A polysaccharide (CP2-S), consisting of glucose with a weight average molecular weight of 5.9 × 10⁶, was purified from the fruit bodies of Cordyceps militaris. In this work, the corresponding structure and anti-tumor activity in vivo were investigated. Methylation and NMR analysis revealed that CP2-S was composed of a →4)-α-D-Glcp-(1→ backbone with partial substitution occurring at O-6 by T-linked α-D-Glcp in every ten residues, which has not been reported in previous reports. In vivo anti-tumor experiments showed that CP2-S could inhibit the growth of Lewis lung carcinoma in mice. Tumor inhibition rates were 17.8%, 24.5%, and 29.5% at dosages of 12.5, 50, and 100 mg/kg/d, respectively. Compared with the cisplatin group, mice treated with CP2-S exhibited a significant increase in spleen index (increased 22.7–42.4%) and thymus index (increased 47.7–36.8%). Additionally, serum levels of IgM and IgG in tumor-bearing mice increased by approximately 6.11~10.75-folds and 1.31~1.38-folds, respectively. These findings prove that CP2-S significantly inhibited the growth of Lewis lung carcinoma through immune-enhancing activity in mice.

Polyonatum cyrtonema polysaccharides (PCPs) have been illustrated to have pharmacological and biological activity. However, the impact of PCPs on gut microorganisms and their metabolic pathways has been scarcely addressed. In order to investigate the antidigestion potential of PCPs, an in vitro simulation of digestion was developed. Moreover, an in vitro fermentation model was used to explore the influence of PCPs on the microbial community. The findings revealed that the concentration of the remaining carbohydrate and reducing end of the polysaccharide chain grew slightly, while the molecular weight was unaltered after being digested. Notably, the gut microbiota degraded the PCPs during the subsequent fermentation, resulting in the production of short-chain fatty acids and a significant decrease in the pH level ( ). Compared with the control group, the result of 16S rRNA sequencing revealed that PCPs could affect the diversity of the community and the composition of the gut microbes significantly ( ), having similar regulatory effects to inulin on the structure of the microbial community. The PCPs group notably promoted the relative abundance of acetic-acid bacteria, such as Bifidobacterium. In addition, PICRUSt2 analysis demonstrated that PCPs mainly enhanced phenotypic KEGG pathways such as amino acid metabolism and carbohydrate metabolism. Overall, PCPs may have prebiotic properties that support human health by controlling the make-up and metabolic activity of intestinal flora.

Lyophyllum decastes soluble dietary fiber (LDSDF) is a polysaccharide-based active ingredient derived from the edible and medicinal fungus L. decastes. However, its extraction methods remain unoptimized, and its hypolipidemic and gut microbiota effects have yet to be thoroughly investigated in mice. In this study, response surface optimization of the LDSDF extraction method indicated an optimal extraction temperature of 99 °C, a solid/liquid ratio of 25:1 mL/g, and an extraction time of 1.9 h. The optimal ethanol precipitation parameters were a concentration ratio of 3.9, an ethanol concentration of 74.4%, and a precipitation time of 16.4 h. These conditions afforded an LDSDF yield of 15.83%. Following 6 weeks of oral gavage of LDSDF in obese mice, the results showed that LDSDF inhibited increases in body and organ weight; reduced serum levels of total cholesterol, triglycerides, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol; increased serum levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol; decreased alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase activities; and lowered systemic levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-6, and interleukin-1β). Concurrently, it elevated the hepatic activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase; reduced malondialdehyde levels; and mitigated lesions in liver and epididymal fat cells. Meanwhile, 16S rRNA sequencing revealed that LDSDF significantly alleviated intestinal flora imbalances. Overall, this study established an optimized extraction process to obtain LDSDF with a high yield and confirmed the hypolipidemic and gut microbiota-modulating efficacy of this active ingredient, highlighting its potential for use as a functional food ingredient.

To address the lack of a comprehensive quality control system for Ganoderma lucidum, we developed an integrated evaluation strategy across four varieties and three growth stages. This system integrates the targeted screening of anti-benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) triterpenoids acting on 5α-reductase type 2 (SRD5A2) with a chemical consistency assessment utilizing systematic quantitative fingerprint method (SQFM) and chemometrics. UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS identified 85 triterpenoids in the samples. An orthogonal partial least squares (OPLS) regression was utilized to screen seven chromatographic peaks that positively correlated with SRD5A2 inhibitory activity. Three principal bioactives were structurally identified as ganoderic acids DM and B, and ganoderenic acid A, which demonstrated significant in vitro SRD5A2 inhibition rates of 61.16 ± 1.87%, 36.41 ± 1.10%, and 41.82 ± 2.09%, respectively. Molecular dynamics simulations and averaged weak interaction analysis revealed that these compounds exert potent enzyme inhibition via hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions with distinct SRD5A2 amino acid residues. The SQFM-chemometrics quality system confirmed ten samples reached Grade 6 or above, identifying the H3 variety at the initial stage as possessing the highest active ingredient content and optimal overall quality. This integrated framework enables rapid bioactive discovery and robust standardization for G. lucidum-based functional foods, thereby facilitating their industrial development.