Cordycepin mitigates spermatogenic and redox related expression in H2O2-exposed Leydig cells and regulates testicular oxidative apoptotic signalling in aged rats.

CONTEXT: Cordycepin (COR), from Cordyceps militaris L., (Cordycipitaceae), is a valuable agent with immense health benefits. OBJECTIVE: The protective effects of COR in ageing-associated oxidative and apoptosis events in vivo and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-exposed spermatogenesis gene alterations in TM3 Leydig cells was investigated. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into young control (YC), aged control (AC) and COR treated (COR-20) aged groups. COR-20 group received daily doses of COR (20 mg/kg) for 6 months. Cell viability and hormone levels were analysed by MTT [3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide] and enzyme immunoassay kits with COR treated at 1, 5, and 10 µg/mL. Oxidative enzymes, spermatogenic, and apoptotic expression in testis tissues were evaluated by Western blotting and real-time RT-PCR. RESULTS: COR treatment (1, 5, and 10 µg/mL) significantly (p < 0.05 ∼ p < 0.001) inhibited the H2O2-induced decrease in the percentage of viable cells (from 63.27% to 71.25%, 85.67% and 93.97%, respectively), and reduced the malondialdehyde (MDA) content (from 4.28 to 3.98, 3.14 and 1.78 nM MDA/mg protein, respectively). Further, the decreased antioxidant enzymes (glutathione-S-transferase mu5, glutathione peroxidase 4 and peroxiredoxin 3), spermatogenesis-related factors (nectin-2 and inhibin-α) and testosterone levels in H2O2-exposed TM3 cells were significantly (p < 0.05 ∼ p < 0.001) ameliorated by COR. In aged rats, COR (20 mg/kg) restored the altered enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidative status and attenuated the apoptotic p53 and Bax/Bcl-2 expression significantly (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: COR might be developed as a potential agent against ageing-associated and oxidative stress-induced male infertility.

Enhanced Cordycepin Production in Caterpillar Medicinal Mushroom, Cordyceps militaris (Ascomycetes), Mutated by a Multifunctional Plasma Mutagenesis System.

A multifunctional plasma mutation system (MPMS) method was used to create high cordycepin-yielding mutations from wild Cordyceps militaris, which yielded many viable mutants, many of which produced more cordycepin compared to the wild strain. One particular mutant strain (GYS60) produced 7.883 mg/mL, which is much higher than those reported to date and is more than 20 times higher than that of the wild strain, whereas the cordycepin production of another viable mutant (GYS80) was almost zero. The extraction and purification of cordycepin, using the fermentation broth of C. militaris GYS60, was also investigated. Cordycepin was extracted by using AB-8 macroporous resin and purified by using reversed-phase column chromatography. When the sample was adsorbed onto the macroporous resin, 20% ethanol was used as the desorption solvent yielding various fractions. The fractions containing cordycepin were loaded onto a reversed-phase chromatography column packed with octadecyl bonded silica as the stationary phase and ethanol (95%)/acetic acid solution (5%) at pH 6.0 as the mobile phase. The combination of this two-step extraction-purification process yielded cordycepin at 95% purity with a total recovery rate of 90%.

Purification and structural characterization of a novel natural pigment: cordycepene from edible and medicinal mushroom Cordyceps militaris.

In the present work, a novel cordycepic pigment was successfully isolated and identified from Cordyceps militaris, as well as named as cordycepene (C14H17N1O4), according to the long unsaturated conjugated polyene structural characteristic. Cordycepene is sensitive to light, high temperature (≥ 60 °C), and acidic condition (pH ≤ 3), but possesses high stability against metal ions, and under alkaline and neutral conditions. Cordycepene shows a comparable DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl) radical-scavenging activity at higher concentration (≥ 2 mg/mL) to vitamin C. Cordycepene promotes the growth of HSF (human skin fibroblast cell) after incubation for 72 h, and has an ability to repair the UV light-treated HSF cells. In addition, cordycepene increases the antioxidant activity (SOD, superoxide dismutase; GSH-Px, glutathione peroxidase; CAT, catalase) and decreases MDA (malondialdehyde) level, indicating that cordycepene inhibits the photochemical senescence of HSF by enhancing the antioxidant defense system. The discovery of cordycepene can provide a basis for research on light incubation and the accumulation of yellow pigment (carotenoids) from C. militaris.

Cordycepin Isolated from Cordyceps militaris: Its Newly Discovered Herbicidal Property and Potential Plant-Based Novel Alternative to Glyphosate.

There is currently much interest in finding new phytochemicals among plants and fungi as nature-based alternatives to replace problematic herbicides such as glyphosate, which are preferentially used in agricultural production n. We discovered striking herbicidal potency in Cordyceps militaris (L.) and identified cordycepin as its principal plant growth inhibitor. Cordycepin obtained as an ethyl acetate extract was subjected to column chromatography and evaluated for its bioassay-guided phytotoxic capacity against Raphanus sativus (radish), showing a maximum inhibition on germination and growth of radish (IC50 = 0.052-0.078 mg/mL). Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) (m/z: 251.2) and liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS) ([M + Na]+ m/z: 274.1; [M + H]+ m/z: 252.1) analyses confirmed cordycepin as the major component of the tested column fraction (55.38%). At 0.04 mg/mL, cordycepin showed 3.8-5.9- and 3.3-3.7-fold greater inhibition of the germination and growth of radish than benzoic acid (BA) and glyphosate, respectively. Compared with BA, isolated cordycepin reduced plant chlorophyll and carotenoid contents (2.0-9.5 -fold), while proline, total phenolic and total flavonoid contents were increased 1.2-1.8-fold. Finally, cordycepin promoted electrolyte leakage and malondialdehyde accumulation in radish aerial parts. Thus, cordycepin successfully isolated from Cordyceps militaris is a highly potent plant growth inhibitor with pending worldwide patent and may become a potential plant-based novel alternative to the disputed glyphosate.

Cytotoxic compounds against cancer cells from Bombyx mori inoculated with Cordyceps militaris.

Two compounds, 3'-deoxyinosine and cordycepin, were isolated from Bombyx mori inoculated with Cordyceps militaris. In the bioassay examining cytotoxicity against cancer cells, both compounds showed toxicity against A549, PANC-1, and MCF-7 cancer cells.

Characterization of Newly Bred Cordyceps militaris Strains for Higher Production of Cordycepin through HPLC and URP-PCR Analysis.

Cordyceps militaris, a member of Ascomycota, a mushroom referred to as caterpillar Dongchung-ha-cho, is commercially valuable because of its high content of bioactive substances, including cordycepin, and its potential for artificial cultivation. Cordycepin (3'-deoxyadenosine) is highly associated with the pharmacological effects of C. militaris. C. militaris is heterothallic in that two mating-type loci, idiomorph MAT1-1 and MAT1-2, exist discretely in two different spores. In this study, nine C. militaris strains were mated with each other to prepare newly bred strains that produced a larger amount of cordycepin than the parent strains. Nine strains of C. militaris were identified by comparing the internal transcribed spacer sequence, and a total of 12 single spores were isolated from the nine strains of C. militaris. After the MAT idiomorph was confirmed by PCR, 36 mating combinations were performed with six single spores with MAT1-1 and the others with MAT1-2. Eight mating combinations were successfully mated, producing stroma with perithecia. Cordycepin content analysis of all strains by high-performance liquid chromatography revealed that the KASP4-bred strain produced the maximum cordycepin among all strains, regardless of the medium and stroma parts. Finally, universal rice primer-PCR was performed to demonstrate that the bred strains were genetically different from the parental strains and new C. militaris strains. These results may be related to the recombination of genes during mating. The newly produced strains can be used to meet the industrial demand for cordycepin. In addition, breeding through mating suggests the possibility of producing numerous cordycepin-producing C. militaris strains.

Acidified Hot Water Extraction of Adenosine, Cordycepin, and Polysaccharides from the Chinese Caterpillar Mushroom, Ophiocordyceps sinensis CS1197 (Ascomycetes): Application of an Artificial Neural Network and Evaluation of Antioxidant and Antibacterial Activities.

The effects of process variables (temperature, time, and pH) on the extraction of adenosine, cordycepin, and polysaccharides from Ophiocordyceps sinensis CS1197 were studied using response surface methodology (RSM) and an artificial neural network (ANN). The ANN model resulted in low root mean square errors (0.022, 0.079, 0.018) and high R2 values (0.995, 0.934, 0.997) for adenosine, cordycepin, and polysaccharide yields, respectively, which implied good agreement between the predicted and actual data. An overall desirability of 0.86 suggested optimal extraction conditions (temperature, 70°C; time, 1 hour; and pH ~4) for adenosine (0.205%) and cordycepin (0.246%) yields. For polysaccharide yield (6.34%), an overall desirability of 0.93 suggested extraction conditions: temperature, 87°C; time, 3.4 hours, and pH ~4. The water extract exhibited better antioxidant activity. The antibacterial activity of the water extract was assayed against Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli, and larger amounts of the extract (30 and 50 mg) exhibited antibacterial activity (<35%). The predictive ability of an ANN is superior to RSM and resulted in the best agreement between experimental and predicted values.

Preparative isolation of cordycepin, N(6)-(2-hydroxyethyl)-adenosine and adenosine from Cordyceps militaris by macroporous resin and purification by recycling high-speed counter-current chromatography.

In this study, cordycepin, N(6)-(2-hydroxyethyl)-adenosine (HEA) and adenosine from the fruiting bodies of Cordyceps militaris were separated by using macroporous resin NKA-II adsorption. The parameters of static adsorption were tested and the optimized conditions were as follow: the total adsorption time was 12h, 50% ethanol was used for desorption and the desorption time was 9h. The crude sample that was prepared by macroporous resin NKA-II contained 3.4% cordycepin, 3.7% HEA and 4.9% adenosine. Then the crude sample was further purified by recycling high-speed counter-current chromatography (HSCCC) with ethyl acetate, n-butanol, 1.5% aqueous ammonium hydroxide (1:4:5, v/v/v) as the optimized two-phase solvent system. Three nucleosides including 15.6mg of cordycepin, 16.9mg of HEA and 23.2mg of adenosine were obtained from 500mg of crude sample in one-step separation. The purities of three compounds were 98.5, 98.3 and 98.0%, respectively, as determined by high performance liquid chromatography.

Protective effect of Cordyceps militaris extract against bisphenol A induced reproductive damage.

This study aimed to investigate the protective effects of Cordyceps militaris (C. militaris) against reproductive damage induced by bisphenol A (BPA). Rats were administrated 200 mg/kg BPA for 4 weeks and treated with C. militaris (200, 400, and 800 mg/kg body weight/day). By the end of the fourth week, the level of oxidative damage, sperm parameters, hormone levels, and histopathological changes were examined. In the group that only received BPA, there was a significant decrease in body weight compared with the normal control (NC) group. C. militaris significantly alleviated the BPA-induced reproductive damage by increasing testicular superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX), and glutathione (GSH); as well as by reducing serum malondialdehyde (MDA). C. militaris not only obviously enhanced the levels of serum LH and T, but it also improved the sperm count and motility compared to the BPA-treated group. These results suggest that C. militaris could be used as a potential natural substance for preventing BPA induced reproductive damage. Abbreviations BPA: bisphenol A; SOD: superoxide dismutase; GSH: glutathione; GSH-PX: glutathione peroxidase; MDA: malondialdehyde; ROS: reactive oxygen species; T: testosterone; LH: luteinizing hormone; FSH: follicle-stimulating hormone; UPLC: ultra performance liquid chromatography; RIA: radioimmunoassay; q RT-PCR: quantitative real time PCR; NC: normal control group; BPA: 200 mg/kg BPA administered group; H: 800 mg/kg C. militaris extract administered group; LB, MB, and HB: 200 mg/kg BPA + 200 mg/kg, 400 mg/kg, and 800 mg/kg C. militaris administered group, respectively; VeB: 200 mg/kg BPA + 300 mg/kg Vitamin E administered group; Star: steroidogenic acute regulatory protein; 3ß-HSD: 3beta-hydroxyl-delta-5-steroid dehydrogenase; CYP11A1: cytochrome P 450 family 11 subfamily A member 1; CYP17A1: cytochrome P 450 family 17 subfamily A member 1.

Biosynthetic Pathway Analysis for Improving the Cordycepin and Cordycepic Acid Production in Hirsutella sinensis.

Hirsutella sinensis is considered as the only correct anamorph of Ophiocordyceps sinensis. To improve cordycepin and cordycepic acid production in H. sinensis, the biosynthetic pathways of cordycepin and cordycepic acid were predicted, and verified by cloning and expressing genes involved in these pathways, respectively. Then, 5'-nucleotidase participating in biosynthetic pathway of cordycepin, hexokinase, and glucose phosphate isomerase involved in biosynthetic pathway of cordycepic acid, were demonstrated playing important roles in the corresponding biosynthetic pathway by real-time PCR, accompanying with significantly up-regulated 15.03-, 5.27-, and 3.94-fold, respectively. Moreover, the metabolic regulation of H. sinensis was performed. As expected, cordycepin production reached 1.09 mg/g when additional substrate of 5'-nucleotidase was 4 mg/mL, resulting in an increase of 201.1 % compared with the control. In the same way, cordycepic acid production reached 26.6 and 23.4 % by adding substrate of hexokinase or glucose phosphate isomerase, leading to a rise of 77.3 and 55.1 %, respectively. To date, this is the first time to improve cordycepin and cordycepic acid production through metabolic regulation based on biosynthetic pathway analysis, and metabolic regulation is proved as a simple and effective way to enhance the output of cordycepin and cordycepic acid in submerged cultivation of H. sinensis.

Simple and efficient isolation of cordycepin from culture broth of a Cordyceps militaris mutant.

Isolation of cordycepin from the culture broth of Cordyceps militaris mutant was investigated. Based on the solubility curve, three crystallizing processes, temperature shift (process I), pH shift (process II), and pH shift followed by temperature shift (process III) were carried out. Process III was the most promising method regarding both purity and yield.

An antialgal compound produced by Streptomyces jiujiangensis JXJ 0074(T).

Previous investigations suggested that Streptomyces jiujiangensis JXJ 0074(T) can secrete antialgal compounds. In this study, an antialgal compound was isolated from the cultured broth of S. jiujiangensis JXJ 0074(T) by using bioassay methods. Based on spectroscopic data, the active compound was identified as 2'-deoxyadenosine, which exhibited a greater antialgal activity against cyanobacteria than its analogues such as adenosine, guanosine, and 2'-deoxyguanosine. The antialgal activity of 2'-deoxyadenosine increased with the content and time. 2'-Deoxyadenosine severely damaged the vegetative cells of cyanobacteria, causing crumpling, collapse, expanding, perforation, breakage of filamentous cyanobacteria, and decrease of the chlorophyll. However, 2'-deoxyadenosine seemed to have less impact on the morphology of heterocysts of filamentous cyanobacteria. The superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity in the treated cells of M. aeruginosa FACHB-905 initially increased with 31.14 ± 2.00% higher than that of the control after 36 h and then decreased quickly. On the same time, there were rapid increases in superoxide anion radical (O2 (-)) and malondialdehyde (MDA) contents with 315.53 ± 12.81 and 84.72 ± 6.15% higher than these of the controls at 60 h, respectively. The intracellular microcystin-LR (MC-LR) content in the treated cells of M. aeruginosa FACHB-905 increased by 36.34 ± 7.35% 1 day later, followed by a rapid decrease with a rate of 90.50 ± 1.08% 8 days later, while the extracellular MC-LR content showed no significant difference with the control. Five days after adding 15 µg/ml of 2'-deoxyadenosine to the culture of M. aeruginosa FACHB-905, there was no 2'-deoxyadenosine detected by HPLC, suggesting that 2'-deoxyadenosine completely degraded. This study provides a new clue to screen natural-based antialgal compounds from nucleoside analogues.

Cordycepin from Cordyceps militaris prevents hyperglycemia in alloxan-induced diabetic mice.

Cordyceps militaris has long been used in prescriptions of traditional Chinese medicine as a tonic for the treatment of metabolic syndrome. Cordycepin with proven immunomodulatory, antitumor, and hepatoprotective properties is the main active metabolite of C militaris. Diabetes mellitus is a group of metabolic diseases in which the body is unable to regulate blood sugar levels. Hence, we hypothesized that cordycepin can normalize blood sugar levels and improve the indicators of diabetes. The aim of this study was to investigate the possible effects of cordycepin from C militaris on diabetes in an alloxan-induced diabetic mouse model. Diabetic mice were intraperitoneally administered different doses of cordycepin (8, 24, and 72 mg/kg body weight) daily for 21 days. Acute toxicity test on normal mice was carried out by giving them maximum tolerance dose of cordycepin (3600 mg/kg) daily. A 47% reduction of the blood glucose level, 214% increase of hepatic glycogen content, and significant improvement of oral glucose tolerance were noticed after the effective dose of cordycepin was administered. Polyphagia and polydipsia, the typical symptoms of diabetes, were partly alleviated. Moreover, cordycepin offered protective effects against diabetes-related kidney and spleen injury. Maximum tolerance dose test indicated that cordycepin at the large dose of 3600 mg/kg did not show significant effect on body weight and major organ in normal mice after intraperitoneal administration for 14 days. The results showed that cordycepin from C militaris that elicited hypoglycemic activity contributes to the regulation of glucose metabolism in liver in alloxan-induced diabetic mice. Therefore, a cordycepin treatment during diabetes can improve some of the metabolic syndrome symptoms by regulation of glucose absorption in vivo. Cordycepin may serve as a therapeutic agent in the treatment of diabetes and its related complications.

Cordycepin and N6-(2-hydroxyethyl)-adenosine from Cordyceps pruinosa and their interaction with human serum albumin.

Cordyceps pruinosa (CP) is often used as Traditional Chinese Medicine, but the substance basis of its medicinal properties is unclear. In this study, two compounds were isolated from CP cultures by column chromatography, and identified as cordycepin and N6-(2-hydroxyethyl)-adenosine (HEA) by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance. In order to understand the efficacy of these two substances as potential therapeutic agents, it is necessary to explore their binding with proteins. The molecular mechanisms of interaction between cordycepin, HEA and human serum albumin (HSA) were studied using UV and fluorescence spectroscopy. The bingding constants between HSA and cordycepin were 4.227, 3.573 and 3.076 × 10(3)·at 17, 27 and 37°C respectively, and that of HSA and HEA were 27.102, 19.409 and 13.002 × 10(3)·at the three tempretures respectively. Both cordycepin and HEA can quench the intrinsic fluorescence of HSA via static quenching, and they can bind with HSA to form complexes with a single binding site. The interaction forces between cordycepin and HSA were determined as electrostatic and hydrophobic, and those of HEA and HSA were hydrogen bonding and van der Waals forces. Using Foster's equation, the distance between fluorophores of cordycepin and HSA, and HEA and HSA are estimated to be 5.31 nm and 4.98 nm, respectively. In this study, cordycepin was isolated for the first time from CP, and will provide a new source of cordycepin and expand the use of this taxon. The interaction mechanisms between cordycepin and HSA was studied for the first time, which will provide a useful guide for the clinical application of cordycepin. The pharmacological importance of this study is to understand the interaction of HSA with cordycepin and HEA, which will be essential for the future designing of drugs based on the two compounds.

Optimization of ultrasonic-assisted extraction of cordycepin from Cordyceps militaris using orthogonal experimental design.

This study reports on the optimization of the extraction conditions of cordycepin from Cordyceps militaris by using ultrasonication. For this purpose, the orthogonal experimental design was used to investigate the effects of factors on the ultrasonic-assisted extraction (UAE). Four factors: extraction time (min), ethanol concentration (%), extraction temperature (°C) and extraction frequency (kHz), were studied. The results showed that the highest cordycepin yield of 7.04 mg/g (86.98% ± 0.23%) was obtained with an extraction time of 60 min, ethanol concentration of 50%, extraction temperature of 65 °C and extraction frequency of 56 kHz. It was found that the cordycepin extraction yield increased with the effect of ultrasonication during the extraction process. Therefore, UAE can be used as an alternative to conventional immersion extraction with respect to the recovery of cordycepin from C. militaris, with the advantages of shorter extraction time and reduced solvent consumption.

Evaluation of triple stage mass spectrometry as a robust and accurate diagnostic tool for determination of free cordycepin in designer egg.

Direct determination of free cordycepin in designer egg using a highly selective mass spectrometric (MS) technique aided by a rapid and efficient dilute-and-shoot workflow would enhance their application as diagnostic tools in food fraud control. Here, triple stage mass spectrometry (MS(3)) demonstrated excellent analyte selectivity capability even when incomplete chromatographic separation was performed. Method validation was performed at six concentration levels of 100, 200, 400, 800, 1200 and 1600ngg(-1). Spiking experiments were examined at three concentration levels of 200, 400, and 1200ngg(-1) in individual egg white and egg yolk, measured over 2days. MS(3) enabled ion chromatograms with zero-background interference to be made in egg extracts. MS(3) eliminated severe over recovery (p<0.05) observed in all fortified samples, a challenge that MRM-transition could not address in a single step. Matrix-matched calibrants were needed to compensate for over recovery observed under MRM-transition mode.

Bioactive metabolites isolated from Penicillium sp. YY-20, the endophytic fungus from Ginkgo biloba.

Six known metabolites, adenosine (1), methyl ß-D-ribofuranoside (2), adenine (3), 2'-deoxyadenosine (4), 3-methylpiperazine-2,5-dione (5) and 2'-deoxyuridine (6), were isolated from the extracts of the endophytic fungus Penicillium sp. YY-20 isolated from the root of Ginkgo biloba, and their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods. The antioxidant and growth-promoting activities of these compounds were first evaluated. The results indicated that compounds 1, 3 and 4 exhibited potential DPPH-scavenging activities compared with positive control. In addition, all the compounds (except 5) stimulated seed germination of Raphanus sativus, Brassica napus and Brassica chinensis but had weak stimulating effect on their root and hypocotyl growth.

Cordycepin, 3'-deoxyadenosine, prevents rat hearts from ischemia/reperfusion injury via activation of Akt/GSK-3ß/p70S6K signaling pathway and HO-1 expression.

Cordycepin (3'-deoxyadenosine) isolated from Cordyceps militaris, a species of the fungal genus Cordyceps, has been shown to exhibit many pharmacological functions, such as anticancer, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant activities. In this study, we investigated the preventive role of cordycepin in ischemic/reperfusion (I/R) injury of isolated rat hearts and anesthetized rats. After Sprague-Dawley rats received cordycepin (3, 10, and 30 mg/kg) or control (0.5 % carboxyl methylcellulose) orally once a day for a week, hearts were isolated and mounted on Langendorff heart perfusion system. Isolated hearts were perfused with Krebs-Henseleit buffer for 15-min pre-ischemic stabilization period and subjected to 30-min global ischemia and 30-min reperfusion. Cordycepin administration (10 mg/kg, p.o.) significantly increased left ventricular developed pressure during the reperfusion period compared to that in the control group, but without any effect on coronary flow. Cordycepin (10 mg/kg, p.o.) significantly increased the phosphorylation of Akt/GSK-3ß/p70S6K pathways, which are known to modulate multiple survival pathways. In addition, cordycepin decreased Bax and cleaved caspase-3 expression while increasing Bcl-2 expression, Bcl-2/Bax ratio, and heme oxygenase (HO-1) expression in isolated rat hearts. In anesthetized rats subjected to 30 min occlusion of left anterior descending coronary artery/2.5-h reperfusion, cordycepin (1, 3, and 10 mg/kg, i.v.) administered 15 min before the onset of ischemia dose-dependently decreased the infarct size in left ventricle. In conclusion, cordycepin could be an attractive therapeutic candidate with oral activity against I/R-associated heart diseases such as myocardial infarction.

Optimization of fermentation conditions and purification of cordycepin from Cordyceps militaris.

The fermentation medium and conditions for the production of cordycepin were optimized in static culture using single-factor experiments, Placket-Burman design, a central composite design, and response surface methodology. Among seven variables including temperature, pH, and the concentrations of glucose, tryptone, yeast extract, KH2PO4, and MgSO4 · 7H2O, temperature and the concentrations of yeast extract and tryptone were found to be the important factors that significantly affected cordycepin production. The optimized medium consisted of yeast extract 9.00 g/L and tryptone 17.10 g/L, while the optimized culture conditions consisted of seed age 3 days, with an inoculum size of 10% and incubation temperature of 27.1°C. A maximum cordycepin yield of 7.35 g/L was achieved in a 5-L fermenter under the optimized conditions. Next, cordycepin was partially purified and determined. The resulting product showed 90.54% high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-ultraviolet (UV) purity. Therefore, cordycepin was applied to a cell viability assay on SH-SY5Y cells and RM-1 cells. Cordycepin can inhibit the proliferation of RM-1 cells with IC50 of 133 µmol/L, but it has no inhibitory effect on SH-SY5Y cells. Supplemental materials are available for this article.

Cordycepin: a bioactive metabolite with therapeutic potential.

Cytotoxic nucleoside analogues were the first chemotherapeutic agents for cancer treatment. Cordycepin, an active ingredient of the insect fungus Cordyceps militaris, is a category of compounds that exhibit significant therapeutic potential. Cordycepin has many intracellular targets, including nucleic acid (DNA/RNA), apoptosis and cell cycle, etc. Investigations of the mechanism of anti-cancer drugs have yielded important information for the design of novel drug targets in order to enhance anti-tumor activity with less toxicity to patients. This extensive review covers various molecular aspects of cordycepin interactions with its recognized cellular targets and proposes the development of novel therapeutic strategies for cancer treatment.