Resveratrol

Two studies done by researchers on the efficacious qualities of Resveratrol on eye related deterioration and degenerative ailments demonstrated some very compelling evidence. Their research suggests Resveratrol has preventative and even regenerative abilities that inhibit and potentially reverse cataract development as well as other age related macular degeneration(AMD) and retinal diseases.

In the first resveratrol study, researchers from the Inonu University Medical Faculty and Turgut Ozal Medical Center in Malatya, Turkey studied the effect that Resveratrol had on inhibiting the development of cataracts that were induced in lab rats.

48 rat pups were separated into 3 treatment groups: #1 – control group injected with a normal saline ethanol solution; Group #2 was injected sodium selenite (30 nmol/g body wt); and Group #3 was given sodium selenite plus resveratrol (40 mg/kg). On day 21, cataract development was graded by slit-lamp examination and photography. Encapsulated lenses and erythrocytes were analyzed for reduced glutathione (GSH) and malondialdehyde (MDA), a marker of lipid peroxidation.

The results showed that the control group’s lenses (group 1) were clear. In group 2, all rats developed cataracts (grade 3-grade 6), whereas in group 3, only 9 of 16 rats developed cataracts (grade 2-grade 3). The difference of cataract frequency between group # 2 and #3 was statistically significant (p<0.05). Group 3 lenses and erythrocytes had higher mean GSH and lower mean MDA levels than those in group 2 (p<0.05)

The researchers concluded from their study that Resveratrol suppressed sodium selenite-induced oxidative stress and cataract formation in rats. This preventative effect was supported by greater GSH and lower MDA in lens and erythrocytes. The presence of oxidative stress in selenite cataract development and its prevention by resveratrol support the possibility that high natural consumption of resveratrol in food can help prevent human senile cataract.

In the second study by researchers from Ohio State University, the scientists found that Resveratrol reduced the oxidation and growth of human retinal pigment epithelial(RPE) cells.

The researchers hypothesized that resveratrol, a red wine polyphenol, may be responsible, in part, for the health benefits of moderate red wine consumption on retinal disease. To test their theory, the antioxidant and antiproliferative effects of resveratrol were examined in a human RPE cell line.

The treatment of the cells included 50 and 100_mol/L Resveratrol. Both quantities significantly decreased the proliferation of RPE cells by10% and 25%, respectively (P < 0.05). In addition, the reduction in RPE cells was not associated with resveratrol-induced cytotoxicity.

Resveratrol (100 _mol/L) inhibited basal and H2O2-induced intracellular oxidation and protected RPE cells from H2O2-induced cell death. The observed reduction in cell proliferation was associated with inhibition of mitogen activated protein kinase/ERK (MEK) and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK 1/2) activities at concentrations of resveratrol as low as 5 _mol/L. Their findings offer that resveratrol can decrease oxidative stress and hyperproliferation of the RPE.

They concluded that the evidence suggests that moderate wine consumption and antioxidant-rich diets(and likely Resveratrol supplementation – edit.) may protect against age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of vision loss among the elderly. Development of AMD and other retinal diseases, such as proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR), is associated with oxidative stress in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), a cell layer responsible for maintaining the health of the retina by providing structural and nutritional support.