Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology of Medicinal Mushrooms

This book offers a comprehensive review of the latest developments in medicinal mushroom biochemical engineering and biotechnology, and it also analyses the circular economy of mushroom bioproduction.

Divided into 13 chapters, the book begins with a historical perspective of medicinal mushrooms, followed by authoritative chapters that explore the farming of medicinal mushrooms and bioeconomy, as well as the limitations of using medicinal mushrooms to produce metabolites. Subsequent chapters cover topics such as solid-state and submerged cultivation of medicinal mushroom mycelia in bioreactors, pilot and industrial bioreactor cultivation experiences, downstream processing of medicinal mushroom products, and biochemistry of medicinal mushroom bioactive compounds. Particular attention is given to the recent genetic engineering techniques applied in mushroom cultivation. The book closes with a chapter devoted to the health and clinical benefits of medicinal fungi, where readerswill find expert insights into the therapeutic implications of medicinal fungi.

In this book, readers will find an authoritative perspective on the past, present and future of medicinal mushrooms, and will also learn about some recent clinical studies with isolates from these natural products. Given its breadth, this book will appeal to biotechnologists working in mushroom cultivation, as well as to professionals interested in traditional pharmacy and medicine.  

Marin Berovic is a Full Professor of Biotechnology and Bioengineering at the Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Department of Chemical, Biochemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Ljubljana (Slovenia). He has been focusing his research on Medicinal Mushroom Immunoactive Compounds, in cooperation with the main Chinese Institutions in Bejing and Shanghai. He has established the European Federation on Biotechnology, being currently a member of its Executive Board, and he is also a member of the New York Academy of Sciences, the European Society on Biochemical Engineering, the International Organisation on Biotechnology and Bioengineering, and the European Association for Promotion of Science and Technology.  Professor Berovic has edited/authored 11 books on Bioprocess Engineering, and has published 500+ articles in the fields of biotechnology and bioreactor engineering.

Jian-Jian Zhong is a Distinguished Professor of BiochemicalEngineering at the Shanghai Jiao Tong University (China), and he holds a Ph.D. in fermentation technology/Biotechnology from the Osaka University (Japan). His main research interests include molecular biochemical engineering, advanced fermentation and cell culture engineering, metabolic engineering, and synthetic biology. He has edited/authored 7 books published by Springer, and 250+ articles in peer-reviewed international journals. Professor Zhong also holds 30+ patents of technological innovation and bioproduct development. He was awarded the Chang-Jiang Professorship by the Ministry of Education (China), National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars by NSFC, Young Asian Biotechnologist Prize by Japanese Society for Biotechnology, among others. He is a member of the Editorial Board of the book series Advances in Biochemical Engineering/Biotechnology at Springer.