A research team led by Academician Wen-hsiung Li of the Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica in collaboration with several research institutions in Taiwan recently completed the whole genome and transcriptomic analysis of the precious fungus Antrodia cinnamomea. A. cinnamomea is well-known in Taiwan as a traditional remedy for cancer, hypertension, and hangover. Although this fungus is highly sought after commercially, it is notoriously difficult to grow in a non-natural environment. This work provides key insights for the development of new strategies for producing the medicinally valuable secondary metabolites from the fungus. The work was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the official scholarly journal of the US National Academy of Sciences, on October 14, 2014.

The bioactive properties of compounds from A. cinnamomea (Nui-Chang-Chi) have been backed up by several scientific studies. However, up to now, the molecular basis for the medicinal effects of this fungus and its genome have not been investigated.

In this study, by combining the Next Generation Sequencing platforms at the High Throughput Genomics Core of Academia Sinica with bioinformatic analyses, the team did whole genome sequencing, assembly and annotation and conducted transcriptomic analysis of the fruiting body and the mycelium of the fungus. They identified important pathways for the biosynthesis of anti-tumor terpenes and other bioactive compounds.

Most fungal species can undergo both sexual and asexual reproduction. In addition to revealing biosynthetic pathways of bioactive metabolites, including key terpenoid compounds, the work also unveiled the mechanism of the mushroom’s sexual development. Investigation of the genes differentially expressed between the fruiting body (sexual organ) and mycelia (asexual organ) showed where specific compounds are abundantly synthesized. Since the production of bioactive compounds by the mushroom involves various biosynthetic pathways and a series of post-translational modifications, the team identified the enzymes participating in different parts of the pathways, as well as many important downstream modifying enzymes.

According to Dr. Li, this work is the first publication documenting the genome of A. cinnamomea. The genome sequence, the transcriptomic data and the biosynthesis pathway information from this study will serve as a basis for future genetic and molecular study.

The research team included Drs. Wen-Hsiung Li (Director of Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica), Jei-Fu Shaw (President, I-Shou University), Sheng-Yang Wang (Distinguished Research Fellow, Department of Forestry, National Chung-Hsing University), Tun-Tschu Chang (Taiwan Forestry Research Institute), Fang-Hua Chu (School of Forestry and Resource Conservation, National Taiwan University), Mei-Yeh Lu (Biodiversity Research Center, Acdemia Sinica) and Ting-Fang Wang (Institute of Molecular Biology, Academia Sinica).

This research project was funded by the Ministry of Science and Technology, Academia Sinica, and the Ministry of Education.

The complete article entitled: “Genomic and transcriptomic analyses of the medicinal fungus Antrodia cinnamomea for its metabolite biosynthesis and sexual development” can be found at the Science Signaling journal website at: http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2014/10/21/1417570111.abstract

Complete list of authors is: Mei-Yeh Jade Lu, Wen-Lang Fan, Woei-Fuh Wang, Tingchun Chen, Yi-Ching Tang, Fang-Hua Chu, Tun-Tschu Chang, Sheng-Yang Wang, Meng-yun Li, Yi-Hua Chen, Ze-Shiang Lin, Kai-Jung Yang, Shih-May Chen, Yu-Chuan Teng, Yan-Liang Lin, Jei-Fu Shaw, Ting-Fang Wang, and Wen-Hsiung Li.