Hericium erinaceus, most commonly known as Lion’s mane, is an edible fungus, with a long history of use in Traditional Chinese Medicine. Historically reserved only for royalty, Lion's Mane was both a culinary and medicinal mushroom enjoyed raw, cooked, dried or steeped as a tea. Health benefits continued to improve over the centuries as concentration extracts of Lion's Mane continued to improve as well. 

Mógū Lion's Mane is cultivated on Organic hardwood sawdust and oat bran substrates, growing white in color when fresh and creamy color when dried. Once harvested, the organic raw materials are transported to our FDA and USDA certified Extraction Facility where our high-concentration extracts are produced.

This special fungi holds a diverse range of properties, containing: potent anti-tumor properties, antibacterial, anti-candida (anti-fungal), anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory properties, and is found to be a nerve tonic. It has also been found to be an efficient adjunctive treatment against cancers, such as: gastric, leukemia, liver, colon, and breast cancer. 

Lion's mane Mushroom, Hericium erinaceus, natural & organic

Active Compounds found in Lion's Mane

Polysaccharides, β-1,3/1,6-glucans and other glucan-protein complexes, for synergistic digestive and immune system support.

Terpenoids: hericenones and erinacines. The unique nootropic compounds responsible for nerve regeneration, stimulating Nerve Growth Factor and brain-derived neurotrophic factor. These unique compounds give Lion's Mane its scientific name: Hericium erinaceus.

Monosaccharides: glucose, galactose, mannose, xylose, arabinose and arabinoxylane. These are natural simple carbohydrates providing a quick energy source for the body.

Amyloban: another nootropic component showing beneficial neurological effects, capable of activating brain function.

Main Mineral Elements: iron, magnesium, potassium, zinc, selenium, and phosphorus

Ergosterols: acts to maintain cell membrane integrity. Because ergosterol is present in cell membranes of fungi, yet absent in those of animals, it is a useful source for antifungal treatments.

Peptides, Proteins, and Glycoproteins: signaling molecules for hydrogen bonding and other electrostatic interactions, improving joint function and pain reduction.

Amino Acids (Glutamic acid being the highest amino acid detected)

Other myco-nutrients 

A Natural Nootropic

Lion's Mane contains substances that naturally enhances memory and cognitive function, without the use of stimulants. This is essentially the definition of a nootropic. This mushroom shows the ability to increase neurotrophic activities by stimulating nerve and brain cell growth, which is responsible for the mushroom’s purported brain-strengthening and antidepressant effects as mentioned below.

Lion's Mane and its Activity Against Diseases

Click a condition below to explore some promising studies done on Lion's Mane:

 

Lion's mane Mushroom, Hericium erinaceus Mushroom in the wild

Your gut flora and Lion's Mane - The Perfect Relationship

"We are what we eat" is the common saying, and Lion's Mane is an astonishingly positive example of the metaphor. This fungi protects the digestive tract and gut immunity significantly (better than most species of mushrooms as we know today), and the digestive system is the most important system to be protecting if you want to help support all other body systems. Remember, whatever you eat and begin to salivate, the first body system that breaks it down is your digestive tract.

Lion’s mane mushroom in particular is its best ally due to its great prebiotic properties to protect our intestinal flora, working against many digestive disorders by regenerating the intestinal epithelium, preventing its degradation by renewing and generating a healthy intestinal “skin” which prevents allergens and pathogens from getting into our blood stream. (1)

What is gut flora and why is it so important?

Gut flora or gastrointestinal microbiota are the microorganisms that live in the digestive tracts of humans. Friendly gut bacteria plays a major role in the functioning of our organs and systems. Our microbiota keeps toxins and dangerous pathogens at bay, produces vitamins vital to our health and ensures our gut’s immune system is balanced. In fact, the digestive tract is connected to many other systems including the impact on neurons in the brain. The effect of poor gut functioning will be noticed in other areas of the body. (2)

How does Lion's Mane support other body systems including your brain?

We humans are increasing our understanding of the importance of gut microbiome for our overall health and well being, for our immune health, neurological health, and across the spectrum. This is due to an increase of proliferation of beneficial bacteria and an inhibition of harmful bacteria. 

Recent scientific findings have proven that the Hericium erinaceus species is capable of stimulating the growth of neurons in the brain and helps with neurological disorders such as Alzheimers, Parkinsons and Multiple Sclerosis. Because of its low molecular weight, the medicinal constituents hericenones and erinacines (the compounds that give Lion's Mane its scientific name) are able to pass through the blood-brain barrier, which then causes a myelin-generating influence on cerebellar glia and nerve cells. (3)(4)

Since mushrooms, especially Lion's Mane, acts as a prebiotic (food beneficial for the bacteria in the gut), it promotes a healthy microbiome. Cell walls of fungus contain compounds called beta-glucans, and it’s those powerful compounds that have prebiotic properties. This natural chemistry in Lion’s Mane allows to control the functioning of the enteric nervous system that controls digestion and GI motility, which produces 95% of the mood-regulating neurotransmitter serotonin found in the body. In recent research, Lion’s Mane is becoming known for its benefits to cognitive health and stimulating Nerve Growth Factor, and one of the reasons for its success stems from its action in the gut. (5)

References:

1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21716693

2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19343057

3. https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/17/11/1810/htm

4. https://doi.org/10.1080/21501201003735556

5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5526216/

Lion's Mane Neuron Synapses

Disclaimer: 

With its growing popularity, many studies on Lion's Mane composition, cultivation, and reputed effects are being carried out, and there are data that support its positive health benefits. However, most studies have been performed in-vivo or in cell-culture models, as seen in our section of Lion's Mane and its Activity Against Diseases. Human experimental studies have often been small, due to the lack of experimental clinical funding to further support the in-vitro and in-vivo findings. The great wealth of chemical data and anecdotal evidence on the effects of Lion's Mane needs to be complemented by reliable experimental and clinical data from well-designed human trials in order to clearly establish if the reported health-related effects are valid and significant.
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