Black Reishi | G. sinense

Description

Ganoderma sinense is a black to purplish-black or dark brown species of Ganoderma native to China, Japan and Taiwan where it can be found growing on the decaying wood of broad-leaved trees and pine stumps. It is used in traditional Asian medicine, where it is known as zizhi (紫芝, purple Ganoderma) in Chinese.

Ganoderma sinense was erected as a species in 1979 by J.D. Zhao, L.W. Hsu, and X.Q. Zhang, distinguishing it from Ganoderma dimidiatum (formerly Ganoderma japonicum) by morphology.

In traditional Chinese medicine, G. sinense has wide applications, as it is believed to strengthen the body’s immune system and disease response while regulating metabolism and normalizing organ function. Diseases treated by G. sinense involve respiratory, circulatory, digestive, nervous, endocrine and immune systems, including internal, external, gynecological, pediatric and dermatological diseases. It is also believed to be useful for platelet-aggregation and as an anti-thrombotic, hepatic-protective, antioxidant, anti-aging, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor and anti-radiation agent.

In 2010, a G. sinense polysaccharide tablet was approved by China’s State Food and Drug Administration for use as an adjunctive therapeutic drug for treating leukopenia and hematopoietic injury caused by concurrent chemo/radiation therapy during cancer treatment