Compound from grapes and wine ‘can help prevent memory loss’

US researchers have provided new evidence that resveratrol, a compound found in grapes, peanuts and red wine, may help prevent age-related decline in memory.

The new study from the Texas A&M University Health Science Center College of Medicine aimed to analyse the potential cognitive health benefits of the antioxidant, which is already known to help prevent heart disease.

A study cohort of aged rats were given the compound and were shown to benefit from enhanced spatial learning and memory over 22 to 25 months. Those that did not receive the chemical largely maintained their spatial learning ability, but their capacity to form new spatial memories significantly declined.

Additionally, neurogenesis – the process controlling the growth and development of neurons – approximately doubled in the rats given resveratrol, while they also saw enhanced blood flow and less inflammation in the brain.

Dr Ashok Shetty, a professor in the department of molecular and cellular medicine and director of neurosciences at the university's Institute for Regenerative Medicine, said: "The study provides novel evidence that resveratrol treatment in late middle age can help improve memory and mood function in old age."