Mushroom..healing or killing vol1

What is it?
A mushroom (or toadstool) is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or on its foodsource.


Etymology

The terms "mushroom" and "toadstool" go back centuries and were never precisely defined, nor was there consensus on application.
The toadstool's connection to toads may be direct, in reference to some species of poisonous toad, or may just be a case of phonosemantic matching from the German word.

However, delineation between edible and poisonous fungi is not clear-cut, so a "mushroom" may be edible, poisonous, or unpalatable. The term "toadstool" is nowadays used in storytelling when referring to poisonous or suspect mushrooms.

Edible Mushrooms

Mushrooms are used extensively in cooking, in many cuisines (notably Chinese, Korean, European, and Japanese). Though neither meat nor vegetable, mushrooms are known as the "meat" of the vegetable world.

Toxic Mushrooms

Many mushroom species produce secondary metabolites that can be toxic, mind-altering, antibiotic, antiviral, or bioluminescent. Although there are only a small number of deadly species, several others can cause particularly severe and unpleasant symptoms.

Psychoactive Mushrooms

Psilocybe zapotecorum

Mushrooms with psychoactive properties have long played a role in various native medicine traditions in cultures all around the world. They have been used as sacrament in rituals aimed at mental and physical healing, and to facilitate visionary states.

Psilocybin mushrooms possess psychedelic properties. Commonly known as "magic mushrooms" or "'shrooms".

Medicinal Properties

Some mushrooms or extracts are used or studied as possible treatments for diseases, such as cardiovascular disorders.

Modern studies suggest mushrooms can be useful for antibacterial, anti-inflammatories and antioxidants. While also helping to reduce blood pressure, moderate blood sugar, reduce cholesterol, enhance the immune system, reduce stress and help in fighting many types of cancer.

Interesting Facts

• When exposed to ultraviolet (UV) light even after harvesting, natural ergosterols in mushrooms produce vitamin D2, a process now used to supply fresh vitamin D mushrooms for the functional food grocery market.
• Mushrooms are fungus, and unlike plants, mushrooms do not require sunlight to make energy for themselves.
• Mushrooms are made up of around 90% water.
• Mycophagist is the term used for people who collect mushrooms to eat from the wild. The act of collecting these mushrooms is known as 'mushroom hunting', or 'mushrooming'.
• There are over 30 species of mushroom that actually glow in the dark. The chemical reaction called bioluminescence produces a glowing light known as foxfire. People have been known to use these fungi to light their way through the woods.



The toxic mushroom Amanita muscaria,
commonly known as "fly agaric."

• Before the invention of synthetic dyes, mushrooms were widely used for dyeing wool and other natural fibers. Mushroom dyes are organic compounds and produce strong, vivid colors.

Chemistry of Mushrooms

Of the various types of mushroom toxins, those which cause the greatest number of deaths are the amatoxins and orellanine.

Amatoxins

The amatoxins are a family of structurally similar compounds, with minor changes in parts of the structure determining the different types, of which ten are currently known. The main amatoxins commonly found in significant quantities are α-amanitin, β-amanitin and γ-amanitin, all three of which have a median lethal dose of around 0.5-0.75 milligrams per kilogram of body weight.
It can take between six and twenty-four hours for the symptoms of amatoxin poisoning to being to manifest. 

The initial symptoms are stomach cramps, vomiting, and diarrhoea; these can actually improve after a few days, but ultimately the toxin can cause liver and kidney failure, leading to death within five to eight days of consumption of the mushrooms.

It’s estimated that between 10-20% of diagnosed cases of amatoxin poisoning result in death, with many of those that survive requiring liver transplants to do so.

The backbone structure (black) is the same in all the amatoxins and
 five variable groups (red) determine the specific compound.

Orellanine

This particular toxin initially causes thirst, stomach cramps and nausea, and can go on to cause a low output (or even no output) of urine. The initial symptoms can take up to three weeks to appear, though usually they are notable two to three days after ingestion. The later symptoms are due to kidney damage, which can, in severe cases, culminate in kidney failure. Again, in these cases, transplant is often the only option to treat the poisoning, with no known antidote for orellanine. The median lethal dose is around 12-20 milligrams per kilogram of body weight in mice, though it is thought to be lower than this figure in humans.

Muscarine and Muscimol

The most recognisable poisonous mushroom is probably Fly Agaric. This red, white-spotted specimen contains the compound muscarine, although in lower concentrations than some other mushroom species – it’s estimated that it only constitutes around 0.0003% of the mushroom’s weight. Muscarine was originally thought to be the source of the toxicity of Fly Agaric, but it has since been discovered that another compound, muscimol, is largely responsible. It’s also found in another common poisonous mushroom, the Panther Cap. No deaths have been officially attributed to either Fly Agaric or Panther Caps, but their ingestion can cause dizziness, stomach irritation, and hallucinogenic effects.

Unfortunately, there’s no tell-tale clue when it comes to spotting which mushrooms are poisonous, and which are not. Some of the deadliest can taste delicious, and look benign. It’s also not always enough to just cook these mushrooms thoroughly; this won’t necessarily make them safe to eat, as the poisonous compounds are often not broken down by heat.

Smurfs & Mushrooms

Interestingly enough, it seems there's often a link between magic, smurfs and the amanita mushroom. The Smurfs comic is another great example of the presence of the amanita muscaria in popular culture. In this storyline, the little blue creatures live inside mushrooms-shaped houses somewhere deep in the forest. While Gargamel, is always trying to catch them.

References: wikipedia.org ~ compoundchem.com ~ sciencekids.co.nz