The Fungi are Among us

Jean-Marc Moncalvo

Department of Natural History, Royal Ontario Museum

Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto

Moon Bay Biologics, Inc.

AGRI-FOOD AND HEALTH FOR NORTHERN ONTARIO: FUTURE PROSPECTS Saturday, September 21st, 2013 Hidden Valley Resort, Huntsville, Ontario

Presentation Outline

• What are Fungi, and what do they do?

• Past uses of Fungi by humans

• Present uses

• Fungi for food, health and wellness:

some perspectives for Northern Ontario

What are Fungi?

Jean-Marc Moncalvo

Most fungi are cryptic organisms that spend most of their life cycle by

producing microscopic vegetative hyphae (mycelium) underground or

buried in their host.

http://home.wanadoo.nl/abiemans/e_mycelium.html

Asexual Reproduction

Sexual Reproduction(fructification)

What are Fungi?

Most fungi are cryptic organisms that spend most of their life cycle by

producing microscopic vegetative hyphae (mycelium) underground or

buried in their host.

Asexual Reproduction

Sexual Reproduction(fructification)

Typically invisible by the naked eye, or “molds”

Invisible by the naked eye

Visibleby the naked eye

xvo

What are Fungi?

Most fungi are cryptic organisms that spend most of their life cycle by

producing microscopic vegetative hyphae (mycelium) underground or

buried in their host.

Asexual Reproduction

Sexual Reproduction(fructification)

Typically invisible by the naked eye, or “molds”

Invisible by the naked eye

Visibleby the naked eye

xvo

Microfungi Macrofungi

Yeasts and lichens are Fungi

How many Fungi are out there?

• About 100,000 known species

• Most are microfungi

• It has been estimated that only about

5-10% of the total fungal diversity is

known to Science

How many Fungi are out there?

• About 100,000 known species

• Most are microfungi

• It has been estimated that only about

5-10% of the total fungal diversity is

known to Science

===> huge bioprospecting potential

What Fungi do?

They play major roles in all terrestrial ecosystems as

• Decomposers / saprobes

• Mutualists / symbionts

• Parasites / pathogens / predators

What Fungi do?Decomposers / saprobes / wood-rots

Wood-rot(pic. from E. Barnatrd)

http://media.web.britannica.com/http://www.anbg.gov.au/

Wood decaybrown-rot (top) and white-rot (bottom)

Litter decay

What Fungi do?Mutualists / symbionts

Mycorrhizal association with tree roots (pic. from T. Bruns)

Association with termite nests ; cultivated by leaf-cutter ants

(pic. from D. Pegler)

What Fungi do?Parasites / pathogens / predators

Nematode-trapping fungus(pic. from G. Barron)

Diseases of plants including commerciallyimportant trees and cereals, e.g., Smut on corn

Insect killers

http://homesremedies.net/

Pathogens and allergens of animals (including humans)http://www.davidmoore.org.uk/

Ancient uses of Fungi by humansFungi carried by the Iceman

http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/

Ancient uses of Fungi by humansFungi carried by the Iceman

Piptoporus betulinus

http://www.mushroomexpert.com/

Ancient uses of Fungi by humansFood & Drinks

http://www.popsci.com/

http://grainandgrain.files.wordpress.com/

http://static.guim.co.uk/

http://canadasrock.ca/

http://bigfatwine.com/

Ancient uses of Fungi by humansTraditional medicine: e.g., Ganoderma

http://www.wellnet-bolt.hu/

http://upload.wikimedia.org/

Blockbusters modern fungal drugs

Pics fromK. Seifert

Penicillin, from Penicillium

Cyclosporin, etc…

Fungi

and

Humans

:

Friends

and

Foes

Fungi for Food, Health and WellnessSome perspectives for Northern Ontario

• Farming

• Forest mushrooms

• Health products

• Bioprospecting

Fungi for Food, Health and Wellness : Some perspectives for Northern Ontario

Mushroom farming

• Exist already locally? YES

• Is its practice innovative? NOOnly the “classics” are cultivated: button mushrooms, portobellos, oyster

mushrooms, shiitake, and a few others

Room for improvement:• Cultivation of different species / strains

• Strain optimization for outdoor/indoor production with regard to the local

environment, e.g., climate, availability of substrate, etc.

Is there already local knowledge for improvement? YES

$$ Infrastructure / investment for the proposed improvements: low

$$ in return? I don’t know

Fungi for Food, Health and Wellness : Some perspectives for Northern Ontario

Forest mushrooms

• Wild edible mushrooms are not harvested(and there are plenty of them!!!)

----- Lack of consumer awareness locally

----- No system in place for exportation to the international market

$$ Infrastructure / investment for improvements: low

$$ in return? Overall low, but could be significant for entrepreneurs and for

people living in remote communities close to the wilderness.

Fungi for Food, Health and Wellness : Some perspectives for Northern Ontario

Forest mushrooms

• Wild edible mushrooms are not harvested(and there are plenty of them!!!)

----- Lack of consumer awareness locally

----- No system in place for exportation to the international market

$$ Infrastructure / investment for improvements: low

$$ in return? Overall low, but could be significant for entrepreneurs and for

people living in remote communities close to the wilderness.

• There are “medicinal mushrooms” growing wild in our

forests!

Ganoderma, Chaga, … Stay tuned for the upcoming presentation by

- Peter Schleifenbaum

- Grant Lauzon

Fungi for Food, Health and Wellness : Some perspectives for Northern Ontario

Forest mushrooms

• Limited use of ectomycorrhizal mushroom (EM) in

reforestation projects / ecosystem health----- There is limited biological knowledge of the EM-tree system

----- This is still a field in need of basic scientific research

$$-wise:

----- not for investors; GAIA phylantrops welcome!

----- in Canada, funding for basic science is being drastically cut by the

current government.

Fungi for Food, Health and Wellness : Some perspectives for Northern Ontario

Health products - Nutraceuticals

• Already produced locally? YES

• Is its practice innovative? Yes and No

Stay tuned for the upcoming presentation by

- Danielle Franz (Probiotics)

- Mukund Jha and Grant Lauzon (Chaga)

Room for improvement:• Optimization of the amount of desired metabolites in the final products

(e.g., antioxydants etc.)

• Quality control; comparative studies with other similar products

Is there already local knowledge for improvement? YES

$$ Infrastructure / investment for the proposed improvements: medium

$$ in return? Medium to High

Fungi for Food, Health and Wellness : Some perspectives for Northern Ontario

Health products - Cosmeceuticals

• Already produced locally? NO

• Is the use of fungi in cosmetics innovative? Yes and No

Stay tuned for the upcoming presentation by

- Warren Chen

Is there already local knowledge for improvement? YES

$$ Infrastructure / investment for the proposed improvements: medium

Potential $$ in return? High to very high (marketing needed here)

Fungi for Food, Health and Wellness : Some perspectives for Northern Ontario

Health products - Bioprospecting

• Goals: ----- To discover novel bioactive fungal metabolites (e.g., antibiotics, anti-

cancer drugs, etc.)

----- To optimizing the production and extraction of metabolites that have

proven health benefits (e.g., antioxydants etc.)

• Already conducted locally? Yes and No

Is there already local knowledge for development? Yes

Is there already a significant existing infrastructure for development? No

[but definitively YES when partnering with research facilities that are

available in Toronto, in Canada, and / or internationally]

$$ Infrastructure / investment for Research & Development: high

Potential $$ in return? High to very high

Acknowledgments

• Rob Deline, for organizing this venue

• Richard Worsfold and the OCE, for having

supported an earlier research proposal on

the topic of fungal metabolites

• The ROM Governors, NSERC, CFI and

Genome Canada for having supported my

research on Fungi in the last ten years