Abstract
Melatonin, an indolamine derived from the amino-acid tryptophan, participates in diverse physiological functions and has great functional versatility related to the regulation of circadian rhythms and seasonal behaviour, sexual development, retinal physiology, tumour inhibition, as an antioxidant, immunomodulatory and anti-aging properties. In relation to its oncostatic properties, there is evidence that tumor initiation, promotion or progression may be restrained by the night-time physiological surge of melatonin in the blood or extracellular fluid. In addition, depressed nocturnal melatonin concentrations or nocturnal excretion of the main melatonin metabolite, 6-sulfatoxymelatonin, were found in individuals with various tumor types. In the majority of studies, melatonin was shown to inhibit development and/or growth of various experimental animal tumors and some human cell lines in vitro. Many tumors do not respond to drug treatment due to their resistance to undergo apoptosis thereby contributing to the development of cancer. Thus, given the importance of the apoptotic program in cancer treatment, the role of melatonin in influencing apoptosis in tumor cells attracted attention because it seems that it actually promotes apoptosis in most tumor cells, in contrast to the obvious inhibition of apoptotic processes in normal cells. Thus, this paper is also intended to provide to the reader an up-date of all the researches that have been carried out to date, which investigate the proapoptotic effects of melatonin in experimental preclinical models of cancer (in vitro and in vivo) and the underlying proposed action mechanism of this effects. If melatonin uniformly induces apoptosis in cancer cells, the findings could have important clinical implications to improve the quality of live while preventing the appearance of cancer.
Keywords: Apoptosis, cancer cells, cancer therapy, caspase activation, cell cycle, cell death, extrinsic apoptotic pathway, intrinsic apoptotic pathway, melatonin, tumor.
Current Medicinal Chemistry
Title:Melatonin, A Natural Programmed Cell Death Inducer in Cancer
Volume: 19 Issue: 22
Author(s): M. Sánchez-Hidalgo, J. M. Guerrero, I. Villegas, G. Packham and C. A. de la Lastra
Affiliation:
Keywords: Apoptosis, cancer cells, cancer therapy, caspase activation, cell cycle, cell death, extrinsic apoptotic pathway, intrinsic apoptotic pathway, melatonin, tumor.
Abstract: Melatonin, an indolamine derived from the amino-acid tryptophan, participates in diverse physiological functions and has great functional versatility related to the regulation of circadian rhythms and seasonal behaviour, sexual development, retinal physiology, tumour inhibition, as an antioxidant, immunomodulatory and anti-aging properties. In relation to its oncostatic properties, there is evidence that tumor initiation, promotion or progression may be restrained by the night-time physiological surge of melatonin in the blood or extracellular fluid. In addition, depressed nocturnal melatonin concentrations or nocturnal excretion of the main melatonin metabolite, 6-sulfatoxymelatonin, were found in individuals with various tumor types. In the majority of studies, melatonin was shown to inhibit development and/or growth of various experimental animal tumors and some human cell lines in vitro. Many tumors do not respond to drug treatment due to their resistance to undergo apoptosis thereby contributing to the development of cancer. Thus, given the importance of the apoptotic program in cancer treatment, the role of melatonin in influencing apoptosis in tumor cells attracted attention because it seems that it actually promotes apoptosis in most tumor cells, in contrast to the obvious inhibition of apoptotic processes in normal cells. Thus, this paper is also intended to provide to the reader an up-date of all the researches that have been carried out to date, which investigate the proapoptotic effects of melatonin in experimental preclinical models of cancer (in vitro and in vivo) and the underlying proposed action mechanism of this effects. If melatonin uniformly induces apoptosis in cancer cells, the findings could have important clinical implications to improve the quality of live while preventing the appearance of cancer.
Export Options
About this article
Cite this article as:
Sánchez-Hidalgo M., Guerrero M. J., Villegas I., Packham G. and de la Lastra A. C., Melatonin, A Natural Programmed Cell Death Inducer in Cancer, Current Medicinal Chemistry 2012; 19 (22) . https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/092986712801661013
DOI https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/092986712801661013 |
Print ISSN 0929-8673 |
Publisher Name Bentham Science Publisher |
Online ISSN 1875-533X |
Call for Papers in Thematic Issues
Advances in Medicinal Chemistry: From Cancer to Chronic Diseases.
The broad spectrum of the issue will provide a comprehensive overview of emerging trends, novel therapeutic interventions, and translational insights that impact modern medicine. The primary focus will be diseases of global concern, including cancer, chronic pain, metabolic disorders, and autoimmune conditions, providing a broad overview of the advancements in ...read more
Approaches to the treatment of chronic inflammation
Chronic inflammation is a hallmark of numerous diseases, significantly impacting global health. Although chronic inflammation is a hot topic, not much has been written about approaches to its treatment. This thematic issue aims to showcase the latest advancements in chronic inflammation treatment and foster discussion on future directions in this ...read more
Cellular and Molecular Mechanisms of Non-Infectious Inflammatory Diseases: Focus on Clinical Implications
The Special Issue covers the results of the studies on cellular and molecular mechanisms of non-infectious inflammatory diseases, in particular, autoimmune rheumatic diseases, atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease and other age-related disorders such as type II diabetes, cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, etc. Review and research articles as well as methodology papers that summarize ...read more
Chalcogen-modified nucleic acid analogues
Chalcogen-modified nucleosides, nucleotides and oligonucleotides have been of great interest to scientific research for many years. The replacement of oxygen in the nucleobase, sugar or phosphate backbone by chalcogen atoms (sulfur, selenium, tellurium) gives these biomolecules unique properties resulting from their altered physical and chemical properties. The continuing interest in ...read more
- Author Guidelines
- Graphical Abstracts
- Fabricating and Stating False Information
- Research Misconduct
- Post Publication Discussions and Corrections
- Publishing Ethics and Rectitude
- Increase Visibility of Your Article
- Archiving Policies
- Peer Review Workflow
- Order Your Article Before Print
- Promote Your Article
- Manuscript Transfer Facility
- Editorial Policies
- Allegations from Whistleblowers
- Announcements
Related Articles
-
Advances in Drug Discovery to Assess Cholinergic Neurotransmission: A Systematic Review
Current Drug Discovery Technologies Human Cancer Cell Line Based Approach of 1,3,4-thiadiazole and its Fused Ring: A Comprehensive Review
Anti-Cancer Agents in Medicinal Chemistry The Role of Hypoxia in Endometrial Cancer
Current Pharmaceutical Biotechnology Amyloidosis and Auto-Inflammatory Syndromes
Current Drug Targets - Inflammation & Allergy Protein Secretome Analysis of Evolving and Responding Tumor Ecosystems
Current Proteomics Single Chemical Entity Legal Highs: Assessing the Risk for Long Term Harm
Current Drug Abuse Reviews Small Animal Computed Tomography Imaging
Current Medical Imaging Autoimmune Neuromuscular Disorders
Current Neuropharmacology Targeted Delivery of Bleomycin: A Comprehensive Anticancer Review
Current Cancer Drug Targets Valproic Acid in the Complex Therapy of Malignant Tumors
Current Drug Targets Nanomaterials in the Pharmaceuticals: Occurrence, Behaviour and Applications
Current Pharmaceutical Design Development of DNA Methyltransferase Inhibitors for the Treatment of Neoplastic Diseases
Current Medicinal Chemistry Commercially Available, FDA-approved Epigenetic Modifiers As Therapeutic Agents in Bacterial Infection
Clinical Anti-Inflammatory & Anti-Allergy Drugs (Discontinued) Long-term Exposure to Cadmium in Food and Cigarette Smoke, Liver Effects and Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Current Drug Metabolism Stem Cells: In Sickness and in Health
Current Stem Cell Research & Therapy Small Molecule Complementarity As A Source of Novel Pharmaceutical Agents and Combination Therapies
Current Pharmaceutical Design Surgical Staging for Cervical Cancer
Current Women`s Health Reviews Controlled Releases of FGF-2 and Paclitaxel from Chitosan Hydrogels and their Subsequent Effects on Wound Repair, Angiogenesis, and Tumor Growth
Current Drug Delivery Extracellular HSP90: An Emerging Target for Cancer Therapy
Current Signal Transduction Therapy Disulfiram's Anticancer Activity: Evidence and Mechanisms
Anti-Cancer Agents in Medicinal Chemistry