In the last few months a real debate has developed over the ability of resveratrol to extend human life span and solve medical problems in using resveratrol in treating human health problems. There are no simple answers to the questions arising from the debate. Major pharmaceutical companies which had made large investments in researching resveratrol have pulled out of their research and canceled major projects. Supposedly, they are redirecting their efforts into other areas they believe will give them better returns on their investments. Then on the other hand, we have a number of smaller companies in the area of alternative medicine that are investing in long-term clinical research projects, and this includes a European nation that has stepped up and is supporting this research. The big question, what is going on? Some have said that because the drug companies have dropped out of their research programs, resveratrol has no real future. But then the small alternative companies are making big investments and gaining support from a Scandinavian government. This could solve one of the big problems facing alternative medicine. The new players in research will be conducting clinical trials and publishing their research results. This could give them very strong growth potential if their research is successful.
I believe it is very difficult to know exactly what is happening if we do not take the events of the past few months and go over them in detail. So, I want to start with David Sinclair. His paper in 2003 was received with headlines announcing his discovery that resveratrol mimics the effects of caloric restriction, (CR) increasing the life span in an assortment of organisms.
David Sinclair is the prime pioneer in this research. Currently, he is a professor of pathology at Harvard Medical School; his research has been continuous for a number of years before 2003. He has commented that CR is a very perplexing occurrence. When the caloric intake of a large group of organisms, from worms to flies to primates, they should have been encumbered from the lack of nutritional intake in their diet. Instead, their lifespan was made longer. Research has shown that CR is effective in humans. It is clear that the effects of CR could be a huge benefit to health. Unfortunately, there are not that many organisms, especially humans, that respond to the idea of cutting calories by 30 to 40 % for an indefinite period of time.
There has been a great deal of work directed at understanding the mechanisms of longevity and CR. It is hoped that one day in the future drugs can be produced capable of triggering the same effect as CR improving human life span and health.
Aging happens with all organisms and there is no simple or obvious explanation of why it occurs. There was a time when the experts in medicine would have answered the question by saying aging was controlled by genes responsible for controlling senescence; many times they are referred to as the aging genes. This presents some problems in understanding how the genes would select aging genes, because when a person ages past the reproductive period there is no further adaptation.
How can the calorie restriction occurrence be explained? In the beginning, it was thought to be acted in a passive manner; for example, slowing the metabolic rate because of a lack of energy. This would have produced less toxic metabolic by-products. Research found that just the opposite happened with many organisms involved with CR. They displayed an increased metabolic rate and so this initial concept was abandoned.
A new concept was presented claiming CR acted to delay development of the organism; this allowed action to slow aging. Research found CR is just as effective when the organism is young as it is when older. This brought attention to the fact CR acts as it is independent of development mechanisms.
Sinclair's research posed the concept it is an active aging mechanism. His research team presented the concept CR operates as a form of biological stressor, which is acting to switch on the system's longevity genes to boost the body's natural defenses. This introduces the idea that a natural survival mechanism provides the organism the ability to survive when times are very bad.
Sinclair's biggest accomplishments came when he discovered a number of molecules which boosted the activity of Sir2 family of genes, the sirtuins. Research on the Sir2 family has shown they are an ancient group of survival genes which have evolved to keep organisms healthy and alive during periods of hardship. Sir2 genes are brought into action when the diet is restricted because of lack of nutrition. Today, the object of research is to duplicate the sirtuin genes so they are accurate copies of natural sirtuins to protect against disease and allow the body to avoid the bodily stresses of disease.
It is believed resveratrol is a sirtuin-stimulating molecule, but there is no hard scientific evidence to support this concept. I would say that David Sinclair's major objective is finding the data to support or deny this concept.
DISCLAIMER: I am not a Doctor and do not give medical advice; this is a news report and cannot substitute for the advice of a medical professional
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