A review of Ganoderma lucidum: Cultivation, active ingredients and its application as functional ingredients

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Abstract

Ganoderma lucidum, a medicinal and edible fungus with active components possessing antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer properties, has attracted global attention and been extensively cultivated since the 1970s. Its cultivation and active component extraction methods affect yield and active ingredient content. Traditional segmented wood cultivation of fruiting bodies faces continuous cropping obstacles (e.g., cellulose degradation, soil physical-chemical changes, reduced enzyme activity, increased microorganisms, and higher endogenous organic acids in G. lucidum), while substitute cultivation avoids such issues and utilizes agricultural by-products. Active ingredients are extracted via solvent, ultrasonic-assisted, or enzyme-assisted methods. Though deep eutectic solvents (e.g., ethanolamine-o-cresol) achieve high polysaccharide content (92.35 mg/g), they raise food safety concerns, making natural deep eutectic solvents (e.g., betaine-lactic acid, choline chloride-lactic acid) potential substitutes. Extracted active components are mainly used as functional food ingredients but have limited addition due to bitterness; emerging technologies (e.g., multi-sensory integration, encapsulation technology) can reduce bitterness while maintaining nutritional activity. This review summarizes G. lucidum cultivation and extraction methods to facilitate high-yield, high-quality production and promote its food industry development.