Taxonomic Position and Species Identity of the Cultivated Yeongji 'Ganoderma lucidum' in Korea.
Ganoderma lucidum has a long history of use as a traditional medicine in Asian countries. However, the taxonomy of Ganoderma species remains controversial, since they were initially classified on the basis of their morphological characteristics. Recently, it was proposed that G. lucidum from China be renamed as G. sichuanense or G. lingzhi. In the present study, phylogenetic analysis using the internal transcribed spacer region rDNA sequences of the Ganoderma species indicated that all strains of the Korean 'G. lucidum' clustered into one group together with G. sichuanense and G. lingzhi from China. However, strains from Europe and North American, which were regarded as true G. lucidum, were positioned in a clearly different group. In addition, the average size of the basidiospores from the Korean cultivated Yeongji strains was similar to that of G. lingzhi. Based on these results, we propose that the Korean cultivated Yeongji strains of 'G. lucidum' should be renamed as G. lingzhi.
Department of Biomedical Chemistry, Konkuk University, Chungju 27478, Korea.
O-Chul
OC
Kwon
Department of Biomedical Chemistry, Konkuk University, Chungju 27478, Korea.
Young-Jin
YJ
Park
Department of Biomedical Chemistry, Konkuk University, Chungju 27478, Korea.
Hong-Il
HI
Kim
Mushroom Research Division, National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science, Rural Development Administration, Eumseong 27709, Korea.
Won-Sik
WS
Kong
Mushroom Research Division, National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science, Rural Development Administration, Eumseong 27709, Korea.
Jae-Han
JH
Cho
Department of Biomedical Chemistry, Konkuk University, Chungju 27478, Korea.
Chang-Soo
CS
Lee
Ganoderma lingzhi; Ganoderma sichuanense; ITS rDNA; Phylogeny; Taxonomy