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Melatonin Increases Brown Adipose Tissue Volume and Activity in Patients With Melatonin Deficiency: A Proof-of-Concept Study.

Diabetes
May 1, 2019
Bruno Halpern et al. (11 authors)
Clinical TrialJournal ArticleResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tHuman StudyClinical
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to evaluate the effects of melatonin replacement on brown adipose tissue (BAT) volume, activity, and blood lipid levels in patients with melatonin deficiency.

Results Summary

Melatonin replacement increased BAT volume and activity and improved total cholesterol and triglyceride levels, but did not significantly affect body weight, liver fat, or HDL and LDL levels. Fasting insulin levels and HOMA of insulin resistance decreased, though not statistically significantly.

Population

Patients with melatonin deficiency due to radiotherapy or surgical removal of the pineal gland (n=4).

Effective Dosage

3 mg daily

Duration

3 months

Interactions

None mentioned

Extracted Claims (9)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
melatonin supplementation
increase
brown adipose tissue (BAT) mass
hibernating animals
-
increase
#1
a short photoperiod
increase
brown adipose tissue (BAT) mass
hibernating animals
-
increase
#2
daily melatonin (3 mg) replacement for 3 months
increase
BAT volume and activity
patients with melatonin deficiency (radiotherapy or surgical removal of pineal gland)
-
presented increased
#3
daily melatonin (3 mg) replacement for 3 months
decrease
total cholesterol and triglyceride blood levels
patients with melatonin deficiency (radiotherapy or surgical removal of pineal gland)
-
found an improvement in
#4
daily melatonin (3 mg) replacement for 3 months
no change
body weight
patients with melatonin deficiency (radiotherapy or surgical removal of pineal gland)
no significant change
without significant effects on
#5
daily melatonin (3 mg) replacement for 3 months
no change
liver fat
patients with melatonin deficiency (radiotherapy or surgical removal of pineal gland)
no significant change
without significant effects on
#6
daily melatonin (3 mg) replacement for 3 months
no change
HDL and LDL levels
patients with melatonin deficiency (radiotherapy or surgical removal of pineal gland)
no significant change
without significant effects on
#7
daily melatonin (3 mg) replacement for 3 months
decrease
fasting insulin levels
patients with melatonin deficiency (radiotherapy or surgical removal of pineal gland)
-
decreased
#8
daily melatonin (3 mg) replacement for 3 months
decrease
HOMA of insulin resistance
patients with melatonin deficiency (radiotherapy or surgical removal of pineal gland)
-
decreased
#9
Abstract

Melatonin, a pineal hormone synthesized at night, is critical for the synchronization of circadian and seasonal rhythms, being a key regulator of energy metabolism in many animal species. Although studies in humans are lacking, several reports, mainly on hibernating animals, demonstrated that melatonin supplementation and a short photoperiod increase brown adipose tissue (BAT) mass. The present proof-of-concept study is the first, to our knowledge, to evaluate BAT in patients with melatonin deficiency (radiotherapy or surgical removal of pineal gland) before and after daily melatonin (3 mg) replacement for 3 months. All four studied patients presented increased BAT volume and activity measured by positron emission tomography-MRI. We also found an improvement in total cholesterol and triglyceride blood levels without significant effects on body weight, liver fat, and HDL and LDL levels. Albeit not statistically significant, fasting insulin levels and HOMA of insulin resistance decreased in all four patients. The present results show that oral melatonin replacement increases BAT volume and activity and improves blood lipid levels in patients with melatonin deficiency, suggesting that melatonin is a possible BAT activator. Future studies are warranted because hypomelatoninemia is usually present in aging and appears as a result of light-at-night exposure and/or the use of β-blocker drugs.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
Adipose Tissue, BrownBody WeightCholesterolCholesterol, HDLCholesterol, LDLEnergy MetabolismFemaleHumansMaleMelatoninTriglycerides
Study Links
Quality Scores
SafetyNot Assessed
Efficacy75/10
Quality60/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations37
Citations/Year6.2
Relative Citation Ratio1.97
NIH Percentile74.1%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.50
Weight Score2.01
Normalized Score0.62
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