Abstract: Cordycepin,the unique active ingredients in Chinese traditional medicine Cordyceps sinensis, is a hot spot nowadays due to its bio-activities,such as anti-tumor, anti-virus,immune regulation,treatment of leukemia, etc. Synthetic process of cordycepin is complex and low yield with toxic by-products.Natural resources of cordycepin is rare.The fungal sources,measurement,extraction,application prospect and the present research situation of cordycepin-production fungus at home and abroad were reviewed in this study.It was proposed to broaden the sources of cordycepin by resources investigation,to find out the strains which produce high cordycepin with lower cost,and to lay the ground for its more widespread usage.

Key words: cordycepin, Cordyceps militaris fungi resources, resources survey, adenosine content