Diabetes mellitus and melatonin: Where are we?

Area of Science:

• Endocrinology and Metabolism
• Molecular Biology
• Pharmacology

Background:

• Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a leading cause of global mortality, with projected increases in prevalence.
• Existing diabetes treatments have limitations and side effects, necessitating novel therapeutic agents.
• Melatonin, a pineal hormone, possesses antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties potentially relevant to diabetes management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the therapeutic potential of melatonin in various diabetes models.
• To evaluate melatonin's efficacy in managing diabetes-related complications.
• To assess the safety and clinical applicability of melatonin for diabetes management.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature on melatonin's role in diabetes pathogenesis and treatment.
• Analysis of studies involving melatonin in cell lines, animal models, and human subjects with diabetes.
• Examination of melatonin's effects on oxidative stress, inflammation, ER stress, and mitochondrial dysfunction in diabetic contexts.

Main Results:

• Reduced melatonin levels and MTNR1B variants are linked to type 2 diabetes (T2D) risk.
• Exogenous melatonin shows promise in alleviating diabetes and related complications in preclinical and clinical studies.
• Melatonin influences glucose homeostasis, but some reports show contradictory effects.

Conclusions:

• Melatonin exhibits significant therapeutic potential for diabetes and its complications.
• Further investigation is required to reconcile conflicting findings and establish melatonin's role in clinical diabetes management.
• Melatonin may offer a safe therapeutic option for addressing oxidative stress, inflammation, and metabolic dysregulation in diabetes.