Critical Reviews on Anti-Cancer Effects of Edible and Medicinal Mushroom Phellinus linteus and Its Molecular Mechanisms

Phellinus linteus is a valuable edible and medicinal mushroom. Since the early 1990s, it has drawn significant attention from consumers due to its potential functional and medicinal benefits. P. linteus and its bioactive compounds have demonstrated various biological activities, such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, and hepatoprotective agents. This review systematically summarized the anticancer effects of the edible and medicinal mushroom, P. linteus, and its molecular mechanisms. These findings are obtained from the databases of Web of Science, Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus, and ResearchGate. Anticancer activities and their underlying mechanisms were mainly based on cancer cell proliferation inhibition, cell cycle arrest and apoptosis regulation, cell metastasis suppression, and immune cell activation. These effects are attributed to its bioactive components, viz. atractylenolide I, hispolon, and hispidin present in the mycelium and fruiting body. Based on our findings from the available literature, it is concluded that further comprehensive studies are required to identify all the bioactive compounds and the relationship between their structure and anticancer properties. Further, it is necessary to analyze its clinical use, safety, and efficacy alone as well as in combination with anticancer drugs.