title: Effects of melatonin on genetic hypercholesterolemia in rats.
abstract: Administration of the pineal hormone melatonin to genetically hypercholesterolemic rats resulted in a decrease in plasma cholesterol levels and in an improvement of fatty changes of the liver. Thus, the antihyperlipemic effect of melatonin, which was first discovered in hypercholesterolemia produced by short- or long-term administration of glucocorticoids, has now been proved to be rather universal and not simply anti-glucocorticoidal. The mechanism of the decrease of plasma cholesterol levels remains unknown. It was also found that the pathogenesis of this so-called genetic hypercholesterolemia in rats involved biochemical nephrotic changes and histopathological changes in the kidney.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Aoyama
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Mori
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Mori
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood; D005234:Fatty Liver / Q000473:pathology; D006937:Hypercholesterolemia / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D000960:Hypolipidemic Agents; D007668:Kidney / Q000473:pathology; D008099:Liver / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008550:Melatonin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D051381:Rats
chemical_list: D000960:Hypolipidemic Agents; D002784:Cholesterol; D008550:Melatonin