
(Reuters) - Swiss scientists have found that a substance derived from pomegranates has potential anti-ageing properties, boosting the fruit's reputation as a superfood and spurring development plans by a local biotech company. Researchers at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL) reported in the journal Nature Medicine on Monday that giving urolithin A to aged mice increased their running endurance by an average of 42 percent. Urolithin A is produced in the body when compounds known as ellagitannins, which are found in pomegranates, are broken down by bacteria in the gut.