The picture shows the doctoral students of the Yunbaicao Laboratory observing the newly collected cordyceps. Photo by Li Jiaxian
China News Network Kunming, September 21 Title: Unveiling the "Species Diversity" of Cordyceps: There are insects and "grasses", but they are not cordies and not grasses
China News Network reporter Hu Yuanhang
Yunnan University Yunbaicao Laboratory collected nearly 500 kinds of cordyceps, nearly 20,000 specimens of cordyceps soaking, and more than 8,500 strains of cordyceps... It can be called the world's "Cordyceps Encyclopedia". Recently, the reporter visited the laboratory to reveal the diverse world of Cordyceps.
"Mushrooms" growing from insects
When it comes to cordyceps, the general public is probably familiar with cordyceps. In fact, more than 600 species of sexual cordyceps have been found worldwide. Among them, there are about 350 species of cordyceps in China and nearly 300 species of cordyceps in Yunnan.
In the Yunnan University Yunbaicao Laboratory, the reporter saw all kinds of cordyceps: Cordyceps militaris, Cordyceps cicada, Cordyceps sinensis, Cordyceps weeping, Cordyceps plateau, Coccidioides white zombie... Some of them grow on caterpillars, know-it-alls, and tsubaki, some grow on horse bees, American cockroaches, scarab beetles, and some even grow on small ants. The larger one is about 30 cm long and the smaller one is less than 1 cm long.
Are they worms or grasses? Yu Hong, a professor at Yunnan University's Yunbaicao Laboratory, told reporters that although cordyceps has worms and grasses, it is not a cordyceps or not a grass, but a complex formed by the parasitic invertebrates, a small number of fungi and slime molds of cordyceps fungi (mycostic fungi). In layman's terms, it is the "mushroom" that grows from insects.
Well-known as Cordyceps sinensis, it is a complex of Cordyceps sinensis bacteria and larvae of the bat moth family. Before encountering cordyceps, the larvae are just ordinary bugs, leisurely swimming in the meadows or jungles. But when they encounter cordyceps fungi, bad luck begins to come — the spores of cordyceps fungi will quietly infiltrate from their mouths, limb joints, abdomen and other vulnerable places, and then germinate and grow in the body, and the hyphae spread wildly until they completely devour the entire insect body. By this time, the bug had turned into a "zombie." When the temperature warms up and the rain increases, the cordyceps hyphae will break through the insect body's shackles and begin to grow a signature structure - the fruiting body, also known as the substation, which is also known as the "grass". From summer to mid-autumn, a variety of mature cordyceps grow and form.
"From a realistic point of view, in this life-and-death struggle between insects and bacteria, bacteria are the final winners. However, from another point of view, the special life form of cordyceps is not the mutual achievement of fungi and insects. Yu Hong said that the combination of bacteria and insects into cordyceps can produce a variety of biologically active substances with medical and health care effects, such as nucleosides, polysaccharides, alkaloids, cyclic carboxypeptides and enzymes, etc., playing the role of "1+1>2".
Cordyceps culture originated in China
From a global perspective, China, India, Nepal and other countries produce Cordyceps sinensis. However, it is internationally recognized that the source of cordyceps is in China.
Yu Hong said that during the Qin and Han Dynasties, the Shennong Materia Medica listed the white zombie silkworm as "Zhongpin", which is the earliest record of cordyceps being used in medicine. A large number of cordyceps excavated from the ancient tomb of Hai Xiahou in Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, also confirmed that as early as the Western Han Dynasty more than 2,000 years ago, Chinese began to use cordyceps.
The earliest record of cicada flowers and cordyceps comes from the "Treatise on the Burning of Lei Gong Cannons" in the Southern and Northern Dynasties period, which records that "cicada flowers, who want white flowers, are collected and dried in the southeast corner of the house, and after removing the nail soil, they are boiled in pulp water for one day and night, and roasted and dried for fine use." This shows that the understanding and application of Chinese medicine for cicada flower cordyceps has a history of at least 1500 years.
The earliest record of the medicinal use of Cordyceps sinensis dates back to 710 AD. During the reign of Emperor Zhongzong of Tang, Princess Jincheng married into Tibet and brought with her a large number of medical personnel and books, among which the "Moon King Medicine Clinic" was translated into Tibetan, also known as "The Theory of the Moon King of Medicine", which is the earliest surviving Tibetan medical work, and the first record of the efficacy of Cordyceps sinensis as the treatment of lung diseases. In 780 AD, the Tibetan Materia Medica also recorded the function of Cordyceps sinensis in "moisturizing the lungs and replenishing the kidneys". This shows that the application of Traditional Chinese Medicine to Cordyceps sinensis also has a history of more than 1200 years.
"Modern research has confirmed that many cordyceps, represented by Cordyceps militaris, Cordyceps cicadas, Cordyceps spp., etc., have important value in health care and other aspects." Yu Hong said that Cordyceps sinensis has many effects such as regulating immunity, antioxidant, anti-tumor, anti-aging, etc., and has now been included in books such as the Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China, Chinese Materia Medica, Chinese Tibetan Materia Medica, and Chinese Medicine.
In addition, modern research has also confirmed that in addition to its medicinal value, Cordyceps also plays an important role in regulating the number of arthropods in nature, maintaining ecological balance and biological control of pests.
"The insects are small and big, and there are many bodhi in the grass." Yu Hong said that cordyceps often made him marvel at the magic of nature and also shocked by the greatness of life.
Cordyceps Kingdom in Yunnan
After more than 20 years of hard work, Yunbaicao Laboratory has collected nearly 500 species of Cordyceps, nearly 20,000 specimens of Cordyceps soaking, and more than 8,500 Cordyceps strains. Among them, nearly 300 species of cordyceps were collected from Yunnan.
"Located at the intersection of the southeastern edge of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau to the South Asian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, Yunnan is one of the most complex and diverse ecological environments in the world and one of the most biodiverse regions in the world. Yunnan's three-dimensional climate is remarkable, suitable for all kinds of plants, insects and fungi, and has bred rich species diversity and genetic diversity of Cordyceps sinensis. Yu Hong said.
A study from the Yunbaicao Laboratory also shows that the Hengduan Mountains are the center of genetic diversity of Cordyceps sinensis, and the Hengduan Mountains of Northwest Yunnan are the origin centers of Cordyceps sinensis.
"We analyzed the genetic structure and phylogenetic geography of Cordyceps sinensis and identified 8 phylogenetic branches to reach this conclusion." Yu Hong added.
"Yunnan is not only the kingdom of animals and plants, but also the kingdom of cordyceps." Yu Hong proposed that from the strategic height of biosecurity, it is urgent to build a Cordyceps Biodiversity Research Center and a Cordyceps Biodiversity Sustainable Utilization Center in Yunnan. This is of practical and long-term strategic significance for the protection of Cordyceps species diversity and genetic diversity, and is also of practical and far-reaching significance for highlighting China's characteristics and status in the conservation and sustainable development of Cordyceps biodiversity in the world, and for promoting Traditional Chinese medicine and its culture. (End)
Source: China News Network