| Significance and application of melatonin in the regulation of brown adipose tissue metabolism: relation to human obesity. | |
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MedLine Citation:
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PMID: 20557470 Owner: NLM Status: In-Data-Review |
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
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A worldwide increase in the incidence of obesity indicates the unsuccessful battle against this disorder. Obesity and the associated health problems urgently require effective strategies of treatment. The new discovery that a substantial amount of functional brown adipose tissue (BAT) is retained in adult humans provides a potential target for treatment of human obesity. BAT is active metabolically and disposes of extra energy via generation of heat through uncoupling oxidative phosphorylation in mitochondria. The physiology of BAT is readily regulated by melatonin, which not only increases recruitment of brown adipocytes but also elevates their metabolic activity in mammals. It is speculated that the hypertrophic effect and functional activation of BAT induced by melatonin may likely apply to the human. Thus, melatonin, a naturally occurring substance with no reported toxicity, may serve as a novel approach for treatment of obesity. Conversely, because of the availability of artificial light sources, excessive light exposure after darkness onset in modern societies should be considered a potential contributory factor to human obesity as light at night dramatically reduces endogenous melatonin production. In the current article, the potential associations of melatonin, BAT, obesity and the medical implications are discussed. |
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Authors:
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D-X Tan; L C Manchester; L Fuentes-Broto; S D Paredes; R J Reiter |
Publication Detail:
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Type: Journal Article |
Journal Detail:
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Title: Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity Volume: 12 ISSN: 1467-789X ISO Abbreviation: Obes Rev Publication Date: 2011 Mar |
Date Detail:
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Created Date: 2011-02-23 Completed Date: - Revised Date: - |
Medline Journal Info:
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Nlm Unique ID: 100897395 Medline TA: Obes Rev Country: England |
Other Details:
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Languages: eng Pagination: 167-88 Citation Subset: IM |
Copyright Information:
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© 2010 The Authors. obesity reviews © 2010 International Association for the Study of Obesity. |
Affiliation:
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Department of Cellular and Structural Biology, the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA. |
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From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine
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