Laricifomes officinalis

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Laricifomes officinalis
Fomitopsis officinalis 483579.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Basidiomycota
Class: Agaricomycetes
Order: Polyporales
Family: Laricifomitaceae
Genus: Laricifomes
Kotl. & Pouzar (1957)
Species:
L. officinalis
Binomial name
Laricifomes officinalis
(Vill.) Kotl. & Pouzar (1957)
Synonyms

Boletus officinalisVill. (1789)
Polyporus officinalis(Vill.) Fr. (1821)
Piptoporus officinalis(Vill.) P.Karst. (1882)
Cladomeris officinalis(Vill.) Quél. (1886)
Ungulina officinalis(Vill.) Pat. (1900)
Fomes officinalis(Vill.) Bres. (1931)
Fomitopsis officinalis(Vill.) Bondartsev & Singer (1941)
Agaricum officinale(Vill.) Donk (1971) [1974]
Boletus laricisF.Rubel (1778)
Boletus officinalisBatsch (1783)
Boletus agaricumPollini (1824)
Fomes fuscatusLázaro Ibiza (1916)

Contents

Laricifomes officinalis, also known as agarikon, eburiko, or the quinine conk, is a wood-decay fungus that causes brown heart rot on conifers native to Europe, Asia, and North America, as well as Morocco. [2] This fungus is the only member of the genus Laricifomes, in the order Polyporales. The fruiting bodies grow in large conks on the trunks of trees.

There has been a history of human use of the fungus, from textiles, [3] to ritualistic masks, [4] and medicinal use; the name "quinine conk" is given due to its bitter taste. There is recent scientific evidence of it having potency against several viruses. [5] [6]

Description

These distinctive conks can be found growing out the side of or hanging off the branches of the host tree as high as 20 metres (65 feet) off the ground. These conks grow in a columnar or hoof-like shape, sometimes exceeding 65 centimetres (2 ft) in length and nearly 40 cm (1+12 ft) in girth, and can weigh up to 9 kilograms (20 pounds). [7] The young fruiting bodies are soft and yellow-white, soon hardening and becoming chalky throughout. As they age, they begin to exhibit red, brown, or gray developments in coloration, cracking cubically with thick white felts visible in larger cracks. [7] The spores are white and ellipsoidal, being released through the bottom of the fruit during warmer months. The taste of both conks and felts is bitter and distinct. [7]

Similar species

It can resemble members of Phellinus which are blacker and prefer hardwood. Fomitopsis mounceae and its relatives may be similar, in addition to Ganoderma brownii . [8]

Taxonomy

This mushroom is also known as Fomitopsis officinalis. [7] DNA analyses showed that this species has genetical distance from Fomitopsis , [9] [10] and the name Laricifomes officinalis is favored. [11]

The species epithet " officinalis " denotes an organism associated with herbalism or medicine.

Distribution and ecology

Lariciformes officinalis resides predominantly in old-growth forests, [12] growing in Europe, Asia, and North America, as well as Morocco. It commonly prefers various Larix species, however it has been observed on certain species of coniferous trees in genus Pinus and Cedrus , for example. [2]

A single "conk" usually indicates the complete infection of the tree, which can become a habitat for snag-nesting organisms. [13]

Conservation

Because wild Agarikon is found mainly in old-growth forests, [12] which have been subject to diseases, invasive species, and deforestation, there has been a sharp decline in habitable space for the fungus. Due to major habitat loss, as well as unregulated harvesting, [2] L. officinalis populations are decreasing. While the fungus is particularly difficult to cultivate, there has been some promising research with inoculating larch branches. [14] It is necessary to preserve the forests to prevent the extinction of Agarikon; though there have been suggestions of researching ex situ cultivation for the purpose of preserving the species, [15] few locations actually protect the forests from logging, and there are conservation laws have been put in place for the fungus only in Germany, Lithuania, Poland and Slovenia. [2]

Uses

Ethnomycology

Laricifomes officinalis, referred to as “bread of the ghosts” in local languages, was important both medicinally and spiritually to indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America, such as the Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian. The fruiting bodies were carved into masks, most likely with ritualistic purposes, and frequently marked the graves of tribal shamans. [4] In addition, there is evidence that the mycelium growing in the rotting wood was being processed into textiles within these same peoples, creating a material similar in texture to leather. [3]

Medicinal use

Laricifomes officinalis
Information icon.svg
Pores icon.pngPores on hymenium
No cap icon.svgNo distinct cap
NA cap icon.svg Hymenium attachment is irregular or not applicable
NA cap icon.svgLacks a stipe
Parasitic fungus.svgSaprotrophic fungus.svgEcology is parasitic or saprotrophic
Mycomorphbox Inedible.pngEdibility is inedible

L. officinalis was used by the Ancient Greeks to treat consumption (tuberculosis) according to the writings of Pedanius Dioscorides in 65 AD, [5] and by some indigenous people to treat smallpox. [16] Later on, the conks were collected extensively for production of medicinal quinine, hence the name "quinine conk", which they were thought to contain because of the bitter taste of the powdered conk, however they do not contain quinine, nor do they possess anti-malarial properties.

Mycologist Paul Stamets has performed numerous investigations of the biological activities of Agarikon; its extracts have demonstrated antiviral activity against a range of viruses in vitro. [5] This activity has been specifically observed against pox family viruses, [17] HSV-1 and HSV-2, Influenza A, Influenza B, and Mycobacterium tuberculosisin vitro. [18]

Other researchers have identified novel chlorinated coumarins in the organism which demonstrated notably low minimum inhibitory concentrations against the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex. [19]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polyporales</span> Order of fungi

The Polyporales are an order of about 1800 species of fungi in the division Basidiomycota. The order includes some polypores as well as many corticioid fungi and a few agarics. Many species within the order are saprotrophic, most of them wood-rotters. Some genera, such as Ganoderma and Fomes, contain species that attack living tissues and then continue to degrade the wood of their dead hosts. Those of economic importance include several important pathogens of trees and a few species that cause damage by rotting structural timber. Some of the Polyporales are commercially cultivated and marketed for use as food items or in traditional Chinese medicine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polypore</span> Group of fungi

Polypores are a group of fungi that form large fruiting bodies with pores or tubes on the underside. They are a morphological group of basidiomycetes-like gilled mushrooms and hydnoid fungi, and not all polypores are closely related to each other. Polypores are also called bracket fungi or shelf fungi, and they characteristically produce woody, shelf- or bracket-shaped or occasionally circular fruiting bodies that are called conks.

<i>Tremella fuciformis</i> Species of edible fungus

Tremella fuciformis is a species of fungus; it produces white, frond-like, gelatinous basidiocarps. It is widespread, especially in the tropics, where it can be found on the dead branches of broadleaf trees. This fungus is commercially cultivated and is one of the most popular fungi in the cuisine and medicine of China. T. fuciformis is commonly known as snow fungus, snow ear, silver ear fungus, white jelly mushroom, and white cloud ears.

<i>Fomitopsis pinicola</i> Stem decay fungus

Fomitopsis pinicola, is a stem decay fungus common on softwood and hardwood trees. Its conk is known as the red-belted conk. The species is common throughout temperate Europe and Asia. It is a decay fungus that serves as a small-scale disturbance agent in coastal rainforest ecosystems. It influences stand structure and succession in temperate rainforests. It performs essential nutrient cycling functions in forests. As well as a key producer of brown rot residues that are stable soil components in coniferous forest ecosystems. It has been reported that mushrooms have significant antioxidant activity.

<i>Ganoderma applanatum</i> Species of fungus

Ganoderma applanatum is a bracket fungus with a cosmopolitan distribution.

<i>Inonotus obliquus</i> Species of fungus

Inonotus obliquus, commonly called chaga, is a fungus in the family Hymenochaetaceae. It is parasitic on birch and other trees. The sterile conk is irregularly formed and resembles burnt charcoal. It is not the fruiting body of the fungus, but a sclerotium or mass of mycelium, mostly black because of a substantial amount of melanin.

<i>Rhodofomes cajanderi</i> Species of fungus

Rhodofomes cajanderi is a widely distributed species of bracket fungus. Commonly known as the rosy conk due to its rose-colored pore surface, it causes a disease called a brown pocket rot in various conifer species. It is inedible. It is widespread in western North America, with more prevalence in southern climates. It has a particular preference for higher-altitude spruce forests.

<i>Trametes elegans</i> Species of fungus

Trametes elegans, also known as Lenzites elegans and Daedalea elegans, is a common polypore and wood-decay fungus with a pantropical distribution found on hardwood hosts in regions including Australia, New Zealand, and Japan. It has recently been suggested to be a complex of three different species: T. elegans,T. aesculi, and T. repanda.

<i>Fomitopsis</i> Genus of fungi

Fomitopsis is a genus of more than 40 species of bracket fungi in the family Fomitopsidaceae.

<i>Daedalea quercina</i> Species of fungus

Daedalea quercina is a species of mushroom in the order Polyporales, and the type species of the genus Daedalea. Commonly known as the thick-walled maze polypore, maze-gill fungusoak-loving maze polypore, or oak mazegill, the specific epithet refers to the oak genus Quercus, upon which it frequently grows, causing a brown rot. It is found in Europe, Asia, Northern Africa and Australasia. Though inedible, it can be used as a natural comb and has been the subject of chemical research.

<i>Bridgeoporus</i> Genus of fungi

Bridgeoporus is a fungal genus in the family Polyporaceae. A monotypic genus, it contains the single polypore species Bridgeoporus nobilissimus, first described to science in 1949. Commonly known both as the noble polypore and the fuzzy Sandozi, this fungus produces large fruit bodies that have been found to weigh up to 130 kilograms (290 lb). The upper surface of the fruit body has a fuzzy or fibrous texture that often supports the growth of algae, bryophytes, or vascular plants.

<i>Fomes fomentarius</i> Species of fungus

Fomes fomentarius is a species of fungal plant pathogen found in Europe, Asia, Africa and North America. The species produces very large polypore fruit bodies which are shaped like a horse's hoof and vary in colour from a silvery grey to almost black, though they are normally brown. It grows on the side of various species of tree, which it infects through broken bark, causing rot. The species typically continues to live on trees long after they have died, changing from a parasite to a decomposer.

Annulohypoxylon archeri is a saprophytic fungus species. It was moved from the genus Hypoxylon into the genus Annulohypoxylon erected in 2005 by Hsieh, Ju and Rogers.

<i>Laetiporus portentosus</i> Species of fungus

Laetiporus portentosus is a species of polypore fungus in the family Fomitopsidaceae, found in South America, Australia, and in the North Island and northern South Island of New Zealand.

<i>Fomitopsis ochracea</i> Species of fungus

Fomitopsis ochracea is a polypore fungus found in North America. It was isolated from Albertan forests, and can be found in British Columbia. It has been isolated as far East as Newfoundland, but prefers Northern climates. It can be isolated throughout the Appalachian range, as far down as Georgia. It is a detritivore on both hardwood trees and conifers, causing a brown cubical rot. It is a member of the genus Fomitopsis, a common group of perennial fungi.

<i>Fomitopsis mounceae</i> Species of fungus

Fomitopsis mounceae is a species of shelf fungus. Originally thought to be identical to the red-belted conk, studies show that it is in fact a discrete species. The original specimen was isolated from Edson, Alberta on a poplar tree. This species was named after Irene Mounce, a Canadian mycologist.

<i>Hypsizygus ulmarius</i> Species of mushroom-forming fungus

Hypsizygus ulmarius, also known as the elm oyster mushroom, and less commonly as the elm leech, elm Pleurotus, is an edible fungus. It has often been confused with oyster mushrooms in the Pleurotus genus but can be differentiated easily as the gills are either not decurrent or not deeply decurrent. While not quite as common as true oyster mushrooms, they have a wide range globally in temperate forests. The mushrooms and vegetative hyphae of this species have been studied in recent years for their potential benefits to human health, and mycoremediation.

<i>Annulohypoxylon thouarsianum</i> Common fungus

Annulohypoxylon thouarsianum is a species of ascomycete fungus.

Echinodontium ballouii is a basidiomycete native to the northeastern United States. It is a polypore and important decomposer of the tree Chamaecyparis thyoides. It was declared an endangered species in 2015 due to the scarcity of this tree, which is threatened by the logging industry. It is probable that around 250 individuals exist today.

<i>Phellinus arctostaphyli</i> Species of fungus

Phellinus arctostaphyli, also known as the manzanita conk or the manzanita hoof polypore, is a species of shelf fungus. Native to western North America, this saprotrophic fungus only colonizes the wood of Ceanothus, Adenostoma, and Arctostaphylos.P. arctostaphyli is closely to related to three other North American Phellinus species, including Phellinus tremulae and Phellinus tuberculosus. However, in part due to the "economic insignificance of its hosts," P. arctostaphyli is relatively poorly studied as an individual species.

References

  1. Kałucka, I.L. & Svetasheva, T. (2019). Fomitopsis officinalis. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2019: e.T75104087A75104095. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T\\\\\\\75104087A75104095.en. Downloaded on 09 July 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Kałucka, Izabela; Tanya Svetasheva (Leo Tolstoy Tula State Pedagogical University, Russia (2019-03-28). "IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Fomitopsis officinalis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
  3. 1 2 Blanchette, Robert A.; Haynes, Deborah Tear; Held, Benjamin W.; Niemann, Jonas; Wales, Nathan (2021-03-04). "Fungal mycelial mats used as textile by indigenous people of North America". Mycologia. 113 (2): 261–267. doi:10.1080/00275514.2020.1858686. ISSN   0027-5514. PMID   33605842. S2CID   231962550.
  4. 1 2 Blanchette, Robert A.; Compton, Brian D.; Turner, Nancy J.; Gilbtrtson, Robert L. (1992-01-01). "Nineteenth Century Shaman Grave Guardians are Carved Fomitopsis Officinalis Sporophores". Mycologia. 84 (1): 119–124. doi:10.1080/00275514.1992.12026114. ISSN   0027-5514.
  5. 1 2 3 Stamets, Paul E. (2005). "Medicinal Polypores of the Forests of North America: Screening for Novel Antiviral Activity". International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms. 7 (3): 362. doi: 10.1615/IntJMedMushrooms.v7.i3.210 . ISSN   1521-9437.
  6. "POLYPORES of the Pacific Northwest". www.svims.ca. Retrieved 2021-11-03.
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  8. Audubon (2023). Mushrooms of North America. New York: Knopf. p. 218. ISBN   9780593319987.
  9. Kim, Kyung Mo; Yoon, Yuh-Gang; Jung, Hack Sung (2005-09-01). "Evaluation of the monophyly of Fomitopsis using parsimony and MCMC methods". Mycologia. 97 (4): 812–822. doi:10.1080/15572536.2006.11832773. ISSN   0027-5514. PMID   16457351. S2CID   203881210.
  10. Han ML, Chen YY, Shen LL, et al. (2016). "Taxonomy and phylogeny of the brown-rot fungi: Fomitopsis and its related genera". Fungal Diversity. 80: 343–373. doi: 10.1007/s13225-016-0364-y .
  11. Yu ZH, Wu SH, Wang DM, Chen CT (2010). "Phylogenetic relationships of Antrodia species and related taxa based on analyses of nuclear large subunit ribosomal DNA sequences" (PDF). Botanical Studies. 51: 53–60.
  12. 1 2 Stamets, Paul (2009-11-13). "The Search for Agarikon". Fungi Perfecti. Retrieved 2021-11-03.
  13. Hagle, Susan (2003). Field guide to diseases and insect pests of northern and central Rocky Mountain conifers. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Forest Service, State and Private Forestry, Northern Region. OCLC   904213093.
  14. CHLEBICKI, ANDRZEJ; Mukhin, Viktor A.; Ushakova, Nadezhda (2008). "Fomitopsis officinalis on Siberian Larch in the Urals". Mycologist. 17 (3): 116–120. doi:10.1017/s0269915x03003057. ISSN   0269-915X.
  15. Savino, E. (2014). "Medicinal Mushrooms in Italy and Their ex situ Conservation Through Culture Collection" (PDF). 8th International Conference on Mushroom Biology and Mushroom Products: 50–53.
  16. Walker, B. (1999-05-01). "The early modern Japanese state and Ainu vaccinations: redefining the body politic 1799-1868". Past & Present (163): 121–160. doi:10.1093/past/163.1.121. ISSN   0031-2746. PMID   22049584.
  17. Stamets, Paul (2005). "Antipox Properties of Fomitopsis officinalis (Vl.: Fr.) Bond. et Singer (Agarikon) from the Pacific Northwest of North America". International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms. 7 (3): 495–506. doi:10.1615/IntJMedMushr.v7.i3.60.
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  19. Hwang, Chang (2013). "Chlorinated Coumarins from the Polypore Mushroom Fomitopsis officinalis and Their Activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis". J Nat Prod. 76 (10): 1916–1922. doi:10.1021/np400497f. PMC   3851412 . PMID   24087924.