natural sleep aid melatonin

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Blocking of melatonin synthesis and MT(1) receptor impairs the activation of Jurkat T cells.

By aid On May 6, 2010 No Comments

Authors: Lardone PJ, Rubio A, Cerrillo I, Gómez-Corvera A, Carrillo-Vico A, Sanchez-Hidalgo M, Guerrero JM, Fernandez-Riejos P, Sanchez-Margalet V, Molinero P
Melatonin has been proposed as regulating the immune system by affecting cytokine production in immunocompetent cells, enhancing the production of several T helper (Th)1 cytokines. To further investigate the melatonin’s role in IL-2/IL-2R system, we established an inducible T-REx expression system in Jurkat cells in which the protein levels of HIOMT enzyme or MT(1) receptor were significantly down-regulated upon tetracycline incubation. We found that T-REx Jurkat cells with lower levels of HIOMT activity, and consequently lower content of endogenous melatonin, showed IL-2 production decrease after activation with lectin. Likew…

Circadian Variation of Sleep During the Follicular and Luteal Phases of the Menstrual Cycle

By aid On May 2, 2010 No Comments

Conclusions: Moderate but significant changes in REM sleep across the menstrual and circadian cycles were observed. These results support an interaction between circadian and menstrual processes in the regulation of REM sleep.
Keywords: Circadian rhythms, sleep, menstrual cycle, core body temperature, melatonin, ultra-rapid sleep-wake cycle (Source: Sleep)

Arsenite induces oxidative injury in rat brain

By aid On May 2, 2010 No Comments

Sodium arsenite (arsenite)-induced neurotoxicity and its interaction with ferrous citrate (iron) was investigated in rat brain. In vitro data showed that arsenite (1[ndash]10 [mu]mol/L) concentration dependently increased lipid peroxidation and the potency of arsenite was less than that of iron. The oxidative activity of arsenite, sodium arsenate (arsenate), monomethylarsonic acid (MMA), and dimethylarsinic acid (DMA) were evaluated by inducing lipid peroxidation in cortical homogenates, and the potency for this effect was as follows: arsenite > arsenate > MMA and DMA. Several well-known antioxidants, including glutathione, melatonin, and [beta]-estradiol inhibited arsenite-induced lipid peroxidation in a concentration-dependent manner. Our in vivo study employed intranigral infusion of ar…

Selective inhibition of butyrylcholinesterase by singlet oxygen–generated melatonin derivatives

By aid On April 30, 2010 No Comments

Abstract: The inhibition of cholinesterases plays a crucial role in a therapy of neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease. Especially, butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) has recently gained special interest. On the other hand, compounds having antioxidative properties may have a beneficial role in slowing down neurodegeneration processes. To combine these two effects, we synthesized a series of new derivatives of melatonin, which is a strong antioxidant, possessing structural elements essential for the inhibitory activity against cholinesterase. The structure of the new compounds was confirmed by NMR spectroscopy and mass spectrometry, and their activity against cholinesterases was measured in vitro using modified Ellman’s method. The compounds obtained showed a high inhibitory …