The lingzhi mushroom or reishi mushroom (traditional Chinese: 靈芝; pinyin: língzhī; Japanese: reishi; Vietnamese: linh chi; literally: "supernatural mushroom") encompasses several fungal species of the genus Ganoderma, and most commonly refers to the closely related species, Ganoderma lucidum and Ganoderma tsugae. G. lucidum enjoys special veneration in East Asia, where it has been used as a medicinal mushroom in traditional Chinese medicine for more than 2,000 years, making it one of the oldest mushrooms known to have been used medicinally. Because of lingzhi's presumed health value and apparent absence of side-effects, it has attained a reputation in the East as the ultimate herbal substance. Lingzhi is listed in the American Herbal Pharmacopoeia and Therapeutic Compendium.
| Ganoderma lucidum | |
|---|---|
| Mycological characteristics | |
| pores on hymenium | |
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cap is offset or indistinct |
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| hymenium attachment is irregular or not applicable | |
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stipe is bare or lacks a stipe |
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| spore print is brown | |
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ecology is saprotrophic or parasitic |
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| edibility: edible | |
| Lingzhi mushroom | |||||||||||||
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| Chinese name | |||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 靈芝 | ||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 灵芝 | ||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | supernatural mushroom | ||||||||||||
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| Korean name | |||||||||||||
| Hangul | 영지 | ||||||||||||
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| Japanese name | |||||||||||||
| Kana | レイシ | ||||||||||||
| Kyūjitai | 靈芝 | ||||||||||||
| Shinjitai | 霊芝 | ||||||||||||
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Read more about Lingzhi Mushroom: Taxonomy and Naming, Description, Biochemistry, Habitat, History, Research and Therapeutic Usage
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