ReviewTranslational psychiatry2021
Melatonin's neuroprotective role in mitochondria and its potential as a biomarker in aging, cognition and psychiatric disorders.
Review in Translational psychiatry, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 64 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
64 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 105 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effectiveness and safety of melatoninergic agonists in preventing delirium in the ICU: an updated dose‒response meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Critical care (London, England) · 2026Pooled it
- Associations between the brain glymphatic system and mitochondrial (dys)function: a systematic review.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2025Pooled it
- Efficacy and safety of antioxidants and dietary therapies for epilepsy: an umbrella meta-analysis.Frontiers in nutrition · 2025Pooled it
- Efficacy of Melatonin in Alleviating Radiotherapy-Induced Fatigue, Anxiety, and Depression in Breast Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Integrative cancer therapiesPooled it
- Exogenous melatonin boosts vaccine-induced immunity in individuals with high pre-existing influenza immunity.Frontiers in immunology · 2025Trial
- Melatonin Improves Cognitive Function and Suppresses Excessive Mitophagy in Rats With Vascular Dementia.CNS neuroscience & therapeutics · 2026Article
- Decoding of Nocturnal Fasting and Health: Possible Role of Zeitgebers and Melatonin.Annals of neurosciences · 2026Review
- Melatonin Preserves Mitochondrial Redox Balance in UVB-Exposed Human Keratinocytes.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Article
- Peripheral metabolic-redox signaling as a core mechanism of major depressive disorder: evidence from deep metabolomic phenotyping.Acta neuropsychiatrica · 2026Article
- A latent profile analysis of health characteristics in relation to sleep among female sex workers in entertainment venues in Wuhan, China.BMC women's health · 2026Article
- Effect of Melatonin and Epigallocatechin-3-Gallate Combination on In Vitro Maturation of Mouse Oocytes.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Aging reimagined: Bridging clinical modulation and scientific breakthroughs.Biology of sport · 2026Review
- Therapeutic Potential of Melatonin in Gastrointestinal Cancers: Molecular Mechanisms, Preclinical Evidence and Clinical Implications.Journal of pineal research · 2026Review
- Current perspectives on circadian regulation of mitochondrial dynamics in mood disorders and perioperative stress.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2026Review
- Melatonin Modulates Astrocyte Inflammatory Response and Nrf2/SIRT1 Signaling Pathways in Adult Rat Cortical Cultures.Biomedicines · 2025Article
- Review
- Melatonin Attenuates the Inflammatory Response of Astrocyte Following Ischemia Stroke through SIRT1/NF-κΒ Signaling Pathway.Molecular neurobiology · 2025Article
- Exploring the connection between the Mitochondrial DNA and the Circadian Rhythm: Insights into Mitochondrial Biogenesis and its Dynamics.Molecular biology reports · 2025Review
- Combined Pre- and Postharvest Melatonin Treatments Improve the Functional Quality of the Sweet Cherry cv. 'Sunburst'.Foods (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
4 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Melatonin is an ancient molecule that is evident in high concentrations in various tissues throughout the body. It can be separated into two pools; one of which is synthesized by the pineal and can be found in blood, and the second by various tissues and is present in these tissues. Pineal melatonin levels display a circadian rhythm while tissue melatonin does not. For decades now, melatonin has been implicated in promoting and maintaining sleep. More recently, evidence indicates that it also plays an important role in neuroprotection. The beginning of our review will summarize this literature. As an amphiphilic, pleiotropic indoleamine, melatonin has both direct actions and receptor-mediated effects. For example, melatonin has established effects as an antioxidant and free radical scavenger both in vitro and in animal models. This is also evident in melatonin's prominent role in mitochondria, which is reviewed in the next section. Melatonin is synthesized in, taken up by, and concentrated in mitochondria, the powerhouse of the cell. Mitochondria are also the major source of reactive oxygen species as a byproduct of mitochondrial oxidative metabolism. The final section of our review summarizes melatonin's potential role in aging and psychiatric disorders. Pineal and tissue melatonin levels both decline with age. Pineal melatonin declines in individuals suffering from psychiatric disorders. Melatonin's ability to act as a neuroprotectant opens new avenues of exploration for the molecule as it may be a potential treatment for cases with neurodegenerative disease.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.