Ganoderma lucidum: Current advancements of characteristic components and experimental progress in anti-liver fibrosis

Abstract

Ganoderma lucidum (G. lucidum, Lingzhi) is a well-known herbal medicine with a variety of pharmacological effects. Studies have found that G. lucidum has pharmacological effects such as antioxidant, antitumor, anti-aging, anti-liver fibrosis, and immunomodulation. The main active components of G. lucidum include triterpenoids, polysaccharides, sterols, peptides and other bioactive components. Among them, the triterpenoids and polysaccharide components of G. lucidum have a wide range of anti-liver fibrotic effects. Currently, there have been more reviews and studies on the antioxidant, antitumor, and anti-aging properties of G. lucidum. Based on the current trend of increasing number of liver fibrosis patients in the world, we summarized the role of G.lucidum extract in anti-liver fibrosis and the effect of G. lucidum extract on liver fibrosis induced by different pathogenesis, which were discussed and analyzed. Research and development ideas and references are provided for the subsequent application of G. lucidum extracts in anti-liver fibrosis treatment.

Keywords: Ganoderma lucidum; chromatography; liver fibrosis; pharmacology; polysaccharide; triterpenes.

FIGURE 1

Chemical structure of the main active components of Ganoderma triterpenes.

FIGURE 2

The causes of liver fibrosis. HSC, hepatic stellate cells; PDGF, Platelet-derived growth factor; ECM, extracellular matrix; VEGF, vascular endothelial growth factor; CB, cannabinoid.

FIGURE 3

Major signaling pathways, molecules and mechanisms regulating HSC activation. HSC activation is regulated by a multitude of pathways and signaling molecules or events that can either sustain or inhibit HSC activation and subsequent proliferative and/or profibrogenic responses.

FIGURE 4

Mechanism of action of Ganoderma lucidum in the treatment of liver fibrosis. ALT, alanine aminotransferase; MDA, malondialdehyde; GPT, pyruvate aminotransferase; GOT, glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase; ROS, reactive oxygen species; CAT, catalase; GR, glutathione reductase; GPX, glutathione peroxidase; VLDL, very-low-density lipoprotein.

FIGURE 5

Data source: (Oluwafemi Adetuyi et al., 2020) formaldehyde and GL’s effect on hepatic enzyme markers. The data are displayed as the mean (n = 7). AST, aspartate aminotransferase; ALP, alkaline phosphatase; ALT, alanine aminotransferase.