Resveratrol in Red Wine May Prevent Cellular Aging Process
Resveratrol is a compound found in many plants including some foods and supplement products. Resveratrol is a component of foods including grapes, pomegranates, and red wine which appears to influence the cellular processes which are related to aging. Researchers think that this compound may and provide protection to the heart, according to a study released on June 4, 2008 in the journal PLoS ONE.
Many scientists are aware of the “French paradox” which is the puzzling situation in which the classic French diet is high in cream and cheeses that are high in saturated fats but somehow leaves people with excellent cardiovascular health. Researchers now believe that resveratrol may be an important answer to this paradox. Resveratrol in high doses will increase lifespan in lower animals and keeps mice alive who are eat a very high fat diet.
The latest study is great news since it indicates that the effects of resveratrol in lower doses probably provides an important health benefit in lab animals. Middle aged mice received low doses of resveratrol and the researchers looked at the effects on the heart, muscle, and brain. The researchers examined cells for changes in gene expression of the brain heart and muscle as the genes were turned on or off. Genetic effects of resveratrol were compared with mice who were given a calorie restricted diet that was 20-30% fewer calories than a normal diet.
Resveratrol at low doses actually simulated the healthful effects of the calorie restricted diet. Normal control mice, show over 1000 gene expression changes as they age which are associated with poorer health in the brain, muscle and heart cells. The calorie restricted mice had 90% fewer of those aging changes in gene expression, while mice with low doses of resveratrol had 92% fewer genetic aging changes in the heart. These genetic improvements could account for the improvement in heart function with resveratrol and red wine.
The effectiveness of these lower doses of resveratrol means that the dose of resveratrol required is practical for the average person to consume in natural foods and red wine.
The similar gene effects identified with resveratrol and caloric restriction are similar means that there could be similar genetic mechanisms controlling the anti-aging effects of both. A few master biochemical pathways activated in response to caloric restriction, which in turn could activate many other pathways. Resveratrol appears to activate some of the same master pathways as well.
A glass of red wine, resveratrol containing foods, or nutritional resvertrol supplements could provide health benefits to people who would like to gain the same health benefits of the classic French diet.
In the lab, resveratrol interacts with multiple molecular targets and has beneficial effects on the cells of breast, skin, gastric, colon, esophageal, prostate, and pancreatic cancer, and leukemia. Resveratrol is not a panacea, the study of pharmacokinetics of resveratrol in humans concluded that even high doses of resveratrol might be insufficient to achieve resveratrol concentrations required for the systemic prevention of cancer. This is consistent with the results from the animal cancer models, which indicate that the in vivo effectiveness of resveratrol is limited by its problems with bioavailability (how uch of the compound that can reach the site of action). The strongest evidence of anti-cancer action of resveratrol exists for tumors it can come into direct contact with, such as skin and gastrointestinal tract tumors. For some other cancers, the resveratrol evidence is equivocal, even if large doses of resveratrol are used.
