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Review
. 2023 Jan 25;24(3):2381.
doi: 10.3390/ijms24032381.

Melatonin Can Modulate Neurodegenerative Diseases by Regulating Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress

Yeong-Min Yoo  1 , Seong Soo Joo  2
Affiliations
Review

Melatonin Can Modulate Neurodegenerative Diseases by Regulating Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress

Yeong-Min Yoo et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

As people age, their risks of developing degenerative diseases such as cancer, diabetes, Parkinson's Disease (PD), Alzheimer's Disease (AD), rheumatoid arthritis, and osteoporosis are generally increasing. Millions of people worldwide suffer from these diseases as they age. In most countries, neurodegenerative diseases are generally recognized as the number one cause afflicting the elderly. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress has been suggested to be associated with some human neurological diseases, such as PD and AD. Melatonin, a neuroendocrine hormone mainly synthesized in the pineal gland, is involved in pleiotropically biological functions, including the control of the circadian rhythm, immune enhancement, and antioxidant, anti-aging, and anti-tumor effects. Although there are many papers on the prevention or suppression of diseases by melatonin, there are very few papers about the effects of melatonin on ER stress in neurons and neurodegenerative diseases. This paper aims to summarize and present the effects of melatonin reported so far, focusing on its effects on neurons and neurodegenerative diseases related to ER stress. Studies have shown that the primary target molecule of ER stress for melatonin is CHOP, and PERK and GRP78/BiP are the secondary target molecules. Therefore, melatonin is crucial in protecting neurons and treating neurodegeneration against ER stress.

Keywords: endoplasmic reticulum stress; melatonin; neurodegenerative diseases; neurons.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The number of articles related to ER stress among articles on neurodegenerative diseases published in PubMed from 1990 to 23 November 2022.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The number of articles related to neurodegenerative diseases and ER stress investigated by PubMed by 23 November 2022.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The number of articles related to ER stress in PD published in PubMed from 2000 to 23 November 2022.
Figure 4
Figure 4
The number of articles related to ER stress in AD published in PubMed from 1997 to 23 November 2022.
Figure 5
Figure 5
The number of articles related to ER stress in ALS published in PubMed from 2003 to 23 November 2022.
Figure 6
Figure 6
The number of articles related to ER stress in TSE published in PubMed from 1999 to 23 November 2022.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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