2nd Edition

Melatonin in the Promotion of Health

Edited By Ronald Ross Watson Copyright 2012
    584 Pages 82 B/W Illustrations
    by CRC Press

    584 Pages 82 B/W Illustrations
    by CRC Press

    Melatonin is a powerful hormone and antioxidant with numerous effects on the metabolism and the health of humans. Available as a dietary supplement in the United States since 1993, it is one of the most popular over-the-counter alternative remedies available. Comprising contributions from researchers who have studied the role of melatonin in various disease and physiological states, Melatonin in the Promotion of Health, Second Edition provides a wide variety of expert reviews on the biology of melatonin relevant to health.

    Beginning with a history of melatonin and its relation to circadian rhythms, the book examines its use in a host of applications, including:

    • Gut motility and gastrointestinal diseases
    • Anesthesia and surgery
    • Bone health
    • Breast cancer
    • Cardiovascular diseases
    • Diabetes
    • Age-related macular degeneration and uveitis
    • Melanoma, solar skin damage, and collagen synthesis
    • The prevention of DNA damage
    • Mental disorders, sleep, and issues related to jet lag and shift work

    The data gathered from a large number of carefully controlled animal and human studies have clearly implicated melatonin in the control mechanisms of a wide variety of physiological and psychological activities, making it a potent candidate for therapeutic use in the treatment of a diverse range of diseases. This volume demonstrates that continued studies of this molecule raise the exciting prospect of providing new avenues of treating numerous diseases more effectively and with less side-effects than those found in conventional treatment modalities.

    Melatonin Time Line: From Discovery to Therapy; I. Chowdhury and S. K. Maitra

    Melatonin and Circadian Rhythms: An Overview; G. C. Verster

    Synthesis and Metabolism of Melatonin in the Skin and Retinal Pigment Epithelium; Radomir Slominski and Andrzej Slominski

    Melatonin in Prevention of Mutagenesis, Oxidation, and Other Damage to Cells; Theodore Lialiaris

    Cardiovascular Protection by Melatonin; Rita Rezzani

    Melatonin Effect on Reproduction; Maria P. Tsantarliotou and Ioannis A. Taitzoglou

    Melatonin and the Prevention of Ultraviolet Solar Skin Damage; Tobias W. Fischer

    Melatonin and Type 2 Diabetes; Andreas Gunter Bach and Elmar Peschke

    Melatonin, Sleep, and Immune Modulation: Role in Health and Disease; Daniel P. Cardinali

    Melatonin as a Treatment for Uveitis; Ruth E. Rosenstein, Pablo H. Sande, Diego C. Fernandez, Mónica Chianelli, and Daniel A. Sáenz

    Role of Melatonin in Regulating Gut Motility; Jennie Wong and Khek-Yu Ho

    Melatonin and Food Safety: Investigating a Possible Role in the Seasonality of the Bacterial Pathogen Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Cattle; Tom S. Edrington and David J. Nisbet

    Melatonin in Dentistry; Luigi F. Rodella, Mauro Labanca, and Eleonora Foglio

    Melatonin as a Potential Treatment of Gastrointestinal Diseases; George A. Bubenik

    The Uses of Melatonin in Anesthesia and Surgery; Hany A. Mowafi and Salah A. Ismail

    Melatonin in Bone Health; Paula A. Witt-Enderby, William P. Clafshenkel, Mary P. Kotlarczyk, and Shalini Sethi

    Prevention and Treatment of Breast Cancer Using Melatonin; Vicki L. Davis, Balasunder R. Dodda, and Paula A. Witt-Enderby

    Molecular and Epigenetic Effects of Melatonin in Breast Cancer; S. Proietti, A. Cucina, S. Dinicola, A. Pasqualato, F. D’Anselmi, and M. Bizzarri

    Melatonin in Mental Disorders: Treatment and Prevention; Maria D. Maldonado and Maria A. Pérez-San-Gregorio

    Melatonin in Control of Gastric Secretion and Prevention of Gastric Mucosal Lesions; Peter C. Konturek, Iwona Brzozowska, Krzysztof Celinski, Stanislaw J. Konturek, and Tomasz Brzozowski

    Melatonin for the Control of Reproduction in Small Ruminants; L. A. Zarazaga, J. L. Guzmán, and B. Malpaux

    Melatonin in the Pancreatic Protection and Modulation of Pancreatic Exocrine Secretion; Jolanta Jaworek

    Life Environment and Sleep: Melatonin Production Affected by Light and Ambient Temperature in Humans; Masayuki Kondo and Tomoko Wakamura

    Decreased Light Transmittance Because of Aging and Melatonin; Takeshi Morita

    Melatonin and Treatment of Disorders Related to Jet Lag and Shift Work; Gregory M. Brown, Seithikurippu R. Pandi- Perumal, Ilya Trakht, D. Warren Spence, Daniel P. Cardinali, and Alexander Samel

    Melatonin and Its Byproducts on Age-Related Macular Degeneration; Dan-Ning Hu, Joan E. Roberts, and Richard B. Rosen

    Melatonin and Melanoma; Dan-Ning Hu, Joan E. Roberts, and Allan F. Wiechmann

    Melatonin and Inflammation—The Role of the Immune–Pineal Axis and the Sympathetic Tonus; Pedro A. Fernandes, and Regina P. Markus

    Neuroendocrinological Effects of Antidepressants: Is There a Role for Melatonin?; Marco Antonioli, Joanna Rybka, and Livia A. Carvalho

    Role of Melatonin in Collagen Synthesis; John Tidwell and Ming Pei

    Melatonin and DNA Protection; Luis Sarabia, Carlos Ponce, Maria Jose Munuce, and Hector Rodriguez

    Melatonin Modulation of Vascular Structure and Function; Mustafa Yildiz

    Melatonin and Sleep Disturbances in Patients with End-Stage Renal Disease; Birgit Koch, Marije Russcher, and Elsbeth Nagtegaal

    Melatonin and Traumatic Stress; Petr Bob

    Measurement of Melatonin in Other Body Fluids; Soyhan Bağcı

    Cell Studies with Melatonin Exposed to UV Light and Ionizing Radiation; Ilona Izykowska, Marek Cegielski, and Piotr Dziegiel

    Melatonin and Oxidation; V. Haktan Ozacmak

    Biography

    Ronald R. Watson, PhD, is a member of several national and international nutrition, immunology, cancer, and alcoholism research societies. For 30 years he was funded by Wallace Research Foundation to study dietary supplements in health promotion. Dr. Watson has edited more than 35 books on nutrition, dietary supplements, and over-the-counter agents, and 53 other scientific books. He has published more than 500 research and review articles.