Study Finds Red Wine Destroys Bacteria That Cause Lung Infections, Heart
Disease
Wine Spectator - Posted: Thursday, January 15, 2004
By Jacob Gaffney

Researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago report that both
red wine and resveratrol may be effective killers of a bacteria known to
cause lung infections such as pneumonia and bronchitis and even
contribute to heart disease. The study was published in the December
2003 issue of the medical journal Atherosclerosis.

The airborne bacteria, called Chlamydia pneumoniae, is responsible for 5
percent to 30 percent of respiratory-tract infections worldwide,
according to studies cited in the research. In addition, a growing body
of evidence shows that the bacteria may spread from the lungs into the
bloodstream, possibly leading to plaque buildup in the arteries and
thereby contributing to heart disease.

Study author Gail Mahady, of the university's College of Pharmacy, and
her team sought to expand upon prior research that indicates that red
wine or resveratrol -- one of the many polyphenols in red wine -- may
reduce the risk of heart disease and other diseases. They wanted to look
at how wine compounds may act in the body to produce these beneficial
effects.

The researchers prepared samples of calf cells and infected them with C.
pneumoniae. By subjecting the samples to a gas with 5 percent carbon
dioxide, at temperatures of 95 degrees F, the scientists were able to
re-create conditions similar to those inside human lungs.

After an incubation period, the cell samples were exposed for 72 hours
to either California Pinot Noir, pure resveratrol developed in a lab, or
azithromycin, an antibiotic commonly used to treat lung infections. The
scientists repeated this experiment several times using varying
concentrations of the different solutions.

Both the red wine and the resveratrol were as effective at destroying C.
pneumoniae as the antibiotic, according to the study. However, the
report did not supply details about how much red wine or resveratrol was
needed to destroy the bacteria.

"In vitro, the [Pinot Noir] extracts and resveratrol kill the bacteria,"
said Mahady, who suggested that this may help prevent not only lung
infections, but heart disease by eliminating C. pneumoniae from the
bloodstream. But she added, "How this plays out in someone with heart
disease already, we do not know at this point."

This is not the first time wine, and its polyphenols, have been shown to
be bacteria busters. Previous research found that wine may help destroy
ulcer-causing bacteria as well as E. coli and salmonella.

Other studies have found that wine drinkers have healthier lungs than
non-drinkers or people who drink other alcoholic beverages. And
resveratrol was recently found to help reduce inflammation and fluid
buildup in the lungs, giving it the potential to alleviate ailments such
as chronic bronchitis and emphysema.

Mahady said her team's results may have implications for future medical
treatment. "Hopefully, with additional funding we will be able to
determine if adding one to two glasses of red wine to the diet of
patients with cardiovascular disease will make a difference," she said.

But the study cautioned against changing one's drinking habits until
more research has been completed: "The mechanism by which red wine and
resveratrol exert their beneficial effects in [heart disease] has not
been completely elucidated."