Perspectives of biomedical application of macrofungi

International audienceMacrofungi (mushrooms) have widely been appreciated all over the world for their nutritional values and medicinal properties. They havebeen used in traditional medicine for more than 3000 years for prevention and treatment of different diseases. Modern scientific research showsthat macrofungi are producers of a broad spectrum of high- and low-molecular-weight bioactive compounds, i.e., alkaloids, polysaccharides,proteins, phenolics, terpenoids, polyketides, cyclic peptides, lectins and ribosome-inactivating proteins. They have various therapeutic effectsas antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antioxidant, antitumor, antiviral, cardioprotective, hepatoprotective, hypocholesterolemic,hypotensive, immunomodulatory, neuroprotective and regenerative, and possess promising pharmacological potential. Development of fungalbiotechnological cultivation industry will support production of macrofungi-derived biotech products, healthy food and mycopharmaceuticalspharmaceuticals. Further advances in fungal biology and biotechnology, genomics and proteomics will assist biomedical research and applicationof macrofungi