Lentinan, a natural β-glucan extracted from the shiitake mushroom (Lentinula edodes), acts as a non-specific immune enhancer[1]. Lentinan enhances immune responses by activating macrophages, dendritic cells, and natural killer cells, and by promoting the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-α and IL-6[2]. Lentinan is commonly used in research related to anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory, and neuroprotective effects[3].
In vitro, pretreatment of bovine mammary epithelial cells with Lentinan (100μg/mL; 6h) abolished LPS-induced ROS, restored SOD/T-AOC, up-regulated Nrf2/HO-1, silenced NF-κB/MAPK, suppressed IL-1β/IL-6/TNF-α and blocked apoptosis without cytotoxicity[4]. Treatment of A549 lung cancer cells with Lentinan (100μM; 48h) reduced IL-6 and IL-1β levels, decreased caspase-1 activity, raised ROS, lowered GPx4, depolarized mitochondria and activated caspase-3/DNA damage[5].
In vivo, Lentinan (10mg/kg/day; i.p.; 5 days) reversed house dust mite(HDM)-induced airway eosinophilia, IL-4/5/13 overproduction, mucus hypersecretion and ZO-1 loss in HDM-sensitized C57BL/6 mice[6]. Lentinan (200mg/kg/day; p.o.; 14 days) reversed antibiotic-induced colitis in C57BL/6J mice, restored colonic ZO-1/Occludin expression, reduced TNF-α and IL-6 levels, suppressed NF-κB activation, elevated propionic and butyric acid concentrations, reduced Proteobacteria abundance, and enriched SCFA-producing S24-7, Lactobacillus and Allobaculum[7].
References:
[1] Ahn H, Jeon E, Kim JC, et al. Lentinan from shiitake selectively attenuates AIM2 and non-canonical inflammasome activation while inducing pro-inflammatory cytokine production. Sci Rep. 2017;7(1):1314.
[2] Zhou G, Liu H, Yuan Y, Wang Q, Wang L, Wu J. Lentinan progress in inflammatory diseases and tumor diseases. Eur J Med Res. 2024;29(1):8.
[3] Liu S, Yan Z, Peng Y, et al. Lentinan has a beneficial effect on cognitive deficits induced by chronic Toxoplasma gondii infection in mice. Parasit Vectors. 2023;16(1):454.
[4] Meng M, Huo R, Wang Y, et al. Lentinan inhibits oxidative stress and alleviates LPS-induced inflammation and apoptosis of BMECs by activating the Nrf2 signaling pathway. Int J Biol Macromol. 2022;222(Pt B):2375-2391.
[5] Li M, Du X, Yuan Z, Cheng M, Dong P, Bai Y. Lentinan triggers oxidative stress-mediated anti-inflammatory responses in lung cancer cells. Mol Cell Biochem. 2022;477(2):469-477.
[6] Song Y, Chen Y, Cai H, et al. Lentinan attenuates allergic airway inflammation and epithelial barrier dysfunction in asthma via inhibition of the PI3K/AKT/NF-κB pathway. Phytomedicine. 2024;134:155965.
[7] Ji X, Su L, Zhang P, et al. Lentinan improves intestinal inflammation and gut dysbiosis in antibiotics-induced mice. Sci Rep. 2022;12(1):19609.
Lentinan是一种从香菇（Lentinula edodes）中提取的天然β-葡聚糖，是一种非特异性免疫增强剂[1]。Lentinan通过激活巨噬细胞、树突状细胞和自然杀伤细胞，促进TNF-α和IL-6等促炎因子的表达，从而增强免疫反应[2]。Lentinan常用于抗肿瘤、抗炎和神经保护等研究[3]。
在体外实验中，以100μg/mL Lentinan预处理牛乳腺上皮细胞6小时后，可消除LPS诱导的活性氧（ROS）生成，恢复SOD和总抗氧化能力（T-AOC），上调Nrf2/HO-1表达，抑制NF-κB/MAPK信号通路，抑制IL-1β/IL-6/TNF-α表达，并阻断细胞凋亡，且无细胞毒性[4]。以100μM Lentinan处理A549肺癌细胞48小时后，可降低IL-6和IL-1β水平，降低caspase-1活性，提高ROS水平，降低GPx4表达，使线粒体膜去极化，并激活caspase-3/DNA损伤[5]。
在体内实验中，Lentinan（10mg/kg/天；腹腔注射；5天）可逆转尘螨（HDM）诱导的C57BL/6小鼠气道嗜酸性粒细胞增多、IL-4/5/13过度表达、黏液分泌过多及ZO-1丢失[6]。Lentinan（200mg/kg/天；灌胃；14天）可逆转C57BL/6J小鼠的抗生素诱导性结肠炎，恢复结肠ZO-1/Occludin表达，降低TNF-α和IL-6水平，抑制NF-κB激活，提高丙酸和丁酸浓度，减少变形菌门丰度，并富集产短链脂肪酸的S24-7、乳酸菌和Allobaculum[7]。