Comparing the effects of piceatannol and resveratrol on factors affecting inflammation, oxidative stress and sirtuins

In this study, South Korean researchers compared the effects of piceatannol (PIC) and resveratrol (RSV) on parameters that affect inflammation, oxidative stress and sirtuins (Sirt). Their findings were published in the Journal of Medicinal Food.

• PIC is a natural hydroxylated analog of RSV. It is considered a potential metabolic regulator.
• The researchers tested the effects of PIC and RSV on 20-week-old mice.
• They assigned the mice to four groups: the lean control, the high-fat diet control, the group fed a high-fat diet plus PIC and the group fed a high-fat diet plus RSV.
• The researchers reported that administration of 10?mg/kg/day PIC and RSV for four weeks improved glucose control in the animals, as evidenced by decreasing levels of the area under the curve (AUC) during an oral glucose tolerance test.
• PIC improved blood glucose control by increasing hepatic levels of insulin receptor and AMP-activated protein kinase.
• PIC also increased Sirt1, Sirt3 and Sirt6 levels, as well as the levels of two downstream targets of Sirt, namely, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator 1-alpha and forkhead box O1.
• Meanwhile, RSV downregulated the expression of the inflammatory markers interleukin (IL)-1 and IL-6 in the liver.
• The researchers also found that PIC and RSV significantly decreased the levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-a) in the liver.
• However, both exerted minimal effects on liver markers of oxidative stress.
• Only mice treated with RSV showed improved levels of NAD(P)H: quinone oxidoreductase 1 (NQO1), a known antioxidant enzyme.

Based on these findings, the researchers concluded that PIC is superior to RSV in terms of regulating Sirt and its downstream targets, while RSV is superior to PIC in terms of suppressing pro-inflammatory markers and increasing antioxidant levels.

Journal Reference:

Lee HJ, Kang M-G, Cha HY, Kim YM, Lim Y, Yang SJ. EFFECTS OF PICEATANNOL AND RESVERATROL ON SIRTUINS AND HEPATIC INFLAMMATION IN HIGH-FAT DIET-FED MICE. Journal of Medicinal Food. 06 August 2019;22(8):833–840. DOI: 10.1089/jmf.2018.4261