Historical Perspective and Evaluation of the Mechanisms by which Melatonin Mediates Seasonal Reproduction in Mammals
Pineal, melatonin and seasonal reproduction
Keywords:
cerebrospinal fluid, tanycytes, pars tuberalis, tuberalins, retrograde signals, anterograde signals, thyroid stimulating hormone, pars distalis, median eminence
Abstract
The discovery of melatonin and its photoperiod-regulated circadian rhythm were important milestones in defining the events associated with the regulation of seasonal reproduction in both short-day and long-day breeding mammals. By means of the seasonal changes in the duration of the nocturnal melatonin rise, which provides both clock and calendar information, animals adjust their reproductive state to the appropriate time of year. Thus, melatonin dictates the proper season for mating which ensures the optimal time for delivery of offspring. The photoperiodic information is transduced into a chemical messenger, melatonin, in the pineal gland. The initial studies related to the importance of day length and the melatonin message in impelling seasonal reproduction involved the use of photoperiod-sensitive rodents, especially several long-day breeding hamster species. Since then, a large group of interested reproductive biologists have extended these findings to numerous other mammals including short-day breeding ungulates. Moreover, critical information related to the molecular processes at the level of the pars tuberalis of the anterior pituitary and the mediobasal hypothalamus has been provided. In this scheme, the pars tuberalis, until recently an almost ignored portion of the adenohypophysis, has been identified as a critical intermediate between the melatonin signal and the functional state of the reproductive organs. It is somewhat ironic that two organs, the pineal gland and the pars tuberalis, which suffered with the image of vestigiality for so long have now been identified as unequivocally essential for this most basic and important function, i.e., regulating seasonal reproduction.
References
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5. Izawa Y. (1926) On some anatomical changes which follow removal of the pineal body from both sexes of the immature albino rat. Am. J. Physiol. 77: 126-139.
6. Bing JF, Globus JH, Simon H. (1938) Pubertas praecox: a survey of the reported cases and verified anatomical findings, with particular reference to tumors of the pineal body. J. Mt. Sinai Hosp. 4: 935-965.
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11. Sanchez-Barcelo E, Rueda N, Mediavilla MD, et al. (2017) Clinical uses of melatonin in neurological diseases and mental and behavioral disorders. Curr. Med. Chem. 24: 3851-3878.
12. Slominski AT, Hardeland R, Zmijewski MA, et al. (2018) Melatonin: a cutaneous perspective on its production, metabolism and functions. J. Invest. Dermatol. 138: 490-499.
13. Axelrod J, Weissbach H. (1960) Enzymatic O-methylation of N-acetylserotonin to melatonin. Science 131: 1312.
14. Axelrod J, Weissbach H. (1961) Purification and properties of hydroxyindole-O-methyltransferase. J. Biol. Chem. 236: 211-213.
15. Wurtman RJ, Axelrod J. (1965) The formation, metabolism, and physiological effects of melatonin in mammals. Progr. Brain Res. 10: 520-529.
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17. Wurtman RJ, Axelrod J, Phillips LS. (1963) Melatonin synthesis in the pineal gland: control by light. Science 142: 1071-1073.
18. Axelrod J, Wurtman RJ, Winget CM. (1964) Melatonin synthesis in the hen pineal gland and its control by light. Nature 201: 1134.
19. Quay WB. (1964) Circadian and estrous rhythms in pineal melatonin and hydroxyindole-3-acetic acid. Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol. Med. 115: 710-713.
20. Quay WB. (1956) Volumetric and cytologic variation in the pineal body of Peromyscus leucopus (rodentia) with respect of sex, captivity and day-length. J. Morphol. 98: 471-478.
21. Mogler K-H R. (1958) Das Endokrine System des Syrischen Goldhamster unter Beriicksichtigung des Naturalichen und Experimentellen Winterschlafs. Zeit Mosphol Okeol Tiere 47: 267-308.
22. Fiske VM, Bryant GK, Putman J. (1960) Effect of light on the weight of the pineal in the rat. Endocrinology 66: 489-495.
23. Wurtman RJ, Axelrod J. (1965) The pineal gland. Sci. Am. 213: 50-60.
24. Klein DC, Weller JL. (1970) Indole metabolism in the pineal gland: a circadian rhythm in N-acetyltransferase. Science 169: 1093-1095.
25. Pelham RW, Ralph CL, Campbell IM. (1972) Mass spectral identification of melatonin in blood. Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 46: 1236-1241.
26. Pelham RW. (1975) A serum melatonin rhythm in chickens and its abolition by pinealectomy. Endocrinology 96: 543-546.
27. Vaughan GM, Pelham RW, Pang SF, et al. (1976) Nocturnal elevation of plasm melatonin and urinary 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid in young men: attempts at modification by brief changes in environmental lighting and sleep and autonomic drugs. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 42: 752-764.
28. Chu EW, Wurtman RJ, Axelrod J. (1964) An inhibitory effect of melatonin on the estrous phase of the estrous cycle of the rodent. Endocrinology 75: 238-244.
29. Wurtman RJ, Axelrod J, Chu EW. (1964) The relation between melatonin, a pineal substance, and the effects of light on the rat gonad. Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. 117: 228-230.
30. Hoffman RA, Reiter RJ. (1965) Pineal gland: influence on gonads of male hamsters. Science 148: 1609-1611.
31. Hoffman RA, Reiter RJ. (1966) Influence of compensatory mechanisms and the pineal upon light-induced gonadal atrophy in male hamsters. Nature 207: 638-639.
32. Reiter RJ, Hester RJ. (1966) Interrelationships of the pineal gland, the superior cervical ganglia and the photoperiod in the regulation of the endocrine systems of hamsters. Endocrinology 79: 1168-1170.
33. Hoffman RA, Reiter RJ. (1965) Rapid pinealectomy in hamsters and other small rodents. Anat. Rec. 153: 19-21.
34. Reiter RJ. (1972) Surgical procedures involving the pineal gland which prevent gonadal degeneration in adult male hamsters. Ann. Endocrinol. 33: 341-348.
35. Reiter RJ. (1980) The pineal gland: a regulator of regulators. Progr. Psychobiol. Physiol. Psychol. 9: 323-356.
36. Berson SA, Yalow RS. (1968) General principles of radioimmunoassay. Clin. Chim. Acta. 22: 51-69.
37. Reiter RJ, Johnson LY. (1974) Pineal regulation of immunoreactive luteinizing hormone and prolactin in light-deprived female hamsters. Fertil Steril. 25: 958-964.
38. Reiter RJ, Johnson LY. (1974) Depressant action of the pineal gland on pituitary luteinizing hormone and prolactin in male hamsters. Horm. Res. 5: 311-320.
39. Reiter RJ. (1975) Changes in pituitary prolactin levels of female hamsters as a function of age, photoperiod and pinealectomy. Acta. Endocrinol. 19: 43-50.
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Published
2018-12-03
How to Cite
[1]
Reiter, R., Tan, D.-X. and Sharma, R. 2018. Historical Perspective and Evaluation of the Mechanisms by which Melatonin Mediates Seasonal Reproduction in Mammals. Melatonin Research. 1, 1 (Dec. 2018), 59-77. DOI:https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.32794/mr11250004.
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Reviews
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