Abstract
For centuries, Ganoderma has been used as a traditional medicine in Asian countries to prevent and treat various diseases. Numerous publications are stating that Ganoderma species have a variety of beneficial medicinal properties, and investigations on different metabolic regulations of Ganoderma species, extracts or isolated compounds have been performed both in vitro and in vivo. However, it has frequently been questioned whether Ganoderma is simply a dietary supplement for health or just a useful "medication" for restorative purposes. More than 600 chemical compounds including alkaloids, meroterpenoids, nucleobases, nucleosides, polysaccharides, proteins, steroids and triterpenes were extracted and identified from Ganoderma, with triterpenes serving as the primary components. In recent years, Ganoderma triterpenes and other small molecular constituents have aroused the interest of chemists and pharmacologists. Meanwhile, considering the significance of the triterpene constituents in the development of new drugs, this review describes 495 compounds from 25 Ganoderma species published between 1984 and 2022, commenting on their source, biosynthetic pathway, identification, biological activities and biosynthesis, together with applications of advanced analytical techniques to the characterization of Ganoderma triterpenoids.