**5. Conclusion**

The method of *G. lucidum* polysaccharides extraction and fractionation varied greatly according to the objectives of each study. This targeted end products and the yields of polysaccharides extraction normally started with hot water extraction. The temperature applied could be lower than boiling point of water in order to preserve the proteins. Such temperature can soften some fibers and the water molecules in the liquid phase are easily absorbed by the mushroom cells. Therefore, most of the initial steps of polysaccharide extraction need to ensure the physical form of resources are pulverized to obtain the maximum effects on the samples, since the polysaccharides contain many ▬OH groups which can be easily extracted by the water. Although most of the methodology of the *G. lucidum* polysaccharides extraction and fractionation are different they all followed a similar principle, i.e., using ethanol to precipitate the main polysaccharides. However, at this stage, the extract is still considered crude. Some reported studies would terminate at this stage and use the crude for therapy. In fact, the extraction should continue to the stage of purification in order to separate the different types of polysaccharides in crude. This paper has reviewed six different types of fractionations from different media of *G. lucidum.* All these studies reported positive results in accordance to the study objective(s).

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