Other Names
Quinine conk, larch bracket mushroom, brown trunk rot, eburiko, adagan (“ghost bread”), tak’a di (“tree biscuit”).
Key Components
Betaglucans, triterpenes, agaricin, extracellular antibiotics.
Natural Habitat
Old growth forests of the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia. Once widespread in mature temperate woodlands worldwide, Agarikon is now nearly extinct in Europe and Asia1.
Overview
Agarikon inhabits old-growth conifers, producing a unique cylindrical mushroom body, which adds a circular layer of spore-producing pores each year. The age of an agarikon mushroom can therefore be read, like that of a tree, by counting its growth layers2.
The history of Agarikon’s medicinal use is shrouded in myth. First described by the Greek physician Dioscorides in the Materia Medica in 65 C.E., Agarikon was also written about by the ancient Roman philosopher Pliny the Elder and the 17th century English herbalist Gerard3,4. The mushroom was long considered a panacea and an “elixir of long life,” and has been used for centuries for a range of conditions, including tuberculosis, pneumonia, and topically as a poultice and anti-inflammatory to treat muscular-skeletal pain5. Renowned as an antidote to any poison, legend tells that the king Mithridates took a potion of the mushroom for some time to safeguard himself against poisoning by enemies. Later, when he became depressed and tried to kill himself, the virulent poison he drank didn’t work, presumably because he’d consumed Agarikon for so long previously6. Agarikon was used by the North Coast First Peoples of Northwestern North American and plays a part in the creation myth of the Haida First Peoples of the Queen Charlotte Islands7. It is thought to have helped North American Native peoples in warding off viral diseases, such as smallpox, introduced by European settlers8. Modern ethnobotanical evidence suggests the mushroom may have played a role in the survival of pre-modern humans against infectious disease9.
Agarikon’s traditional use as an antimicrobial has been supported by modern research. The mushroom tested active against a host of bacterial pathogens, including Candida albicans, salmonella, E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, B. subtilis, and Agrobacterium tumefaciens10. Studied for its immune-enhancing properties, agarikon increased both innate and specific immunity in murine studies11. Anti-viral and anti-tumor activity has also been confirmed in agarikon and related ancient polypore mushroom species12,13.
1 Stamets, Paul, and C. Dusty Wu Yao. Mycomedicinals: An informational treatise on mushrooms. MycoMedia, 2002. 20.
2 Stamets, Paul, and C. Dusty Wu Yao. Mycomedicinals: An informational treatise on mushrooms. MycoMedia, 2002. 21.
3 Stamets, Paul E. Antipox properties of Fomitopsis officinalis (Vill.: Fr.) Bond. et Singer (Agarikon) from the Pacific Northwest of North America. International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms 7.3 (2005).
4 Hobbs, Christopher. Medicinal mushrooms: an exploration of tradition, healing & culture. No. Ed. 2. Botanica Press, 1995. 10-13.
5 Stamets, Paul, and C. Dusty Wu Yao. Mycomedicinals: An informational treatise on mushrooms. MycoMedia, 2002. 21.
6Hobbs, Christopher. Medicinal mushrooms: an exploration of tradition, healing & culture. No. Ed. 2. Botanica Press, 1995. 11.
7 Stamets, Paul, and C. Dusty Wu Yao. Mycomedicinals: An informational treatise on mushrooms. MycoMedia, 2002. 21.
8 Stamets, Paul, and C. Dusty Wu Yao. Mycomedicinals: An informational treatise on mushrooms. MycoMedia, 2002. 21.
9 Stamets, Paul, and C. Dusty Wu Yao. Mycomedicinals: An informational treatise on mushrooms. MycoMedia, 2002. 22.
10 Coletto, M. A. B., and B. Striano. Antibiotic activity in Basidiomycetes. XIII. Antibiotic activity of mycelia and cultural filtrates. Allionia 37 (2000): 253-255.
11 Wuliya, Palida, and B. A. I. Li. The immune-potentiating effect of Fomes officinalis polysaccharides [J]. Journal of Xinjiang Medical University 6 (2003): 022.
12 Stamets, Paul E. Antipox properties of Fomitopsis officinalis (Vill.: Fr.) Bond. et Singer (Agarikon) from the Pacific Northwest of North America. International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms 7.3 (2005).
13 Mizuno, Takashi, et al. Antitumor-active substances from mushrooms. Food Reviews International 11.1 (1995): 23-61.
Research
1. Antibiotic activity in Basidiomycetes. XIII. Antibiotic activity of mycelia and cultural filtrates
Coletto, M.A.B. and Striano, B. Allionia. 2000. 37, 253-255.
In this study, researchers evaluated 28 different members of the basidiomycotina division of the fungi kingdom for their antibiotic potential. They isolated mycelia (the vegetative part of the fungus) from the fruiting body and tested each one against seven bacteria. Of particular note, the fungi Fomitopsis officinalis (also known as agarikon) was effective against all seven. The bacteria tested included Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium, and others.
2. The immune-potentiating effect of Fomes officinalis polysaccharides
Wuliya, P., et al. Journal of Xinjiang Medical University. 2003-06.
Researchers examined the ability of the polysaccharides from Fomes officinalis to enhance the immunity in mice. After conducting various tests, researchers determined that fomes enhanced humoral immunity, cellular immunity, and non-specific immunity. They conclude that Fomes officinalis can stimulate normal immune function in mice.
3. Antipox properties of Fomitopsis officinalis (Vill.: Fr.) Bond. Et Singer (agarikon) from the Pacific Northwest of North America
Stamets, P.E. International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms.
DOI: 10.1615/IntJMedMushr.v7.i3.60, 495-506.
In this article, the author discusses the ancient historic uses of Fomitopsis officinalis (agarikon) to treat tuberculosis and as an anti-inflammatory, and points out the recent interest in agarikon and similar fungi for immune stimulating and anti-cancer properties. Also discussed are extracts from old growth mushrooms and their potential as anti-microbial agents.
