Pellegrino R, Gravina AG. Potential of traditional Chinese medicine in gastrointestinal disorders: Hericium erinaceus in chronic atrophic gastritis. World J Gastroenterol 2025; 31(20): 106615 [DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v31.i20.106615]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Raffaele Pellegrino, MD, Division of Hepatogastroenterology, Department of Precision Medicine, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Via L. de Crecchio, Naples 80138, Campania, Italy. raffaele.pellegrino@unicampania.it
Research Domain of This Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Article-Type of This Article
Letter to the Editor
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Gastroenterol. May 28, 2025; 31(20): 106615 Published online May 28, 2025. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v31.i20.106615
Potential of traditional Chinese medicine in gastrointestinal disorders: Hericium erinaceus in chronic atrophic gastritis
Raffaele Pellegrino, Antonietta Gerarda Gravina
Raffaele Pellegrino, Antonietta Gerarda Gravina, Division of Hepatogastroenterology, Department of Precision Medicine, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Naples 80138, Campania, Italy
Author contributions: Pellegrino R and Gravina AG collected the literature, wrote the initial manuscript, conceptualized the table and the figure, and the structure of the text, critically revised the manuscript for important intellectual content, and read and approved the final version.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Raffaele Pellegrino, MD, Division of Hepatogastroenterology, Department of Precision Medicine, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Via L. de Crecchio, Naples 80138, Campania, Italy. raffaele.pellegrino@unicampania.it
Received: March 3, 2025 Revised: March 26, 2025 Accepted: April 11, 2025 Published online: May 28, 2025 Processing time: 86 Days and 21.1 Hours
Abstract
Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been extensively explored with various naturally derived compounds as a potential therapeutic agent for chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG). In addition to the aspects discussed in the reviewed article, this invited commentary explores the initial available evidence on a fungus from TCM, Hericium erinaceus, in the context of CAG. Initial clinical data suggest the potential of this fungus in inducing clinical and histological improvements in patients with CAG, as well as a marked antimicrobial activity against Helicobacter pylori infection. Preclinical cellular evidence also indicates an antineoplastic role in gastric carcinogenesis, mediated by two components: Erinacine A and S. Further evidence is needed to propose this fungus as a potential complementary therapeutic approach for CAG.
Core Tip: Hericium erinaceus, a medicinal fungus in traditional Chinese medicine, has shown potential in chronic atrophic gastritis. Evidence suggests its anti-inflammatory, anti-Helicobacter pylori, and antineoplastic effects against gastric cancer, underlining its possible role as a complementary therapeutic option for gastrointestinal disorders, including gastric cancer prevention.
