Extracellular polysaccharide biosynthesis in Cordyceps

Abstract

Cordyceps is a parasitic edible fungus with a variety of metabolically active ingredients. The main active ingredient, extracellular polysaccharide (EPS), shows favourable application prospects in prevention and treatment of certain diseases. EPS extracted from different parts of various Cordyceps species can be used in health foods or medicinal preparations because of the structural diversity and multiple bioactivities. In terms of the complexity of composition and structure, researchers have speculated on the anabolic pathways of EPSs and the genes involved in the synthesis process. Studies to increase the yield of polysaccharides are limited because the synthesis pathways and anabolic regulation mechanisms of Cordyceps exopolysaccharide remain unknown. This review summarises the current researches in the yield of Cordyceps polysaccharides. A mechanism for the biosynthesis of Cordyceps polysaccharides was proposed by referring to the polysaccharide synthesis in other species. Furthermore, we also discuss the future perspective and ongoing challenges of EPS in uses of health foods and pharmaceutics.

Keywords:

• Cordyceps
• Cordyceps polysaccharide
• fermentation
• biosynthesis

Acknowledgements

Great appreciation is given to all members of our laboratory for their enthusiastic participation in the research.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by a key project funded by Science and Technology Department of Zhejiang Province [Nos. 2018C02017, 2020C02055, and 2020C02041].