Health Care Professional Information
Scientific Name
Pleurotus ostreatus
Common Name
Brown oyster mushroom, Hao gu
Clinical Summary
Oyster mushroom is an edible fungus found widely in North America and Europe. It is used in traditional medicine to treat infections, hyperlipidemia, diabetes, and cancer.
In vitro experiments and studies done in mice have shown that Oyster mushroom has antitumor (1) (7) (8) (9) (12) (13), immunomodulatory (10) (11), antifungal (2), lipid lowering, and hypoglycemic (3) (6) properties. The beneficial effects are due to the polysaccharides, lectins, and peptides present in Oyster mushrooms.
A pilot study sponsored by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine was conducted to determine the lipid-lowering effects of Oyster mushrooms in patients with AIDS and hyperlipidemia, but the data have yet to be published (5).
No adverse effects have been reported from consuming Oyster mushroom.
Food Sources
Oyster mushroom is an edible fungus. It is available both in the fresh and dried forms. The whole mushroom is often used in soups and sauces.
Purported Uses
- Cancer treatment
- Diabetes
- Hyperlipidemia
- Infections
Constituents
- Polysaccharides: ß-1, 3-D-glucan, Pleuran
- Lectins
- Peptides: Pleurostrin
- Mevinolin
Mechanism of Action
Pleurostrin, a peptide derived from the fruiting bodies of Oyster mushroom, exhibited antifungal properties (2). Mevinolin, another compound, decreases cholesterol biosynthesis by inhibiting HMG CoA reductase, which is the rate limiting enzyme in cholesterol biosynthesis (3). Ostreolysin, a cytolytic protein isolated from oyster mushroom, caused bradycardia, myocardial ischemia and ventricular extrasystoles following intravenous injection in mice (14).
A lectin isolated from the fruiting bodies of Oyster mushroom demonstrated antitumor activity in mice bearing sarcoma and hepatoma but the mechanism is not known (1). Another study found that the development of precancerous aberrant crypt foci (ACF) was significantly reduced in mice that were fed a diet containing 10% pleuran, a beta-glucan isolated from Oyster mushroom (4).
Contraindications
Hypersensitivity to Oyster mushrooms.
Adverse Reactions
References
- Wang H, Gao J, Ng TB. A new lectin with highly potent antihepatoma and antisarcoma activities from the oyster mushroom Pleurotus ostreatus. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2000; 275(3):810-816.
- Chu KT, Xia L, Ng TB. Pleurostrin, an antifungal peptide from the oyster mushroom. Peptides 2005.
- Hossain S, et al. Dietary mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) ameliorates atherogenic lipid in hypercholesterolaemic rats. Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol 2003; 30(7):470-475.
- Bobek P and Galbavy S. Effect of pleuran (beta-glucan from Pleurotus ostreatus) on the antioxidant status of the organism and on dimethylhydrazine-induced precancerous lesions in rat colon. Br J Biomed Sci 2001; 58(3):164-168.
- Antihyperlipidemic effects of Oyster mushrooms. http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/show/NCT00069524. Accessed May 13, 2011.
- Chorvathova V, et al. Effect of oyster fungus on glycaemia and cholesterolaemia in rats with insulin-dependent diabetes. Physiol Res 1993; 42(6):175-9.
- Wasonga CG, Okoth SA, Mukuria JC, Omwandho CO. Mushroom polysaccharide extracts delay progression of carcinogenesis in mice. J Exp Ther Oncol. 2008;7(2):147-52.
- Jedinak A, Sliva D. Pleurotus ostreatus inhibits proliferation of human breast and colon cancer cells through p53-dependent as well as p53-independent pathway. Int J Oncol. 2008 Dec;33(6):1307-13.
- Chen JN, Wang YT, Wu JS. A glycoprotein extracted from golden oyster mushroom Pleurotus citrinopileatus exhibiting growth inhibitory effect against U937 leukemia cells. J Agric Food Chem. 2009 Aug 12;57(15):6706-11.
- Shlyakhovenko V, Kosak V, Olishevsky S. Application of DNA from mushroom Pleurotus ostreatus for cancer biotherapy: a pilot study. Exp Oncol. 2006 Jun;28(2):132-5.
- Sarangi I, Ghosh D, Bhutia SK, et al. Anti-tumor and immunomodulating effects of Pleurotus ostreatus mycelia-derived proteoglycans. Int Immunopharmacol. 2006 Aug;6(8):1287-97.
- Martin KR, Brophy SK. Commonly consumed and specialty dietary mushrooms reduce cellular proliferation in MCF-7 human breast cancer cells. Exp Biol Med (Maywood). 2010 Nov;235(11):1306-14.
- Jedinak A, Dudhgaonkar S, Jiang J, Sandusky G, Sliva D. Pleurotus ostreatus inhibits colitis-related colon carcinogenesis in mice. Int J Mol Med. 2010 Nov;26(5):643-50.
- Zuzek MC, Macek P, Sepciæ K, Cestnik V, Frangez R. Toxic and lethal effects of ostreolysin, a cytolytic protein from edible oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus), in rodents. Toxicon. 2006 Sep 1;48(3):264-71.
- Vereda A, Quirce S, Fernández-Nieto M, Bartolomé B, Sastre J. Occupational asthma due to spores of Pleurotus ostreatus. Allergy. 2007 Feb;62(2):211-2.
- Mori S, Nakagawa-Yoshida K, Tsuchihashi H, et al. Mushroom worker's lung resulting from indoor cultivation of Pleurotus osteatus. Occup Med (Lond). 1998 Oct;48(7):465-8.
Consumer Information
How It Works
Bottom Line: Oyster mushroom has not been shown to treat cancer in humans.
Oyster mushroom is an edible fungus. It is used in traditional medicine to treat infections, diabetes, cancer, and to lower cholesterol. Laboratory experiments and studies done in mice have shown that Oyster mushrooms have antitumor, antifungal, and cholesterol lowering properties but human data is lacking. There are no adverse reactions reported from consuming Oyster mushrooms.
Purported Uses
- Antitumor
Oyster mushrooms increased survival in tumor-bearing mice but no such studies have been done in humans. - Antifungal
One laboratory study showed that Oyster mushroom has antifungal activity. - Hyperlipidemia
Studies done in mice have shown that Oyster mushroom lowers hyperlipidemia but there are no clinical trials to support this use. - Diabetes
Experiments done in mice indicate that Oyster mushroom has hypoglycemic effects but no such studies have been done in humans.
Research Evidence
There are no clinical trials to support the use of Oyster mushroom.
Do Not Take If
- You are allergic to mushrooms.
Side Effects
- Occupational asthma and allergic alveolitis have been reported following exposure to the spores of oyster mushroom.
Last updated: May 13, 2011
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