A new study appears to offer vindication for an approach to anti-aging drugs that has been the topic of heated scientific debate for years. The findings show for the first time that the metabolic benefits of the red wine ingredient known as resveratrol evaporate in mice that lack the famed longevity gene SIRT1.
The study in rodents found that when mice had a particular gene -- SIRT1 -- knocked out, or turned off, resveratrol had no effect on them. But tests of muscle tissue in mice with a normal SIRT1 gene that were given resveratrol found that the substance boosted mitochondrial function.
Mitochondria provide the energy that cells need to function. A decrease in mitochondrial energy production has been linked to a variety of diseases, including diabetes and Alzheimer's disease, as well as to the aging process itself, said senior study author David Sinclair, a professor of genetics at Harvard Medical School in Boston.
But don't go reaching for that Chianti yet. Yes, resveratrol is found in the skin of red grapes. But "the amounts we gave to our mice would be like drinking 100 glasses of red wine a day," Sinclair said. Instead, the goal is to develop synthetic resveratrol compounds that activate SIRT1 and could be taken as medication. The study is in the May 1 issue of Cell Metabolism.
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