Abstract

Devyani Mangal Patil*, Vaishnavi Sunil Patil, Gopal Bhila Paithankar, Jaydeep Ramesh Walhe and Chetan Nivruti Patil

ABSTRACT

Lentinan, a polysaccharide extracted from the edible mushroom Lentinula edodes (shiitake), has received considerable attention in cancer research owing to its immunomodulatory as well as anticancer properties. The article represents a review aiming at summarizing our current understanding of the mechanisms of action of lentinan, its efficacy against different types of cancers, and its promise as an adjunct therapy. The therapeutic potential of lentinan is convincingly supported by a thorough review of the most recent scientific studies as a guide to future research. Mushrooms, it is estimated, number about 140,000 species on Earth; only 10% have been identified with around 14,000 named species, and mushrooms are a vast, relatively unexploited source of powerful new pharmaceutical products. They are of the greatest importance for modern medicine by providing an unlimited source of polysaccharides with antitumor and immune-stimulating properties. Most, if not all, species of Basidiomycetes fungi contain biologically active polysaccharides in their fruit bodies, cultured mycelium, and culture broth. Data on mushroom polysaccharides have been accumulated from 651 species and 7 infraspecific taxa representing 182 genera of higher Hetero- and Homobasidiomycetes. These polysaccharides show varying chemical composition; nevertheless, the largest percentage is categorized as β-glucans. These have β-(1→3) linkages in the main chain and, in addition, other β-(1→6) branch points, which are important for their antitumor effect.