Ganoderic acid C1 is a triterpenoid that has been found inG. lucidumand has diverse biological activities.^1,2,3,4It inhibits angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE; IC₅₀= 745 µM).²Ganoderic acid C1 also inhibits HIV-1 protease with an IC₅₀value of 180 µM.¹It reduces the proliferation of murine Lewis lung carcinoma cells but not murine Meth-A sarcoma cells (EC₅₀s = 17 and >20 µg/ml, respectively).³Ganoderic acid C1 (20 µg/ml) inhibits LPS-induced NF-κB phosphorylation and production of TNF-α in RAW 264.7 cells, as well as in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) isolated from patients with asthma.⁴

1.El-Mekkawy, S., Meselhy, M.R., Nakamura, N., et al.Anti-HIV-1 and anti-HIV-1-protease substances from Ganoderma lucidumPhytochemistry49(6)1651-1657(1998) 2.Hai-Bang, T., and Shimizu, K.Structure-activity relationship and inhibition pattern of reishi-derived (Ganoderma lingzhi) triterpenoids against angiotensin-converting enzymePhytochem. Lett.12243-247(2015) 3.Min, B.S., Gao, J.J., Nakamura, N., et al.Triterpenes from the spores of Ganoderma lucidum and their cytotoxicity against meth-A and LLC tumor cellsChem. Pharm. Bull. (Tokyo)48(7)1026-1033(2000) 4.Liu, C., Yang, N., Song, Y., et al.Ganoderic acid C1 isolated from the anti-asthma formula, ASHMI™ suppresses TNF-α production by mouse macrophages and peripheral blood mononuclear cells from asthma patientsInt. Immunopharmacol.27(2)224-231(2015)