El Micelio — The Simbiosis Blog

FungiFacts
FungiFacts #1 — 15 mushroom facts that will change the way you see them
90% of land plants cannot survive without fungi. The beer you drink exists thanks to a fungus. The largest living organism in the world is a fungus. And we've only known for 12 years that fungi can talk to each other. These are the 15 facts nobody told you about the kingdom that supports everything. Read more...
Historia y Etnomicología
Hongosto: the season that turns Mexican forests into a market
From July to October, when the rains saturate Mexico's temperate forests, the ground explodes in fungal diversity. The Hongosto — as connoisseurs call this season — is one of the country's richest gastronomic and cultural phenomena, and one of the least known outside the communities that lead it. Read more...
Ciencia de los Hongos
Cordyceps: the ATP mushroom that lifts your cellular energy without caffeine
Cordyceps has been the ally of Tibetan athletes for centuries. Its most studied mechanism — greater availability of ATP, the cell's energy currency — has made it one of the most sought-after adaptogens for physical performance and endurance. Read more...
Ciencia de los Hongos
Lion's Mane: the mushroom that stimulates neuronal growth
Hericium erinaceus is the only known mushroom capable of stimulating the synthesis of Nerve Growth Factor (NGF). Its implications for neuroplasticity and for research into neurodegenerative conditions make it one of the most studied mushrooms of the past decade. Read more...
Ciencia de los Hongos
Reishi: the mushroom of immortality that modern science is rediscovering
For millennia, Reishi was reserved for emperors. Today's research echoes what traditional Chinese physicians long observed: studies describe a mushroom that helps modulate the immune system, supports the stress response, and protects liver cells — with a depth few natural compounds can match. Read more...
Ciencia de los Hongos
Himematsutake (Royal Sun Agaricus): The Imperial Mushroom of Brazil
In the mountains of Piedade, Brazil, local inhabitants drew the attention of Japanese researchers with their remarkable longevity and unusually low cancer rates. The secret proved to be a mushroom they took daily: Agaricus blazei, today known as Himematsutake or Royal Sun Agaricus — one of the most potent medicinal mushrooms identified in the Americas. Read more...
Ciencia de los Hongos
Maitake: the mushroom that dances, and its D-Fraction under cancer research
Maitake means 'dancing mushroom' in Japanese — it is said that those who found it in the forest danced for joy at its rarity and worth. Modern science later grasped why: its D-Fraction is described as one of the most potent immune activators identified in the fungal kingdom, with meaningful implications for glucose metabolism and insulin resistance. Read more...
Ciencia de los Hongos
Shiitake: from Japanese Umami to Human Immunity
Shiitake is at once one of the world's most widely eaten culinary mushrooms and one of the most potent in medicine. Its active compound, Lentinan, was the first mushroom-derived immunomodulator approved as a drug in Japan — and its union of deep flavor and functional activity makes it the perfect bridge between gastronomy and health. Read more...
Ciencia de los Hongos
Turkey Tail: the mushroom that talks to your microbiome
Trametes versicolor is the most researched medicinal mushroom in the oncological context worldwide. Its PSK and PSP compounds are approved as chemotherapy adjuncts in Japan and China — yet its impact on the gut microbiome may be its most recent and most promising discovery. Read more...