Inonotus obliquus
f. cul. medicinalis
f. cul.
Inonotus obliquus f. cul. medicinalis
medicinalis: Recorded only as a medicine. There is a record of people taking this mushroom as medicine -- a condition treated, or an action on the body -- and no record of it eaten as food, and no molecule of concern is on its record. Laboratory findings (antitumor, antioxidant, antimicrobial) are not records of use. The word names how people used the mushroom, not that it is safe: research the preparation and dose before taking it. A species that is also eaten is innocuus, and its medicinal use is in its note. Latin, medicinalis: of medicine.
On Medicinal Use, The Complete Table.
GBIF: photographs, names and where it has been found.
Sources
| William Rubel, the Taxonomy of Toxins | ‘used widely in Khanty and Mansi folk medicine: as a fumigant, a decoction taken internally, an external wash’ — Voldina T. V. 2021. «Ритуальные» грибы в традиционной культуре обских угров. Финно-угорский мир 13(4): 417-427. doi:10.15507/2076-2577.013.2021.04.417-427. Corpus file 404: «В народной медицине хантов и манси повсеместно и широко использовалась чага в разных вариантах: как окуривающее средство, отвар внутрь, наружный раствор для омовений» William Rubel, the Taxonomy of Toxins: a species placed by our own sources -- the consumption record, the recipe table, the literature we hold -- by a recorded decision in corpus_decisions. not yet published |
| Li et al. 2021 | 2 reports of eating without harm Li H, Tian Y, Menolli N Jr, Ye L, Karunarathna SC, Perez-Moreno J, Rahman MM, Rashid MH, Phengsintham P, Rizal L, Kasuya T, Lim YW, Dutta AK, Khalid AN, Huyen LT, Balolong MP, Baruah G, Madawala S, Thongklang N, Hyde KD, Kirk PM, Xu J, Sheng J, Boa E, Mortimer PE (2021). Reviewing the world's edible mushroom species: a new evidence-based classification system. Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety 20: 1982-2014. Supplementary Table S1. link |
| Boa E 2004 | ‘medicinal’ — Annex 3 Boa E R (2004). Wild edible fungi: a global overview of their use and importance to people. Non-Wood Forest Products 17. Rome: FAO. ISBN 92-5-105157-7. link |
| Wu et al. 2026 | ‘药用’ medicinal — entry 1056, 桦褐纤孔菌 Wu F, Liu SB, Wang XH, Zhang M, Yang ZL, Dai YC (2026). 中国食药用菌物种编目 [Species cataloging of edible and medicinal fungi in China]. 菌物学报 Mycosystema 45(1): 250237. link |
Notes
WR, 2026-10-15: 'Chaga is a medicinal mushroom. mark it medicinal if it has a molecule that can cause harm that is a dosing issue, not a detox issue.' Records: Lee et al. 2020, J Korean Med Sci 35(19): e122 (end-stage renal disease after years of chaga powder; the patient's chaga measured '14.2/100 g' oxalate); Kwon et al. 2022, Medicine 101(10): e28997 (10-15 g powder a day for 3 months, with vitamin C; recovered); Glamoclija et al. 2015, J Ethnopharmacol 162: 323-332, via Beug (NAMA): a hot-water extract held most of the oxalate as soluble oxalate. It also has two Li E1 reports of eating; placed medicinalis by WR's ruling. Has a medicinal use: in Khanty and Mansi folk medicine a decoction taken internally, a fumigant and an external wash (Voldina 2021). Chaga is high in oxalate, most of it soluble in hot water (Glamoclija et al. 2015); kidney injury is reported after large daily doses of the powder over months to years (Lee et al. 2020; Kwon et al. 2022): a matter of dose.
Medicinal Use. Medicinal use: used widely in Khanty and Mansi folk medicine: as a fumigant, a decoction taken internally, an external wash (Voldina T. V. 2021. «Ритуальные» грибы в традиционной культуре обских угров. Финно-угорский мир 13(4): 417-427. doi:10.15507/2076-2577.013.2021.04.417-427. Corpus file 404: «В народной медицине хантов и манси повсеместно и широко использовалась чага в разных вариантах: как окуривающее средство, отвар внутрь, наружный раствор для омовений»). Listed as medicinal: Boa 2004, Annex 3, medicinal; Wu et al. 2026, 药用 ‘medicinal’. Recorded only as a medicine: f. cul. medicinalis.
Cite this pageRubel, William. 2026. “Inonotus obliquus.” Taxonomy of Toxins. Last modified 24 October 2026. https://taxonomyoftoxins.com/species/inonotus-obliquus/