Several attempts of Chinese intrusion into Indian territory were to collect Cordyceps, also known as caterpillar fungus or the Himalayan Gold, an expensive herbal drug in China, according to the Indo-Pacific Centre for Strategic Communications (IPCSC).
China looking for medicinal 'fungus'
Chinese soldiers have been accused of illegally entering Arunachal Pradesh in search of the fungus which is claimed to be costlier than gold in China.
Cordyceps is mainly found in the Indian Himalayas and at higher altitudes of the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau in southwestern China.
Globally, in 2022, the Cordyceps market has been valued at USD 1,072.50 million. China is the largest producer as well as exporter of Cordyceps.
What is it?
According to the National Library of Medicine, cordyceps, scientifically known as Cordyceps sinensis, is a unique hybrid of a caterpillar and a fungus.
The Latin words for club and head are the source of the name Cordyceps.
According to DNA, it is brown in colour and can grow to a length of two inches.
The fungus, which is parasitic in nature and consumes more than 90% of the diseased insect, effectively turns its victim into a mummy.
It measures between 300 and 500 milligrammes.
Why is it valuable?
Because of its alleged health advantages.
The Week reports that An Ocean of Aphrodisiacal Qualities, a Tibetan medical literature from the 15th century, may have been the first to discuss its advantages.
According to Healthline, traditional Chinese medicine has long advised using insect and fungal remains to cure weariness, illness, kidney disease, and poor sex drive.
It is recommended by locals and traditional healers in Sikkim for 21 different illnesses.
According to Very Well Health, it is believed to provide the following advantages when used as a supplement:
-Improved athletic performance
- Enhanced immunity
- Lessened inflammatory
- Better heart health
- Reduce blood sugar levels in type 2 diabetics.
- Scientists are quite optimistic about the bioactive chemical cordycepin found in cordyceps, despite the fact that health professionals are yet unsure of its benefits.
Why is China looking for it now?
Surveys show that the annual Cordyceps harvest has declined. This according to the collectors, can be attributed to overharvesting.
According to IPCSC: "Some towns in the Himalayas rely on collecting and selling this fungus for a living. In fact, experts say that up to 80 percent of household income in the Tibetan Plateau and Himalayas can come from selling caterpillar fungus." The Cordyceps mushroom is well known for its gruesome eating habits: it is well-known that its spores kill insects by infecting them, and the dead insects' flesh sprouts fully developed fruiting bodies of the Cordyceps fungus.
The bioactive molecule cordycepin found in cordyceps has great therapeutic potential and may one day be turned into an effective new antiviral and anti-cancer treatment.
The mushrooms are rare in the wild, and up until now, growing healthy Cordyceps in the lab has been difficult, hindering scientific research.
However, Professor Mi Kyeong Lee of Chungbuk National University and her team, including Dr Ayman Turk, have discovered a way to grow these elusive fungi in a controlled environment without losing their potency. Their findings are published in Frontiers in Microbiology.
(With inputs from ANI)
