The Mechanism Behind Resveratrol’s Health Benefits: How Does The “Magic” Happen?

(AcademicWino) - The health benefits of red wine have been well-studied, with resveratrol being the most commonly studied compound and the one that is often credited the most as being beneficial to human health.  Resveratrol is primarily produced in plants (including grapes) in two forms: the cis- and trans- configuration of 3,5,4’-trihydroxy-stilbene.  In terms of wine, resveratrol is an extremely minor compound, with very low doses actually contained therein.  Also, studies on resveratrol tend to focus only on one or two forms, neglecting the possible many metabolites formed after coming in contact with the human digestive system.

Where many studies examining the health effects of resveratrol tend to “go wrong” is that they do not consider what happens to the resveratrol after it is consumed.  Does the resveratrol stay in its original form?  Or does it metabolize into different compounds?  It is not too often that compounds remain in their un-metabolized original forms once they are consumed, and resveratrol is no different.  After resveratrol is consumed, it converts into glucuronide and sulfate metabolites, which have been observed in tiny amounts in the human circulatory system.

In fact, the most common forms of resveratrol after it has come into contact with the various compounds in the human digestive system are the glucuronic acid and sulfate metabolites of trans-resveratrol, though very little is known about these compounds.  Becoming familiar with these trans-resveratrol metabolites after ingestion could be very beneficial for the study of health benefits of red wine, as knowing these compounds and their mechanisms of action in the body could lead to improved therapies and an overall understanding of how it all “works”.