第390次SKLBE 学术论坛

以下为第390次SKLBE 学术论坛信息，请阅。

报告人：Prof. Russel Reiter教授

单位：   Department of Cellular and Structure Biology at the UT Health Science Center, San Antonio, Texas, USA

题目： Functions of Melatonin and Its Therapeutic Applications

时间：2017-12-27  15:30-17:00

地点：实验18楼315室

主持人：杨有军教授

报告人简介：Dr. Russel J. Reiter is Professor of Cell Biology in the Department of Cellular and Structure Biology at the UT Health Science Center, San Antonio, Texas, USA,   In addition to his Ph.D. degree, Dr. Reiter has received three honorary M.D. degrees and one honorary D.Sc. degree from international universities.  His research relates to the multiple receptor-independent and receptor-dependent actions of melatonin in humans, animals and plants.  He has trained 25 Ph.D. students and 144 postdoctoral fellows.  Dr. Reiter has received numerous awards for his research including the A. Ross McIntyre Gold Metal (USA), the US Senior Scientist Award (Germany), Lizoni Lincee Award (Italy), the Inaugural Aaron B. Lerner Pioneer Award (USA), etc.  He has published numerous research papers, reviews and chapters and he has written or edited 25 books.  According to Google Scholar, his papers have been cited in the scientific literature more than 112,000 times and his h-index is 163.  Thomson Reuters has identified Dr. Reiter as a Highly Cited Scientist (top 1%) and lists him as one of the World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds-2014.  Dr. Reiter has been an invited speaker at more than 300 international meetings and symposia.  He is the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Pineal Research (2016 impact factor = 10.391) and he is or has been on the Editorial/Advisory Board of 26 other journals.

报告摘要：Melatonin is a multifunction molecule that was initially discovered in the pineal gland, a small structure in the brain.  Subsequently, melatonin was also identified in all living organisms, including invertebrates and plants; these species do not have a pineal gland.   Thus, melatonin is universally synthesized in every living organism.  In the pineal gland of mammals, including the human, melatonin is synthesized from serotonin and its production is regulated by the light:dark cycle.  Melatonin’s production is always highest at night and melatonin is released into the blood immediately, so blood levels of melatonin are always higher at night. Light exposure at night suppresses melatonin levels.  Recently, melatonin was found to be produced in the mitochondria of all cells, but only the pineal gland releases it into the blood.  In cells, melatonin is a potent antioxidant and it detoxifies numerous free radicals, which usually cause molecular damage.  The damage inflicted by free radicals contributes to ageing and age-related diseases.  Since melatonin neutralizes free radicals, i.e., it functions as a potent antioxidant, melatonin aids in delaying the degenerative signs of aging and inhibits the development of some age-related diseases, especially those that involve the brain and heart.  Unfortunately, melatonin production decreases with increasing age, and with only low levels of melatonin in the elderly, the rate of accumulation of molecular damage increases, leading to accelerated aging.