Of the estimate 1.5 million to 5 million species of fungi on the planet, some 100,000 have been classified and studied. Mushrooms are the fruit (or “fruiting body”) of fungi, and are among the most intensely studied for their potential in providing new compounds for pharmaceutical application. Many of our most potent modern medicines, from penicillin to taxol, are fungi-derived, and medicinal mushrooms have played a central role in folk medicine traditions going back thousands of years.
In this site we present a small sampling of the massive body of current and recent research on this fascinating family of superfoods, focusing on these eleven species: agaricus, agarikon, cordyceps, lion’s mane, maitake, oyster mushroom, Porio cocos, reishi, shiitake, and turkey tail.
