Collection and identification of Iranian wild mushrooms: towards establishment of a mushroom bio-bank

Wild mushrooms provide a significant source of nutritional and medicinal bioactive compounds. They have been collected and consumed by people from many countries for thousands of years. However, there is a shortage of information in the literature regarding Iranian wild mushrooms. Thus, this mini-review tries to outline recent efforts made in order to collect, identify, and maintain wild mushrooms of Iran. This review may also encourage more research on collection, assessment, and biochemical analysis of Iranian wild mushrooms in order to establish a germplasm bank of wild mushrooms.