The in Vivo Effect of Cordyceps sinensis Mycelium on Plasma Corticosterone Level in Male Mouse

Abstract

Cordyceps sinensis (CS) is an Ascomycetes fungus parasitic to Lepidoptera larvae, and has long been used as medicine to treat many illnesses and promote longevity in Chinese society.1,2) Previous investigations have shown that CS has many pharmacological activities such as reducing mean arterial pressure, 3) preventing cholesterol deposition in aorta, 4) and inducing tumor programmed cell death. [5][6][7][8] Moreover, reports have also demonstrated that CS can suppress tumor cell growth, modulate immune response, [9][10][11] stimulate the activity of natural killer cells and macrophages with anti-inflammatory effect, 12,13) and inhibits rejection of organ transplants, which is possible that the effect of CS on the immune system is mediated via hormonal secretion by the adrenal cortex since its product, glucocorticoid, is a favorite candidate for immuno-suppression. 14) Indeed, it has been demonstrated that CS can promote sex hormones in Leydig cells in vitro and in vivo [15][16][17][18][19][20] and adrenal cells in vitro. 21) It is well known that adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) will bind to membrane receptor of adrenal cells to trigger steroidogenesis. 22) Aim of this study is to examine if CS would also induce in vivo effects on corticosterone production in mouse. In addition, it remains to be clarified whether CS fractions will also have the effect. Thus, mice were fed with CS and its fractions (F2 and F3) and the in vivo plasma corticosterone levels and weights of body and adrenal glands were determined in the present study. 3 H-Corticosterone was purchased from DuPont-New England Nuclear (Boston, MA, U.S.A.). Antiserum to corticosterone was a gift from Dr. Paulus S. Wang (National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan). MATERIALS AND METHODS ChemicalsPreparation of CS Fractions One hundred grams of crude CS was extracted with 800 ml distilled water and shaken at 37 ЊC for 72 h. The solution was then centrifuged at 12000ϫg at 4 ЊC for 30 min to collect the pellet named fraction 3 (F3). The supernatant was applied in the G150 gel filtration column (3ϫ100 cm) with 50 mM CH 3 COONH 4 buffer at pH 6.0. Two peaks were collected; the first peak was designated F1 and the second peak, F2. The yield percentage of F1, F2, and F3 were 1.69%, 13.46%, and 84.85%, respectively. The main content of those CS fractions were F2 with water-soluble low molecular weight proteins and F3 with relatively poor water-soluble polysaccharides and proteins.Animals Male B6 (C57BL/6NCrj) mice, 4-5 weeks old, were purchased form NCKUAC (National Cheng Kong University Animal Center). All animals were housed in groups of 4-6 in 29ϫ18ϫ13-cm polyethylene cages. The animal room was maintained at 22-24 ЊC on a 12 : 12 h light : dark cycle. Purina mouse chow (Ralston-Purina, St. Louis, MO, U.S.A.) and water were always available. Animals were randomly divided into three groups, at least 5 in each group, with the infusions of water, 0.02 or 0.2 mg/gbody weight of CS, F2 or F3, respectively, for 1, 3 or 7 d. The age at the beginning of experiment was 5 w...

Cordyceps spp.: A Review on Its Immune-Stimulatory and Other Biological Potentials

“…It was showed that C. sinensis stimulates E2 production in human granulosa-lutein cells (GLCs) by upregulating the expression of several key enzymes, especially StAR and aromatase, making it a brilliant candidate for increasing the fecundity of women ( Huang B M et al, 2004 ). Moreover, C. sinensis and its fractions have been reported to induce in vivo plasma corticosterone levels in immature and mature mice ( Leu et al, 2005 ). Besides, C. sinensis could improve the function of reproduction and testis morphology in mice ( Jin and Guo, 2006 ).…”

A novel extracellular protease with fibrinolytic activity from the culture supernatant of Cordyceps sinensis: purification and characterization

“…The fermented mycelia of C. sinensis has been used popularly as a nutritious or health food in China and Japan, because it has a similar pharmacological efficacy to the natural Cordyceps which is scarce and expensive (Hsu et al, 2002;Li et al, 2001b;Zhu et al, 1998aZhu et al, , 1998b. Furthermore, there have been many reports describing the various biological activities of C. sinensis (Leu et al, 2005;Li et al, 2001a;2001b;Yamaguchi et al, 2000;Zhang et al, 2006;, but only a few have identified the proteins responsible for its activity (Chiou et al, 2000;Ye et al, 2004).…”

Steroids in traditional Chinese medicine: what is the evidence?

“…An animal study and an in vitro study reported that cordyceps extract has a stimulatory effect on the adrenal gland and increased the corticosterone level. (21,22) However, no clinical case reports or studies have reported on its corticosteroidal activity.…”