Comment · Mon, January 15, 2018 · Ceretropic & Nootropics Depot
Unexpected Nephrotoxicity in Male Ablactated Rats Induced by Cordyceps militaris: The Involvement of Oxidative Changes
What they were answering
edefakiel · 2 points
I have already commented about the dose. It is fairly high, but what about the 10:1 and 20:1 extracts we have seen out there. They used "powder", I don't exactly know the quality of that source, but tritured CM isn't probably very bioavailable. Are extracts safer, are extracts less safe? Is this toxicity mediated by a large increase in androgens, as you suggested? I think that it is a very interesting research.
Cordyceps is one of the most interesting and potent substances, I have taken a lot of yours and I have written about its effects on HIF-1, noone found it interesting.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nootropics/comments/7ab7q2/cordyceps_and_hif1/
u/MisterYouAreSoDumb · Ceretropic & Nootropics Depot
The powder they use seems to be similar as our 1:1. The .2% cordycepin matches what ours has. However, the dosages are insanely high; and even so, only the two highest doses showed the side effect. Also, this is in rats. I used the standard dose conversion, but even that is likely low. 2-3 grams per kilogram is an insane dose for anything. We need to be careful putting more weight on the results than we should. If anything, this study shows me that I can take up to 13 grams a day without issue, and that it positively affects cholesterol and male hormones when taken at reasonable dosages. Also, there are conflicting studies showing that cordycepin actually HELPS antioxidant systems.
In conclusion, considering the data obtained from various parameters, our study indicates that the administration of cordycepin protects the liver, kidneys, heart and lungs of aged rats from oxidative stress by reducing the intensity of lipid peroxidation and by enhancing the activities of enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants.
And another: Cordycepin prevents oxidative stress-induced inhibition of osteogenesis
It has been reported that cordycepin can protect against estrogen deficiency-induced osteoporosis in OVX rats [24]. Another study showed that cordycepin can prevent hearts from ischemia/reperfusion injury via activation of Akt/GSK-3b/p70S6K pathways and HO-1 expression, an antioxidant enzyme, in rat hearts [15]. Additionally, cordycepin has been reported to exert neuroprotective effects by inhibiting glutamate-induced oxidative apoptosis in HT22 cells [14]. Our results showed that co-treatment with cordycepin significantly promoted osteogenesis by reducing production of ROS induced by H2O2 exposure in BM-MSCs. However, treatment with cordycepin alone did not have effects, demonstrating that cordycepin can exert osteoprotective effects in the presence of excess oxidative stress.
So the study is interesting, but can't really be translated to normal dosages in humans. It's certainly nothing I am concerned about, given the data.