Ganoderma lucida - Reishi Spagyric Extract
Ganoderma lucida
Immortal Reishi
Immunity
Reishi has shown extensive all-reaching immuno-modulating effects derived from its polysaccharides, triterpenoid, polyphenol, and prebiotic content.
Reishi modulates the function of antigen-presenting cells (APC), the mononuclear phagocyte system, humoral immunity, and cellular immunity (15).
Reishi enhances the innate immunity promoting the natural killer cell and macrophage responses and even promote the function and maturation of dendritic cells. This is significant because the lymphocyte response and other immune-modulatory effects don’t just stimulate the immune responses, but exert regulating and normalizing force on them.
Reishi supports the natural intelligence of the body by guiding the nervous system to either activate and/or deactivate certain immune responses. It does not promote anything your body already cannot do, meaning it uses no alien chemistry, but stimulates the physician within your own biology.
Autophagy
Potent extracts of Reishi, especially of their spores, have been shown in clinical trials to phytochemically induce autophagy (25). The same compounds are responsible for its anticancer activity (i.e. apoptosis via the three immune cells outlined earlier, macrophages, lymphocytes, and neutrophils) (15). This means Reishi awakens the collective bodily intelligence and activates the physician within, wielding a wide range on non-specific therapeutic and medicinal actions that lead ultimately to a higher qualiaty and longer lasting lifetime.
Brief History
Reishi has long been associated with attainment of immortality, especially among the Taoists for up to some 2000 years (though it is still practiced today, in smaller sects). To them it was a sacred fungus which when processed alchemically, would produce a chemoluminescence and catalyze the alchemists attainment of physical immortality, usually combined with other methods like mediatiation, breath, and magic. Throughout the millinea, multitudinous recipes for elixirs of immortality have involved the Ganoderma genus among many other mushrooms, plants and even minerals.
Mushrooms themselves simply imply immortality to the ancient alchemists. Though many who have consumed these ancient elixirs have in fact died (only to witness the eternality of their spiritual self), many many more have lived on to this day to immortalize its reputation as a strong re-enlivening, anti-aging, and youthfulness promoting therpeutic plant medicine (16) which may or may not lead to physical immortality.
Eastern scientists have reported that spore extracts of G. lucidum prolong the life span, stimulate and regulate the immune system and the endocrine system. The exact mechanisms are unknown though its initial research and historical use certainly motivates us to further study (16). Western science is slowly catching up to the fact that it potent anti-cancer properties and neuroprotective effects are calling formore research to be done towards combating Parkinsons, dementia, and other neurodegenerative diseases.
Prebiotic Affect
Ganoderma is being proven to have profound microbial benefits. Its novel medicinal polysaccharides and spores have been shown to be particularly useful to the gut microbiome in remedying dysbiosis, modulating inflammation, improving the gut-barrier and supporting native microbes. This data is promising for those suffering of hypolipidemia and obesity. The prebiotic affect is also a significant factor in supporting its traditional therapeutic value.
Autophagy is induced by the mushrooms polysaccharides in the spores from the alcohol portion of the extract. What exactly are these polysaccharides? And why are they inside of the reproductive aterial of mushrooms?? science shows their sporoderm-removed spores are even more potent that sporoderm-broken spores from the lucidum. This is making me think of jitterbug perfume. This is just a small side thought.Their prebiotic behavior is only breaking the headlines this year. Microbiology itself is als an emergent and dominating scientific field. This discovery (25) calls for more research to be investigated into the nature of mushrooms and their microbial synergy with the humangut microbiome.
Womens Health
G. lucida has been shown in clinical trials to significantly supported womens physical fitness in cases of fibromyalgia. Fibromyalgia is a disorder characterized by widespread musculoskeletal pain accompanied by fatigue, sleep, memory and mood issues. (22)
Researchers believe that fibromyalgia amplifies painful sensations by affecting the way our brain and spinal cord process painful and nonpainful signals.
Women are more likely to develop fibromyalgia than are men. Many people who have fibromyalgia also have tension headaches, temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders, irritable bowel syndrome, anxiety and depression.
It is a life long disease that greatly reduces the quality of your potentially immortal life.
Natural Healing
In summary here of its therapeutic values, while there still is only a tiny amount of clinical data to judge by, there is tremendous historical usage, and the data the science has put fourth is already incredibly promising. More trials are urgently needed and more medicine makers focusing on spore-based G. lucida extracts are also needed.
Its main constituents support gut health, provide a shield-like immunoprotection around the entire body, and promote a range of immunomodulating activities. This is an important lesson from the plants. As mentioned earlier, lucida induces autophagy. This is a natural state of your body you can choose to enter through fasting, a physiological state which activates various therapeutic and healing compounds within you. As Paracelsus said, "Fasting is the greatest remedy, the physician within".
You are a biochemical synthesis facility producing the most valuable compounds in existence which may or may not enlighten you to interdimensional reality. Strategically fasting from the world will surely heal physical and mental anguish. But why stop there? nearly every great saint fasted before receiving the beatific vision. The physician within has every ability to manifest this feat. It is important to note the plant medicine is enabling you to access what you alrady have within you, in order to achieve a more healthily perpetuated youthfulness.
Nutritional and Mineral Compositoin
Table 2. Physicochemical properties and chemical composition of Ganoderma lucidum mushroom.
Principle Triterpernoids from Reishi
Safety
Clinical trials have been done that supports the dried mushroom material is non-toxic and safe to use for short or long term (23) (24)
Extraction
Extraction was guided based on the tek written out by the author JD found in the library section of this website, on the work of Chunliang Xie and Wang J. published in the International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms (16)(17)(18)(19), and the royal society of chemistry's comprehensive optimization of Ganoderma lucida extraction metholdology (20).
A 1:5 (w:v) G. lucida sample with DI H2O was simmered for 80 minutes whilie maintaing water levels. The marc was then extracted removed, pressed of absorbed solvent and decocted again in an equal amount of 62% ABV (grape spirit). Alcohol extract lasted for 90 mins at ~80 degrees C.
The water extract was sumbitted to a rotory evaporater and the solvent was removed leaving a crude water extract.
The alcohol extract was retained and the crude water extract was then dissolved into the alcohol extract.
The Mushroom body was calcined for ten plus hours above 500 degrees Fahrenheit before being crystallized and reacted with the dual extract via cohobation to bring the Reishi into its perfected and sublimed spagyric nutritional and medicinal form.
Extraction notes: Full Spectrum mushroom extractions
A comprehensive review on optimal extraction variables and supporting equations for the extraction of medicinal constituents G. lucidum was described by the Royal Society of Chemistry and provided the preferred hydroethanolic ratio, ideal temperature, and best time for the extraction procedure (20).
Further, performing the water extraction first and alcohol extraction second has been shown in the research to be effective for getting a more complete range of medicinal compounds liberated from the cellular matrix. This water -> alcohol extraction method prevents damage to sensitive constituents in the extraction process, rendering a greater therapeutic value.
Water extractions are less damaging to the cellular matrix and are thus performed first to target the unique anti-inflammatory, immunomodulating, outer-membrane-bound components i.e. polysaccharides, beta-glucans, fatty acids, polyphenols, flavonoids etc. This non-destructive extraction protocol allows us to preserve the antioxidative power and immunomodulating potential from the polyphenols and polysaccharides in the water portion, which has been shown in the annotated studies to be absent in the alcohol. Meanwhile the vacuole, cytosol and inner/membrane-bound constituents i.e. terpenoids, steroids, organic acids, falvonoids, multitudinous prebiotics are likewise retained in the alcohol portion due to the alcohol being able to rupture the cell wall and expose the inner constituents, typically rich in secondary metabolites, to be dissolved into solution.
Were the alcohol to have been the first extraction, polyphenol content, anti-oxidative power, beta-glucans/polysaccharides, proteins and other significant therapeutic agents would be significantly reduced from the final yield. This is due to the activity of alcohol that denatures proteins and destroys cell walls rendering said constituents non-bioavailable. Thus, water is used first to assure ascertainment of sensitive constituents.
In the annotated study and the extracted figure is suggested the optimal hydroethanolic ratio for full spectrum extraction to be 62.5%. However the hydroethanolic solvent was split into a dual-extraction to maximize effectiveness of the dual solvent composition. This decision was also based on the data based on the bar graph above showing antiozidizing power of different solvents from g. lucida. Therefore, an initial extraction with simply water, and a second extraction with alcohol, then recombination of the two into a volume representative of the dosing size proportional to the original starting material was performed to retain full spectrum identity.
(16) Wachtel-Galor S, Yuen J, Buswell JA, et al. Ganoderma lucidum (Lingzhi or Reishi): A Medicinal Mushroom. In: Benzie IFF, Wachtel-Galor S, editors. Herbal Medicine: Biomolecular and Clinical Aspects. 2nd edition. Boca Raton (FL): CRC Press/Taylor & Francis; 2011. Chapter 9. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK92757/
(17) Comparative Study on Bioactivities from Lingzhi or Reishi Medicinal Mushroom, Ganoderma lucidum (Agaricomycetes), Gives an Insight into the Fermentation Broth Showing Greater Antioxidative Activities Volume 22, Issue 7, 2020, pp. 627-639 DOI: 10.1615/IntJMedMushrooms.2020035042
(19) Effects of Extraction Temperature on Efficacy of Lingzhi or Reishi Medicinal Mushroom, Ganoderma lucidum (Agaricomycetes), Aqueous Extract against Oxidative Stress International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms Volume 22, Issue 6, 2020, pp. 547-558 DOI: 10.1615/IntJMedMushrooms.2020035074
(21) A Comprehensive guide: Extraction of triterpenoids and phenolic compounds from Ganoderma lucidum: optimization study using the response surface methodology https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2018/fo/c7fo01601h
(22) Collado Mateo, D., Pazzi, F., Domínguez Muñoz, F. J., Martín Martínez, J. P., Olivares, P. R., Gusi, N., & Adsuar, J. C. (2015). GANODERMA LUCIDUM IMPROVES PHYSICAL FITNESS IN WOMEN WITH FIBROMYALGIA. Nutricion hospitalaria, 32(5), 2126–2135. https://doi.org/10.3305/nh.2015.32.5.9601
(23) Wachtel-Galor, S., Tomlinson, B., & Benzie, I. F. (2004). Ganoderma lucidum ("Lingzhi"), a Chinese medicinal mushroom: biomarker responses in a controlled human supplementation study. The British journal of nutrition, 91(2), 263–269. https://doi.org/10.1079/BJN20041039
(24) Wicks, S. M., Tong, R., Wang, C. Z., O'Connor, M., Karrison, T., Li, S., Moss, J., & Yuan, C. S. (2007). Safety and tolerability of Ganoderma lucidum in healthy subjects: a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial. The American journal of Chinese medicine, 35(3), 407–414. https://doi.org/10.1142/S0192415X07004928
(25) Zhong J, Fang L, Chen R, Xu J, Guo D, Guo C, Guo C, Chen J, Chen C, Wang X. Polysaccharides from sporoderm-removed spores of Ganoderma lucidum induce apoptosis in human gastric cancer cells via disruption of autophagic flux. Oncol Lett. 2021 May;21(5):425. doi: 10.3892/ol.2021.12686. Epub 2021 Mar 29. PMID: 33850566; PMCID: PMC8025153.
