Hepatoprotective Effect
Taiwan’s indigenous people regarded Antrodia as an excellent medicine for hangovers in the early days. Cell and animal experiments confirm that Antrodia can effectively reduce carbon tetrarcholoride (CCl4) or AST and ALT (GOT and GPT) values for alcohol-induced liver injury. The effect is better than the currently used hepatoprotective silymarin.
Antrodia can also delay carbon tetrarcholoride-induced liver fibrosis in rats. Currently, some Antrodia products have obtained health food certification for liver protection efficacy, thus indicating the excellence of Antrodia in liver protection efficacy.
Anti-hepatitis B virus Activity
There are about 350 million hepatitis B carriers around the world. Hepatitis B may lead to acute hepatitis, fulminant hepatitis, cirrhosis, and liver cancer, especially in the Asian region where hepatitis is prevalent.
As confirmed through experiments, Antrodia fruiting bodies and mycelia inhibit the activity of the hepatitis B virus, including the inhibition of hepatitis B virus replication and reproduction. Antrodia is rich in polysaccharides, which may be the main functional component response of the activity.
Antitumor Activity
Cancer is the number of killer that threatens human life. Therefore, medical scientists have actively sought effective treatment. Word has gotten out that the intake of Antrodia can prevent cancer deterioration or even completely cure it. From current literature on the efficacy of Antrodia, studies on cancer cells comprise the majority. Experimental data on cancer cell culture shows that Antrodia inhibits the activity of liver cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer, and colorectal cancer, without much effect on normal cell physiology and activity. This finding indicates that Antrodia has research potential as far as cancer treatment is concerned.
Immunomodulatory Activity
With the prevalence of preventive medicine concept in recent years, especially after the outbreak of SARS and swine flu, pharmacy and healthcare related items that enhance immunomodulation have received much attention.
Among the health food items approved by Taiwan’s Department of Health, health food with immunomodulation effects has shown a growing demand every year.
At present, only three Antrodia products have been approved as health food in Taiwan, and only one manufacturer’s immunomodulatory products have been approved. The claimed health benefits are as follows:
1. Their ability to contribute to the proliferation of immune cells; 2. Contribute to phagocytic activity; 3. Contribute to the promotion of natural killer cell activity.
The Antrodia products with immunomodulatory effects have been experimentally confirmed to have very good results on human body’s non-specific immune regulation and specific immunomodulatory effects. Additionally, the products have been confirmed through Type III Toxicology Test as safe to the human body.
Therefore, high-quality Antrodia products are considered premium health care products.
Anti-inflammatory Activity
Inflammatory response is the root of many diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, arthritis, cancer, and diabetes. Hence, nutritional supplements with anti-inflammatory effects can prevent many chronic diseases.
According to one research jointly completed by National Chung Hsing University, National Taiwan University, Academia Sinica, and China Pharmaceutical University, Antrodia fruiting body’s specific component A (Antrocamphin A) possesses excellent anti-inflammatory effects. The research team conducted experiments on induced acute inflammatory responses in rats and fed the rats with A(Antrocamphin A) was found that Nitric oxide free radicals produced due to information and prostaglandin concentrations decreased. Additionally, the higher the concentration, the better the anti-inflammatory effect.
Anti-oxidating Effect
The human body’s anti-metabolism or impacts of external environmental pollution will lead to the production of free radicals that endanger health. Many experiments have confirmed Antrodia is a very direct free radical remover, including Antrodia extracts that can clear DPPH (a stable free radical). Antrodia aqueous extract inhibits non-enzymatic iron-induced lipid peroxidation in the brain of rats. Antrodia extract has also been confirmed to have anti-oxidation function of the human venous epidermal cell culture, which further inhibits apoptosis in venous cells, all of which are indications of Antrodia’s excellent anti-oxidating effect.
Antiangiogenic Activity
Anti-angiogenesis has been a very important research direction in the medical profession in the treatment of cancer, because it inhibits angiogenesis in cancer cells and inhibits tumor enlargement and cancer cell proliferation, which have shown good results in animal and human experiments. Antrodia ethanol extract and polysaccharides have been confirmed to inhibit VEGF receptor activity, which limit the cyclin D1 performance, thereby achieving the function of inhibiting angiogenesis.
Hypotensive Effect
Hypertension is one of the major causes of cardiovascular disease, which can cause stroke, coronary heart disease, retinopathy, renal sclerosis, and other high-mortality diseases, which have a major impact on health.
Studies have confirmed that Antrodia extract can increase the release of nitric oxide (NO) through the calcium ion passages in regulatory endothelial cells, as well as activating the cGMP system that facilitates vasodilation.
In addition, wild Antrodia fruiting body or solid culture of Antrodia administered can also spontaneously reduce diastolic and systolic pressures in spontaneous hypertensive rats (SHR)
Hypotensive Effect
High cholesterol is a disease of modern civilization, which can easily lead to diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and so on. Through animal model experiments, such as experiments using SD model mice fed with wild Antrodia fruiting bodies, it was found that Antrodia has the effect of reducing triglycerides and blood sugar concentration in plasma. The results indicate wild Antrodia fruiting bodies can effectively reduce hypolipidemic blood.
Antrodia extract, through experiments on hamsters suffering from hyperlipidemia diseases, has been confirmed to reduce total cholesterol and triglycerides in liver and increase liver catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione (GPx) concentrations.
Neuroprotective Effect
The nervous system is a very important physiological mechanism in the human body. Nutritional supplements with neuroprotective effects can prevent many related disease, including senile memory degradation.
Antrodia extracts have been experimentally confirmed to prevent PC-12 (a nerve cell) apoptosis through the PKA-dependent path that inhibits JNK and p38 activity.
Anti-virus Effect
Antrodia extract has been confirmed through experiments to fight against a variety of microorganisms and pathogens, including Bacillus cereus, Bacillus subtilis, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus lactis, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus faecalis, Enterobacter aerogenes, Escherichia coli, Proteus vulgaris, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Salmonella typhimurium, and Shigella sonnei.
Spot-removal and Whitening Effect
Antrodia extract and ethanol extract have been confirmed through experiments to protect cells from UV damage; ethanol extract can significantly inhibit the actives of tyrosinase after cells are exposed to light. Tyramine acid is one of the important enzymes responsible for melanin formation. Hence, Antrodia is said to possess spot-removal and whitening effect.
Anti-genotoxic Activity
From toxicological safety tests, the absence of genotoxicity is a stringent requirement for health foods. Therefore, Antrodia products have received certification as health food, an indication of the absence of genotoxicity. The experiments for this part were carried out using cell culture and animal experiments, which have proven the human genes cause mutations, but maternal and fetal safety remain unaffected.