Study on the Arsenic Content of Ophiocordyceps sinensis in Sichuan Province

[Objectives] To investigate the characteristics of arsenic content of Ophiocordyceps sinensis in Sichuan Province. [Methods]Using ICP-MS( Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry),we studied the 30 samples of O. sinensis from 25 places of production in Sichuan Province as well as the arsenic content in the habitat soil. [Results] The arsenic content of O. sinensis in Sichuan Province was0. 62-9. 16 mg/kg; the arsenic content in habitat soil was 3. 93-59. 90 mg/kg. [Conclusions]90% of O. sinensis products from Sichuan Province exceeded the arsenic content limit of 1 mg/kg in the health food,and as a comparison,the arsenic content of samples from Qinghai,Tibet,Gansu was over the limit.

Discovery of differential sequences for improving breeding and yield of cultivated Ophiocordyceps sinensis through ITS sequencing and phylogenetic analysis

To accelerate the breeding process of cultivated Ophiocordyceps sinensis and increase its yield,it is important to identify molecular fingerprint of dominant O.sinensis.In the present study,we collected 3 batches of industrially cultivated O.sinensis product with higher yield than the others and compared their internal transcribed spacer(ITS)sequences with the wild and the reported.The ITS sequence was obtained by bidirectional sequencing and analyzed with molecular systematics as a DNA barcode for rapid and accurate identification of wild and cultivated O.sinensis collected.The ITS sequences of O.sinensis with detailed collection loci on NCBI were downloaded to construct a phylogenetic tree together with the sequences obtained from the present study by using neighbor-joining method based on their evolution relationship.The information on collection loci was analyzed with ArcGIS 10.2 to demonstrate the geographic distribution of these samples and thus to determine the origin of the dominant samples.The results showed that all wild and cultivated samples were identified as O.sinensis and all sequences were divided into seven phylogenetic groups in the tree.Those groups were precisely distributed on the map and the process of their system evolution was clearly presented.The three cultivated samples were clustered into two dominant groups,showing the correlation between the industrially cultivated samples and the dominant wild samples,which can provide references for its optimized breeding in the future.

Developmental recording of the ghost-moth larvae after ex situ infection by Ophiocordyceps sinensis

Dear Editor,Chinese cordyceps, a valuable Chinese traditional medicine, is a complex of mummified ghost moth caterpillars and fungal stroma of Ophiocordyceps sinensis (Winkler, 2010). O. sinensis has been nominated as the national fungus of China and flagship species of the Tibetan Plateau (Cannon, 2010;Zhang et al., 2012).

On-site identification of Ophiocordyceps sinensis using multispectral imaging and chemometrics

For the reasonable and effective collection of Ophiocordyceps sinensis,a new method of on-site identification was attempted using a portable multispectral imaging(MSI)technique.Three dimensional(3D)data-cubes of representative Ophiocordyceps sinensis and weeds samples were acquired and pre-processed with standard normal variate transformation(SNV).Principal component analysis(PCA)and simulated annealing particle swarm optimisation(SAPSO)algorithms were used to extract characteristic images and develop the support vector classification(SVC)models.Results show that the fused feature model of SAPSO-SVC has the best performance,resulting in a recognition accuracy of the prediction set of 96.30%.Moreover,on-site distribution map of Ophiocordyceps sinensis and weeds was created using the spectral feature model of SAPSO-SVC,and the target could be easily identified from the distribution map.This work demonstrates the potential for on-site identification of Ophiocordyceps sinensis in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau using a portable MSI technique combined with the SAPSO-SVC algorithm.

Cultivated Cordyceps: A Tale of Two Treasured Mushrooms

Ophiocordyceps sinensis and Cordyceps militaris both contain many bioactive compounds that confer potential therapeutic benefits. This review discusses the possible use of cultivated C. militaris as an effective substitute for native O. sinensis in the face of ever-increasing prices of O. sinensis because of its short supply. On the one hand, cultivated C. militaris contains higher levels of cordycepin when compared with that of wild-type O. sinensis and cultivation of C. militaris has been shown to be capable of reducing the risk of heavy metal contamination. On the other hand, there is a paucity of robust in vivo studies and randomized controlled tests comparing the pharmacology and use of C. militaris and O. sinensis. For extraction of cordycepin as western-style tablets, the use of cultivated C. militaris rather than O. sinensis represents the most appropriate future approach. For many other purposes, comparative pharmacology and clinical trials are in urgent needs.

Cordyceps as potential therapeutic agents for atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis is a leading cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide.Despite the challenges in managing atherosclerosis,researchers continue to investigate new treatments and complementary therapies.Cordyceps is a traditional Chinese medicine that has recently gained attention as a potential therapeutic agent for atherosclerosis.Numerous studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of cordyceps in treating atherosclerosis through various pharmacological actions,including anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities,lowering cholesterol,inhibiting platelet aggregation,and modulating apoptosis or autophagy in vascular endothelial cells.Notably,the current misuse of the terms cordyceps and Ophiocordyceps sinensis has caused confusion among researchers,and complicated the current academic research on cordyceps.This review focuses on the chemical composition,pharmacological actions,and underlying mechanisms contributing to the anti-atherosclerotic effects of cordyceps and the mycelium of Ophiocordyceps spp.This review provides a resource for the research on the development of new drugs for atherosclerosis from cordyceps.