A methanolic extract of Ganoderma lucidum fruiting body inhibits the growth of a gastric cancer cell line and affects cellular autophagy and cell cycle
Fundaçao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia (FCT,
Portugal) and COMPETE/QREN/EU for providing financial
support to this work (research project PTDC/AGR-ALI/110062/2009), CIMO (strategic project PEst-OE/AGR/UI0690/2011), FCT
for the grant of R.T.L. (SFRH/BPD/68787/2010) and QREN for the
grants of F.S.R. and D.S. (NORTE-07-0124-FEDER-000023). The
authors also thank Dr Gabriela Almeida for technical assistance
in the screening assays and Prof. Anabela Martins from the
Polytechnic Institute of Bragança for confrmation of the identification of G. lucidum samples. IPATIMUP, Associate Laboratory
of the Portuguese Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher
Education, is partially supported by FCT.
Ganoderma lucidum is one of the most extensively studied mushrooms as a functional food and as a
chemopreventive agent due to its recognized medicinal properties. Some G. lucidum extracts have
shown promising antitumor potential. In this study, the bioactive properties of various extracts of
G. lucidum, from both the fruiting body and the spores, were investigated. The most potent extract
identified was the methanolic fruiting body extract, which inhibited the growth of a gastric cancer cell
line (AGS) by interfering with cellular autophagy and cell cycle.
