Prolonged melatonin administration in 6-month-old Sprague-Dawley rats: metabolic alterations

The aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of prolonged melatonin administration on chosen metabolic and hormonal variables in male and female Sprague-Dawley rats. Melatonin was administered in tap water (4 microg/ml) daily from the 6th month of age. Rats were fed a standard type of diet ad libitum and were kept in a light regimen L:D--12:12h. The experiment was terminated after 12 weeks of melatonin administration. Melatonin decreased body mass during the whole experiment in females and from the 42nd day of the experiment in males. Relative heart muscle weight in females and absolute/relative thymus weight in males were increased after melatonin administration. Melatonin decreased glycaemia, heart muscle glycogen concentration in females and liver glycogen concentration in both sexes. Serum insulin concentration in males was decreased; serum corticosterone concentration was increased in both males and females. Serum triacylglycerol and heart muscle cholesterol concentration in females were decreased, however in males serum and heart muscle cholesterol concentration was increased. Liver phospholipid concentration in females was decreased and heart muscle phospholipid concentration in males was increased. Melatonin increased malondialdehyde concentration in heart muscle in males and in liver in both sexes. Melatonin induced prominent sex-dependent changes in both carbohydrate and lipid metabolism.