MYCOLab Ai Logo - gold and army green

Influence of Culture Conditions on Bioactive Compounds in Cordyceps militaris: A Comprehensive Review

Summary

Cordyceps militaris is a medicinal fungus used in traditional medicine for treating fatigue, boosting immunity, and fighting cancer. This review explains how growing conditions—such as the type of grain or insect substrate used, light exposure, temperature, and nutrient balance—dramatically affect the production of beneficial compounds like cordycepin. The research shows that mixing grains with insect-based materials and using specific light wavelengths can significantly increase the potency of these medicinal fungi, making them more effective for health applications.

Background

Cordyceps militaris is a medicinal fungus with diverse therapeutic properties attributed to bioactive compounds including cordycepin, polysaccharides, adenosine, D-mannitol, carotenoids, and ergosterol. The production and composition of these metabolites are highly influenced by cultivation conditions, necessitating systematic optimization strategies.

Objective

This review synthesizes current findings on how nutritional factors (carbon and nitrogen sources, their ratios, and trace elements) and environmental parameters (oxygen availability, pH, temperature, and light) regulate C. militaris metabolite biosynthesis. The review compares solid-state fermentation and liquid state fermentation impacts and identifies knowledge gaps for advancing sustainable and scalable production.

Results

Mixed grain-insect substrates and light regulation emerged as promising methods to enhance cordycepin accumulation. Blue light and pink light wavelengths significantly increased cordycepin, adenosine, and carotenoid production. Substrate choice dramatically affected metabolite composition, with cordyceptin levels ranging from 0.2 to 89.5 mg/g depending on substrate type.

Conclusion

The review highlights that integrating multi-omics approaches with bioprocess engineering is essential for overcoming current limitations in metabolite regulatory networks, standardized protocols, and scale-up challenges. Future research should focus on strain-substrate matching and optimizing cultivation strategies for both pharmaceutical and functional food applications.
  • Published in:Foods,
  • Study Type:Review,
  • Source: PMID: 41097576
Scroll to Top