scispace - formally typeset
Open AccessJournal ArticleDOI

Nature's knockout: the Mel1b receptor is not necessary for reproductive and circadian responses to melatonin in Siberian hamsters.

David R. Weaver, +2 more
- 01 Nov 1996 - 
- Vol. 10, Iss: 11, pp 1478-1487
Reads0
Chats0
TLDR
Data support the hypothesis that the Mel1a receptor, which does encode a functional receptor in this species, mediates reproductive and circadian responses to melatonin.
Abstract
The pineal hormone melatonin regulates seasonal reproduction and influences the timing of circadian rhythms. The Mel1a and Mel1b receptors are the high-affinity melatonin receptors present in mammals. Unexpectedly, the Mel1b receptor gene of the Siberian hamster, Phodopus sungorus, cannot encode a functional receptor; two nonsense mutations are present within the coding region. Southern blot analysis indicates that this is a single copy gene. The Mel1b receptor gene is nonfunctional in outbred populations of P. sungorus and Phodopus campbelli. Siberian hamsters lacking a functional Mel1b receptor nevertheless show seasonal reproductive and circadian responses to melatonin, indicating that the Mel1b receptor is not necessary for these responses. These data support the hypothesis that the Mel1a receptor, which does encode a functional receptor in this species, mediates reproductive and circadian responses to melatonin.

read more

Citations
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI

Melatonin—A pleiotropic, orchestrating regulator molecule

TL;DR: Control of electron flux, prevention of bottlenecks in the respiratory chain and electron leakage contribute to the avoidance of damage by free radicals and seem to be important in neuroprotection, inflammatory diseases and, presumably, aging.
Journal ArticleDOI

Molecular Dissection of Two Distinct Actions of Melatonin on the Suprachiasmatic Circadian Clock

TL;DR: The results provide a molecular basis for two distinct, mechanistically separable effects of melatonin on SCN physiology.
Journal ArticleDOI

Generation of the Melatonin Endocrine Message in Mammals: A Review of the Complex Regulation of Melatonin Synthesis by Norepinephrine, Peptides, and Other Pineal Transmitters

TL;DR: The aim of this review is to gather together early and recent data on the effects of the nonadrenergic transmitters on modulation of melatonin synthesis, which reveals the variety of inputs that can be integrated by the pineal gland; what elements are crucial to deliver the very precise timing information to the organism.
Journal ArticleDOI

Cellular Mechanisms of Melatonin Action

TL;DR: Molecular mechanisms of the melatonin effects are not clear but may involve at least two parallel transduction pathways, one inhibiting adenylyl cyclase and the other regulating phospholipide metabolism and [Ca2+]i.
Journal ArticleDOI

International Union of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology. LXXV. Nomenclature, Classification, and Pharmacology of G Protein-Coupled Melatonin Receptors

TL;DR: The steps taken since melatonin's discovery by Aaron Lerner in 1958 are summarized to functionally characterize, clone, and localize receptors in mammalian tissues, as well as current efforts to discover and develop ligands for treatment of a number of illnesses.
References
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI

DNA sequencing with chain-terminating inhibitors

TL;DR: A new method for determining nucleotide sequences in DNA is described, which makes use of the 2',3'-dideoxy and arabinon nucleoside analogues of the normal deoxynucleoside triphosphates, which act as specific chain-terminating inhibitors of DNA polymerase.
Journal ArticleDOI

Ligand: a versatile computerized approach for characterization of ligand-binding systems.

TL;DR: This approach provides two major advantages compared with other available methods: it uses an exact mathematical model of the ligand-binding system, thereby avoiding the possible biases introduced by several commonly used approximations and it uses a statistically valid, appropriately weighted least-squares curve-fitting algorithm with objective measurement of goodness of fit.
Journal ArticleDOI

Cloning and characterization of a mammalian melatonin receptor that mediates reproductive and circadian responses

TL;DR: The cloning and characterization of a high affinity receptor for melatonin from the sheep and human is reported, likely mediates the reproductive and circadian actions of melatonin in mammals.
Journal ArticleDOI

Molecular characterization of a second melatonin receptor expressed in human retina and brain: the Mel1b melatonin receptor

TL;DR: The Mel1b melatonin receptor may mediate the reported actions of melatonin in retina and participate in some of the neurobiological effects ofmelatonin in mammals.
Related Papers (5)