The action of red wine and purple grape juice on vascular reactivity is independent of plasma lipids in hypercholesterolemic patients

Abstract

Although red wine (RW) reduces cardiovascular risk, the mechanisms underlying the effect have not been identified. Correction of endothelial dysfunction by RW flavonoids could be one mechanism. We measured brachial artery reactivity by high-resolution ultrasonography, plasma lipids, glucose, adhesion molecules (ICAM-1 and VCAM), and platelet function in 16 hypercholesterolemic individuals (8 men and 8 women; mean age 51.6 ± 8.1 years) without other risk factors. Twenty-four normal subjects were used as controls for vascular reactivity. Subjects randomly received RW, 250 ml/day, or purple grape juice (GJ), 500 ml/day, for 14 days with an equal wash-out period. At baseline, all 16 subjects were hypercholesterolemic (mean LDL = 181.0 ± 28.7 mg/dl) but HDL, triglycerides, glucose, adhesion molecules, and platelet function were within normal limits. Brachial artery flow-mediated dilation was significantly decreased compared to controls (9.0 ± 7.1 vs 12.1 ± 4.5%; P < 0.05) and increased with both GJ (10.1 ± 7.1 before vs 16.9 ± 6.7% after: P < 0.05) and RW (10.1 ± 6.4 before vs 15.6 ± 4.6% after; P < 0.05). RW, but not GJ, also significantly increased endothelium-independent vasodilation (17.0 ± 8.6 before vs 23.0 ± 12.0% after; P < 0.01). GJ reduced ICAM-1 but not VCAM and RW had no effect on either molecule. No significant alterations were observed in plasma lipids, glucose or platelet aggregability with RW or GJ. Both RW and GJ similarly improved flow-mediated dilation, but RW also enhanced endothelium-independent vasodilation in hypercholesterolemic patients despite the increased plasma cholesterol. Thus, we conclude that GJ may protect against coronary artery disease without the additional negative effects of alcohol despite the gender.

Enhanced task-related brain activation and resting perfusion in healthy older adults after chronic blueberry supplementation

“…In addition, a number of studies have found that chronic supplementation with fruit polyphenols improves peripheral vascular function, especially amongst study populations with impaired cardiovascular function (Coimbra et al 2005;Poreba et al 2009). Most recently, Khan et al (2014) found that blackcurrant polyphenol supplementation for 6 weeks (815 mg polyphenols including 143 mg anthocyanins per day) improved flow-mediated dilatation in healthy adults consuming 2 or less portions of fruit and vegetables per day.…”

“…Rodriguez-Mateos and colleagues (2013) showed that a range of blueberry polyphenol doses (0.3-1.88 g polyphenols) acutely increased flow-mediated dilatation in healthy men peaking at 1 h postingestion. A number of studies have also found improvements in endothelial-dependent vasodilatation after chronic supplementation with fruit polyphenols, especially amongst study populations with impaired cardiovascular function (Coimbra et al 2005;Chaves et al 2009;Poreba et al 2009;Khan et al 2014). Despite this evidence of improved peripheral vascular function after either acute or chronic supplementation with fruit flavonoids, the chronic effects of fruit polyphenol supplementation on cerebral perfusion have not yet been investigated.…”

Phenolic Compounds and Antioxidant Activity in Grape Juices: A Chemical and Sensory View

“…The bioactive compounds from grapes juices mainly include simple phenolic, flavonoids (anthocyanins, flavanols, flavonols), stilbenes (resveratrol) and phenolic acids, shown to have benefits related to human health by conferring the ability to sequester reactive oxygen species (ROS), such as hydroxyl radical and singlet oxygen [67]. Several clinical studies on grapes and their derivatives have demonstrated these properties, including protection against cardiovascular diseases [68,69], atherosclerosis [70], hypertension [71], cancer [72], diabetes [73] and neurological problems [74]. The mechanism of action has been attributed to antioxidant activity [75], lipid regulation [76,77], anti-inflammatory effects [78], anti-cancer, antimicrobial, antiviral, cardio protective, neuroprotective, and hepatoprotective activities [1,40,41,48,[79][80][81][82][83].…”

Beneficial effects of non-alcoholic grape-derived products on human health: A literature review

“…Few studies, enrolling healthy subjects, evaluated the effects of grape juice on platelet aggregation; the results on this effect are not sufficiently supported (1 paper in favour and 4 without significant difference) [23][24][25][26]. Generally speaking, controversial results have been obtained on the reduction of inflammatory parameters associated with cardiovascular diseases after supplementation with grape juice and extracts.…”