lentinan lentinan lentinan is a polysaccharide isolated from the fruit body of shiitake mushroom (lentinula edodes mycelium). lentinanclinical dataahfs/drugs.cominternational drug namesatc codel03ax01 (who) identifierscas number37339-90-5 ychemspidernoneunii6751655d1dkeggd01695 ychebichebi:31770comptox dashboard (epa)dtxsid30190781 chemical and physical datamolar mass~ 500,000 da ny (what is this?) (verify) chemistry lentinan is a β-1,3 beta-glucan with β-1,6 branching. it has a molecular weight of 500,000 da and specific rotation of +14-22° (naoh). research preclinical studies an in vitro experiment showed lentinan stimulated production of white blood cells in the human cell line u937. lentinan is thought to be inactive in humans when given orally and is therefore administered intravenously. the authors of an in vivo study of lentinan suggested that the compound may be active when administered orally in mice. human clinical trials lentinan has been the subject of a limited number of clinical studies in cancer patients in japan; however, evidence of efficacy is lacking. adverse effects lentinan has been reported to cause shiitake mushroom dermatitis.