Mushrooms have been used in holistic medicine and nutritional supplements for thousands of years. However, it was not until the last two decades that these effects have been validated by many ethnobotanists and medical researchers.
The ability of certain mushroom species to boost energy level, increase quality of life, and enhance aspects of the immune system has been a popular subject of medical research, which led to the discovery of pharmaceuticals including penicillin, ciclosporin, griseofulvin, cephalosporin, ergometrine and the statin drugs.
The first statin, mevastatin, was isolated from a mushroom named Penicillium citrinum in 1976. Later, Merck isolated lovastatin from the mushroom named Aspergillus terreus. In 1990, researchers from HiPet USA’s headquarters in San Marcos, California have successfully extracted and purified a powerful compound named “Mushrooms Beta Glucan” which offered exceptional immune system enhancing activity.
A naturally derived polysaccharide, Beta glucan is a bioactive molecule found in many different substances includes barley, oats, yeast and mushrooms. Because Beta glucan is a long-chain polysaccharide, the different sugars can be linked in several different ways, which allows for different appearances and functions to the different forms of Beta glucan. Therefore, it is important to pay attention to the source of the Beta glucan we use based on the results we are looking for.
The mushroom source of Beta glucan has been used in many countries in Asia for health purposes for a long time. When you look at research on mushroom Beta glucan, a large percentage has been done in Asian laboratories in the past. However, in the United States, researchers from the Sloan-Kettering Institute and City of Hope are catching up with their progress. As the result, Beta glucan extracted from different mushrooms now has trade names used for research and health uses, like Lentinan, D-fraction, AMFM…etc. Having these kinds of standardized mushroom Beta glucan can make it easier to compare research studies between laboratories.
In general, Beta glucan is derived from the mycelium (roots) and the fruit-bodies of mushrooms. The concentration and potency of each different product varies depending on the various timing of harvest and the extraction methods. Mushroom Beta glucan has shown effectiveness as an anti-tumor defense and as an immune system modulator. In one recent study, mushroom Beta glucan was able to activate and promote the release of infection-fighting cytokines to promote a healthy immune response.
In another study on AMFM, a Beta glucan source which comes from suehirotake mushrooms, mice were given mushroom Beta glucan and were able to block the progression of tumor cells. Yet another study showed that Beta glucans protected lymphocyte blood cells (important in the immune system) from undergoing DNA damage by free radicals.
It was found that Beta glucan can effectively enhance the immune system by activating the macrophages, which work as the front line defense of our body. These cells in our immune system are responsible finding, identifying, and destroying foreign invaders in our body and further activate other components of the immune system to produce of other immune cells, including B-cells, T-cells and Natural Killer (NK) cells in preparation of the future adverse events. An article which reviewed several types of mushroom Beta glucan showed that different mushrooms had different effects on different tumors and it was clear that some mushrooms act more strongly against some tumors than against others.
These efforts in science eventually leads to the conclusion that nutritional supplements containing purified mushroom extracts can bring the greatest benefit to your companion animals. It has also been shown to provide positive results on chronic infection and blood sugar challenged body. It is a powerful immune system support compound bestowed by our mother nature. This means that Mushroom Beta-glucan does not fight a specific disease directly, but rather helps to make the immune system function of our best friends at an optimal level so they can more successfully combat all kinds of diseases.
Mushroom Beta-Glucan, an all-natural polysaccharide extracted from the medicinal mushrooms using the patented AMFM procedure by HiPet USA, has the capability to enable the immune system to release an arsenal of defense, addressing a wide range of ailments and holds outstanding supplemental value for our beloved dogs and cats.
In order to produce the best supplements using ingredients devoid of pollutants and contaminants, HiPet USA cultured their own medicinal mushrooms with organic herbal mediums in a controlled environment, followed by purification and extraction utilizing a patented biotechnology process to preserve nature’s secret to improve wellness.
The result is better overall health, leading to a better quality of life.
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