This herb means the complex of Cordyceps fungus Cordyceps sinensis (Berk.) Sacc. parasitizing in the stroma or corpse of the insect larva in the family Hepialidae. That’s to say, once the Cordyceps fungus locates the right host, it would launch an attack on it. As a result, in the end the host tissue will be totally superseded by the mycelium. It is a common sense that this herb belongs to a specific genus of ascomycete fungi, or sac fungi for short, in which there are approximately 400 known species. However, the latest finding by nuclear DNA sampling in the year of 2007 indicated Cordyceps sinensis has nothing to do with most species in this genus. Hence, it was given a new name of Ophiocordyceps sinensis and classified into the new family of Ophiocordycipitaceae. Even so, the traditional name of Cordyceps is still widely used for all ordinary needs.

It has quite a few different common names in different languages, such as yartsa gunbu in Tibet, yarsha gumba in Nepalese, caterpillar fungus in English, Dong Chong Xia Cao in Chinese, and so on. Medicinally besides of Cordyceps fungus Cordyceps sinensis (Berk.) Sacc., the sporocarp and polypide of Cordyceps militaris (L.) Link. can also be used as medicine. In China, Cordyceps mushroom is mainly produced in the upstream of Jinsha, Lancang and Nujiang rivers. Its habitats stretch eastward to Liangshan Mountain in Sichuan province, westward to Pulan County in Tibet, northward to Minshan Mountain in Gansu Province, and southward to Himalayas and the Dragon Snow Mountain in Yunnan Province. And the Cordyceps production output from Tibet accounts for about 40%, from Sichuan about 40%, and from Yunnan and Qinghai about 10% respectively.

It is composed of the insect body and the connected fungal stroma that grows from the insect head. The former part looks like silkworm, 3 to 5cm long, and 0.3 to 0.8cm wide. Surface is from deep yellow to yellow-brown, and with 20 to 30 rings, in which the ones closer to the head are smaller. Head is reddish brown. Feet are 8 pairs, in which the central 4 pairs are more obvious. It is brittle, easily broken, with yellowish white, slightly flat cross section. Stroma is pliable and tough, slender and cylindrical, 4 to 7cm long, about 0.3cm in diameter, and with a slightly swollen upper part and an off-white cross section. Stroma surface is from dark brown to sepia, and with fine longitudinal wrinkles. It has the slight smell of fish and bitter taste.

Main chemical constituents include 25.32% crude protein, 8.4% fat, cordycepic acid (D-mannitol), vitamin A, C, B12, nicotinic acid, nicotinic amide, ergosterol, uracil, adenine, adenine nucleoside, ergosterol peroxide, cholesteryl palmitate, water-soluble polysaccharide (galactomannan), many trace elements, alkaloids, and so on. And recent experiment on isolating the stroma part obtained amino acids, mannitol, hypoxantine nucleoside, thymine, uracil, and a small amount of mixture of guanine and hypoxanthine. In addition, from the insect body part it got amino acids, mannitol, hypoxanthine, guanine, adenine and adenosine.

Cordyceps sinensis

As mentioned at the start, this herb is a well-known Chinese tonic herb and its price is pretty steep. As a result, many similar species are mixed, consciously or unconsciously, with the genuine. And the main counterfeits include Cordyceps militaris(L.) Link, Cordyceps Hawkesii Gray, Cordyceps liangshanensis Zang, Liu et Hu, Cordyceps sp., Cordyceps ramosa Tenu, Stachys geobombycis C. Y. Wu., Stachys sieboidii Miq., and so on. So, extreme care should be taken to identify them when you are buying Cordyceps.

CORDYCEPS SINENSIS BENEFITS 
More and more its magic effects have been discovered by modern science. And it is said that this herb is able to help testosterone, blood pressure, Diabetes, fertility, and more. On the whole, this amazing herb not only regulates the function of various internal organs of the body but also directly resists viral attacks.

MODERN PHARMACOLOGICAL ACTIONS 
1. It has sedative, anticonvulsant, cooling and other effects on central nervous system;
2. It strengthens humoral immune function;
3. Cordyceps extract by water and alcohol can inhibit the growth of mouse tumors like sarcoma;
4. Its fermentation broth can resist the ST-T changes of myocardial ischemia in rabbits;
5. It protects, to some degrees, the rats from irritable myocardial infarction;
6. Its water extract can significantly protect rats from acute kidney failure.