Grape seeds may help prevent Alzheimer's

NEW YORK, June 19 (UPI) -- New York researchers say polyphenolics derived from red grape seeds may be useful agents to prevent or treat Alzheimer's disease.

The study explored the possibility of developing "wine mimetic pills" that would replace the the government's recommended glass of red wine a day for Alzheimer's disease prevention.

Dr. Giulio Maria Pasinetti and Dr. Jun Wang both of Mount Sinai School of Medicine and Dr. Anil Shrikhande, director of the polyphenolics division of constellation brands, a major producer of biologically active grape products, tested certain molecules contained in red wine, in particular in red grape seeds.

"Meganatural AZ grape seed extracts significantly reduced Alzheimer's disease-type cognitive deterioration in the Alzheimer' disease mice through mechanisms that prevents the formation of a more complex form of a molecule known as amyloid in the brain," Pasinetti said. "The implications of these studies, however, are not limited to patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease."

The findings, published in The Journal of Neuroscience, suggest that Meganatural AZ from red grapes might even help prevent memory loss in people that did not yet developed Alzheimer's disease.