DATE: February 14, 2007
CONTACT:
Dr. Xiuping Jiang, 864-656-6932
xiuping@clemson.edu
WRITER:
Tom Lollis, (803) 284-3343, ext. 241
tlollis@clemson.edu
Muscadines fight ulcer-causing bacteria
CLEMSON – Got ulcers? One day part of the treatment could be to eat more muscadines.
At least that could be the implication of work by one researcher at Clemson University.
Xiuping Jiang, assistant professor in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, conducted a year-long study with muscadines, which showed the native American grape could have potential as a medicinal plant useful in the prevention of gastric cancer.
She looked at the natural antibiotic effects of muscadine grape skins and seeds on the human pathogen Helicobacter pylori, which causes ulcers that can lead to development of gastric cancer.
The current treatment for H. pylori is antibiotics, according to Jiang.
“It is effective, but it can cause side effects like the potential for development of resistance to antibiotics, and relapses can occur,” she said.
Why look at muscadines? They contain phytochemical compounds such as phenolics that have anti-inflammatory properties and act as antioxidants – substances than neutralize free radical molecules produced by normal human metabolism. Free radicals react rapidly with other molecules, which leads to cellular damage by oxidation.
Such cellular damage has been linked to signs of aging, cancer, heart disease, stroke and other health problems.
It’s the phytochemicals such as quercetin and resveratrol which are responsible for what is known as the “French paradox.” The French diet includes lots of fats, but red wine consumed with meals seems to offer protection to the heart.
The same compounds found in vinifera grapes grown in places such as France and California are also found in muscadines, according to Jiang.
Muscadines also contain another anti-cancer compound, ellagic acid, which vinifera grapes do not have.
Jiang freeze-dried and then ground muscadine skins and seeds and tried them in various combinations against H. pylori. Muscadine skin extract was the most effective in inhibiting both the growth of the pathogen and its ability to attach to gastric cells.
The study was funded by the South Carolina Research Authority through the S.C. Nutrition Research Consortium.
While further research is done into muscadines and their health benefits, Jiang says consumers can’t go wrong by eating more muscadines, including the skins when they are in season each fall.
Wines are available year round, however.
For wine drinkers, the red muscadine wine contains a bit more of the phenolic compounds than the white, because red wines are in contact with the skins for a longer period of time that white wines.
“I’d suggest to drink it moderately,” said Jiang.
END