Vegetable caterpillar - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

There are over 680 documented species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...

of the sac fungus genus

Genus

In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

Ophiocordyceps
Ophiocordyceps
Ophiocordyceps is a genus of fungi within the Ophiocordycipitaceae family. The widespread genus, first described scientifically by British mycologist Tom Petch in 1931, contains about 140 species that grow on insects...

, and one of the best known of these is Ophiocordyceps sinensis, colloquially known as caterpillar fungus. The fungus is known in Tibetan

Tibetan language

The Tibetan languages are a cluster of mutually-unintelligible Tibeto-Burman languages spoken primarily by Tibetan peoples who live across a wide area of eastern Central Asia bordering the Indian subcontinent, including the Tibetan Plateau and the northern Indian subcontinent in Baltistan, Ladakh,...

as yartsa gunbu or yatsa gunbu.

Caterpillar fungi are the result of a parasitic relationship between the fungus

Fungus

A fungus is a member of a large group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds , as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, Fungi, which is separate from plants, animals, and bacteria...

and the larva

Larva

A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...

of the ghost moth

Ghost Moth

The Ghost Moth , also known as the Ghost Swift, is a moth of the family Hepialidae. It is common throughout Europe except for the far south-east...

genus Thitarodes
Thitarodes
Thitarodes is a genus of moths of the family Hepialidae. There are 48 described species found in eastern Asia. The majority are restricted to the Tibetan Plateau...

, several species of which live on the Tibetan Plateau

Tibetan Plateau

The Tibetan Plateau , also known as the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau is a vast, elevated plateau in Central Asia covering most of the Tibet Autonomous Region and Qinghai, in addition to smaller portions of western Sichuan, southwestern Gansu, and northern Yunnan in Western China and Ladakh in...

(Tibet, Qinghai, West-Sichuan, SW-Gansu & NW Yunnan, all in China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

, and the Himalayas India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

, Nepal

Nepal

Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...

, Bhutan

Bhutan

Bhutan , officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked state in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalayas and bordered to the south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by the People's Republic of China...

). The fungus germinates in living organisms (in some cases the larvae), kills and mummifies the insect, and then the fungus grows from the body of the insect.

O. sinensis is known in the West as a medicinal mushroom and its use has a long history in Traditional Chinese medicine

Traditional Chinese medicine

Traditional Chinese Medicine refers to a broad range of medicine practices sharing common theoretical concepts which have been developed in China and are based on a tradition of more than 2,000 years, including various forms of herbal medicine, acupuncture, massage , exercise , and dietary therapy...

as well as Traditional Tibetan medicine

Traditional Tibetan medicine

Traditional Tibetan medicine is a centuries-old traditional medical system that employs a complex approach to diagnosis, incorporating techniques such as pulse analysis and urinalysis, and utilizes behavior and dietary modification, medicines composed of natural materials and physical therapies...

. The hand-collected fungus-caterpillar combination is valued by herbalists and as a status symbol; it is used as an aphrodisiac

Aphrodisiac

An aphrodisiac is a substance that increases sexual desire. The name comes from Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of sexuality and love. Throughout history, many foods, drinks, and behaviors have had a reputation for making sex more attainable and/or pleasurable...

and treatment for ailments such as fatigue and cancer

Cancer

Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...

, although such use is mainly based on traditional Chinese medicine, anecdote, and a limited amount of research. Clinical trials have not established its efficacy.

Taxonomy and naming

The species was first described scientifically by Miles Berkeley in 1843 as Sphaeria sinensis; Pier Andrea Saccardo

Pier Andrea Saccardo

Pier Andrea Saccardo was an Italian botanist and mycologist.- Life :...

transferred the species to the genus Cordyceps
Cordyceps
Cordyceps is a genus of ascomycete fungi that includes about 400 described species. All Cordyceps species are endoparasitoids, mainly on insects and other arthropods ; a few are parasitic on other fungi. The best known species of the genus is Cordyceps sinensis, first recorded as yartsa gunbu in...

in 1878. The scientific name's etymology is from the Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

cord "club", ceps "head", and sinensis "from China

China

". The fungus was known as Cordyceps sinensis until 2007, when molecular analysis was used to emend the classification of the Cordycipitaceae and the Clavicipitaceae

Clavicipitaceae

Clavicipitaceae is a family of fungi within the order Hypocreales. It consists of 43 genera, and 321 species.-Phylogeny:Molecular phylogenetic analysis of multigene DNA sequence data indicates that the taxon, Clavicipitaceae, is paraphyletic, and consists of three well-defined clades, at least one...

, resulting in the naming of a new family Ophiocordycipitaceae

Ophiocordycipitaceae

The Ophiocordycipitaceae are a family of fungi in the Ascomycota, class Sordariomycetes.-Genera:*Elaphocordyceps*Haptocillium*Harposporium*Hirsutella*Hymenostilbe*Ophiocordyceps*Paraisaria*Purpureocillium...

and the transfer of several Cordyceps species to Ophiocordyceps
Ophiocordyceps
Ophiocordyceps is a genus of fungi within the Ophiocordycipitaceae family. The widespread genus, first described scientifically by British mycologist Tom Petch in 1931, contains about 140 species that grow on insects...

.

In Tibetan

Tibetan language

it is known as དབྱར་རྩྭ་དགུན་འབུ་ yartsa gunbu [Wylie: dbyar rtswa dgun 'bu, "summer herb winter worm"], which is the source of the Nepali यार्शागुम्बा, yarshagumba, yarchagumba or yarsagumba. The transliteration in Bhutan is Yartsa Guenboob. It is also known as keera jhar or keeda ghas in India. Its name in Chinese dong chong xia cao (冬虫夏草) means "winter worm, summer grass" (i.e., "worm in the winter, [turns to] plant in the summer"). The Chinese name is a literal translation of the original Tibetan name, which was first recorded in the 15th Century by the Tibetan doctor Zurkhar Namnyi Dorje. In colloquial Tibetan Yartsa gunbu is often shortened to simply "bu" or "yartsa".

In traditional Chinese medicine, its name is often abbreviated as chong cao, a name that also applies to other Cordyceps species, such as C. militaris. In Japanese

Japanese language

is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...

it is known by the Japanese reading tōchūkasō.

Strangely, sometimes in Chinese English language texts Cordyceps sinensis is referred to as aweto, which is the Māori

Maori language

Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...

name for Cordyceps robertsii, a species from New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

.

The English term "vegetable caterpillar" is a misnomer, as no plant is involved. "Caterpillar fungus" is a preferable term.

Natural history

The caterpillar

Caterpillar

Caterpillars are the larval form of members of the order Lepidoptera . They are mostly herbivorous in food habit, although some species are insectivorous. Caterpillars are voracious feeders and many of them are considered to be pests in agriculture...

s prone to infection by the fungus live underground in alpine grass and shrublands on the Tibetan Plateau

Tibetan Plateau

and the Himalayas

Himalayas

The Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...

at an altitude between 3000 and 5000 m (9,842.5 and 16,404.2 ft). Spending up to five years underground before pupa

Pupa

A pupa is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation. The pupal stage is found only in holometabolous insects, those that undergo a complete metamorphosis, going through four life stages; embryo, larva, pupa and imago...

ting, the Thitarodes
Thitarodes
Thitarodes is a genus of moths of the family Hepialidae. There are 48 described species found in eastern Asia. The majority are restricted to the Tibetan Plateau...

caterpillar is attacked while feeding on roots. It is not certain how the fungus infects the caterpillar; possibly by ingestion of a fungal spore

Spore

In biology, a spore is a reproductive structure that is adapted for dispersal and surviving for extended periods of time in unfavorable conditions. Spores form part of the life cycles of many bacteria, plants, algae, fungi and some protozoa. According to scientist Dr...

or by the fungus mycelium invading the insect through one of its breathing pores. The fungus invades the body of the caterpillars, filling its entire body cavity with mycelia

Mycelium

thumb|right|Fungal myceliaMycelium is the vegetative part of a fungus, consisting of a mass of branching, thread-like hyphae. The mass of hyphae is sometimes called shiro, especially within the fairy ring fungi. Fungal colonies composed of mycelia are found in soil and on or within many other...

and eventually killing and mummifying it. The caterpillars die near the tops of their burrow

Burrow

A burrow is a hole or tunnel dug into the ground by an animal to create a space suitable for habitation, temporary refuge, or as a byproduct of locomotion. Burrows provide a form of shelter against predation and exposure to the elements, so the burrowing way of life is quite popular among the...

s. The dark brown to black fruiting body (or mushroom) emerges from the ground in spring or early summer, always growing out of the forehead of the caterpillar. The long, usually columnar fruiting body reaches 5–15 cm above the surface and releases spores.

In Nepal

Nepal

caterpillar fungus is found on the subalpine pastures in Dolpo

Dolpo

Dolpo is a high-altitude culturally Tibetan region in the upper part of the Dolpa District of western Nepal, bordered in the north by the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. Part of the region lies in Shey Phoksundo National Park...

in Karnali Zone

Karnali Zone

Karnali Zone in the Mid-Western Development Region of Nepal. The headquarters is Jumla.Karnali Zone is one of the poorest and most remote regions of Nepal, not very accessible by road yet. There are airfields in all districts except Kalikot which is connected by seasonal roadways to Jumla...

and Darchula in Mahakali zone

Mahakali Zone

Mahakali|Kali River]] or Mahakali River, which originates from Kalapani.Mahakali's headquarter is Mahendranagar in Kanchanpur District. The zone covers the Himalayan range including Api Peak in the North, Hill valleys, Inner Terai valleys such as Patan in Baitadi District in the center and the...

. It is also common in Bhutan

Bhutan

and India's Himachal Pradesh

Himachal Pradesh

Himachal Pradesh is a state in Northern India. It is spread over , and is bordered by the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir on the north, Punjab on the west and south-west, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on the south, Uttarakhand on the south-east and by the Tibet Autonomous Region on the east...

and Uttarakhand Himalayas

Uttarakhand

Uttarakhand , formerly Uttaranchal, is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the Land of Gods due to the many holy Hindu temples and cities found throughout the state, some of which are among Hinduism's most spiritual and auspicious places of pilgrimage and worship...

. Reports of distribution outside of "High Asia" are erroneous and relate to species of Cordyceps
Cordyceps
Cordyceps is a genus of ascomycete fungi that includes about 400 described species. All Cordyceps species are endoparasitoids, mainly on insects and other arthropods ; a few are parasitic on other fungi. The best known species of the genus is Cordyceps sinensis, first recorded as yartsa gunbu in...

, e.g. Cordyceps militaris.

Traditional Asian medicines

Medicinal use of the caterpillar fungus apparently originated in Tibet. So far the oldest known text documenting its use was written in the late fourteen hundreds by the Tibetan doctor Zurkhar Nyamnyi Dorje (Wylie: Zur mkhar mnyam nyid rdo rje)[1439-1475]) in his text: Man ngag bye ba ring bsrel ("Instructions on a Myriad of Medicines"). A translation is available at Winkler. However some Tibetan doctors suspect that its use might date back even further, but under different names. No conclusive research is published on this hypothesis yet.

The first mention of Ophiocordyceps sinensis in traditional Chinese Medicine was in Wang Ang’s 1694 compendium of material medica, Ben Cao Bei Yao. In the 18th Century it was listed in Wu Yiluo's Ben cao cong xin ("New compilation of materia medica"). No sources have been published to uphold widespread claims of "thousands of years of use in Chinese medicine" or use of "chong cao since the 7th Century Tang Dynasty

Tang Dynasty

The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...

in China". The ethno-mycological knowledge on caterpillar fungus among the Nepalese people is documented by Devkota(2006)
The entire fungus-caterpillar combination is hand-collected for medicinal use.

The fungus is a medicinal mushroom which is highly prized by practitioners of Tibetan medicine, Chinese medicine and traditional Folk medicines, in which it is used as an aphrodisiac

Aphrodisiac

and as a treatment for a variety of ailments from fatigue to cancer

Cancer

. It is regarded as having an excellent balance of yin and yang

Yin and yang

In Asian philosophy, the concept of yin yang , which is often referred to in the West as "yin and yang", is used to describe how polar opposites or seemingly contrary forces are interconnected and interdependent in the natural world, and how they give rise to each other in turn. Opposites thus only...

as it is apparently both animal and vegetable (though it is in actuality not vegetable, but fungi). Assays have found that Ophiocordyceps species produce many pharmacologically active substances. They are now cultivated on an industrial scale for their medicinal value. However, no one succeeded so far growing the larva cum mushroom artificially. All artificial products are derived from mycellium grown on grains or in liquids.

According to Bensky et al. (2004), laboratory-grown C. sinensis mycelium has similar clinical efficacy and less associated toxicity. He notes a toxicity case of constipation, abdominal distension, and decreased peristalsis, two cases of irregular menstruation, and one case report of amenorrhea following ingestion of tablets or capsules containing C. sinensis. In Chinese medicine C. sinensis is considered sweet and warm, entering the lung and kidney channels; the typical dosage is 3–9 grams.

Caterpillar fungus research

Some work has been published in which Ophiocordyceps sinensis has been used to protect the bone marrow

Bone marrow

Bone marrow is the flexible tissue found in the interior of bones. In humans, bone marrow in large bones produces new blood cells. On average, bone marrow constitutes 4% of the total body mass of humans; in adults weighing 65 kg , bone marrow accounts for approximately 2.6 kg...

and digestive systems of mice

MICE

-Fiction:*Mice , alien species in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy*The Mice -Acronyms:* "Meetings, Incentives, Conferencing, Exhibitions", facilities terminology for events...

from whole body irradiation. An experiment noted Ophiocordyceps sinensis may protect the liver

Liver

The liver is a vital organ present in vertebrates and some other animals. It has a wide range of functions, including detoxification, protein synthesis, and production of biochemicals necessary for digestion...

from damage. An experiment with mice noted the mushroom may have an anti-depressant effect. Researchers have noted that the Caterpillar fungus has a hypoglycemic effect

Hypoglycemia

Hypoglycemia or hypoglycæmia is the medical term for a state produced by a lower than normal level of blood glucose. The term literally means "under-sweet blood"...

and may be beneficial for people with insulin resistance.

Caterpillar fungus's introduction to the Western world

The Western world was largely unaware of Ophiocordyceps prior to 1993. The fungus dramatically caught the world's eyes due to the performance of three female Chinese athletes, Wang Junxia

Wang Junxia

Wang Junxia is a Chinese former long-distance runner.-Career:Wang was coached by Ma Junren until 1995 and by Mao Dezhen from 1995 to her retirement after the 1996 Atlanta Olympics....

, Qu Yunxia

Qu Yunxia

Qu Yunxia is a Chinese Olympic athlete who specialized in the 1500 metres.At the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona she won a bronze medal on 1500 m. In 1993 she achieved the still standing world record in the 1500 metres at 3:50.46 minutes while running in the National Games of the People's...

, and Zhang Linli

Zhang Linli

Zhang Linli is a retired Chinese long-distance runner who set world class times in events ranging from 1500m up to the Marathon. She broke the world record in the woman's 3000 metres on September 12, 1993.-Achievements:-Personal bests:...

. These athletes broke 5 world records for 1,500, 3,000 and 10,000 meters at the National Games in Beijing

Beijing

Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

, China. The number of new world records being set at a single track event attracted much attention and suspicion. Following the races the women were expected by some to fail drug tests for anabolic steroids. However, the athletes' tests revealed no illegal substances, and coach Ma Junren

Ma Junren

Ma Junren is a famous Chinese track coach. He trained several world-class middle and long distance female runners including Wang Junxia and Qu Yunxia, who hold several world records...

told the reporters that the runners were taking Ophiocordyceps sinensis and turtle blood at his request. However for the Sydney Olympics, Ma Junren

Ma Junren

Ma Junren is a famous Chinese track coach. He trained several world-class middle and long distance female runners including Wang Junxia and Qu Yunxia, who hold several world records...

withdrew some of his athletes at the last minute. It was speculated that a new doping test would have revealed illegal doping, thus half a dozen Chinese field and track athletes were left at home.

Economics and impact

In rural Tibet

Tibet

Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...

, yartsa gunbu has developed to become the most important source of cash income. The fungi contributed 40% of the annual cash income to local households and 8.5% to the GDP in 2004. Prices have increased continuously, especially since the late 1990s. In 2008, one kilogram traded for US$3,000 (lowest quality) to over US$18,000 (best quality equalling the largest larvae). The annual production on the Tibetan Plateau is estimated at 100–200 tons. The Himalayan Ophiocordyceps production might not exceed a few tons.

In 2004 the value of a kilogram of caterpillars was estimated at about 30,000 to 60,000 Nepali rupees in Nepal, and about Rs 100,000 in India. In 2011 the value of a kilogram of caterpillars was estimated at about 350,000 to 450,000 Nepali rupees in Nepal.

According to Daniel Winkler, the price of Ophiocordyceps sinensis has risen dramatically on the Tibetan Plateau

Tibetan Plateau

, basically 900% between 1998 and 2008, an annual average of over 20% (after inflation). However, the value of big sized caterpillar fungus has increased more dramatically than smaller size Cordyceps, regarded as lower quality.

Year	% Price Increase	Price/kg (Yuan Chinese yuan The yuan is the base unit of a number of modern Chinese currencies. The yuan is the primary unit of account of the Renminbi.A yuán is also known colloquially as a kuài . One yuán is divided into 10 jiǎo or colloquially máo... )
1980s		1,800
1997	467% (incl. inflation)	8,400
2004	429% (incl. inflation)	36,000
2005		10,000–60,000

Because of its incredible value, inter-village conflicts over access to its grassland habitats has become a headache of the local governing bodies and in several cases people were killed. On the 15th of November, A court in Nepal convicted 19 villagers over the murder of a group of farmers during a fight over the prized aphrodisiac plant. Seven farmers were killed in the remote northern district of Manang in June 2009 after going to forage for Yarchagumba.
Its value gave it a role in the Nepalese Civil War, as the Nepalese Maoists and government forces fought for control of the lucrative export trade during the June–July harvest season. Collecting yarchagumba in Nepal had only been legalised in 2001, and now demand is highest in countries such as China, Thailand, Vietnam, Korea and Japan. By 2002, the herb was valued at R 105,000 ($1,435) per kilogram, allowing the government to charge a royalty of R 20,000 ($280) per kilogram.

The search for Ophiocordyceps sinensis is often perceived to pose a threat for the environment of the Tibetan Plateau

Tibetan Plateau

where it grows. While it has been collected for centuries and is still common in such collection areas, current collection rates are much higher than in historical times.

Ophiocordyceps producers like to perpetuate the story that unscrupulous harvesters insert twigs into the ascocarp

Ascocarp

An ascocarp, or ascoma , is the fruiting body of an ascomycete fungus. It consists of very tightly interwoven hyphae and may contain millions of asci, each of which typically contains eight ascospores...

s of wild C. sinensis to increase the weight and therefore the price paid. A tiny twig is only used when the ascocarp is broken from the caterpillar, and has nothing to do with weight increases. Supposedly at some point in the past, someone has inserted lead wires with which to increase weight; however, each year hundreds of millions of specimens are harvested and this appears to have been a one time occurrence.

Cultivated C. sinensis mycelium is an alternative to wild-harvested C. sinensis, and producers claim it may offer improved consistency. Artificial culture

Bio-fermentation technology

Bio-fermentation technology makes it possible to grow a number of fungi in large tanks and, in a matter of days, a large quantity can be produced. The technology has now become highly advanced and is making previously rare herbs like Cordyceps and Ganoderma much more accessible...

of C. sinensis is typically by growth of the pure mycelium in liquid culture (in China) or on grains (in the West). Ascocarps are not produced through in vitro cultivation.

External links

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Taxonomy and naming

Natural history

Traditional Asian medicines

Caterpillar fungus research

Caterpillar fungus's introduction to the Western world

Economics and impact

Further reading

External links