Identity and Authentication of Ganoderma

European enlightenment around the late 17th century brought a shift towards scientific research.  In 1753, a Swedish scientist, Carolus Linnaeus (b.1707~d.1778), published a book, 'Species Plantarum', which was the starting point of the nomenclature system of Latin Binomials that he established for naming plants and later animals.  The system categorizes names into two groups: generic name and specifict epithet.  Since then, the system has been used widely in biological research.  Ganoderma was named by a Finnish botanist, Karsten, in 1881.  Examine the root of Ganoderma; Gano means brightness and sheen, and derma means skin; therefore, Ganoderma is what its name implies - 'Shiny skin'.  According to the 1979 Alexopolus classification of fungi, Ganoderma belongs to the kingdom Myceteae, phylum Amastigomycota, class Basidiomycetes, order Aphyllophorales, family Polyporaceae and genus Ganoderma.  Later, some scholars acknowledged the fact that family Polyporaceae is too big to hold so many genera and so an independent family, Ganodermataceae, was created.

Nevertheless, a glossy skin is not sufficient to give Ganodermataceae a holistic identity.  Its full identification became clear when later scholars developed the definition in terms of the following features: a double layered cell wall, tanned outlook, verrucous and oval-shaped basidiomycete.  With the fungus classification system in place, the taxonomy of Ganoderma is no longer restricted to its appearance, color or odor.  The refined classification system not only gives Ganoderma a solid, distinguishable identity, but also denominates Ganoderma of various types with their own unique names.  Thus, of all the 'Ganoderma' discussed so far, only those preceded by the antecedent 'Ganoderma' can be considered true Ganoderma.  The system provided later scholars with a more efficient route for research and development.  However under such classification, the six colors of Ganoderma identified in ancient Chinese texts are reduced to only two colors: red and purple, and only these two are verified as part of genus Ganoderma, family Ganodermataceae.

Advanced technology allows more delicate, refined authentication work on Ganoderma.  DNA identification has been introduced to achieve a more accurate and conclusive classification.  The method used today is to first extract DNA from Ganoderma.  Then by means of Polymerase Chain Reaction Technology (PCR), part of the DNA (e.g. ITS section) is magnified, its nucleic aid sequence identified and classified via computer analysis.  Before DNA technology became fully fledged, the contribution of a Chinese mycologist, Ji Ding Zhao, in identifying and classifying Ganoderma had been deemed noteworthy and important in the history of the study of fungi.  His established finding on the comparison of the six types of Ganoderma recorded in classical texts with current Ganodermataceae and other fungi of Polyporaceae clarified and authenticated the identity of Ganoderma.  The results suggest :

The green Ganoderma might refer to Coriolus Versicolor.  The red is considered as Ganoderma with a reddish-brown cap, including Ganoderma Lucidum and Ganoderma Tsugae.  The yellow might refer to Laetiporus Sulphureus; the white to Fomitopsis Offcinalis and the black to Amauroderma Rugosum or Polyporus Melanopus.  Chinese Ganoderma Sinense, with a purple black or dark brown cap is considered to be the representative of purple Ganoderma.

The purpose of applying such definitions in determining Ganoderma was not to negate the contributions made by ancient Chinese texts on the recordings of Ganoderma.  In fact, the spirit of science is to unremittingly discover more accurate evidences to clarify the truth, such efforts were made for the sake of the evolution of civilization.  Take the Shen Nong 'Herbal Classic' and the 'Compendium of Materia Medica' as examples.  Both texts were completed without any modern apparatus, yet were able to classify Ganoderma by its shape, color and odor.  Most importantly, through the significance of the clinical records, what these two masterpieces had contributed was indeed impressive.  Those that, by the colors did not belong to the genus Ganoderma were also considered effective in the human body; it is just that the focus of the later scientific research has tended to be on Ganoderma of genus Ganoderma.

Comparing Chinese mushrooms and golden mushrooms that are often seen in the market with Ganoderma, the latter is a genus relatively large in size.  The piles of some red Ganoderma can be up to 30cm wide.  The surface of the piles, often in a fan or kidney shape, is generally covered by a layer of brown-colored powder - the spores.  If Ganoderma has not yet reached maturity, the edge of its pileus will remain whitish, and thus the powder-like spores become inconspicuous.  The piles takes on a varnished appearance when the powder is wiped or washed off, or before a quantity of spores is released.  This is why the red Ganoderma was named Ganoderma Lucidum whose latin prefix 'luci-' implies "shine".  Ganoderma Lucidum, the scientific name of red Ganoderma, has been used for over thirty years.  Strictly speaking, however, most of the species used in the past documents were Ganoderma Tsugae instead of Ganoderma Lucidum.  Though Ganoderma Tsugae is also a member of the red Ganoderma, it is not as eminent as Ganoderma Lucidum.  Still it can be distinguished from Ganoderma Lucidum by appearance.  The shape of a real Ganoderma Lucidum is more like a "fan" whereas that of Ganoderma Tsugae is more irregular and lumpy on the pileus edge and slightly bulges out at the junction of the pileus and the stipe.

All purple Ganoderma have a stipe.  So far there have been three species of purple Ganoderma discovered worldwide, these are the Ganoderma Sinensis in China, Ganoderma Japonicum in Japan and Ganoderma Formosanum found in Taiwan.  Through DNA alignment, the former two Ganoderma probably belong to the same species, whereas the latter, announced by Dr. Dong Chou Chang of Taiwan Forestry Research Institute, is authenticated as a new species of purple Ganoderma exclusive to Taiwan.  The genera that belong to Ganoderma are not limited to Ganoderma Lucidum, Ganoderma Tsugae and the purple Ganoderma.  Other commonly seen species are Ganoderma Applanatum, Ganoderma Australe, Ganoderma Tropicum, Ganoderma Fonicatum and Ganoderma Microsporcum discovered by Professor Ruey Shyang Hseu of the National Taiwan University (NTU). There are about 20 species and 205 authenticated strains of Ganoderma around the world belonging to genus Ganoderma.

A large scale research project on scientific authentication of Ganoderma grown in Taiwan had been conducted since 2007 by Dr. Sheng Hua Wu of the Botany Department of the National Museum of Natural Science and Dr. Dong Mei Wang of Institute of Mycology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.  It is believed that a more accurate and compatible method for naming and classifying Ganoderma will be announced in the future.

Completing the task of authenticating Ganoderma is merely the first step towards the understanding of this so-called 'Miraculous Fungus'.  The objective of precise classification should focus on detailed research that utilizes the various Ganoderma classification results at the hand to determine which class, species or specific strain contributes substantially to human health.