There is some evidence to suggest that organic germanium may increase energy levels. A 2011 study published in the journal "Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine" found that oral supplementation with organic germanium improved energy levels in people with chronic fatigue syndrome. The study found that germanium helped to increase the production of ATP, the body's primary [...]
There is some evidence to suggest that organic germanium may improve mental function. A 2012 study published in the journal "Nutritional Neuroscience" found that oral supplementation with organic germanium enhanced cognitive function in people with Alzheimer's disease. The study found that germanium helped increase blood flow to the brain, promoting new neuron growth. Additionally, germanium helps [...]
Antitumor Effects Over the past 30 years, previous studies have strongly suggested three possible ways by which G. frondosa exerts its anticancer effect—protection of healthy cells, prevention of tumor metastasis, and inhibition of tumor growth. In other words, G. frondosa can fight against tumors directly and indirectly via enhancement of the immune system. The antitumor activity [...]
Polysaccharides In the past 30 years, over 47 bioactive polysaccharide fractions have been isolated and purified from the fruiting body, mycelium, and cultured medium of G. frondosa using different extraction methods. G. frondosa contains 3.8% water-soluble polysaccharides on a dry weight basis, of which 13.2% was (1→3, 1→6)-β-D-glucan, and others include heteroglycan or the heteroglycan/protein complex. Among [...]
A persistent hyperglycemic environment enhances the protein glycation reaction and increases advanced glycation end products (AGEs), which can stimulate the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Accumulated ROS induces oxidative stress and inflammation and activates various signaling pathways, such as mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) and nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) pathway, which aggravate oxidative stress and inflammation. Besides, [...]
Breast cancer, the most common cancer in women worldwide, is a heterogeneous disease composed of a broad spectrum of tumor subtypes with different biological characteristics and clinical behavior. The primary breast cancer markers traditionally used in routine clinical practice to establish the disease's diagnosis, prognosis, and therapy are estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and human [...]
Antitumor Effects Previous studies over the past 30 years have strongly suggested that there are three possible ways by which maitake (Grifola frondosa) exerts its anticancer effect—protection of healthy cells, prevention of tumor metastasis, and inhibition of tumor growth. In other words, maitake can fight against tumors directly and indirectly by enhancing the immune system. This section will mainly focus on [...]
Cordycepin and Diabetes Diabetes has recently become one of the most prevalent epidemics worldwide, affecting almost 382 million people. According to the reports, it is believed that approximately 1.3 million people die every year from diabetes. According to International Diabetes Federation (IDF), it is estimated that around 629 million people will have diabetes around the globe [...]
The genus Cordyceps contains many chemical compounds and their derivatives in the form of secondary metabolites. Such diverse chemical compounds make them quite intriguing in analyzing therapeutic effects and pharmacological studies. Major chemical compounds such as nucleosides, sterols flavonoids, cyclic peptides, phenolic, bioxanthracenes, polyketides, and alkaloids are found in Cordyceps species. While in most of the [...]
When losing weight, you will hear about medium-chain triglycerides and ketogenic diets. Medium-chain triglycerides are a new type of functional food ingredient: glycerol composed of saturated medium-chain fatty acids with a carbon chain length of 6-12 triglycerides, which are mainly derived from palm kernel oil, coconut oil, milk, and their products, having unique metabolic pathways. 1. [...]