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Longevity vitamin: Ergothioneine

Ergothioneine (EGT) is a naturally occurring amino acid, and in 1909, Charles Tanret, while 

studying the ergot fungus that destroys rye grains, isolated a unique crystalline sulfur-containing 

compound, which was subsequently named ergothioneine. In 1911, Barger and Ewins determined

its structure and found that ergothionein was a derivative of histidine betaine.

Studies have linked ergothione to active substances that fight healthy aging and age-related

diseases, leading Bruce Ames, professor emeritus of biochemistry and molecular biology at 

the University of California, Berkeley, to call it the "longevity vitamin." Its anti-aging mechanism

 mainly has the following four points [2] :

1) Antioxidant effect: EGT is an effective free radical scavenger, EGT can directly remove a

variety of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and active nitrogen (RNS), including singlet oxygen,

superoxide anions, hydroxyl radicals, etc., to reduce their damage to cell components.

2) Maintain genomic stability: ergothione can directly absorb light in the ultraviolet range, 

and can repair DNA in cells irradiated by ultraviolet light, and is a physiological protective

agent against ROS generation and damage caused by ultraviolet light.

3) Influence epigenetic modification: EGT may indirectly affect DNA and RNA methylation

and histone modification by affecting REDOX states within cells.

4) Regulation of Sirttuin pathway: Sirttuin is a class of NAD+ dependent deacetylase. EGT

interacts with Sirttuin pathway to regulate senescence. EGT can protect endothelial cells

from senescence caused by high glucose treatment, and plays a role by up-regulating

SIRT1 and SIRT6.

There are three ways to obtain ergothionein, mushroom extraction, chemical synthesis

and synthetic biology, among which synthetic biology fermentation is the most popular 

method at present. In 2014, ergothione was officially included in the "Catalogue of Used 

Cosmetic Raw Materials" by the State Drug Administration, and with its excellent 

antioxidant properties, ergothione has gradually become a major ingredient in the skin 

care industry. At present, ergothione is applying as a new food raw material, indicating

that it will achieve cross-industry application expansion in the field of domestic food 

and functional food.