Edible Mushrooms and Beta-Glucans: Impact on Human Health

Mushroom cell walls are rich in beta-glucans, long or short-chain polymers of glucose subunits with beta-1,3 and beta-1,6 linkages, that are responsible for the linear and branching structures, respectively. beta-glucans from cereals, at variance, have no 1,6 linkages nor branching structures. Both immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effects of mushrooms have been described using purified beta-glucans or fungi extracts on cellular and experimental models; their potential clinical use has been tested in different conditions, such as recurrent infections of the respiratory tract or complications of major surgery. Another promising application of beta-glucans is on cancer, as adjuvant of conventional chemotherapy. beta-glucans may protect the cardiovascular system, ameliorating glucose, lipid metabolism, and blood pressure: these activities, observed for oat and barley beta-glucans, require confirmation in human studies with mushroom beta-glucans. On the other hand, mushrooms may also protect the cardiovascular system via a number of other components, such as bioactive phenolic compounds, vitamins, and mineral elements. The growing knowledge on the mechanism(s) and health benefits of mushrooms is encouraging the development of a potential clinical use of beta-glucans, and also to further document their role in preserving health and prevent disease in the context of healthy lifestyles.