State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau, Macao, China.
J Ethnopharmacol. 2013 Jul 30;148(3):818-25. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2013.05.017. Epub 2013 May 21.
Cordyceps sinensis, an entomogenous fungus used in traditional Chinese medicine with multiple pharmacological activities. However, its usage has been limited due to the high price and short supply. Isolate of fungi strains from natural Cordyceps sinensis to achieve a large-scale production by fermentation is an alternative choice. The aim of this study was to investigate and compare the effects of mycelia extracts of different fungal stains isolated from natural Cordyceps sinensis on macrophage functions in vitro.
Macrophages' proliferation, phagocytosis, nitric oxide (NO) production, cytokines secretion, iNOS, NF-κB p65 activation and translocation were investigated by the MTT assay, flow cytometry assay, Griess reagent method, ELISA, western blot and immunostaining assay, respectively.
The results showed that the effects of cultured Cordyceps mycelia of different fungal strains isolated from natural Cordyceps sinensis on macrophages greatly variant. Among 17 Cordyceps aqueous extracts, only five extracts (UM01, QH11, BNQM, GNCC and DCXC) could significantly increase cell proliferation and NO production of RAW 264.7 mouse macrophages. Moreover, the five extracts, especially UM01 and QH11, significantly enhanced phagocytosis and promoted cytokines release of macrophages. Polysaccharides in cultured UM01 mycelia were found to be the main immune stimulating compounds.
The variation of biological effects of fermented mycelia of different fungal strains from natural Cordyceps sinensis may be derived from their chemical diversity, especially polysaccharides, which need further study in future.
冬虫夏草是一种昆虫源真菌，在中国传统医学中有多种药理作用。然而，由于价格高、供应短缺，其应用受到限制。从天然冬虫夏草中分离真菌菌株进行发酵以实现大规模生产是一种替代选择。本研究旨在研究和比较从天然冬虫夏草中分离的不同真菌菌株的菌丝提取物对体外巨噬细胞功能的影响。
通过 MTT 检测法、流式细胞术检测法、Griess 试剂法、ELISA 法、western blot 法和免疫染色法分别检测巨噬细胞增殖、吞噬作用、一氧化氮（NO）产生、细胞因子分泌、诱导型一氧化氮合酶（iNOS）、核因子-κB p65 （NF-κB p65）激活和转位。
结果表明，从天然冬虫夏草中分离的不同真菌菌株培养的冬虫夏草菌丝对巨噬细胞的影响差异很大。在 17 种冬虫夏草水提物中，只有 5 种提取物（UM01、QH11、BNQM、GNCC 和 DCXC）能显著增加 RAW 264.7 小鼠巨噬细胞的细胞增殖和 NO 产生。此外，这 5 种提取物，尤其是 UM01 和 QH11，能显著增强巨噬细胞的吞噬作用，并促进细胞因子的释放。发现培养的 UM01 菌丝中的多糖是主要的免疫刺激化合物。
不同真菌菌株发酵菌丝的生物效应的变化可能源于其化学多样性，尤其是多糖，这需要在未来进一步研究。
