Resveratrol's anti-cancer activity explained

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Resveratrol's anti-cancer activity explained

 

Scientists have discovered a possible mechanism for

the anti-cancer activity of resveratrol, the compound

found in red wine and thought to be responsible for

the drink’s widely reported health benefits.

 

The findings, which were published on the online

edition of the Journal of the European Molecular

Biology Organization (EMBO), demonstrated that cancer

cells treated with resveratrol died because they

became sensitive to a compound called Tumor Necrosis

Factor alpha (TNFa).

 

Marty Mayo, assistant professor of biochemistry and

molecular genetics at the University of Virginia, and

his team reported that TNFa helps to starve cancer

cells by inhibiting the action of a key protein that

feeds them. The protein, called nuclear factor-kappa B

(NFKb), is found in the nucleus of all cells and

activates genes responsible for cell survival. The

researchers found that resveratrol initiated a

reaction in the NFKb molecule that caused the cancer

cells to self-destruct in a process called apoptosis.

 

“We used physiologically-relevant doses of resveratrol

and found dramatic effects on human cancer cells,”

said Mayo. The researchers said the action of NFKb may

also explain how resveratrol helps to control

atherosclerosis, heart disease, arthritis, and

autoimmune disorders.

 

Journal of the European Molecular Biology Organization

23(12):2369-2380, 2004