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Jolanta Jaroszuk-Ściseł, in Encyclopedia of Mycology, 2021 Functional Foods and Nutraceuticalsįungal polysaccharides can be incorporated into foods and feed, creating novel “functional foods” with many health-promoting benefits strengthening and stimulating the immune system and reducing the risk of chronic diseases, in addition to the nutritive value of both. Submerged fermentation is more rapid and capable of generating large quantities of mycelia and extracellular bioactive products usable as food ingredients and flavoring agents ( Lu et al., 2020). Nonetheless, growing mushrooms on substrates remains time consuming and labor intensive. Techniques are constantly being updated and improved, particularly in recent years, such as on Ganoderma lucidum, Lentinus edodes and Schizophyllum commune ( Elisashvili, 2012). The choice of substrate and cultivation technique has a strong influence on the nutritional content of mushrooms. Most commercial edible macrofungi are cultivated in bags or using compost beds. The two main cultivation methods consist of growing the fungi on substrates or using submerged fermentation. The 12 species (out of 60 overall) that are commonly cultivated at scale are: Agaricus bisporus, Lentinus edodes, Pleurotus eryngii, Volvariella volvacea, Hericium erinaceus, Auricularia auricula-judae, Ganoderma lucidum, Grifola frondosa, Flammunlina velutipes, Tremella fuciformis, Pholiota microspora and Coprinus comatus.
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Huili Li, in Encyclopedia of Mycology, 2021 Cultivated Macrofungi
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