This essay is written by Jongsik Jon Chun, a professor at the Department of Biological Sciences, Seoul National University and translated by ChunLab staffs. The author is also actively engaged in R&D as a major board member at ‘ChunLab, Inc.
Even the siblings with the same biological parents do not share the same genes. However, monozygotic twins, also known as identical twins, share most, if not all of their genes. A great advantage of the human clinical studies conducted on identical twins is the possibility of excluding large variables in human genetic differences. The United Kingdom, amongst many other nations, is one of the most active country focusing on microbial ecosystems, the human microbiomes.
There are 14,274 identical twins involved in the British identical twin research project called TwinsUK.The project aims to investigate the link between our genes, genomes, microbiomes, the environment, and common diseases in order to understand how they relate to human health and diseases. The number of participants is so huge and I believe this should be the research with the support of government organization. Over 76 studies have already been conducted yielding 800+ publications and various other studies are currently underway illustrating the importance of federal and state support of such studies in different countries.
An interesting research by TwinsUK has been published on the relationship between red wine and intestinal microflora. Several studies have already shown that red wine is beneficial to our health due to its homeostatic effect. The study investigated the relationship of everyday alcohol and the intestinal microflora in over 900 twins. It was found that people who enjoy red wine (over beer or whiskey) had a higher diversity of intestinal microflora, indicating a more balanced ecosystem.
People who drink red wine were found to have more Prevotella, a beneficial bacteria which makes butyric acid that properly regulates immunity and strengthens intestines. Since white wine did not show a significant change in the gut microorganisms, the effect of red wine is likely due to a substance called polyphenol, the MAC, Microbiota-accessible carbohydrates which are contained in the skin of red grapes. The research suggested the gut microbiome changes due to red wine has the potential of preventing or alleviating obesity. Another research showed that people with a lot of Prevotella which can be increased by red wine, are likely to lose weight more effectively when on a diet.
Another interesting point of this study was, drinking wine more often does not necessarily increase beneficial gut microorganisms. Just one or two glasses of wine every two weeks will be effective enough. Therefore, please don’t use this article as an excuse to drink too much, as wine is still alcohol overall. However, when drinking as a refreshment, consider choosing a red wine for your gut microorganisms. For people who don’t want to consume alcohol may consider eating whole grapes or drinking grape juice to get similar health benefits.