Could icewine grapes help fight cancer?

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A team of researchers at Brock University is trying to use icewine grapes to fight cancer. They’ve partnered up with a Niagara based company that produces ice syrup and they’ll be showcasing their research at Queen’s Park later this week.

Ice syrup, the gourmet ingredient is now the focus of a new study because it could contain a cancer-fighting molecule. Jeff Stuart and his team of researchers Shehab Selim and Breanne Gillie are looking to inject the molecule resveratrol, which has been connected to a number of health benefits into ice syrup.

“It’s been linked to things like anti cancers, so slowing of cancer growth, some cardiovascular effects, some anti-inflammatory effects.”

His team has been harvesting grapes since September. Resveratrol is developed in grapevines as a response to fungal attacks. High levels of the molecule can be found in wines, even in non-alcoholic wines. Ice syrup is a non-alcoholic product made from icewine grapes. Rather than fermenting the juice to make alcoholic wine the sweet juice is concentrated further by evaporation.

While the product is much sweeter, the levels of resveratrol and other related molecules are lower and that’s what reseachers are hoping to increase. The team received $50 000 in grant money towards their research. Tomorrow they will be visiting Queen’s Park to show their work to politicians and policy makers in hopes of securing more funding.