A rice wine native to the Philippines has grabbed the attention of researchers looking into new, natural ways to slow biological aging. But it's not the wine itself – sorry – in the spotlight, but what's left over after the liquid is ready to bottled.
The wine known as "tapuy" is made using a disc-shaped starter culture called "bubod" – made up of starch and beneficial microorganisms – which, when added to cooked native glutinous rices, triggers a fermentation that ultimately produces both the wine and a solid byproduct, tapuy "lees". This is usually tossed out once the tapuy is strained and ready to drink.
However, scientists from the University of the Philippines and Anteneo de Manila University found that this starter culture could be tweaked to have an optimal mix of beneficial bugs and compounds, and in turn produce a "super" polyphenol-rich lees. This could then form the basis of a new supplement with impressive anti-aging properties.
We've covered polyphenols many times, including research into the compounds found in chocolate and many berries, and what they actually do for us. Essentially, they help the body fight oxidative stress, inflammation and cell damage – all important in protecting the body from chronic disease and combating the aging process. We may yet have the fountain-of-youth elixir in our hands, but scientists remain keenly focused on polyphenols as an aid that can lower our biological age.
In this novel tapuy lees study, the researchers tested different starter cultures and different doses on Caenorhabditis elegans nematodes, and tested species-specific physiological aging markers. What they found was their starters all gave the test subjects a biological boost compared to naturally aging control animals. One tapuy lees made from a starter with high concentrations of Rhizopus oryzae, Mucor indicus and Saccharomyces cerevisiae (RO + MI + SC) boosted the mean C. elegans lifespan by 72.72%.
What's more, the worms didn't just live longer but showed better health and cell function in later life. The researchers measured the animals' activity levels on days to mimic human aging – so day five (early years), day nine (middle life) and day 13 (late life). Groups treated with the RO + MI + SC extract, had 10% more individuals exhibiting the movement (motility) of youthful C. elegans and again outperformed the control on day 13, with 30% still classed in the top motility category.
"Overall, the worms treated with tapuy lees extracts potently improved the movement behavior and speed in a dose-dependent manner," the researchers noted in the paper.
Meanwhile, the RO + MI + SC -treated worms produced more viable eggs across their reproductive period. You'd also normally expect C. elegans to reproduce between day one and day four, with this stage completely over by day five. But the group treated with this extract laid viable eggs up to day seven – a significant increase in their fertility window.
Finally, in superoxide dismutase (SOD) and antioxidant enzyme activity tests – you guessed it – the starters continued to outperform the standard bubod (the control). There treated worms had higher superoxide dismutase levels; this enzyme is important in protecting against age-related cell deterioration.
"The tapuy lees produced by RO + MI + SC starter exhibited the strongest scavenging activities against DPPH, hydroxyl, and superoxide radicals compared to bubod," the researchers noted. "The RO + MI + SC-produced tapuy lees extract significantly improved the lifespan, motility, and reproductive health of Caenorhabditis elegans, while boosting superoxide dismutase activity in vivo."
Of course, these findings are preliminary and the super-starter extract is yet to be tested on humans. But it's a very promising start for what could be a sustainable, affordable and scalable addition in the fight to slow aging. What's more, it adds another study to the emerging body of evidence on the benefits of fermented products.
The study was published in the journal Discover Food.
Source: Anteneo de Manila University
