Ma Bo
StarLasiosphaera fenzlii Reich., Calvatia gigantea (Batsch ex Pers.) Lloyd, or Calvatia lilacina (Mont. et Berk.) Lloyd
Traditionally used for
- Nose & throat
- Cough & breathing
- Skin
Cautions & contraindications
- Bleeding disorders
☯ TCM Properties
Clears Lung Heat; Resolves Toxicity; Benefits the Throat; Stops Bleeding
Traditional Chinese Uses
Ma Bo (puffball fungus) is a neutral herb used primarily to clear Lung Heat toxin from the throat and respiratory tract. It is a leading herb for pharyngitis, tonsillitis, laryngitis, and hoarseness associated with Lung Heat — conditions where swelling, pain, and redness indicate toxic Heat. Applied externally as a powder, it stops bleeding from minor wounds. It is commonly used topically for epistaxis and skin lacerations.
Western Herbalism Properties
Relationships
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Botanical Description
Ma Bo is the dried mature fruiting body of one of several large puffball fungi, principally Lasiosphaera fenzlii, Calvatia gigantea (giant puffball), or Calvatia lilacina, in the family Lycoperdaceae (Agaricales). These saprotrophic basidiomycetes grow on rich soil and grassland after summer rains across temperate Eurasia and North America, producing globose to pear-shaped fruiting bodies 5–50 cm or more across with a smooth white peridium that splits and weathers away to expose a brown spongy mass of spores (gleba) and thread-like capillitium at maturity. The whole mature fruiting body is collected in late summer when the gleba is fully brown and dusty, then trimmed of soil and dried. In Chinese medicine the spore-bearing mass is pungent and neutral, clearing heat from the lung and throat, dispersing wind-heat, and stopping bleeding from external wounds and epistaxis.
Active Constituents
Ergosterol
Fungal sterolConcentration: Differs greatly between the three official species: about 0.0099% in Lasiosphaera fenzlii, 0.0502% in Calvatia lilacina and 0.0123-0.1503% in Calvatia gigantea, a spread of more than an order of magnitude. It is concentrated in the hyphae and cortex rather than in the spores.
The primary sterol of the drug and, with ergosterone, its principal HPLC quality-control marker. The wide species-to-species difference in ergosterol content is the clearest evidence that the three fungi accepted as Ma Bo are not chemically interchangeable.
Ergosterol peroxide (5alpha,8alpha-epidioxy-ergosta-6,22-dien-3beta-ol)
Steroid endoperoxideConcentration: Isolated from the methanol extract of the Lasiosphaera fenzlii fruiting body; not quantified as a percentage.
The cytotoxic principle identified in Lasiosphaera fenzlii. It and the related 5alpha,8alpha-epidioxy-ergosta-6,9(11),22-trien-3beta-ol were the only cytotoxic compounds among six isolated, and ergosterol peroxide was selectively cytotoxic to cancer rather than normal cells. It also increased intracellular accumulation of paclitaxel in cancer cells but not normal cells, synergising paclitaxel cytotoxicity in HeLa cells.
Ergosterone
Fungal sterol ketoneConcentration: Predominates in the spores and capillitium, the reverse of ergosterol's distribution in the fruiting body.
The second official chemical marker used alongside ergosterol in HPLC quality control. Its concentration in spores and capillitium is directly relevant to the topical and insufflated preparations, which consist largely of that spore mass.
Mature spore mass (gleba and capillitium)
Fungal spore aerosolConcentration: The bulk of the dried drug in Lasiosphaera fenzlii, which is dispensed as the powdery spore mass rather than a firm fruiting body.
A route-specific hazard rather than an active constituent. Ma Bo is applied topically and blown into the throat, so aerosolised spores are inhaled by design. Mature spores of Calvatia gigantea can act as airborne allergens and trigger type I hypersensitivity, and the wider puffball literature documents lycoperdonosis, an acute hypersensitivity pneumonitis after heavy spore inhalation, in humans and in dogs. The published human outbreak involved eight adolescents in Wisconsin who deliberately inhaled Lycoperdon perlatum spores; the exposure needed is far greater than a clinical insufflation, but the mechanism is the same one.
Phenolic acids (p-hydroxybenzoic, p-coumaric, protocatechuic and caffeic acids)
Phenolic acidConcentration: Present across the official species; individual contents low and not standardised.
The antioxidant fraction of the drug, contributing to the anti-inflammatory action underlying the traditional heat-clearing and swelling-reducing indications.
Calvacin and Calvatia gigantea polysaccharide (CGP)
Antitumour polysaccharide and polysaccharide-peptideConcentration: Not standardised; polysaccharide yield varies with species and extraction.
The macromolecular fraction, considered with the sterols to be the major bioactive group of the drug. Calvacin is the historically named antitumour principle of Calvatia; the related peptide WLIP, from Lasiosphaera fenzlii, has antitumour activity and induces cell cycle arrest through PPAR-gamma-associated pathways.
⚠ Drug Interactions
Anticoagulants and antiplatelet drugs (warfarin, apixaban, rivaroxaban, heparin, aspirin, clopidogrel)
Ma Bo is a haemostatic drug and its pharmacology matches the claim. Crude extract significantly changes the coagulation panel, altering prothrombin time, activated partial thromboplastin time, thrombin time and fibrinogen, and activates both the intrinsic and extrinsic coagulation pathways; it also promotes platelet aggregation through PI3K/Akt/GSK3beta signalling. That is a procoagulant profile working through more than one mechanism, so it acts against both anticoagulants and antiplatelet agents. The evidence is preclinical and no human coagulation study exists.
Clinical note: Do not use internally in a patient on therapeutic anticoagulation without monitoring; check the INR within a week of starting or stopping if the patient is on warfarin. Topical use on a bleeding surface is the traditional application and carries much less systemic concern. Stop before surgery in line with usual herb-cessation practice.
Antidiabetic drugs (insulin, sulfonylureas, metformin)
Blood-sugar lowering is among the modern activities reported for this drug, and Calvatia gigantea has been evaluated in vivo and in vitro as an antidiabetic agent after molecular identification of the fungus. The work is in animal models and the active fraction is not defined, so the size of any effect at a clinical dose of the dried drug is unknown. Note also that the antidiabetic work was done on Calvatia gigantea and not on Lasiosphaera fenzlii.
Clinical note: No routine action needed. If a diabetic patient takes Ma Bo internally over weeks rather than days, ask them to monitor glucose more closely at the start.
Paclitaxel
Ergosterol peroxide isolated from Lasiosphaera fenzlii synergised the cytotoxicity of paclitaxel in HeLa cells by increasing intracellular paclitaxel accumulation, and did so selectively in cancer cells rather than normal cells. This is a purified compound at experimental concentrations in cell culture; nothing establishes that a dose of the crude drug reaches the concentrations involved, and whether the interaction would be beneficial or harmful in a patient is not known.
Clinical note: Do not combine herbal Ma Bo with taxane chemotherapy on the strength of this finding, and do not present it to patients as a way to boost chemotherapy. Flag any concurrent use to the treating oncologist.
Substitution among the three Pharmacopoeia species: Lasiosphaera fenzlii, Calvatia gigantea and Calvatia lilacina
Ma Bo is not one organism. The Chinese Pharmacopoeia accepts the dried fruiting bodies of Lasiosphaera fenzlii, Calvatia gigantea and Calvatia lilacina under a single entry, and these are taxonomically distinct species that current authors say need multi-locus phylogenetic analysis combined with micromorphology to tell apart. Their chemistry differs correspondingly: ergosterol ranges from 0.0099% in Lasiosphaera fenzlii to 0.1503% at the top of the Calvatia gigantea range. The pharmacological literature is likewise split by species, with the cytotoxic sterol work done on Lasiosphaera fenzlii, the diabetic wound-healing and antidiabetic work on Calvatia gigantea, and the breast cancer work on Calvatia lilacina.
Clinical note: When a monograph, a study or a supplier says Ma Bo, establish which fungus is meant. DNA barcoding using ITS sequences, plus HPLC of ergosterol and ergosterone, is the current authentication standard, and TLC alone is not sufficient.
Dosage
| Form | Amount | Frequency | Duration | Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| decoction | 2–6 g | Daily | — | — | 中国药典 2020 【用法与用量】2～6g。外用适量，敷患处。 【性味与归经】辛，平。归肺经。 — Chinese Pharmacopoeia 2020, quoted verbatim; route and cautions preserved. Replaces a cleared category-filler value. |
Evidence Tier
Moderate evidence · 6 studiesRecorded studies by study design, strongest design at the top. This is a study-design tier only, not a GRADE rating: it does not weigh risk of bias, consistency or precision.
Systematic review / meta-analysis
0
Randomized controlled trial
0
Other clinical trial
0
Observational / case report
0
In vitro / animal
6
0 verified · 6 unverified
Show 6 studies
- Cytotoxic constituents of Lasiosphaera fenzlii on different cell lines and the synergistic effects with paclitaxel
- WLIP derived from Lasiosphaera fenzlii Reich exhibits anti-tumor activity and induces cell cycle arrest through PPAR-γ associated pathways
- Reshaped commensal wound microbiome via topical application of Calvatia gigantea extract contributes to faster diabetic wound healing
- Calvatia Lilacina Extracts Exert Anti-Breast-Cancer Bioactivity through the Apoptosis Induction Dependent on Mitochondrial Reactive Oxygen Species and Caspase Activation
- Extract of Calvatia gigantea inhibits proliferation of A549 human lung cancer cells
- Molecular identification, in vivo and in vitro activities of Calvatia gigantea (macro-fungus) as an antidiabetic agent
Other / unclassified
0
Verified: design read from PubMed for a DOI that resolves to the cited paper Unverified: taken from the study's recorded description
Clinical Studies
Cytotoxic constituents of Lasiosphaera fenzlii on different cell lines and the synergistic effects with paclitaxel
Column chromatography of the methanol extract of the Lasiosphaera fenzlii fruiting body yielded six compounds: two ergosterol endoperoxides, three other ergostane sterols and an isoindolinone. Only the two peroxides were cytotoxic, and ergosterol peroxide was selectively cytotoxic to cancer cells. It synergised paclitaxel cytotoxicity in HeLa cells by raising intracellular paclitaxel accumulation in cancer but not in normal cells. This is the species-specific chemistry of Ma Bo proper, as distinct from the Calvatia literature.
WLIP derived from Lasiosphaera fenzlii Reich exhibits anti-tumor activity and induces cell cycle arrest through PPAR-γ associated pathways
Characterises WLIP, a protein isolated from Lasiosphaera fenzlii, showing antitumour activity and cell cycle arrest mediated through PPAR-gamma-associated pathways. Together with the sterol work this supplies the mechanistic basis for the polypeptide fraction being counted among the drug's major bioactive constituents.
Reshaped commensal wound microbiome via topical application of Calvatia gigantea extract contributes to faster diabetic wound healing
Topical Calvatia gigantea extract accelerated diabetic wound healing by reshaping the commensal wound microbiome. This is the strongest modern support for the traditional topical use of Ma Bo on sores and non-healing surfaces, and it is worth noting that the route tested here, topical application, matches the traditional one. Species used was Calvatia gigantea, not Lasiosphaera fenzlii.
Calvatia Lilacina Extracts Exert Anti-Breast-Cancer Bioactivity through the Apoptosis Induction Dependent on Mitochondrial Reactive Oxygen Species and Caspase Activation
Extracts of Calvatia lilacina induced apoptosis in breast cancer cells through mitochondrial reactive oxygen species and caspase activation. One of the three species-specific strands of antitumour work on Ma Bo, and the only one on Calvatia lilacina.
Extract of Calvatia gigantea inhibits proliferation of A549 human lung cancer cells
Calvatia gigantea extract inhibited proliferation of A549 human lung cancer cells. Included because it is one of the few studies using a species that is officially Ma Bo, though the material was collected in Turkey where Calvatia gigantea is a food and not a Chinese medicinal supply chain.
Molecular identification, in vivo and in vitro activities of Calvatia gigantea (macro-fungus) as an antidiabetic agent
Molecularly identified Calvatia gigantea and tested it in vivo and in vitro as an antidiabetic agent, which is the source of the blood-sugar-lowering activity attributed to Ma Bo in modern summaries. The species is one of the three official sources but not the Lasiosphaera fenzlii that most Chinese material consists of.
Historical Texts
Ming Yi Bie Lu
Han to Southern and Northern dynasties, roughly 220-500 CEChinese Pharmacopoeia (Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo Yaodian)
Modern, current editionsReferences
- Wang C, Li Z. A Review on the Botany, Phytochemical Constituents, Pharmacological Activities, Toxicology, and Quality Control of the Medicinal Fungus Lasiosphaera calvatia . Molecules (2026) [DOI]
- Cicha-Jeleń M, Muszynska B, Kala K, Sulkowska-Ziaja K. Medicinal Potential of the Giant Puffball Mushroom Calvatia gigantea (Agaricomycetes): A Review . International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms (2024) [DOI]
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Respiratory Illness Associated With Inhalation of Mushroom Spores—Wisconsin, 1994 . JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association (1994) [DOI]
- Henriksen NT. LYCOPERDONOSIS . Acta Paediatrica (1976) [DOI]
This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before using any herbal remedy, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking medications.
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