Mushrooms contain beneficial substances that act as antioxidants. Do they also contain some carcinogenic substances as some animal research suggests? Is current (credible, scientific) research on humans available?
Unfortunately they do. Agaritin in cultivated Agaricus (Agaricus bisporus) has been claimed to be a carcinogen. It is metabolized to hydrazine compounds with known toxic properties.
Dear Anthony, I have the same concern with you. I am doing work in medicinal and edible mushrooms. During my literature review and reading, yes, mushrooms do have some "not so wanted" compounds - like the ones in Ganoderma, might include other species too. So far I have come across studies done on zebrafish embryo.
Article Teratogenic and Toxic Effects of Lingzhi or Reishi Medicinal...
Meanwhile, some mushrooms have ribosome-silencing protein (RIP) , as per this work.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19568748
These RIP protein could been concentrated and used for drug synthesis and to my knowledge it is not going to be lethal upon human consumption.
Unfortunately they do. Agaritin in cultivated Agaricus (Agaricus bisporus) has been claimed to be a carcinogen. It is metabolized to hydrazine compounds with known toxic properties.
Although mushroom are rich source of proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins and other antioxidants, particularly to those who don't take animal proteins, but some biovara of Ganodema lucidium and Agaricus bisporus are poisnous and carcinogenic in nature.
Thank you all for your valuable insights and comments. Let us keep this conversation going!
The attached article on Raw Mushroom Safety is reproduced from Environmental Nutrition, April 2018. Any comments?
I would not recommend any mushroom to be eaten raw. There are several compounds that are irritating and even toxic to the gastrointestinal tract when eaten raw, but when properly cooked these substances are inactivated. You should also remember that chitin is not easily digested and mushroom should not be overconsumed.
Agree with Mattias Andersson. We cannot digest chitin. Daily consumption of even cooked mushrooms can lead to an irritable bowel I was told. Do take note and exercise care if one is taking mushroom preparations ..whole dried mushroom powders .
What about microbiomes of mushrooms - where from? The substrate ? Post harvest handlers? - these microbes can contribute to unwanted chemicals in edible and medicinal mushrooms,too
@MA,
Does marinating of mushrooms increase their digestibility, or only changes/enhances their taste? Does marinating "inactivate" some of the irritating or toxic compounds? What is meant by "properly cooked"?
Chitin is a long-chain polymer and mushrooms stipe (̴8 %) contains high chitin compare to piles (̴6.5 %). Humans difficult to digest chitin, when cooking the cell wall and chitin membrane were breaks down like plant cellulose. This may be serving as fiber and providing bulk but not calories and useful for weight loss.
1. Certain chitinases (AMCase) have been shown to be expressed in the human gastrointestinal tract and, along with chitinases produced by gut microbiota (Elizabeth Thursby and Nathalie Juge Biochem J. 2017 Jun 1; 474(11): 1823–1836), may be involved in digestion of chitin for nutrition and as a defense against pathogenic fungi. http://www.bio.unipd.it/agroecology/download/pdf/papers/2009/Chitin-Chitinases-Paoletti-From-Binomium-Chitnchitinase-Recent-Issues-Fp-Version.pdf
2. Misa Ohno et al., 2016 provide evidence that acidic mammalian chitinase (AMCase) can function as a major digestive enzyme that constitutively degrades chitin substrates and produces (GlcNAc)2 fragments in the mouse gastrointestinal environment. https://www.nature.com/articles/srep37756
Are mushrooms really the latest superfood? Do porcini mushrooms (in addition to helpful antioxidants) also contain unwanted, possibly harmful compounds?
Porcini also contain the anti-oxidant selenium (harmful in higher doses, though). Most soils are depleted in selenium so an extra selenium boost through Porcini is probably beneficial.
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