Harnessing iron nanoparticles for scalable cordycepin and adenosine production in Cordyceps militaris.

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Citation abstract

Cordyceps militaris (CM) is one of the most valuable edible mushrooms, treasured for its health promoting properties, largely due to cordycepin and adenosine. In the present experiments CM was cultivated on four different substrates (brown rice, finger millet, barnyard millet and barley) to evaluate growth dynamics, cordycepin and adenosine content. The most suitable substrate was supplemented with increasing concentrations of iron sulfate nanoparticles (0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 ppm), to evaluate their effects on growth, nucleoside production and iron biofortification. Fresh and dry biomass of CM showed a biphasic response, with increase at lower nanoparticle concentrations (5-10 ppm) and declining at higher concentrations (15-30 ppm). Maximal increase in fresh (99%) and dry weight (10%) was recorded on substrate supplemented with 10 ppm iron sulfate nanoparticles. Iron sulfate nanoparticles led to a pronounced enhancement in bioactive nucleosides. Adenosine and cordycepin contents increased by up to 72% and 370%, respectively, at 20 ppm nanoparticle treatment, while iron content in fruiting bodies rose by up to 92% on iron nanoparticle supplemented substrate. The current study establishes an environmentally benign, solid-state cultivation strategy to enhance cordycepin and adenosine production in Cordyceps using iron sulfate nanoparticles, enabling iron biofortification.