Resveratrol

A wide variety of plant-derived compounds, including polyphenols, are present in the human diet and may protect against vascular diseases, cancers, viral infections, neurodegenerative processes and associated anti-inflammatory effects. Among these bioactive compounds, several A wide variety of plant-derived compounds, including polyphenols, are present in the human studies revealed that resveratrol, a trans-3,4',5-trihydroxystilbene, found in various natural products may be one of the main wine micro-components responsible for health benefits. Indeed, this polyphenol possesses a myriad of beneficial effects and can act at multiple levels, such as cellular signalling, enzymatic pathways and gene expression. Many laboratories have studied the molecular and cellular mechanisms of resveratrol in various models to get insight into its mechanisms of action in various disease processes. The increase of resveratrol interest is both reflected by the number of publications in databases, approximately 4,520 in Medline, and by the large number of patents copyrighted by biotechnology companies with new applications in cosmetic fields, central nervous system, food complement, preparations, to better understand the origins of resveratrol, its cellular and molecular mechanisms in plants and humans, this book on resveratrol has been divided into sections ranging from natural and industrial production to the latest scientific advances and clinical trials through the participation of leading scientists in each area covered in this book. Section 1 describes the sources and new engineering processes for custom and commercial bioreactors production of resveratrol. Section 2 is devoted to the common and new methods of resveratrol analysis. The following sections concern the health benefits of resveratrol. Section 3 shows the anti-oxidant properties of resveratrol in various physiopathological states. Section 4 focuses on the cardioprotective effects of resveratrol and the improvement of the endothelial function. Section 5 deals with metabolic disorders and the potential use of resveratrol in the prevention and treatment of obesity and osteoporosis. Section 6 is dedicated to health benefits of resveratrol against inflammation and associated diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. The role of new targets such as microRNAs in the biological response of resveratrol is also discussed. Section 7 describes the anticancer properties of resveratrol through the chemoprevention of various cancers, the modulation of cell cycle, the induction of apoptosis and DNA damages. Section 8 reviews the potential use of resveratrol in neuroprotection such as neurovascular system and neuroglial plasticity, and in the prevention and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases such Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. Besides the prevention of a number of diseases, other aspects such as dietary intake and bioavailability are important for the comprehension of resveratrol mechanisms of action. In this area, section 9 provides an overview of the metabolism of resveratrol, its pharmacokinetics and the recent advances in resveratrol delivery. The last part of this book, section 10, is dedicated to the clinical development of resveratrol and to the future development of resveratrol derivatives to provide new pharmacological tools for treatment of various diseases. We hope that this book may provide a valuable tool for graduate and PhD students in sciences, biology, medicine and pharmacology and for scientist or clinicians working in this field or all the people using this polyphenol.