Analysis of Influence of Environmental Conditions on Ganoderic Acid Content: in Ganoderma lucidum Using Orthogonal Design

The influence of environmental conditions on the ganoderic acid (GA) content in the fungus Ganoderma lucidum was investigated using a one-factor-at-a-time design and orthogonal design. Among the various medium components examined, sucrose, soybean powder or peptone, ferrous sulfate, and pH 6.0 were the most suitable carbon source (factor A), nitrogen source (factor B), mineral source (factor C), and initial pH (factor D), respectively, for the GA content in the one-factor-at-a-time design. According to the orthogonal design, the order of effect for the four factors on the GA content was A>C>D>B. The best level of factor A was $A_2$ (sucrose) with a value of +0.34 mg/100 mg DW. The optimal treatment combination was $A_2B_1C_3D_1$ with which the GA content reached up to 2.63$\pm$0.011 mg/100 mg DW. The interactions between the mineral ion and the nitrogen source, and the mineral ion and the pH were both highly significant (P<0.01). The highest interaction effect was ($B_2{\times}D_2$) with a value of +0.19 mg/100 mg DW, which was higher than the level effect value for $B_2$ (peptone) and D$_2$ (pH 5.0). Therefore, the results proved that interactions between factors cannot be ignored. The results also indicated the importance of the interactions between the factors, which may help to understand the metabolic pathway leading to triterpene biosynthesis and the expression and regulation of the key enzymes involved.