Arginine – an essential amino acid found in Ganoderma species from Northern Nigeria

Introduction: The wild Ganoderma spp. is a mushroom found growing in most forest of Nigeria, and was analysed for elemental constituents and for the amino acid- arginine, using 0.5 g of the digested wild Ganoderma sp. Method: The sample was analyzed against a blank using fluorescent atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) in triplicate. It was analyzed for concentration of elements such as iron (Fe), calcium (Ca) potassium (K), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), manganese Mn), cobalt Co), magnesium (Mg), chromium (Cr), lead (Pb) and the essential amino acid-arginine (Ag). Results: Findings revealed the presence of the analyzed selected elements and the arginine in various concentrations, thus explains the acronym “fungal biofactory” of this mushroom. Significance: it was concluded that arginine content found in Ganoderma species is an important amino acid that provide the requirements needed for the synthesis of pharmacologically bioactive phytochemicals found in the Ganoderma species, and its medicinal usefulness should be explored.