cmcole
11-02-2006, 07:36 AM
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20061101.wfatwine1101/BNStory/specialScienceandHealth/home
Wine adds spirit to portly mice
SETH BORENSTEIN
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Obese mice on a high-fat diet got the benefits of being thin — living healthier, longer lives — without the pain of dieting when they consumed huge doses of red wine extract, according to a landmark new study.
It's far too early to know if this would work in people, scientists said. But several were excited by the findings, calling it promising and even “spectacular.”
The 55 resveratrol-treated obese mice were on a high-calorie diet — what one scientist called a “McDonald's diet.” Not only were they about as healthy as normal mice, they were also as agile and active on exercise equipment as their lean cousins, demonstrating a normal quality of life that was unexpected for such obese creatures, said study co-author Rafael de Cabo of the Institute on Aging.
“These fat old mice can perform as well on this skill test as young lean mice,” Dr. Sinclair said.
The only major body measurement that didn't improve — aside from weight — was cholesterol, and that didn't seem to matter in the overall health of the mice, Dr. Sinclair said.
Dr. Helfand said he won't be taking red wine extract supplements — but he has put his elderly parents on them. Such supplements are available at health food stores and on-line, but not at dose levels equivalent to what the mice in the experiment got — roughly equal to 100 bottles of wine a day in humans.
Mice, he said, are good initial test subjects for human drugs because their bodies function similarly to humans in many ways. However, the differences between mouse and man can prove crucial, he noted.
Dr. Sinclair said he takes resveratrol supplements, but doesn't recommend it for others.
Resveratrol works by spurring activity and regrowth in cells' mitochondria, which Dr. Sinclair called “the energy powerhouses of the cell.”
Some scientists, such as Dr. Weindruch and Dr. Hodes, worry
Wine adds spirit to portly mice
SETH BORENSTEIN
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Obese mice on a high-fat diet got the benefits of being thin — living healthier, longer lives — without the pain of dieting when they consumed huge doses of red wine extract, according to a landmark new study.
It's far too early to know if this would work in people, scientists said. But several were excited by the findings, calling it promising and even “spectacular.”
The 55 resveratrol-treated obese mice were on a high-calorie diet — what one scientist called a “McDonald's diet.” Not only were they about as healthy as normal mice, they were also as agile and active on exercise equipment as their lean cousins, demonstrating a normal quality of life that was unexpected for such obese creatures, said study co-author Rafael de Cabo of the Institute on Aging.
“These fat old mice can perform as well on this skill test as young lean mice,” Dr. Sinclair said.
The only major body measurement that didn't improve — aside from weight — was cholesterol, and that didn't seem to matter in the overall health of the mice, Dr. Sinclair said.
Dr. Helfand said he won't be taking red wine extract supplements — but he has put his elderly parents on them. Such supplements are available at health food stores and on-line, but not at dose levels equivalent to what the mice in the experiment got — roughly equal to 100 bottles of wine a day in humans.
Mice, he said, are good initial test subjects for human drugs because their bodies function similarly to humans in many ways. However, the differences between mouse and man can prove crucial, he noted.
Dr. Sinclair said he takes resveratrol supplements, but doesn't recommend it for others.
Resveratrol works by spurring activity and regrowth in cells' mitochondria, which Dr. Sinclair called “the energy powerhouses of the cell.”
Some scientists, such as Dr. Weindruch and Dr. Hodes, worry