Greater Effectiveness of ε-Viniferin in Red Wine Than Its Monomer Resveratrol for Inhibiting Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Proliferation and Migration

Resveratrol is a strong candidate for explaining an irreversible correlation between red wine consumption and coronary heart disease. The present study examined the effect of epsilon-viniferin, a dehydrodimer of resveratrol, on vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs), because epsilon-viniferin functions are poorly understood in spite of its comparable content to resveratrol in red wines and grapes. Both epsilon-viniferin and resveratrol inhibited platelet-derived growth factor-induced cell proliferation, migration, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, in addition to inducing nitric oxide generation. epsilon-Viniferin was more effective than resveratrol in these effects, except for inhibiting ROS production. The compounds also increased the expression of the antioxidant enzyme, hemeoxygenase-1, via transcription factor Nrf2. The phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-Akt pathway was implicated in resveratrol-dependent nuclear Nrf2 accumulation, whereas extracellular signal-regulated kinase and p38 were involved in epsilon-viniferin-induced Nrf2 accumulation. These data suggest that epsilon-viniferin may function more effectively than resveratrol in different mechanisms and cooperatively with resveratrol in preventing atherosclerosis.