Frontier mental health research: psychedelics & drug studies

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Chemistry, Nutrition, and Health-Promoting Properties of Hericium erinaceus (Lion’s Mane) Mushroom Fruiting Bodies and Mycelia and Their Bioactive Compounds

Mendel Friedman

Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry Summary & key facts 2015 304 citations

This paper is a 2015 review that brings together many studies about the lion’s mane mushroom (Hericium erinaceus). It describes the mushroom’s chemical makeup, nutrients, food uses, and about 70 identified bioactive compounds. The review reports many claimed health effects seen in cell, animal, and some human studies—such as anti-inflammatory…

Medicinal Mushrooms: Their Bioactive Components, Nutritional Value and Application in Functional Food Production—A Review

Paulina Łysakowska, Aldona Sobota, Anna Wirkijowska

Molecules Summary & key facts 2023 194 citations

This review describes several medicinal mushrooms — including Lion's Mane, Reishi, Chaga, Cordyceps, Shiitake, and Turkey Tail — as low‑fat, low‑calorie foods that contain high levels of bioactive compounds (for example (1,3)(1,6)-β-d-glucans, triterpenes, phenolic compounds, and sterols). The review reports that these compounds have been linked in studies to anticancer,…

Fungal Biology and Applications Herbal Medicine Research Studies Medicinal Plants and Bioactive Compounds

Hericenones and erinacines: stimulators of nerve growth factor (NGF) biosynthesis inHericium erinaceus

Bingji Ma, Jinwen Shen, Hai‐You Yu, Yuan Ruan, Tingting Wu, Xu Zhao

Mycology&#58 An International Journal on Fungal Biology Summary & key facts 2010 143 citations

This review surveys the chemical and biological literature dealing with the isolation, structural elucidation and bioactivity of hericenones and erinacines from the fruiting body and mycelium of Hericium erinaceus, concentrating on work that has appeared in the literature up to December 2009.

Fungal Biology and Applications Medicinal Plants and Bioactive Compounds Phytochemistry and Biological Activities

Influence of Short-Term Consumption of Hericium erinaceus on Serum Biochemical Markers and the Changes of the Gut Microbiota: A Pilot Study

Xie Xiao-qian, Yan Geng, Qijie Guan, Yilin Ren, Lin Guo, Qiqi Lv, et al.

Nutrients Summary & key facts 2021 50 citations

Researchers had 13 healthy adults take Hericium erinaceus powder every day for seven days. They tested blood with routine blood and serum chemistry tests and checked gut bacteria using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. After the week, the gut bacterial community showed higher within-sample diversity and higher levels of several bacteria…

Fungal Biology and Applications Ginseng Biological Effects and Applications Gut microbiota and health

Hericerin derivatives activates a pan‐neurotrophic pathway in central hippocampal neurons converging to ERK1/2 signaling enhancing spatial memory

Ramón Martínez‐Mármol, YeJin Chai, Jacinta N. Conroy, Zahra Khan, Seong‐Min Hong, Seon Beom Kim, et al.

Journal of Neurochemistry Summary & key facts 2023 36 citations

Researchers isolated two compounds from the medicinal mushroom Hericium erinaceus—N-de phenylethyl isohericerin (NDPIH) and hericene A. In lab cultures, these compounds caused strong axon growth and more branching in hippocampal neurons even without serum. Tests showed they activate ERK1/2 signaling and do not act only through the TrkB (BDNF) receptor.…

Fungal Biology and Applications Nerve injury and regeneration Pain Mechanisms and Treatments

Benefits, side effects, and uses of Hericium erinaceus as a supplement: a systematic review

Akshay Menon, Ayesha Jalal, Zara Arshad, Faisal A. Nawaz, Rahul Kashyap

Frontiers in Nutrition Summary & key facts 2025 3 citations

This systematic review looked at 26 studies on Lion’s Mane (Hericium erinaceus) published up to June 2024. The authors found some clinical trial evidence of small cognitive improvements (a combined MMSE increase of 1.17 from one RCT and one pilot trial), laboratory evidence of anti‑cancer activity in cell lines, and…

Fungal Biology and Applications Ginseng Biological Effects and Applications Medicinal Plants and Bioactive Compounds

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