MAT1-1 and MAT1-2 Ophiocordyceps xuefengensis and Comparison of Their Chemical Composition

Many <i>Cordyceps sensu lato</i> species are used as traditional Chinese medicines. However, <i>Cordyceps</i> are entomopathogenic fungi in the family Clavicipitaceae of Ascomycota, and excessive harvesting severely disrupts natural habitat ecosystems. Artificial cultivation of <i>Cordyceps</i> fruiting bodies offers a viable strategy to protect the ecological environment and mitigate the depletion of wild resource. In this study, mononucleate hyphae were selected using DAPI fluorescence staining, the <i>MAT1-1</i> and <i>MAT1-2</i> strains of <i>O. xuefengensis</i> were successfully distinguished using loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP). The chemical composition and bioactive components of fruiting bodies produced by these strains were compared. Results showed that the levels of adenosine, thymidine, adenine, guanosine, uridine, total amino acids, and total essential amino acids in the fruiting bodies of <i>MAT1-1</i> strains were 1.31 mg/g, 0.15 mg/g, 0.26 mg/g, 2.40 mg/g, 2.34 mg/g, 270.3 mg/g, and 102.5 mg/g, respectively, which were significantly higher than those in the <i>MAT1-2</i> sample. Contrastingly, the fruiting bodies of <i>MAT1-2</i> strains contained higher levels of mannose and polysaccharides, at 11.7% and 12.2%, respectively. The levels of toxic elements such as Al, Pb, As, and Hg in the <i>MAT1-1</i> fruiting bodies were 1.862 mg/kg, 0.0848 mg/kg, 0.534 mg/kg, and 0.0054 mg/kg, respectively, which were markedly lower than those in the <i>MAT1-2</i> fruiting bodies.