Tell Americans that a dish contains “mushrooms” and their minds automatically jump to button mushrooms (Agaricus bisporus), which have been grown commercially in the West since the 1600′s. In contrast, individuals from Far East Asia are far more likely to jump to Shiitake as the most logical ingredient. Shiitake, which has only recently become a common household name in the West, has a long history of commercial cultivation in Asia.
Known alternately as Black Mushroom or Chinese Mushroom, wild Shiitake grows in Asia only. The name derives from the Shii Tree, its preferred host, although Shiitake may also grow on oaks and beeches. Shiitake has been cultivated in China and Japan for a thousand years.
What is less known in the West is that in the form of Shiitake extract, this is also the most studied medicinal mushroom of the Orient. The primary focus of research has been on the anti-viral [93] and anti-tumoral [94] properties.
The preferred part of Shiitake to use medicinally is the mycelium (the “roots”) because they contain compounds that either don’t exist in the fruit body (“mushroom”), or are much more concentrated in the mycelium.
In fact, the most commonly researched Shiitake extract is known as Lentinula Edodes Mycelia extract, or LEM for short. (Lentinula edodes is the Latin name for Shiitake.) LEM has been reported in various research papers as being anti-bacterial, [98, 99] boosting the immune system, [95, 96, 97] and being anti-tumoral. [100] A study on melanoma found that it killed the mutated melanoma cells but caused no harm to cells that were healthy. [101]
A famous polysaccharide isolated from Shiitake is known as Lentinan, deriving its name from Lentinula. Lentinan has been shown to stimulate the natural cancer fighting mechanisms of the human immune system [102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110] and is used in Asia as a cancer-drug, administered intravenously.
Arabinoxylanes, compounds resulting from Shiitake-on-rice fermentation, have also demonstrated significant anti-viral activity. [111, 112, 113]
Specifically herpes simplex virus type 1 [114] and more importantly HIV have responded to Shiitake extracts in several studies. [115, 116, 117] However, the previously mentioned Lentinan polysaccharide, by itself, has no significant effect on the replication of HIV. [25]
Furthermore, other studies have shown that Shiitake extract may be beneficial in the treatment of Candida, [118] chronic fatigue syndrome, [119] and to prevent septic shock. [120]
Foremost American medicinal mushroom expert Paul Stamets, in his book Mycelium Running, lists several additional areas where research has indicated that Shiitake may be useful: Cholesterol; blood sugar, blood pressure; sexual dysfunction; kidney health; stress; liver support; prostate cancer; liver cancer; breast cancer. [134]
Note: The statements on this page have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This article is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Never use any herb (or mushroom) except as advised by a licensed medical practitioner.
Credit to Paul Stamets for research and source material.
