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Selenium Enrichment on Cordyceps militaris Link and Analysis on Its Main Active Components

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Abstract

To investigate the effects of selenium on the main active components of Cordyceps militaris fruit bodies, selenium-enriched cultivation of C. militaris and the main active components of the fruit bodies were studied. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and contents of cordycepin, cordycepic acid, and organic selenium of fruit bodies were sodium selenite concentration dependent; contents of adenosine and cordycep polysaccharides were significantly enhanced by adding sodium selenite in the substrates, but not proportional to sodium selenite concentrations. In the cultivation of wheat substrate added with 18.0 ppm sodium selenite, SOD activity and contents of cordycepin, cordycepic acid, adenosine, cordycep polysaccharides, and total amino acids were enhanced by 121/145%, 124/74%, 325/520%, 130/284%, 121/145%, and 157/554%, respectively, compared to NS (non-selenium-cultivated) fruit bodies and wild Cordyceps sinensis; organic selenium contents of fruit bodies reached 6.49 mg/100 g. So selenium-enriched cultivation may be a potential way to produce more valuable medicinal food as a substitute for wild C. sinensis.

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Acknowledgments

This research was partially funded by the Doctor Research Project (498012) of the Hubei University for Nationalities and by the Ethnological Affair Committee Foundation of China (grant no. 10HB02). We are grateful to anonymous reviewers and the scientific editor for critical review and valuable suggestions and to Shengfeng Medicine Ltd. (Enshi, China) for their help in some experiments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Biologic Resources Protection and Utilization of Hubei Province/School of Biological Science and Technology, Hubei University for Nationalities, Enshi, 445000, China

    Jing Z. Dong, C. Lei & Xun R. Ai

  2. Key Laboratory of Plant Germplasm Enhancement and Speciality Agriculture, Wuhan Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430074, China

    Y. Wang

Authors
  1. Jing Z. Dong
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  2. C. Lei
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  3. Xun R. Ai
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  4. Y. Wang
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Correspondence to Jing Z. Dong or Y. Wang.

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Practical applications

C. militaris is widely used as a nutraceutical in functional foods or a phytopharmaceutical for treating some serious illnesses; selenium, a newly discovered anticancer element in recent years, can significantly enhance the anticancer activity of functional foods. However, most areas of the earth lack selenium. Selenium-enriching cultivation can significantly enhance contents of organic selenium and cordycepin in C. militaris fruit bodies. This study showed a potential method to produce selenium-enriched C. militaris fruit bodies with higher medicinal value than the commonly used wild C. sinensis, selenium supplementation of food and a primary source of cordycepin which had been reported to have great potential as an anticancer compound. The results also suggested a potential way for liquid fermentation to produce selenium-enriched C. militaris products, especially to enhance cordycepin production.

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Dong, J.Z., Lei, C., Ai, X.R. et al. Selenium Enrichment on Cordyceps militaris Link and Analysis on Its Main Active Components. Appl Biochem Biotechnol 166, 1215–1224 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12010-011-9506-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12010-011-9506-6

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