Prof.Pavel Valíček DrSc.

Mushrooms are an inseparable part of nature and their cultivation is an important branch of agricultural production. Many species of mushrooms have been used for a long time not only for food but also for their medicinal properties in different regions of the world. Ancient Egyptians as early as 3000 BC gave mushrooms sacred importance because they prolonged life. Dried mushrooms were also found in the mummy of the "ice man" Öetzi from 5,000 years ago, which was found in good condition on the border of present-day Austria and Italy. The earliest recorded information on the medicinal properties of mushrooms dates back five thousand years to India. These facts show that mushrooms have been the subject of extraordinary interest to man in various parts of the world. The Japanese have discovered that the monkeys living there never get cancer, hypertension or diabetes because they collect and eat shii-také mushrooms in nature. For this reason, certain species of mushrooms are most commonly used to fight cancer in China, Japan, Korea and Russia.
Many mushrooms, especially those that cause wood rot, contain important substances with clear healing properties. These are specific polysaccharides composed of glucose, the so-called glucans. In addition to fungi, glucans are contained in brewer's and baker's yeast, cereals and marine algae. They are obtained from the brewer's yeast, Saccharomycetes cerevisiae. While the West obtains glucans from the consumption of beer and bread, the East obtains them from fungi. Unfortunately, in most foods the amount of glucans is limited due to decomposition at high temperatures during food preparation. Therefore, a careful cold extraction method is used to obtain them.

Glucans are distinguished according to their glycosidic linkage, which is indicated by numbers, and according to further properties they are separated into two forms, which are indicated by the Greek letters alpha and beta. This produces highly branched macromolecules which have a great capacity to take up and carry information. The most common glucans are β-(1, 3)-D-glucans, β-(1, 6)-D-glucans and α-(1, 3)-D-glucans. The (1,6) bonds are less effective and α-glucans have lower activity.
In addition to these, fungal polysaccharides may contain other monosaccharides in the molecule, e.g. glucose. These are called heteroglycans. These include crestine, polysaccharide K, GPP, GPS, etc., which also have a positive effect on health.
Glucans differ in their side chains, which are specific to the different types of fungi. For example, in the oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) it is pleuran and in the heart mushroom (Lentinula edodes) it is lentinan, etc.
Fungal polysaccharides are biological response modifiers (BRMs) and help the body to adapt to different unfavourable environmental conditions. They do not attack cancer cells themselves, but activate the body's immune system. They increase the activity of anti-cancer cells up to a hundredfold and defend against tumour growth. They induce the production of interferon, activate the organisms defence cells, i.e. microphages, macrophages, leukocytes and T lymphocytes.
In addition, macrophages are cells capable of capturing and destroying (phagocytosis) foreign material, including microorganisms. They also perform other important functions. They are formed from monocytes, which are special white blood cells (leukocytes). These monocytes are able to pass from the bloodstream to the site of inflammation or infection and turn into a macrophage that will eliminate the pathogen. They participate in both the body's defensive functions against infection and in other immunological reactions.
Macrophages constantly circulate in the body with one goal - to eliminate everything foreign. It is glucans that can stimulate macrophages to maximum activity, which manifests itself in their greater resistance to infection and faster reproduction. In addition, glucans intercept free radicals and reduce the negative effects of ultraviolet and X-rays.
Lymphocytes are a type of white blood cells that take part in the body's defence. The primary function of T lymphocytes is to regulate the immune response and eradicate pathogenic germs and even their own infected cells. In addition to these, there are B lymphocytes in the body, which turn into plasma cells that form antibodies (immunoglobulins). Lymphocytes live for many years, forming memory cells in which they record encounters with foreign substances so that they can react to them again more easily.
Glucans thus clearly increase the body's natural immunity and thus act as a preventive measure against many diseases. They are effective in the fight against cancer, vascular and heart diseases, asthma, arthrosis, inflammation, eczema and other skin diseases. As a supportive agent they are used in the fight against flu, angina, colds, fractures and edema. They lower blood sugar and cholesterol levels, improve blood pressure, regenerate the liver, spleen and improve intestinal peristalsis. In addition, they improve physical and mental condition and are an anti-stress agent.
The most valuable effect is the anti-cancer activity of β-1,3-D glucan combined with other drugs, which increases the activity of the body's immune system. An organism with improved defenses has more strength to preserve and often destroy the tumor. In the case of glucans, a synergistic effect occurs, which cumulates the effect of different treatments, improves the absorption of the active substances of the drugs and thus increases the overall effect of the treatment.


Prof. Pavel Valíček DrSc. is a well-known Czech specialist in the field of Asian medicinal plants and consultant of MycoMedica.(Based on the book "Houby a ich léčivé účinky" by P.Valíček, published by Start Benešov in 2011)