A university today celebrates advances in the study of red wine – as a medicine.
International experts are gathering at Leicester University, UK, to discuss the benefits of the red wine chemical resveratrol – which is found in the skin of red grapes.
The chemical has become a popular food supplement but researchers say it needs proper testing as a medicine.
The first conference of its kind was held in Denmark two years ago.
Laboratory research in Leicester suggests a treatment equivalent to two glasses of wine might combat bowel cancers, according to scientists.
The researchers say they believe they are now ready to begin trials on human patients.
Researcher Professor Karen Brown said: "At the University of Leicester, we want to see how resveratrol might work to prevent cancer in humans. Having shown in our lab experiments that it can reduce tumour development we are now concentrating on identifying the mechanisms of how resveratrol works in human cells.
"A lot of people take resveratrol as a supplement, but at the moment we don’t know how it works or on whom it can work until we have more information – we don’t even know the best dose you should take.
"It has been shown that high doses of resveratrol may potentially interfere with other medication."
She added: "With all the exciting new studies that are being done – especially the clinical trials – I hope we’ll have a clearer picture in the next few years."
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