Ganoderma Guide

The Polyporales form a large group of diverse mushrooms. Most of these are "polypores" in the widely used sense of the word: they are wood decomposers whose spores are held in tubes (rather like the tubes of the boletes). Many lack fully developed stems, and grow shelf-like or crust-like on wood, while some have more or less central stems and grow at the bases of trees, and a few appear to actually grow terrestrially. Ganoderma applanatum
Ganoderma applanatum
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Fungi
Phylum: Basidiomycota
Class: Agaricomycetes
Order: Polyporales
Family: Ganodermataceae
Genus: Ganoderma
P. Karst
Type species
Ganoderma lucidum

Ganoderma is a genus of polypores which grow on wood and includes over 250 species, many from tropical regions.[1] Because of their extensive use in traditional Asian medicines, and their potential in bioremediation, they are a very important genus economically. Ganoderma can be differentiated from other polypores because they have a double walled basidiospore.
Contents
* 1 Etymology
* 2 Description
* 3 Phylogeny
* 4 Significance
o 4.1 Industry
o 4.2 Medicine
* 5 Notable species
* 6 Trivia
* 7 References

Etymology
The name Ganoderma is derived from the Greek ganos/γανος "brightness, sheen", hence "shining" and derma/δερμα "skin",[2]

Description
Ganoderma are characterized by basidiocarps that are lignicolous, coriaceous, and either with or without a stem. They have double-walled, truncate spores with yellow to brown ornamented inner layers.

Phylogeny
The genus was named by Karsten in 1881. Members of the family Ganodermataceae were traditionally considered difficult to classify because of the lack of reliable morphological characteristics, the overabundance of synonyms, and the widespread misuse of names.[3][4] Until recently, the genus was divided into two sections - Section Ganoderma with a shiny cap surface (like Ganoderma lucidum) and Elfvingia, with a dull cap surface, like Ganoderma applanatum. Phylogenetic analysis using sequence information derived from mitochondrial SSU rDNA, have helped to clarify our understanding of the relationships amongst Ganoderma species. The genus may now be divided into six monophyletic groups:

* G. colossus group
* G. applanatum group

* G. tsugae group
* Asian G. lucidum group
* G. meredithiae group
* G. resinaceum group

In 1905, American mycologist Murrill delineated the genus Tomophagus to accommodate the single species G. colossus (then known as Polyporus colossus) which had distinctive morphological features that did not fit in with the other species.[8] Historically, however, Tomophagus has been generally been regarded as a synonym for Ganoderma.[9] Nearly a century later, phylogenetic analyses vindicated Murrill's original placement, as it has shown to be a distinct taxonomically appropriate genus.

Ganoderma are wood-decaying fungi with a cosmopolitan distribution, and can grow on both coniferous and hardwood species. They are white-rot fungi, and have enzymes have allow them to break down wood components such as lignin and cellulose. There is significant research interest in trying to harness the power of these wood-degrading enzymes for industrial applications such as biopulping or bioremediation.

Medicine
Several species of Ganoderma have been used in traditional Asian medicines for thousands of years. Collectively, the Ganoderma are being investigated for a variety of potential therapeutic benefits:

* anticancer effects
* immunoregulatory effects
* antioxidant activities
* liver-protecting effects
* hypoglycemic effects
* antibacterial effects
* antiviral effects
* antifungal effects
* reducing blood cholesterol
* inhibiting blood vessel regeneration (angiogenesis)
* antifibrotic effects
* protection against radiation-induced damage
* reducing lower urinary tract symptoms
* increasing endurace for vigorous exercise

Notable species
* Ganoderma applanatum - Also known as the Artist's conch
* Ganoderma pseudoferreum - Responsible for the root rot of cacao, coffee, rubber and tea trees
* Ganoderma lucidum - Also known as Reishi or Lingzhi
* Ganoderma philippii - A plant pathogen
* Ganoderma tsugae - A polypore which grows on conifers, especially hemlock; thus the common name, Hemlock varnish shelf. Similar in appearance to Ganoderma lucidum, which typically grows on hardwoods.