Holmes-McNary, a nutritional biologist, and Baldwin, a biology professor, have demonstrated how Res controls gene expression and renders cancer cells vulnerable to the protective mechanisms of the body. Their findings were reported in the July issue of Cancer Research. In the absence of Res, the cancer cells continued to survive. Baldwin first reported several years ago that NF-kappa B appears to protect cultured cancer cells from attack by anticancer chemicals. This may explain why some cancer cells withstand chemotherapy, becoming impervious to the chemical onslaught.
Plans are under way to reproduce the studies using rodents.
If those go well, Holmes-McNary may conduct clinical trials in several years. Holmes-McNary's advice to increase consumption of foods rich in Res is music to the ears of David Fussell, the owner of Duplin Winery in Rose Hill, which is the largest cooperative of scuppernong grape growers in North Carolina. The scuppernong, a muscadine grape that is native to North Carolina, tops the list of foods with high Res content. The winery is gearing up to produce supplements made from the grape's seeds and hulls, where the Res concentration is greatest. It will mean a great deal to our farmers and the health of people.