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

Huntsville, Ontario

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.

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?

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)

Jean-Marc Moncalvo
http://home.wanadoo.nl/abiemans/e_mycelium.html

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

x vo

Visible by the naked eye

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

Microfungi

x vo

Visible by the naked eye

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)

Wood decay brown-rot (top) and white-rot (bottom)

Litter decay

http://www.anbg.gov.au/

http://media.web.britannica.com/

What Fungi do?

Mutualists / symbionts

Mycorrhizal association with tree roots

(pic. from T. Bruns)

(pic. from D. Pegler)

Association with termite nests ; cultivated by leaf-cutter ants

What Fungi do?

Parasites / pathogens / predators

Nematode-trapping fungus
(pic. from G. Barron)
http://homesremedies.net/

Insect killers

Pathogens and allergens of animals (including humans)

http://www.davidmoore.org.uk/

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

Ancient uses of Fungi by humans

Fungi carried by the Iceman

http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/

Ancient uses of Fungi by humans

Fungi carried by the Iceman

Piptoporus betulinus http://www.mushroomexpert.com/

Ancient uses of Fungi by humans

Food & Drinks

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

http://canadasrock.ca/

http://bigfatwine.com/

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

http://www.popsci.com/

Ancient uses of Fungi by humans

http://upload.wikimedia.org/

Traditional medicine: e.g., Ganoderma

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

Blockbusters modern fungal drugs

Penicillin, from Penicillium

Pics from K. Seifert

Cyclosporin, etc

Fungi and Humans :

Friends and Foes

Fungi for Food, Health and Wellness

Some 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? NO
Only 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 dont 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, anticancer 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