Submerged Fermentation and Characterization of Lentinus tigrinus Mycelial Biomass for Functional Juice Development

The establishment of sustainable substrates for mushroom cultivation and functional food production remains an important challenge in biotechnology and food science.Although Lentinus tigrinus (Bull.)Fr. is a native edible mushroom in the Philippines, studies on the submerged cultivation of its mycelia using low-cost agricultural substrates remain limited.In this study, we have reported the utilization of tropical fruit for the submerged cultivation of L. tigrinus and assessed the biological activities of its mycelia as well as the development of a functional juice.Among the substrates, culture media containing 25% Indian mango (Mangifera indica) puree supported the highest mycelial biomass yield of L. tigrinus (2381.82mg 100 mL -1 ).Biomass production further increased under optimized conditions, reaching up to 4155.70 mg 100 mL -1 at pH 7, 30°C, under light exposure with agitation at 100 rpm.The mycelial extract exhibited notable antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities with 48% and 54% inhibition, respectively, while only minimal inhibitory effects were observed against α-glucosidase and acetylcholinesterase. Functional juice with 20% L. tigrinus mycelia was the most acceptable formulation providing measurable levels of ash, carbohydrates, protein, and dietary fiber.These findings demonstrate that Indian mango fruit is a promising and sustainable substrate for L. tigrinus cultivation and highlight the potential application of its mycelia in functional beverage development.