Mechanism of Action of Melatonin as a Potential Adjuvant Therapy in Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Colorectal Cancer.
Study Goal
The researchers aimed to summarize melatonin's multifactorial interaction with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and colorectal cancer (CRC), focusing on its mechanisms of action and potential as an adjuvant therapy.
Results Summary
Melatonin enhances intestinal mucosal barrier integrity, regulates immune response, alleviates inflammation, and attenuates oxidative stress, showing protective effects in IBD and CRC. The study highlights melatonin's documented positive outcomes and future potential as an adjuvant therapy.
Population
Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and colorectal cancer (CRC).
Effective Dosage
Not specified
Duration
Not specified
Interactions
None mentioned
| Intervention | Direction | Endpoint | Population | Dosage | Impact | Claim # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
melatonin | increase | integrity of the intestinal mucosal barrier | - | - | enhances | #1 |
melatonin | neutral | immune response | - | - | regulates | #2 |
melatonin | decrease | inflammation | - | - | alleviates | #3 |
melatonin | decrease | oxidative stress | - | - | attenuates | #4 |
melatonin | neutral | IBD and CRC | - | - | positive outcomes on the treatment | #5 |
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), a continuum of chronic inflammatory diseases, is tightly associated with immune system dysregulation and dysbiosis, leading to inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) and multiple extraintestinal manifestations. The pathogenesis of IBD is not completely elucidated. However, it is associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer (CRC), which is one of the most common gastrointestinal malignancies. In both IBD and CRC, a complex interplay occurs between the immune system and gut microbiota (GM), leading to the alteration in GM composition. Melatonin, a neuroendocrine hormone, was found to be involved with this interplay, especially since it is present in high amounts in the gut, leading to some protective effects. Actually, melatonin enhances the integrity of the intestinal mucosal barrier, regulates the immune response, alleviates inflammation, and attenuates oxidative stress. Thereby, the authors summarize the multifactorial interaction of melatonin with IBD and with CRC, focusing on new findings related to the mechanisms of action of this hormone, in addition to its documented positive outcomes on the treatment of these two pathologies and possible future perspectives to use melatonin as an adjuvant therapy.