ABSTRACT
Morchella esculenta is a highly prized edible fungus with a honeycomb look due to the network of ridges with pits that compose their caps and a shorter stem. In the Indian scenario, it is renowned as a True morel, Sponge morel, or Gucchi. It belongs to the Morchellaceae family, the Pezizales order, and the Ascomycetes class. False morels, a very deadly fungus that resembles actual morels, are frequently disoriented with it. Although it is distributed globally, the Northern Hemisphere has most of it. The Indian Himalayan region is where it is most frequently found. The six main types of real morels found in the Himalayas are Morchella crassipes, M. deliciosa, M. esculenta, M. conica, M. angusticeps, and M. hybrida. M. esculenta is the only one of these which exhibits medicative features. Different institutions around the globe, such as universities, colleges, and research institutions collaborating with private and public ventures, have been actively engaged in M. esculenta research regarding its pharmaceutical and biochemical significance. Due to the presence of a rare compound owing to a healing feature, it is exploited to cure deadly, chronic diseases like cancer of all types, tumors, and others. Over the past 20 years, several researchers have worked to cultivate mushrooms both outdoors and indoors. However, the large-scale scaling up of M. esculenta in vitro has yet to be accomplished. The advancement in the ENB (exogenous nutrient bag) technology approach offered a milestone in expanding its growth and its nurturing in an open environment. However, when evaluating its life cycle, the formation of sclerotia was found to be a significant impediment. The formation of sclerotia (fruiting bodies) is the most important step that leads to the growth of ascocarps. The critical phase that eventually results in the development of ascocarps is sclerotia formation (fruiting bodies). This review paper discusses various aspects of the growth of M. esculenta and other morels discovered in the Himalayas, such as their characteristics, allocation, origins, therapeutic and dietary benefits, phytochemicals, multiple productions, collecting and facility design methodologies, breakthroughs in artificial production, and the obligation of morel preservation of their natural habitat.
