Resveratrol in Red Wine May Achieve Same Longevity
Results as Starvation Dieting
Study important because it suggests that resveratrol
and caloric restriction may govern the same master genetic pathways
related to aging
June 4, 2008 Scientists have long maintained
senior citizens can extend their lives by strict adherence to a diet
that rigidly restricts calorie intake. Now, scientists may have
discovered how to accomplish this without starving yourself. It is a
choice most seniors will gladly choose over severe calorie restriction
drinking red wine. A new study says low doses of the resveratrol in red
wine may achieve the same longevity results as starvation dieting.
How do the French get away with a clean bill of
heart health despite a diet loaded with saturated fats?
Scientists have
long suspected that the answer to the so-called "French paradox" lies in
red wine. Now, the results of this new study bring them closer to
understanding why.
Writing this week in the online, open-access
journal Public Library of Science (PLoS) ONE, researchers from industry
and academia, including the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the
University of Florida, report that low doses of resveratrol -- a natural
constituent of grapes, pomegranates, red wine and other foods -- can
potentially boost the quality of life by improving heart health in old
age.
The scientists included small amounts of
resveratrol in the diets of middle-aged mice and found that the compound
has a widespread influence on the genetic causes of aging.
Specifically, the researchers found that low doses
of resveratrol mimic the heart-healthy effects of what is known as
caloric restriction, diets with 20 to 30 percent fewer calories than a
typical diet.
The new study is important because it suggests that
resveratrol and caloric restriction, which has been widely studied in
animals from spiders to humans, may govern the same master genetic
pathways related to aging.
"Caloric restriction is highly effective in
extending life in many species. If you provide species with less food,
the regulated cellular stress response of this healthy habit actually
makes them live longer," says study author Christiaan Leeuwenburgh,
chief of the division of biology of aging at UF's Institute on Aging.
"In this study, the effects of low doses of
resveratrol (on genes) were comparable to caloric restriction, the
hallmark for life extension."
Previous research has shown that high doses of
resveratrol extend life in invertebrates and prevent early death in mice
given a high-fat diet. The new study extends those findings, showing
that resveratrol in low doses, beginning in middle age, can elicit many
of the same benefits as a reduced-calorie diet.
"Resveratrol is active in much lower doses than
previously thought," said Tomas Prolla, a UW professor of genetics and a
senior author of the new report.
The group explored the agent's influence on the
heart, muscle and brain by looking to see which genes were switched on
and off during the aging process.
In the new study -- which compared the genetic
responses of animals to either restricted diets or normal diets
including small doses of resveratrol -- the similarities were
remarkable, explains lead author Jamie Barger of Madison, Wis.-based
LifeGen Technologies, who spearheaded the research.
In the heart, for example, there are at least 1,029
genes whose functions change with age. In animals on restricted diets,
90 percent of those heart genes experienced alterations in gene
expression, while low doses of resveratrol thwarted age-related change
in 92 percent. The new findings, say the study's authors, reveal how red
wine's special ingredient helps keep the heart young.
In short, the authors note that a glass of wine or
food or supplements containing even small doses of resveratrol are
likely to help stave off cardiac aging.
That finding, may also explain the remarkable heart
health of people who live in some regions of France where diets are
soaked in saturated fats but the incidence of heart disease, a major
cause of mortality in the United States, is low. In France, meals are
traditionally complemented with a glass of red wine.
"There must be a few master biochemical pathways
activated in response to caloric restriction, which in turn activate
many other pathways," explained Prolla. "And resveratrol seems to
activate some of these master pathways as well."
Resveratrol is currently sold over-the-counter as a
nutritional supplement with supposed anti-cancer, anti-viral,
anti-inflammatory and anti-aging benefits, although few scientific
studies have verified these claims in humans. That may soon change:
Researchers at the University of Florida hope to explore the effects of
resveratrol on older people in a phase 1 clinical trial, set to begin
this summer.
The study will assess the supplement's effects on
memory, physical performance, inflammation and oxidative damage,
according to Steve Anton, a principal investigator of the upcoming trial
and an assistant professor of aging and geriatrics in the UF College of
Medicine.
Mitochondria, the tiny power plants that keep a
cell functioning, are especially vulnerable to the oxidative damage that
accumulates during the aging process.
"In animal studies, (resveratrol) seems to promote
mitochondrial health," said Todd Manini, also a principal investigator
of the upcoming trial and an assistant professor of aging and geriatrics
in the UF College of Medicine. "Mitochondria are everywhere: They're in
the brain, in the muscle, the liver. So it could have kind of a global
impact on many different organ systems."
Keep up with the latest news for senior citizens, baby
bommers
June 4, 2008 Scientists have long maintained
senior citizens can extend their lives by strict adherence to a diet
that rigidly restricts calorie intake. Now, scientists may have
discovered how to accomplish this without starving yourself. It is a
choice most seniors will gladly choose over severe calorie restriction
drinking red wine. A new study says low doses of the resveratrol in red
wine may achieve the same longevity results as starvation dieting.