Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. 24/7 Space News .




TECH SPACE
Grapes protect against ultraviolet radiation
by Staff Writers
Madrid, Spain (SPX) Aug 04, 2011


illustration only

Some compounds found in grapes help to protect skin cells from the sun's ultraviolet radiation, according to a study by researchers from the University of Barcelona and the CSIC (Spanish National Research Council). The study supports the use of grapes or grape derivatives in sun protection products.

Ultraviolet (UV) rays emitted by the sun are the leading environmental cause of skin complaints, causing skin cancer, sunburn and solar erythema, as well as premature ageing of the dermis and epidermis. Now, a Spanish study has proven that some substances in grapes can reduce the amount of cell damage caused in skin exposed to this radiation.

UV rays act on the skin by activating 'reactive oxygen species' (ROS). These compounds in turn oxidise macromolecules such as lipids and DNA, stimulating certain reactions and enzymes (JNK and p38MAPK) which cause cell death.

A group of scientists from the University of Barcelona and the CSIC have shown that some polyphenolic substances extracted from grapes (flavonoids) can reduce the formation of ROSs in human epidermis cells that have been exposed to long-wave (UVA) and medium-wave (UVB) ultraviolet radiation. The study, carried out in vitro in the laboratory, has been published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

Grape-based sun protection

"These polyphenolic fractions inhibit the generation of the ROSs and, as a result, the subsequent activation of the JNK and p38 enzymes, meaning they have a protective effect against ultraviolet radiation emitted by the sun", Marta Cascante, a biochemist at the University of Barcelona (Spain) and director of the research project, tells SINC.

The researchers found that the higher the degree of the flavonoids' polymerisation and formation of compounds containing gallic acid, the greater their photoprotective capacity.

The study suggests that these "encouraging results should be taken into consideration in clinical pharmacology using plant-based polyphenolic extracts to develop new photoprotection skin products.

Cosmetics and drugs containing grape compounds are already available, but the way they act on cells has not been well understood until now. "This study supports the idea of using these products to protect the skin from cell damage and death caused by solar radiation, as well as increasing our understanding of the mechanism by which they act", concludes Cascante.

Cecilia Matito, Neus Agell, Susana Sanchez-Tena, Josep L. Torres, Marta Cascante. "Protective Effect of Structurally Diverse Grape Procyanidin Fractions against UV-Induced Cell Damage and Death". Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 59 (9): 4489-4495, May 2011. DOI: 10.1021/jf103692a.

.


Related Links
FECYT - Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology
Space Technology News - Applications and Research






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








TECH SPACE
1 tiny electron could be key to future drugs that repair sunburn
Columbus OH (SPX) Jul 29, 2011
Researchers who have been working for nearly a decade to piece together the process by which an enzyme repairs sun-damaged DNA have finally witnessed the entire process in full detail in the laboratory. What they saw contradicts fundamental notions of how key biological molecules break up during the repair of sunburn - and that knowledge could someday lead to drugs or even lotions that cou ... read more


TECH SPACE
"Big Splat" May Explain The Moon's Mountainous Far Side

LADEE Completes Mission Critical Design Review

Moon's mountains made by slo-mo crash: study

Unique volcanic complex discovered on Lunar far side

TECH SPACE
Flowing water on Mars sparks new hunt for life traces

Opportunity Past 20-Mile Mark As it Nears Large Crater

NASA Spacecraft Data Suggest Water Flowing on Mars

NASA's Next Mars Rover to Land at Gale Crater

TECH SPACE
Welsh tech firm starting U.S. company

Invisibility cloak closer to reality

India eyes manned space missions

Satellite innovators launch smartphone Space App competition

TECH SPACE
Why Tiangong is not a Station Hub

China to launch experimental satellite in coming days

Spotlight Time for Tiangong

China launches new data relay satellite

TECH SPACE
The Orbital Perspective of Astronaut Ron Garan

Voyage to Vaccine Discovery Continues with Space Station Salmonella Study

New uses for Space Station

ISS to be sunk after 2020: Russian space agency

TECH SPACE
64 satellites launched by ISRO so far

Inmarsat Selects ILS Proton For Inmarsat-5

United Launch Alliance Saves Money with First Combined Atlas and Delta Shipments on Mariner

Russia sends observation satellite into space

TECH SPACE
Exoplanet Aurora Makes For An Out-of-this-World Sight

Distant planet aurorae modeled

Exoplanet Aurora: An Out-of-this-World Sight

Ten new distant planets detected

TECH SPACE
Editions, AOL's entrant in iPad news reader race

Penn Chemists Make First Molecular Binding Measurement of Radon

Japanese parents live with radiation fear

Radar system could makes runways safer




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement