Wine Polyphenols and Neurodegenerative Diseases: An Update on the Molecular Mechanisms Underpinning Their Protective Effects

Abstract

Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases are the most common age-related and predominantly idiopathic neurodegenerative disorders of unknown pathogenesis. Although these diseases differ in their clinical and neuropathological features, they also share some common aetiologies, such as protein aggregation, mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress, and neuroinflammation. Epidemiological, in vitro and in vivo evidences suggest an inverse correlation between wine consumption and the incidence of neurodegenerative disorders. Wine benefits are, in large part, attributable to the intake of specific polyphenols, which mediate cell function under both normal and pathological conditions. In this review, we aim to provide an overview of the role that wine polyphenols play in delaying neurodegenerative disorders. We discuss animal and in vitro studies in support of these actions and we consider how their biological mechanisms at the cellular level may underpin their physiological effects. Together, these data indicate that polyphenols present in wine may hold neuroprotective potential in delaying the onset of neurodegenerative disorders.

Keywords

• flavonoids
• ageing
• brain
• Alzheimer’s disease
• Parkinson’s disease
• signaling pathways