If you’ve ever gone on a hike and seen funky-looking fungus growing on trees, you were probably staring right at usnea, a type of lichen with purported health benefits. A three-volume series by Józef Motyka published in 1936 and 1947 distinguished 451 species. It is a light yellow-green lichen with a central cord and short branches coming off of the central cord. According to the American Herbal Council, a qualified herbalist may decide to prescribe usnea to help a patient fight off a cold or an infection. However, it was a small study, and doesn’t provide enough evidence that it could treat HPV on its own (or any other viral infection, for that matter). In Chinese Medicine several types of Usnea were used. [17][18], Usnea barbata has been used in cosmetic production for its antimicrobial and antifungal properties as a preservative and deodorant.[19]. Usnea and its derivatives are generally considered safe for topical use. [8] It is now noted as including more than 600 species and being one of the largest genera within the Parmeliaceae. [15] The National Toxicology Program is currently evaluating the issue. Usnea looks very similar to the plant Spanish moss, so much so that the latter's Latin name is derived from it (Tillandsia usneoides, the 'Usnea-like Tillandsia'). The taxonomic categorization of many members of this genus remains uncertain. All rights reserved. Get it daily. Here’s our guide to changing up your routine for the warmer seasons. Before a certain time period all lichens were referred to as the same herb, so it’s hard to distinguish how usnea in particular was used. (A lichen, btw, is basically when a fungus and an algae fuse together to make a symbiotic life form.). Usnic acid may also have some antiviral properties. Usnea, also known as old man’s beard, is a type of lichen that grows on the trees, bushes, rocks, and soil of temperate and humid climates worldwide ().It has long been used in … Description. Author links open overlay panel Yukiko Nishitoba Iroyuki Nishimura Tohru Nishiyama Junya Mizutani In North America, the species is most abundant in the southeast and Ozarks, with scattered records in the northeast, southwest, and midwest. toothpastes, mouthwashes, sunscreens, and deodorant. The one benefit that’s generally agreed upon are usnea’s antibacterial properties. In a word, yes. According to the Institute of Traditional Medicine, the lichen—also known as “old man’s beard” because of its hairy appearance—has been used for hundreds of years as a healing compound in Native American, Chinese, and European medicine. Field Guide to California Lichens, Stephen Sharnoff, Yale University Press, 2014, Gadea, A., Le Pogam, P., Biver, G., Boustie, J., Le Lamer, A. C., Le Dévéhat, F., & Charrier, M. (2017). Usnea barbata when dry is extremely flammable and is often used as a firestarter. The more you know! Usnea rubicunda is a fruticose (shrub-like) lichen, with a pale green shrubby to subpendent thallus (lichen body). In all Usnea species, the central cord is like an elastic band surrounded by a hard fungal cortex. Real talk: There’s not a ton of concrete research out there on usnea or usnic acid. Usnea mutabilis (bloody beard lichen) is a widespread species known from Western Europe, Japan, and North America (Hinds and Hinds 2007). Like other lichens it is a symbiosis of two or three fungi and an alga[3] . Read our Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions. The number of recognized species in Finland is decreasing for this reason, from 34 in 1951 to 25 in 1963 and only 12 in 2000. In Usnea, the fungus belongs to the division Ascomycota, while the alga is a member of the division Chlorophyta. Today, you can find usnic acid (basically the active ingredient in usnea that’s largely responsible for its purported benefits) in toothpastes, mouthwashes, sunscreens, and deodorant. One woman took usnic acid supplements for just 17 days and sustained damage so serious that she had to have a liver transplant. [4] It reproduces via vegetative means through fragmentation, asexual means through soredia, or sexual means through ascogonium and spermatogonium. Many species have been described. According to Paul Bergner, Author of Medical Herbalism. "The usnic acid in Usnea is effective against gram positive bacteria such as Streptococcus and Staphylococcus, making Usnea a valuable addition to herbal formulas for sore throats and skin infections. [5] The growth rate of lichens in nature is slow, but the growth rate has been sped up in laboratory conditions where Usnea is being cultured. A 2005 in vitro study also showed that the acid has some antioxidant potential, too. Usnea A lichen is an organism that has characteristics of a Fungus and and Algae. An Expert Derm Shares Tips for Managing Both, Natural Eating Isn’t Just for Humans—Here’s What You Should Feed Your Dog, According to a Vet Nutritionist, A Bottle of This Hair-Growth Solution Sells Every 36 Seconds—Here’s Why.