Recent Overview of Resveratrol’s Beneficial Effects and Its Nano-Delivery Systems

HIGHLIGHTS: 1. Resveratrol is an antioxidant and exhibits numerous potential therapeutic applications. However, it suffers from low water-solubility, degradation, and poor bioavailability. The conventional dosage form of resveratrol shows various limitations, such as prolonged therapy, erratic bioavailability, and absence of effective drug concentrations in tissues. 2. Nanocarrier-based delivery systems are being studied extensively to target tissues and cells to improve the therapeutic potential of poorly soluble molecules by enhancing their bioavaila-bility, solubility, and retention time. 3. Resveratrol can act as a potential anti-cancer agent and lowers the progression of cancer disease. ABSTRACT: Natural polyphenols have a wide variety of biological activities and are taken into account as healthcare materials. Resveratrol is one such natural polyphenol, belonging to a group known as stilbenoids (STBs). Resveratrol (3,5,4′-trihydroxy-trans-stilbene) is mainly found in grapes, wine, nuts, and berries. A wide range of biological activities has been demonstrated by resveratrol, including antimicrobial, antioxidant, antiviral, antifungal, and antiaging effects, and many more are still under research. However, as with many other plant-based polyphenol products, resveratrol suffers from low bioavailability once administered in vivo due to its susceptibility to rapid enzyme degradation by the body’s innate immune system before it can exercise its therapeutic influence. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance to ensure the best use of resveratrol by creating a proper resveratrol delivery system. Nanomedicine and nanodelivery systems utilize nanoscale materials as diagnostic tools or to deliver therapeutic agents in a controlled manner to specifically targeted locations. After a brief introduction about polyphenols, this review overviews the physicochemical characteristics of resveratrol, its beneficial effects, and recent advances on novel nanotechnological approaches for its delivery according to the type of nanocarrier utilized. Furthermore, the article summarizes the different potential applications of resveratrol as, for example, a therapeutic and disease-preventing anticancer and antiviral agent.