Maximizing Grape Compounds to Combat Alzheimer’s Disease

Research has shown that some of the polyphenol compounds found in red wine that are thought to help prevent Alzheimer's disease in fact reach the brain.

Polyphenols, compounds found in the skins and seeds of grapes, are thought to prevent the formation of beta-amyloid protein, which creates the plaque in the brain that causes Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimer's disease is a progressive brain disease that destroys memory and cognitive skills and affects as many as 4.5 million Americans, according to the National Institute on Aging.

Previous studies have already found that red wine reduced cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s disease mice, and Alzheimer’s disease mice fed grape seed extract for 5 months showed improved spatial memory. The grape seed extract could prevent or postpone plaque formation and slow cognitive deterioration associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

In this study Mario Ferruzzi and Elsa Janle found that the amount of polyphenols from grape seed extract that can reach a rat's brain is as much as 200 percent higher on the 10th consecutive day of feeding as compared to the first. Many previous experiments, in which absorption was measured after single or sporadic doses, often found very little, if any, of the bioactive polyphenols reaching brain tissues. However, more chronic exposure appears to improve absorption.

"This shows that reasonable and chronic consumption of these products may be the way to go, rather than single, high doses," said Ferruzzi. "It's like eating an apple a day, not a case of apples over two days every month."

Study author Dr. Giulio Pasinetti said discovering how polyphenols are absorbed and distributed to the brain can impact researchers' understanding of the amount of grape products or red wine a person would need to consume to most effectively combat Alzheimer's disease.

"The most important thing is that when we follow the repetitive administration of this compound, we were able to observe the transfer of the compound to the brain," Pasinetti said. "This may help us figure out the proper concentration necessary to get these chemicals to the brain."

Pasinetti is the principal investigator for the Center of Excellence for Research and Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Alzheimer's Disease grant from the National Institutes of Health that funded the work. Ferruzzi said further studies will focus on the mechanisms that control absorption of compounds during chronic consumption.

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References:
1. Mario G. Ferruzzi, et al. Bioavailability of Gallic Acid and Catechins from Grape Seed Polyphenol Extract is Improved by Repeated Dosing in Rate: Implications for Treatment in Alzheimer's Disease. Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, Volume 18, Number 1.