, ITS2)에서 많은 염기서열 차이를 보이고 있으나 같은 종으로 확인된 표준균주들과 수집균주들과 비교한 바 같은 균으로 분류된 것을 확인할 수 있었다. 교잡에 쓰여 졌던 표준 균주에서 교잡된 교잡균주 중 가장 우수한 교잡균주 mat1과 교잡에 사용되었던 표준균주(MPNU10306, MPNU10366)를 선택하여 RAPD 분석을 하였으며, RAPD에서 나타난 각 균주간의 다양한 유전적 변이가 관찰되었다. 이는 새로운 C. militaris종 균주로 판단되어지며, HPLC 분석에서도 교잡에 쓰여 졌던 표준균주보다 교잡한 C. militaris 균주가 cordycepin 생산량이 우수하게 나타났으며, 이는 교잡균주가 cordycepin 함량을 보다 더 높일 수 있음을 의미하고 상업적 가치가 있을 것이라 판단되어지며, 지속적인 연구가 필요할 것으로 생각된다.

• International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
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• 제25권1호
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• pp.99-110
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• 2012

Comparison on the genomic structure and phylogenetic relationship of the Hsp88 genes from P. tenuipes Jochoen-1, P. tenuipes, C. militaris and C. pruinosa was described. The Hsp88 genes from the three entomopathogenic strains, P. tenuipes Jocheon-1(strain), P. tenuipes(original species), and C. militaris contain the identical genomic structure, namely 5 introns and 6 exons with the length of 13, 62, 32, 1,438, 306, 288 nucleotides encoding 713 amino acid residues, whereas in case of C. pruinosa, it contains 4 introns and 5 exons with the length of 13, 62, 32, 1,744, 288 nucleotides encoding 713 amino acid residues. The genomic DNA length of the Hsp88 genes from P. tenuipes Jocheon-1 and P. tenuipes are both 2,600 nucleotides long in size. The Hsp88 genes from C. militaris and C. pruinosa are 2,582, 2,576 nucleotides long in size, respectively. Hsp88 genes of the P. tenuipes Jochoen-1, P. tenuipes, C. militaris and C. pruinosa also contain the conserved ATP-binding domain. Phylogenetic analysis of the Hsp genes of the four strains tested in this study showed that the fungal Hsp88 is divided into two separate clades, ascomycetes and deutromycete. Within the ascomycetes fungal clade, the P. tenuipes Jochoen-1 and P. tenuipes formed a subgroup, on the other hand, C. militaris and C. pruinosa formed another subgroup. Pair-wise comparison of P. tenuipes Jocheon-1 Hsp88 with those of P. tenuipes, C. militaris and C. pruinosa Hsp88s revealed significant identity in deduced amino acid sequence among these strains. The P. tenuipes Jocheon-1 Hsp88 showed 99% identity with the P. tenuipes, 97% identity with the C. militaris, and 98% identity with the C. pruinosa.

• Mycobiology
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• 제33권4호
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• pp.178-181
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• 2005

Cordyceps militaris specimens were continuously collected by Entomopathogenic Fungal Culture Collection (EFCC), Kangwon National University from different mountains, national parks and recreation parks of Korea from 1986 to 2002, mainly from late May to October of each year. Dry specimens of C. militaris along with their isolates have been preserved in EFCC. Fruiting of C. militaris was induced from single ascospore isolates as well as their combinations in brown rice medium. Fruiting experiments showed that combinations of single ascospore isolates produced fertile fruiting bodies, but single isolates could not produce any fruiting bodies. It was shown that two isolates of the opposite mating types were required to produce fertile stromata. However, combinations of the same mating type isolates produced no fruiting body, showing that C. militaris is a bipolar, heterothallic fungus.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• 제18권3호
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• pp.171-176
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• 2012

We previously isolated cordycepin, guanosine and tryptophan from Cordyceps militaris as antiadipogenic constituents. For the quality control of C. militaris for anti-adipogenic activity, simultaneous analytical method using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-diode array detection (DAD) was developed and validated. Quantitation of these compounds in various Cordyceps samples from different sources and various extraction methods were conducted using developed method. Our study shows that natural Cordyceps and host insect possess higher content than cultured ones and fruiting bodies, respectively. The content of cordycepin showed great difference in different C. militaris samples whereas trytophan content was similar in tested samples. Addition of water to extraction solvent greatly increased the yield of guanosine and tryptophan. High temperature and longer extraction time increased yield of guanosine, whereas the content of trytophan was decreased in high temperature during extraction with water. Extraction using ultrasonic apparatus slightly increased extraction efficiency. Cordycepin, however, has little variation in different extraction method tested. Strong anti-adipogenic activity was observed in the samples that contain all the three constituents. Taken together, quantitation of these compounds using developed analytical method might provide basic requirement for the anti-adipogenic activity of C. militaris.