Resveratrol Benefits - How The Compound Found In Red Wine And Dark Chocolate Works

A group of scientist studied the benefits of resveratrol, a compound found in red wine and dark chocolate, and how it works to fight obesity, diabetes and certain types of cancer.

The researchers looked into the compound to see if it feasible to mimic the chemical makeup to be used in various drugs and their findings were published in the journal Science.

Benefits associated with resveratrol have sparked pharmaceutical companies to invest millions of dollars in the compound that aids in fighting various diseases and aging.

David Sinclair, Harvard geneticist, and colleagues have been researching resveratrol in an attempt to find a chemical link between the compound and enzymes called sirtuins that have the ability to rejuvenate cells.

And even though there is some disagreement among scientists, there is a sense of enthusiasm on both sides of the argument as to whether resveratrol can be translated into a pharmaceutical wonder drug.

"We've know that it's true in the test tube," said Matt Kaeberlein from the University of Washington who has questioned Sinclair's findings in the past. 

"What this does is suggest the same thing is true in cells."

And Leonard Guarente, a biologist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, expressed his views on Sinclair's findings.

"This is not weak evidence at this point," he said.

"You would really bet the ranch on this one."

Scientists believe that resveratrol works by stimulating a sirtuin, SIRT1, that breaks up specific proteins and helps them transform cell behaviors which translates into health benefits.

"SIRT1 is like a Pac-Man that removes these proteins and tells other proteins to go out and repair the cell," Sinclair said.

But Sinclair and other researchers realize that there is much more to be done in regard to resveratrol research, despite the promising findings in the most recent study.

"It might bring together the different views so we can move forward," said Brian Kennedy of the Buck Institute for Research on Aging in Novato, Calif. where he is the president and chief executive.

"This is how science works."

(SOURCE)