Melatonin in energy control: Circadian time-giver and homeostatic monitor

Melatonin is a neurohormone synthesized from dietary tryptophan in various organs, including the pineal gland and the retina. In the pineal gland, melatonin is produced at night under the control of the master clock located in the suprachiasmatic nuclei of the hypothalamus. Under physiological conditions, the pineal gland seems to constitute the unique source of circulating melatonin. Melatonin is involved in cellular metabolism in different ways. First, the circadian rhythm of melatonin helps the maintenance of proper internal timing, the disruption of which has deleterious effects on metabolic health. Second, melatonin modulates lipid metabolism, notably through diminished lipogenesis, and it has an antidiabetic effect, at least in several animal models. Third, pharmacological doses of melatonin have antioxidative, free radical-scavenging, and anti-inflammatory properties in various in vitro cellular models. As a result, melatonin can be considered both a circadian time-giver and a homeostatic monitor of cellular metabolism, via multiple mechanisms of action that are not all fully characterized. Aging, circadian disruption, and artificial light at night are conditions combining increased metabolic risks with diminished circulating levels of melatonin. Accordingly, melatonin supplementation could be of potential therapeutic value in the treatment or prevention of metabolic disorders. More clinical trials in controlled conditions are needed, notably taking greater account of circadian rhythmicity.