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Animals have various genes that regulate longevity, which encode proteins such as sirtuins. Genes for this protein family -- SIR2 in yeast and SIRT1 in humans -- increase lifespan in response to conditions that stress cells, such as nutritional deprivation (Journal Watch May 27 2003 ).
A team from Harvard Medical School and a biotech company have identified several small molecules that activate SIR2 just as nutritional deprivation does. The most potent is resveratrol, a polyphenol found in red wine, which increased the lifespan of yeast by 70% and increased activity of SIRT1 13-fold. The authors also report some preliminary findings: Resveratrol appears to prolong life in animals (worms and fruit flies). Although resveratrol is an antioxidan…