Laboratory of Pharmacology of Inflammation and Behavior, Institute of Health Science, Faculty of Pharmacy, Federal University of Pará, Belém, Pará, Brazil.
Med Res Rev. 2023 Sep;43(5):1504-1536. doi: 10.1002/med.21957. Epub 2023 Apr 13.
Ganoderma lucidum is a mushroom that has been widely used for centuries in Asian countries for its antiaging properties. It is popularly known as "Ling Zhi," "Reishi," and "Youngzhi," and because of its benefits, it is known as the "immortality mushroom." Pharmacological assays have revealed that G. lucidum ameliorates cognitive impairments through inhibition of β-amyloid and neurofibrillary tangle formation, antioxidant effect, reduction of inflammatory cytokine release and apoptosis, genic expression modulation, among other activities. Chemical investigations on G. lucidum have revealed the presence of metabolites such as triterpenes, which are the most explored in this field, as well as flavonoids, steroids, benzofurans, and alkaloids; in the literature, these have also been reported to have mnemonic activity. These properties of the mushroom make it a potential source of new drugs to prevent or reverse memory disorders, as actual medications are able to only alleviate some symptoms but are unable to stop the progress of cognitive impairments, with no impact on social, familiar, and personal relevance. In this review, we discuss the cognitive findings of G. lucidum reported in the literature, converging the proposed mechanisms through the several pathways that underlie memory and cognition processes. In addition, we highlight the gaps that deserve particular attention to support future studies.
灵芝是一种蘑菇，在亚洲国家，其具有抗衰老的特性，已被广泛使用了数个世纪。灵芝俗称“灵芝”、“瑞芝”和“永生芝”，由于其益处，灵芝被誉为“不朽之菌”。药理学研究表明，灵芝通过抑制β-淀粉样蛋白和神经原纤维缠结的形成、抗氧化作用、减少炎症细胞因子的释放和细胞凋亡、基因表达调节等多种机制来改善认知障碍。对灵芝的化学研究表明，存在代谢产物，如三萜类化合物，这是该领域研究最多的化合物，以及类黄酮、甾体、苯并呋喃和生物碱；文献中还报道这些化合物具有记忆活性。灵芝的这些特性使其成为预防或逆转记忆障碍的新药的潜在来源，因为实际药物只能缓解一些症状，而无法阻止认知障碍的进展，对社会、家庭和个人的相关性没有影响。在这篇综述中，我们讨论了文献中报道的灵芝的认知研究结果，通过记忆和认知过程的几个潜在机制，综合了提出的机制。此外，我们强调了值得特别关注的差距，以支持未来的研究。
