BookDinesh Chandra Agrawal, Muralikrishnan Dhanasekaran, editors.
Summary: Medicinal mushrooms are increasingly gaining attention worldwide because of their pharmacologically bioactive compounds, which have demonstrated potent and unique clinical properties. Scientific studies carried out during the last decade have confirmed their efficacy in treating a wide range of diseases. Extracts and bioactive compounds obtained from mushrooms have been used medicinally as anticancer, immunomodulator, antibacterial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, anti-atherosclerotic, neuroprotectant, cardioprotectant, antioxidant, and anti-hypoglycemic agents, and in stem cell-based therapies. Introducing readers to the latest developments in, and ongoing research efforts on, medicinal mushrooms, this book gathers articles contributed by eminent researchers in different disciplines and from around the globe. Highlighting the tremendous potential of mushrooms for the development of new drugs, the topics covered include but are not limited to: Recent progress in research on the pharmaceutical potential of medicinal mushrooms and prospects for their clinical application; Edible mushroom neuronutraceuticals: Basis of therapeutics; Overview of therapeutic efficacy of mushrooms; Mushrooms - a wealth of resources for prospective stem cell-based therapies; Mushrooms as potential natural cytostatics.
Contents:
Intro; Dedication; Preface; Acknowledgments; Contents; About the Editors and Contributors; Editors; Contributors;
1: Recent Progress in Research on the Pharmacological Potential of Mushrooms and Prospects for Their Clinical Application; 1.1 Introduction; 1.2 Biological and Genetic Resources of Medicinal Mushrooms and Their Application; 1.3 Mushroom-Derived Bioactive Compounds; 1.3.1 Polysaccharides; 1.3.2 Terpenoids, Steroids, and Sterols; 1.3.3 Phenolics and Other Compounds; 1.4 Pharmacological Activity of Mushrooms; 1.4.1 Antimicrobial (Antifungal and Antibacterial) Activity 1.4.2 Immunomodulatory and Anticancer Activities1.4.3 Hypocholesterolemic, Hypoglycemic, and Anti-obesity Effects; 1.4.4 Antioxidant and Anti-inflammatory Effects; 1.4.5 Cardioprotective Effect; 1.4.6 Neuroprotective and Antidepressant Effects; 1.4.7 Antiviral and Anti-allergic Effects; 1.5 Nutritional and Dietary Values of Medicinal Mushrooms; 1.6 Current State of Epidemiological and Clinical Studies of Medicinal Mushrooms; 1.7 Conclusions and Future Prospects; References;
2: Edible Mushrooms as Neuro-nutraceuticals: Basis of Therapeutics; 2.1 Introduction 2.1.1 The Good and Bad Mushrooms2.1.1.1 Edible Mushrooms; 2.1.1.2 Medicinal Mushrooms; 2.1.1.3 Edible Mushrooms with Toxic Effects; 2.1.1.4 Poisonous Mushrooms; 2.2 Mushrooms and Neural Cells; 2.2.1 Neuroprotective Effects of Mushrooms; 2.2.2 Neuro-regenerative Effects of Mushrooms; 2.2.3 Neuronal Differentiation, Stem Cell Generation, and Myelinogenesis; 2.3 Mushrooms and Some Neurological Diseases; 2.3.1 Fatigue and Depression; 2.3.2 Beneficial Effects of Mushrooms in Alzheimer's Disease; 2.3.3 Mushrooms Are Good for Parkinson's Disease 2.4 Mechanisms by Which Mushrooms Exert Medicinal Effects2.4.1 Short-Term or Long-Term ER Stress Have Varied Effects on Neural Health; 2.4.2 Erinacine A Regulates Cellular Oxidant Stress and Immunity to Affect Neuronal Rescue; 2.4.3 Pleurotus giganteus Blocks Nitrosative Stress to Aid in Neuronal Protection; 2.4.4 Amanita caesarea Regulates Ca2+-Mediated Apoptosis and Increases Autophagy in Cells; 2.4.5 Polyozellin Tames Apoptosis During Excitotoxicity; 2.5 Mushrooms as Probiotic: The Gut-Brain Axis; 2.6 Conclusions; References;
3: Overview of Therapeutic Efficacy of Mushrooms 3.1 Introduction3.2 Overview of the Therapeutic Efficacy of Mushrooms; 3.2.1 Beneficial Role of Mushrooms or Mushroom-Derived Substances in Neurological Diseases; 3.2.2 Beneficial Role of Mushrooms or Mushroom-Derived Substances in Cardiovascular Diseases; 3.2.3 Beneficial Role of Mushrooms or Mushroom-Derived Substances in Cancer; 3.2.4 Beneficial Role of Mushrooms or Mushroom-Derived Substances in Diabetes Mellitus; 3.2.5 Beneficial Role of Mushrooms or Mushroom-Derived Substances Against Infectious Diseases