Detection of Taurine in Basidiomycetes

Taurine is one of the essential amino acids for humans and many of mammals. It is produced and contained in fleshes, shells, plants and algae, but has never been found in fungi. We examined six mushrooms for taurine and detected taurine in five of them. Taurine was determined by an automated amino acid analyzer using ion-exchange chromatography, being eluted between phosphoserine as a distinct peak on the chromatogram. Fruit bodies of Flammulina velutipes contained $83\mu$moles/100g fresh wt. the highest level among them, Agaricus bisporos $65\mu$moles, Lentinus edodes $49\mu$moles, Pleurotus ostreatus $9\mu$moles, and Auricularia auricula-judae $20\mu$moles. Taurine was not detected in Ganoderma lucidum. As far as fungi are concerned, this is the first report of the detection of taurine in Basidiomyces.