title: Melatonin, its receptors, and relationships with biological rhythm disorders.
abstract: Melatonin is a neurohormone produced during the night by the pineal gland. Its secretion is regulated by circadian and seasonal variations in daylength, transmitted via visual projections to the suprachiasmatic nucleus which functions as a circadian clock in mammals. Melatonin has been proposed to act as an internal synchronizer of circadian rhythms generated at different levels of the organism. The chronobiotic effects of melatonin in humans have been mainly studied in circadian rhythm sleep disorders related to jet lag, shift work, blindness or aging. Alterations of the melatonin profiles have also been reported in other biological rhythm disorders.
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recherches Internationales Servier, Courbevioe, France.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Delagrange
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Guardiola-Lemaitre
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008550:Melatonin / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000378:metabolism / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000502:physiology*; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D018160:Receptors, Cytoplasmic and Nuclear / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D044094:Receptors, Melatonin
chemical_list: D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; D018160:Receptors, Cytoplasmic and Nuclear; D044094:Receptors, Melatonin; D008550:Melatonin