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In Vino ... a Fountain of Youth?

Harvard man finds red wine chemical helps mice live 24% longer

By Jonas Oransky, Newser Staff

Posted Aug 30, 2007 5:46 AM CDT

(Newser) – A Harvard scientist armed with great salesmanship and optimism has isolated a red wine ingredient he says will make humans live longer and healthier. Resveratrol may be the chemical at rainbow’s end in the quest to activate the SIRT1 gene, Technology Review reports; David Sinclair has shushed some doubters by extending mouse lives by up to 24%.

Critics say human and mouse life spans are regulated by very different forces; they're also clearly put off by Sinclair’s ease with fundraising. But the the self-declared “science rebel” says he's successfully slowed diseases associated with aging. And he's proud to be on the road towards resveratrol pills—it’d take about 1,500 bottles of wine per day for a human to replicate the mouse dosage.

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FOOD WBS-UNCORKED TB (KRT Photos)

Sinclair believes resveratrol affects SIRT1, a gene that may play a fundamental role in regulating life span in mammals.

Sinclair's work reveals that resveratrol, found in the skin of grapes and red wine, helps prolong the health and lifespan of obese lab mice, and potentially other mammals. (Index Open)

Resveratrol helped protect the internal organs and overall health of an obese group of lab mice. (Shutterstock.com)

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David Sinclair discusses longevity extension on Charlie Rose. (CharlieRose (YouTube))

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In Vino ... a Fountain of Youth?