stilbenes and Altitude-Sickness

The putative cardiovascular risks and benefits of the ingestion of wine and alcohol-containing spirits have been well publicized; however, less attention has been focused upon the health effects of wine and spirits consumption on the respiratory system. This paper will highlight epidemiologic, clinical and experimental data on the effects of wine and distilled spirits [and the chemical components thereof] on lung function, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease progression, lung cancer risk, risk of developing acute respiratory distress syndrome, high altitude pulmonary edema and wine [sulfite] associated asthma. Several studies have demonstrated a positive [beneficial] effect of light-to-moderate wine consumption on pulmonary function, while chronic ingestion of distilled spirits may have either no effect, or a negative effect. Studies in Scandinavia, Europe and South America have suggested a possible protective effect of wine ingestion against lung cancer, especially adenocarcinoma. Resveratrol [3,5,4'-trihydroxystilbene] a polyphenolic compound found in red wine, has anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and estrogen agonist effects and may be responsible for some of the health benefits of wine. The spectrum of potentially beneficial clinical effects of resveratrol and other wine-derived compounds is discussed.

Topics: Adenocarcinoma; Alcohol Drinking; Alcoholic Beverages; Alcoholism; Altitude Sickness; Antioxidants; Asthma; Female; Humans; Lung; Lung Neoplasms; Male; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive; Pulmonary Edema; Respiratory Distress Syndrome; Resveratrol; Stilbenes; Sulfites; Wine

High-altitude retinopathy represents retinal functional changes associated with environmental challenges imposed by hypobaric hypoxia, but the detailed cellular and molecular mechanism underlying this process remains unclear. Our current investigation was to explore the effect of hypobaric hypoxia on the rat retina and determine whether resveratrol has a protective efficacy on the hypoxic damage to the retina. Experiment rats were randomly grouped as the control group, hypoxia group and resveratrol intervention group. The hypoxia group and the resveratrol intervention group were maintained in a low-pressure oxygen cabin, and the resveratrol intervention group was given daily intraperitoneal injections with resveratrol. We found that hypobaric hypoxia increased thioredoxin 1 (Trx1) and thioredoxin 2 (Trx2) expression in retinas, and resveratrol treatment significantly reversed these changes (

Topics: Altitude Sickness; Animals; Antioxidants; Apoptosis; Cytokines; Disease Models, Animal; Humans; Male; Oxidative Stress; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Resveratrol; Retina; Retinal Diseases; Stilbenes; Thioredoxins