ABSTRACT
Cultivated as well as wild edible mushrooms have drawn major attention worldwide as potential sources of bioactive substances with health-promoting benefits. Edible mushrooms possess low fat and low calorie diet with abundant carbohydrates, proteins, dietary fibre and vitamins. Soluble sugars and organic acids in mushrooms are known for their organoleptic qualities. Soluble sugars in mushrooms possess therapeutic and commercial significance. Harvested fruit bodies of mushrooms from three different sites in cool packs were transferred to the laboratory for processing. The total carbohydrates were estimated by phenol-sulphuric acid method for water soluble polysaccharides and ethanolic fractions. Antioxidant potential of water and ethanol fractions of polysaccharides were determined based on the ferrous ion-chelating capacity, the DPPH radical-scavenging activity and the reducing power.
