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UK researchers have zeroed in on compounds
in red wine that battle a protein linked to heart disease
-- a finding that provides clues to why the French have relatively
low rates of heart disease despite a national diet rich in
creamy cheese and buttery desserts.
The investigators found that polyphenols
-- compounds in grape skins and present in red wine -- decrease
the production of a protein that causes blood vessels to constrict
and reduces the flow of oxygen to the heart. The protein,
endothelin-1, is believed to play a
key role in the development of heart disease.
Their findings support the results of
earlier studies showing that a moderate intake of red wine
may lower the risk of heart disease. But while these studies
focused on the antioxidant properties of polyphenols -- their
ability to quench disease-causing free radicals in the body
-- the results of the new study suggest a new mechanism by
which red wine might bring benefits.
Red wine polyphenols inhibit protein
tyrosine kinases, a group of enzymes that play a key role
in cell regulation. Compounds that inhibit these enzymes have
been shown to suppress endothelin production. The effects
we describe are completely unrelated to any antioxidant properties
of polyphenols.
White wine is made without the use of
grape skins, while red wine is made by fermenting the juice
from grapes along with the skins. Grape skin provides red
wine with its color, and also contains the highest concentration
of polyphenols. Other alcoholic beverages do not contain these
compounds.
Consumption
of one to two glasses of red wine per day with food might
be considered part of a diet to reduce heart disease, provided
there are no health grounds for avoiding alcohol, and that
the person is not going to drive or operate equipment.
The study findings are based on experiments
with cow artery cells treated with alcohol-free extracts of
various red, white and rose wines. The researchers also tried
an extract of red grape juice, which inhibited endothelin
production, but much less so than red wine did.
Nature
December 20/27, 2001;414:863-864
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