Acute and Subchronic Toxicity of Dusky-Skinned Mushroom, Amauroderma rude (Agaricomycetes).

Our earlier work indicated that Amauroderma rude seems to have an effect on immunoregulation and tumor inhibition. However, its toxicity is not yet clear. The aim of this work is to demonstrate the acute and subchronic toxicity of A. rude in order to provide a scientific basis for its possible use as a food. The acute toxicity study (involving mice) showed that the median lethal dose of the A. rude extract was >15,000 mg/kg. In the repeated-dose 90-day oral toxicity study (involving rats), the administration of A. rude extract at 0.1 (AR0.1), 0.2 (AR0.2), and 0.4 g (AR0.4) per rat produced no significant difference in food or water consumption or changes in body weight, hematological parameters, biochemical parameters, relative organ weights, organ coefficients, or histopathology compared with the control group. Analyses of these results with data from monitoring the appearance, behavior, and health of the animals indicate that the oral administration of A. rude extract daily for 90 days does not cause subchronic toxicity.