Professor Dr. Raqeebaa Ali Jeijan, a college member in the Department of Food Science at the College of Agricultural Engineering Sciences, University of Baghdad, participated as a member of the committee for the PhD dissertation defense titled *Collection and Cultivation of Wild Strains of Agaricus spp. from Western Homs Countryside to Select the Best Strains and Compare Their Performance on Alternative Substrates* by student Bushra Jamal Hula from the Department of Horticultural Sciences at the College of Agricultural Engineering, University of Damascus.
The researcher collected 50 samples of wild Agaricus spp. mushrooms from the western countryside of Homs Governorate, Syria, and successfully purified 33 wild isolates, bringing them to the stage of a pure mother culture. These isolates were then cultivated on commercial compost and compared with a foreign strain.
The study results showed that only six of the tested isolates successfully reached the fruiting stage. These strains excelled in productivity, biological efficiency, fruit body characteristics, antioxidant activity, and unique chemical content, alongside desirable traits in shape, taste, and consumer acceptance, outperforming the foreign strain used for comparison. This success suggests the potential for their future use in the local market.
The identified strains belong to the genus Agaricus, including two strains of *Agaricus bisporus* (the common button mushroom), two strains of *Agaricus sinodelicious*, and two strains of *Agaricus qilianensis*. The latter two are wild edible fungi recorded by the student for the first time in the Middle East and only the second time globally.
We extend our best wishes to Dr. Raqeebaa for continued success and achievements.
