Abstract
Wild growing mushrooms are enriched with numerous nutrients that ensure its potent nutritional value. The present study aims to estimate the nutritional profiling of three indigenous wild mushrooms viz., Boletus bubalinus, Phlebopus marginatus, and Scleroderma verrucosum collected from the Western Ghats of Karnataka, India. Sporomas of each mushroom were collected and analyzed for their proximate chemical composition (moisture, proteins, carbohydrates, fat, fiber and ash) major and minor mineral elements (N, P, K, Ca, Fe, Mg, Mn, Cu, Zn) and heavy metal contents(Pb, Cd, Cr, Ni) on dry weight basis. All the studied mushrooms showed that all the three species are rich in protein content ranging from 13.45%, 12.34% and 10.53% in S. Verrucosum, B. Bubalinus and P. marginatus respectively. The fat content was found to be low in three mushrooms (0.29 - 2.03%). The highest energetic contribution was observed by S. Verrucosum (250.55Kcal/100 g). However the highest fiber content was observed in S. verrucosum (27.01%). Nitrogen (N), potassium (K) and phosphorus (P) are the most abundant minerals in analyzed samples. Boletus bubalinus showed higher concentration of N (6.79%) and K (2.05%), whereas Mg (0.16%) and Ca (0.37%) content was high in S. verrucosum. These wild mushrooms were also assessed for their trace elements (Fe, Mn, Zn and Cu). Amongst these Fe (584.0 ˗ 326.50ppm) and Zn (78.05 ˗ 44.00ppm) was found to be higher in all the three mushrooms. Heavy metals (Ni, Pb, Cr, Cd) concentration was analysed by atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS) and found to be highest in P. marginatus (1.30 – 6.25ppm) and S. Verrucosum shows lower amount of heavy metals (1.90 – 2.45ppm). Hence, the three collected wild mushroom species showed huge nutrients specifying its use as excellent foods for low caloric diet.