Bioactive mushroom polysaccharides as antitumor: an overview

Abstract

Immuno-therapies are gaining more importance to treat certain forms of cancer. The goal of therapies is to enhance person's own IgG, IgA, IgM, IgD, IgE and macrophages to combat with neoplastic cells hence the effectiveness of the immune system. Since, early civilization mushrooms are considered as potent food as well as medicine. Mushrooms are well known for their bioactive compounds such as chizophyllan, lentinan, grifolan, PSP (polysaccharide-peptide complex) and PSK (polysaccharide-protein complex) which are considered as medicines against melignancy. They prevent oncogenesis by the direct effect on tumor metastasis and exhibits antitumor effects by the induction of immune response in host. Mushroom polysaccharides have promising future for treatment of cancers due to their mode of action and efficacy. Also there are some hurdles during this treatment, but it will start a new era of safer and effective medicine based on mushroom polysaccharides.

Keywords: Antitumor; immuno-therapy; mushroom; polysaccharides.