Ophiocordyceps sinensis (formerly known as Cordyceps sinensis) is known in English colloquially as caterpillar fungus, or by its more prominent names yartsa gunbu (Tibetan: དབྱར་རྩྭ་དགུན་འབུ་, Wylie: dbyar rtswa dgun ‘bu, literally “summer grass, winter worm”), or dōng chóng xià cǎo (Chinese: 冬蟲夏草) or Yarsa-gumba or Yarcha-gumba, (Nepali: यार्सागुम्बा) or Keeda Jadi, or ရှီးပတီး (in Burmese language).
What does cordyceps sinensis do?
Background: Cordyceps sinensis (Cordyceps, Dong Chong Xia Cao), a herbal medicine also known as Chinese caterpillar fungus, is one of the most commonly used ingredients in traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of people with chronic kidney disease ( CKD) .
The answer is that the Latin name cordyceps means “club head”, and sinensis is “from China”. Although written record of Cordyceps sinensis use appeared in Traditional Chinese Medicine centuries ago, it wasn’t really noticed in the West until recently. The last two decades have seen a great increase in research on cordyceps as a medicinal mushroom.
Is Cordyceps sinensis a mushroom?
CORDYCEPS SINENSIS C. Sinensisis an annual Ascomycetes fungus closely related to the mushroom. Although not actually a mushroom taxonomically, it has been described as an exotic medicinal mushroom in traditional Chinese and Tibetan medicine. The name cordycepscomes from Latin words meaning club and head.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), Cordyceps mushrooms are considered a very special tonic. Called Dōnɡ Chónɡ Xià Cǎo (冬虫夏草), these mushrooms were offered to the Emperor’s court and others among Chinese nobility. The first written record was mentioned in the year AD 620.
Is Cordyceps sinensis good for You?
Although written record of Cordyceps sinensis use appeared in Traditional Chinese Medicine centuries ago, it wasn’t really noticed in the West until recently. The last two decades have seen a great increase in research on cordyceps as a medicinal mushroom. There are many reported cordyceps health benefits.
Now that we’ve dispelled a lot of the misinformation around Cordyceps, let’s look at some of the benefits of using Cordyceps. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), Cordyceps mushrooms are considered a very special tonic. Called Dōnɡ Chónɡ Xià Cǎo (冬虫夏草), these mushrooms were offered to the Emperor’s court and others among Chinese nobility.
Is Cordyceps available in the US?
Long used in traditional Chinese medicine, cordyceps is available in the United States as a dietary supplement. There are 400 species of cordyceps, most of which are native to Bhutan, China, Korea, Nepal, Thailand, and Vietnam. The most well-known medicinal species is Cordyceps sinensis (now known officially as Ophiocordyceps sinensis ).
What does Cordyceps mean in Chinese?
Although not actually a mushroom taxonomically, it has been described as an exotic medicinal mushroom in traditional Chinese and Tibetan medicine. The name cordycepscomes from Latin words meaning club and head. The mycological features, related species and vernacular names are given in Table 1.
There is currently one type of Cordyceps species that can be commercially cultivated at scale to produce a mushroom (fruiting body), and it is becoming quite popular. This is Cordyceps militaris. By using Cordyceps militaris, for the first time, true Cordyceps mushroom extracts can be made.