Yan Jing-Kun, Wang Wen-Qiang, Wu Jian-Yong
Department of Applied Biology & Chemical Technology, PolyU Shenzhen Research Institute, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
School of Food and Biological Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, Jiangsu, China.
J Funct Foods. 2014 Jan;6:33-47. doi: 10.1016/j.jff.2013.11.024. Epub 2013 Dec 21.
, the Chinese caterpillar fungus, is a unique and precious medicinal fungus in traditional Chinese medicine which has been used as a prestigious tonic and therapeutic herb in China for centuries. Polysaccharides are bioactive constituents of , exhibiting several activities such as immunomodulation, antitumour, antioxidant and hypoglycaemic. As natural fruiting body-caterpillar complexes are very rare and expensive, the polysaccharides documented over the last 15-20 years from this fungal species were mostly extracted from cultivated fungal mycelia (intracellular polysaccharides) or from mycelial fermentation broth (exopolysaccharides). Extraction and purification of the polysaccharides is a tedious process involving numerous steps of liquid and solid phase separations. Nevertheless, a large number of polysaccharide structures have been purified and elucidated. However, relationships between the structures and activities of these polysaccharides are not well established. This review provides a comprehensive summary of the most recent developments in various aspects (i.e., production, extraction, structure, and bioactivity) of the intracellular and exopolysaccharides from mycelial fermentation of . fungi. The contents and data will serve as useful references for further investigation, production and application of these polysaccharides in functional foods and therapeutic agents.
冬虫夏草是传统中药中一种独特而珍贵的药用真菌，几个世纪以来在中国一直被用作名贵的滋补和治疗草药。多糖是冬虫夏草的生物活性成分，具有免疫调节、抗肿瘤、抗氧化和降血糖等多种活性。由于天然的子实体-虫复合体非常稀有且昂贵，过去15 - 20年记录的来自该真菌物种的多糖大多是从培养的真菌菌丝体（胞内多糖）或菌丝体发酵液（胞外多糖）中提取的。多糖的提取和纯化是一个繁琐的过程，涉及许多液相和固相分离步骤。尽管如此，大量的多糖结构已被纯化和阐明。然而，这些多糖的结构与活性之间的关系尚未完全确立。本综述全面总结了冬虫夏草菌丝体发酵产生的胞内多糖和胞外多糖在各个方面（即生产、提取、结构和生物活性）的最新进展。这些内容和数据将为这些多糖在功能性食品和治疗剂中的进一步研究、生产和应用提供有用的参考。
