Ramaria botrytis

Ramaria botrytis
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Basidiomycota
Class: Agaricomycetes
Order: Gomphales
Family: Gomphaceae
Genus: Ramaria
Species: R. botrytis
Binomial name
Ramaria botrytis
(Pers.) Ricken (1918)
Synonyms[1]

Clavaria botrytis Pers. (1797)
Corallium botrytis (Pers.) Hahn (1883)
Clavaria botrytis var. alba A.Pearson (1946)
Ramaria botrytis
Mycological characteristics
smooth hymenium
no distinct cap
hymenium attachment is irregular or not applicable
stipe is bare
spore print is yellow
ecology is mycorrhizal

edibility: edible

but not recommended

Ramaria botrytis, commonly known as the cauliflower coral, the pink-tipped coral mushroom, or the clustered coral, is an edible species of coral fungus in the Gomphaceae family. Its fruit body, which can grow up to 12 cm (4.7 in) in diameter and 12 cm (4.7 in) tall, resembles a marine coral, and it is identifiable by its white-colored branches with numerous red to orange branched tips. It has a wide distribution, and is found in North America, North Africa, central and eastern Europe, Australia, and Asia, where it fruits on the ground in wooded areas. It is the type species of the genus Ramaria. The fruit bodies are generally considered edible, although they may have laxative effects in susceptible individuals. Scientific research has shown that the mushroom contains several bioactive compounds.

Contents

Taxonomy and classification

The species was first named as Clavaria botrytis in 1797 by Christian Hendrik Persoon,[2] In 1821, Elias Magnus Fries sanctioned the genus name Clavaria, and treated Ramaria as a section of Clavaria.[3] It was given its current name in 1918 by Adalbert Ricken.[4] The specific epithet is derived from the Latin word meaning "bunch of grapes".[5]

The mushroom is commonly known as the "cauliflower coral",[6] the "pink-tipped coral mushroom",[7] or the "clustered coral".[8] In the Cofre de Perote region of Veracruz, Mexico, the species is known commonly as escobea, meaning "little broom", or pechuga, meaning "breast meat of chicken";[9] in Italy, it is called ditola.[10]

Ramaria botrytis is the type species of the genus Ramaria,[11] a genus that as currently defined is a polyphyletic assemblage of species with coral-shaped fruit bodies.[12][13] According to the infrageneric classification scheme proposed by Currie Marr and Daniel Stuntz in their 1973 monograph of western Washington Ramaria, R. botrytis is included in the subgenus Ramaria, which includes species that have grooved spores, grow on the ground, have clamps present in the hyphae, and fruit bodies with a large, profusely branched cauliflower appearance.[14] Phylogenetic analysis of nuclear large subunit ribosomal DNA suggests that R. botrytis is closely related to Ramaria rubripermanens and Ramaria rubrievanescens, and that these species form a clade that is sister (sharing a recent common ancestor) to Gautieria, a genus of false truffles, the group being the most derived within the studied taxa.[12]

Description

The fruit bodies produced by the fungus can grow up to 10 to 12 cm (3.9 to 4.7 in) in diameter and 7 to 12 cm (2.8 to 4.7 in) tall. They are fleshy rounded masses with a short stout base, densely branched above, white to buff in color, with the tips of the branches reddish. The stem is short and thick—between 1.5 and 6 cm (0.6 and 2.4 in) in diameter—and tapering below. Initially white in color, in age it turns tan or pale yellow. The branching is irregular, with the primary branches few and thick (2–3 cm), and the final branches slender (2–3 mm), and more or less dichotomous. The flesh is solid and white.[7] The variety R. botrytis var. aurantiramosa, described by Marr and Stuntz in 1973,[14] may be distinguished from the main variety by the orange color of the upper branches.[15]

Viewed in deposit, the spores are pale yellow. Microscopically, they have fine longitudinal or oblique striations that often fuse together in a vein-like network. They range in shape from roughly cylindrical to sigmoid (curved like the letter "S"), and their dimensions are 12–16 by 4–5 µm.[16][17] The spore-bearing cells, the basidia, are four-spored (occasionally two-spored), and measure 59–82 by 8–11 µm. The sterigma (slender projections of the basidia that attach to the spores) are 4–8 µm long. The hymenium and subhymenium (the tissue layer immediately under the hymenium) combined are about 80 µm thick. The hyphae that comprise the subhymenium are interwoven, 2.5–4.5 µm in diameter, thin-walled, and clamped.[14]

Similar species

Ramaria rubripermanens, similar in appearance to R. botrytis, has reddish terminal branches, a stout form, and striate spores, but may be distinguished from R. botrytis by its much shorter spores.[14] Other species with which R. botrytis may be confused include: R. formosa, which has branches that are pinker than R. botrytis, and yellow-tipped; R. caulifloriformis, found in the Great Lakes region of the United States, whose branch tips darken with age; R. strasseri, which has yellow to brown branch tips; R. rubrievanescens, which has branches in which the pink color fades after picking or in mature fruit bodies; and R. botrytoides, which is most reliably distinguished from R. botrytis by its smooth spores.[6]

Habitat and distribution

Fruit bodies of Ramaria botrytis are found on the ground growing solitarily, scattered, or in small groups among leaves in woods;[16] it can also grow in rings.[7] A Korean study determined that it was prevalent at sites that also produced the choice edible species Tricholoma matsutake.[18] Ramaria botrytis is classified as a "snowbank fungus", meaning it commonly fruits near the edges of melting snowbanks in the spring.[7]

Ramaria botrytis is distributed in Australia,[19] India (eastern Himalayas),[20] Pakistan[21] the Far East of Russia,[22] Turkey,[23] Tunisia,[24] and Europe (including the Netherlands,[25] Portugal,[26] Italy,[10] and Spain[27]), and has a wide distribution in North America.[6] The variety R. botrytis var. aurantiramosa, limited in distribution to Lewis County, Washington, associates with the tree species Pseudotsuga menziesii and Tsuga heterophylla.[15]

Uses

Ramaria botrytis is an edible species, and some rate it as choice.[28] The odor is not distinctive, while the taste is "slight", or "fruity".[29] In the Gafagnana region of central Italy, the mushroom is stewed, or pickled in oil.[10][30] However, one field guide rates the edibility as "questionable", warning of the possible danger of confusing specimens with the poisonous Ramaria formosa.[6] Others warn that some individuals may experience laxative effects from consuming the mushroom.[7][8] Caution is advised when collecting fruit bodies near potentially polluted areas, as the species is known to bioaccumulate the toxic compound arsenic.[31]

Chemistry

Extracts of the fruit body of Ramaria botrytis have been shown to favorably influence the growth and development of HeLa cells grown in tissue culture.[32] The mushroom contains the chemical nicotianamine, an ACE inhibitor (angiotensin-converting enzyme).[33] Nicotianamine is known to be essential in iron metabolism and utilization in plants.[34]

In a 2009 study of 16 Portuguese edible wild mushroom species, R. botrytis was shown to have the highest concentration of phenolic acids (356.7 mg per kg of fresh fruit body), made up largely of protocatechuic acid; it also had the highest antioxidant capacity. Phenolic compounds are common in fruits and vegetables and are being scientifically investigated for their potential health benefits associated with reduced risk of chronic and degenerative diseases.[26]

References

  1. ^ "Ramaria botrytis (Pers.) Ricken". Species Fungorum. CAB International. http://www.speciesfungorum.org/Names/SynSpecies.asp?RecordID=356843. Retrieved 2010-09-14. 
  2. ^ Persoon CH (1797) (in Latin). Commentatio de Fungis Clavaeformibus. Leipzig: Petrum Phillippum Wolf. p. 42. http://books.google.com/books?id=zlY-AAAAcAAJ&dq=Commentatio%20de%20Fungis%20Clavaeformibus&pg=PA42#v=onepage&q&f=false. 
  3. ^ Fries EM. (1821) (in Latin). Systema Mycologicum. 1. Lund, Sweden: Ex Officina Berlingiana. p. 466. http://books.google.ca/books?id=Qj8-AAAAcAAJ&ots=r2jcm6cR8q&dq=fries%20Systema%20mycologicum%201821&pg=PA466#v=onepage&q&f=false. Retrieved 2010-09-14. 
  4. ^ Ricken A. (1918) (in German). Vademecum für Pilzfreunde. p. 253. 
  5. ^ Metzler V, Metzler S. (1992). Texas Mushrooms: a Field Guide. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press. p. 244. ISBN 0-292-75125-7. http://books.google.com/books?id=HRtfvVigMmsC&lpg=PA244&dq=Ramaria%20botrytis&lr=&pg=PA244#v=onepage&q=Ramaria%20botrytis&f=false. Retrieved 2010-09-14. ]
  6. ^ a b c d McKnight VB, McKnight KH. (1987). A Field Guide to Mushrooms, North America. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin. p. 75. ISBN 0-395-91090-0. http://books.google.com/books?id=kSdA3V7Z9WcC&lpg=PA75&dq=Ramaria%20botrytis&lr=&pg=PA75#v=onepage&q=Ramaria%20botrytis&f=false. Retrieved 2010-10-14. 
  7. ^ a b c d e Arora D. (1986). Mushrooms Demystified: a Comprehensive Guide to the Fleshy Fungi. Berkeley, CA: Ten Speed Press. pp. 46–47. ISBN 0-89815-169-4. http://books.google.com/books?id=86tM01VsFG0C&lpg=PA46&dq=arora%20snowbank&lr=&pg=PA46#v=onepage&q=&f=false. Retrieved 2009-10-12. 
  8. ^ a b Fergus CL. (2003). Common Edible and Poisonous Mushrooms of the Northeast. Stackpole Books. p. 68. ISBN 978-0811726412. http://books.google.com/books?id=lW2z73gIvM8C&lpg=PA68&dq=Ramaria%20botrytis&pg=PA68#v=onepage&q=Ramaria%20botrytis&f=false. Retrieved 2010-09-14. 
  9. ^ Jarvis MC, Miller AM, Sheahan J, Ploetz K, Ploetz J, Watson RR, Ruiz MP, Villapan CAP, Alvarado JG, Ramirez AL, Orr B. (2004). "Edible wild mushrooms of the Cofre de Perote region, Veracruz, Mexico: An ethnomycological study of common names and uses". Economic Botany 58: S111–S115. doi:10.1663/0013-0001(2004)58[S111:EWMOTC]2.0.CO;2. ISSN 0013-0001. 
  10. ^ a b c Pieroni A. (1999). "Gathered wild food plants in the upper valley of the Serchio River (Garfagnana), central Italy". Economic Botany 53 (3): 327–41. doi:10.1007/BF02866645. 
  11. ^ "Ramaria (Fr.) Bonord. 1851". MycoBank. International Mycological Association. http://www.mycobank.org/MycoTaxo.aspx?Link=T&Rec=18444. Retrieved 2010-09-14. 
  12. ^ a b Humpert AJ, Muench EL, Giachini AJ, Castellano MA, Spatafora JW. (2001). "Molecular phylogenetics of Ramaria and related genera: evidence from nuclear large subunit and mitochondrial small subunit rDNA sequences". Mycologia 93 (3): 465–77. JSTOR 3761733. 
  13. ^ Hosaka K, Bates ST, Beever RE, Castellano MA, Colgan W, Domínguez LS, Nouhra ER, GemlJ, Giachin AJ, Kenny SR, Simpson NB, Spatafora JW, Trappe JM. (2006). "Molecular phylogenetics of the gomphoid-phalloid fungi with an establishment of the new subclass Phallomycetidae and two new orders". Mycologia 98: 949–59. doi:10.3852/mycologia.98.6.949. PMID 17486971. 
  14. ^ a b c d Maerr CD, Stuntz DE. (1973). "Ramaria of Western Washington". Bibliotheca Mycologica 38: 38–39. 
  15. ^ a b Castellano MA, Smith JE, O'Dell T, Cázares E, Nugent S. (1999) (PDF). Handbook to Strategy 1: Fungal Species in the Northwest Forest Plan (Report). General Technical Report PNW-GTR-476. United States Department of Agriculture, Pacific Northest Research Station. http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/pubs/pnw_gtr476.pdf. 
  16. ^ a b Burt EA. (1922). "The North American species of Clavaria with illustrations of the type specimens". Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 9 (1): 1–78. 
  17. ^ Ellis JB, Ellis MB. (1990). Fungi without Gills (Hymenomycetes and Gasteromycetes): an Identification Handbook. London: Chapman and Hall. p. 167. ISBN 0-412-36970-2. http://books.google.com/books?id=vowdIZ7GqD4C&lpg=PA167&dq=Ramaria%20botrytis&lr=&pg=PA167#v=onepage&q=Ramaria%20botrytis&f=false. Retrieved 2010-09-14. 
  18. ^ Na J-S, Ryu J. (1992). "Survey on the flora and main wild mushroom in Tricholoma matsutake producing sites". Korean Journal of Mycology 20 (2): 144–48. ISSN 0253-651X. 
  19. ^ May TW, Milne J, Shingles S, Jones RH. (2008). Fungi of Australia. CSIRO Publishing. p. 65. ISBN 978-0643069077. http://books.google.com/books?id=mTJsa5a3ZpcC&lpg=PA65&dq=Ramaria%20botrytis&lr=&pg=PA65#v=onepage&q=Ramaria%20botrytis&f=false. Retrieved 2010-09-14. 
  20. ^ Thind KS, Sharda RM. (1985). "The genus Ramaria in the eastern Himalayas – subgenera Ramaria, Echinoramaria and Lentoramaria". Proceedings of the Indian Academy of Sciences—Plant Sciences 95 (1): 51–64. ISSN 0370-0097. 
  21. ^ Gardezi SRA, Ayub N. (2002). "Mushrooms of Kashmir – II". Sarhad Journal of Agriculture 18 (4): 427–37. ISSN 1016-4383. 
  22. ^ Govorova OK. (2003). "Species of the genus Ramaria (subgenus Ramaria) in the Russian Far East" (in Russian). Mikologiya I Fitopatologiya 37 (2): 8–12. ISSN 0026-3648. 
  23. ^ Sesli E. (2006). "Concentrations of trace elements in fruiting bodies of wild growing fungi in Rize province of Turkey". Asian Journal of Chemistry 18 (3): 2179–84. ISSN 0970-7077. 
  24. ^ Saldi Y, Hasnaoui F. (2009). "Contribution to the Sylvester mushroom inventory and estimation of the production on permanent plots in Kroumirie, Tunisia". EFI Proceedings (57): 119–125. ISSN 1237-8801. 
  25. ^ Tolsma B. (1999). "A quartet of rarities in Zeist" (in Dutch). Coolia 42 (1): 36–38. ISSN 0929-7839. 
  26. ^ a b Barros L, Duenas M, Ferreira ICFR, Baptista P, Santos-Buelga C. (2009). "Phenolic acids determination by HPLC-DAD-ESI/MS in sixteen different Portuguese wild mushrooms species". Food and Chemical Toxicology 47 (6): 1076–79. doi:10.1016/j.fct.2009.01.039. PMID 19709581. 
  27. ^ Rivera D, Obón C, Inocencio C, Heinrich M, Verde A, Fajardo J, Palazón JA. (2007). "Gathered Food Plants in the Mountains of Castilla–La Mancha (Spain): Ethnobotany and Multivariate Analysis". Economic Botany 61 (3): 269–89. doi:10.1663/0013-0001(2007)61[269:GFPITM]2.0.CO;2. 
  28. ^ Bessette A, Bessette AR, Fischer DW. (1997). Mushrooms of Northeastern North America. Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press. pp. 421–22. ISBN 978-0815603887. http://books.google.com/books?id=T2uU12XcRD4C&lpg=PA421&dq=Ramaria%20botrytis&lr=&pg=PA422#v=onepage&q=Ramaria%20botrytis&f=false. Retrieved 2010-09-14. 
  29. ^ Jordan M. (2004). The Encyclopedia of Fungi of Britain and Europe. London: Frances Lincoln. p. 86. ISBN 0-7112-2378-5. http://books.google.com/books?id=bFMfytLn3bEC&lpg=PA88&dq=Ramaria%20botrytis&lr=&pg=PA88#v=onepage&q=Ramaria%20botrytis&f=false. Retrieved 2010-09-14. 
  30. ^ Wright CA. (2001). Mediterranean Vegetables: a Cook's ABC of Vegetables and their Preparation. Harvard Common Press. p. 228. ISBN 978-1558321960. http://books.google.com/books?id=tka838efZvkC&lpg=PA228&dq=Ramaria%20botrytis&lr=&pg=PA228#v=onepage&q=Ramaria%20botrytis&f=false. Retrieved 2010-09-14. 
  31. ^ Slekovec M, Irgolic KJ. (1996). "Uptake of arsenic by mushrooms from soil". Chemical Speciation and Bioavailability 8 (3–4): 67–73. ISSN 0954-2299. 
  32. ^ Chung KS. (1979). "The effects of mushroom components on the proliferation of Hela cell line in vitro". Archives of Pharmacal Research (Seoul) 2 (1): 25–34. ISSN 0253-6269. 
  33. ^ Izawa H, Aoyagi Y. (2006). "Inhibition of angiotensin converting enzyme by mushroom" (in Japanese). Journal of the Japanese Society for Food Science and Technology-Nippon Shokuhin Kagaku Kogaku Kaishi 53 (9): 459–65. ISSN 1341-027X. 
  34. ^ Briat JF, Curie C, Gaymard F. (2007). "Iron utilization and metabolism in plants". Current Opinion in Plant Biology 10 (3): 276–82. doi:10.1016/j.pbi.2007.04.003. PMID 17434791. 

External links