Contractile and extensile effects of red and white wine on rat and Mongolian gerbil gastrointestinal smooth muscle.

The contractile and extensile effects of red and white wine on rat and Mongolian gerbil (gerbil) gastrointestinal smooth muscle were investigated. Both wines elicited contractile responses on rat and gerbil duodenum and ileum but had no such effects on the colon or rectum. Dichloromethane extracts derived from either wine showed extensile responses only on rat duodenum and ileum, and did not elicit extensile effects on the colon or rectum. In contrast, wine dichloromethane extracts did not elicit any extensile effects on either gerbil duodenum or ileum. Moreover, dichloromethane extracts had suppressive effects on acetylcholine-induced contractile responses. Red and white wine has been documented to contain a number of organic acids such as tartaric, malic, lactic, and citric acid. Individually, such compounds evoked contractile response on rat duodenum with an order of contractile potency; citric > tartaric >or= malic > lactic acid. The abundance of such compounds in either wine implicates them as the active component responsible for gastrointestinal smooth muscle responses.