Aims: The objective of this research was to study the ability of the basidiomycete Ganoderma lucidum to degrade starch and upgrade nutritional value of cornmeal during solid-state fermentation (SSF). Methods and Results: On the basal medium that consisted of cornmeal and salt solution, alpha-amylase activity of G. lucidum reached its maximum value of 267 U g(-1) of culture on day 20 after inoculation. Prolongation of fermentation time from 10 to 25 days increased significantly the degradation rate of starch and ergosterol yield (a kind of physiologically active substances of G. lucidum, also as an indicator of mycelial biomass) (P < 0.01). Supplementation of glucose, sucrose or maltose to the basal medium also caused a significant increase in either the degradation rate of starch or the ergosterol yield as compared with control (P < 0.01). Among five kinds of nitrogen sources supplemented, yeast extract, casamino acid and peptone were more effective than (NH4)(2)SO4 and NH4NO3, and yeast extract gave the highest degradation rate of starch and ergosterol yield, followed by peptone. Through orthogonal experiments, the theoretical optimum culture medium for SSF of this fungus was the following: 100 g cornmeal, ground to 30-mesh powder, moistened with 67 ml of nutrient salt solution supplemented with 3 g yeast extract and 7.5 g glucose per litre. Conclusions: Under the optimum culture condition, the degradation rate of starch reached its maximum values of 70.4%; the starch content of the fermented product decreased from 64.5 to 25.3%, while the reducing sugar content increased from 4.2 to 20.6%. SSF also produced a significant increase (P < 0.01) from 11.0 to 16.5% in protein content. Significance and Impact of the Study: After SSF by G. lucidum, the digesting and absorbing ratio of cornmeal was strikingly increased and some active substances originated from G. lucidum remained in the fermented product. This implied that cornmeal could be processed into many kinds of special functional foods by SSF of G. lucidum.