The pineal affects life span in hamsters with heart disease

Cardiomyopathic hamsters (CMH) develop heart disease early in life which leads to congestive heart failure and death as these hamsters age. We have previously shown that living in constant light or other non-24-h light-dark (LD) cycles can increase longevity in these hamsters, and the current experiment examined potential mechanisms for this effect. Thus, CMH were orchidectomized, pinealectomized, or given melatonin treatment and then placed on either 1:23 or 1:23.6 LD cycles. Orchidectomy had no effect on longevity in either LD cycle, but in 1:23.6 it did lead to death with a greater degree of heart failure. On the other hand, pinealectomy of 1:23 CMH led to changes in life span similar to those produced by placing the hamsters in 1:23.6. Moreover, melatonin implant treatment of CMH in 1:23.6 led to changes in life span that were similar to those caused by life in 1:23, at least over the first half of the survival curves. Thus, it appears that the pineal gland and melatonin may be involved in mediating the effects of non-24-h LD cycles, whether these effects are beneficial or detrimental. In addition, the testes and testosterone appear to have no role in mediating these effects. These data suggest that inhibition, rather than stimulation, of pineal function might be beneficial for those with congestive heart failure, but further experiments are necessary to clarify when during the disease process potential treatments might be helpful.