Time-dependent effects of melatonin on immune measurements in male Syrian hamsters
Corresponding Author
Thomas H. Champney
Department of Human Anatomy and Medical Neurobiology, College of Medicine, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, College Station, Texas 77843-1114;
Address reprint requests to Dr. Thomas H. Champney, Department of Human Anatomy, College of Medicine, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, College Station, Texas 77843-1114.Search for more papers by this authorGregg C. Allen
Department of Human Anatomy and Medical Neurobiology, College of Medicine, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, College Station, Texas 77843-1114;
Search for more papers by this authorMichael Zannelli
Endogen, Incorporated, Woburn, Massachusetts 01801-1059. E-mail: [email protected]
Search for more papers by this authorLee Anne Beausang
Endogen, Incorporated, Woburn, Massachusetts 01801-1059. E-mail: [email protected]
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Thomas H. Champney
Department of Human Anatomy and Medical Neurobiology, College of Medicine, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, College Station, Texas 77843-1114;
Address reprint requests to Dr. Thomas H. Champney, Department of Human Anatomy, College of Medicine, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, College Station, Texas 77843-1114.Search for more papers by this authorGregg C. Allen
Department of Human Anatomy and Medical Neurobiology, College of Medicine, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, College Station, Texas 77843-1114;
Search for more papers by this authorMichael Zannelli
Endogen, Incorporated, Woburn, Massachusetts 01801-1059. E-mail: [email protected]
Search for more papers by this authorLee Anne Beausang
Endogen, Incorporated, Woburn, Massachusetts 01801-1059. E-mail: [email protected]
Search for more papers by this authorAbstract
Abstract: Adult, male Syrian hamsters received daily subcutaneous melatonin (25 μg) injections or vehicle injections at 08:00 or 17:00 hr for 11 weeks. Body weights were measured weekly throughout the experiment and testes weights, spleen weights, and serum was collected at the end of the experiment. The spleens were sectioned and immunocytochemically analyzed for immunoglobulin G and serum levels of interferon-gamma, interleukin-2, and interleukin-4 were determined in heterologous mouse assays. Melatonin injections at 17:00 hr, but not at 08.00 hr, increased body weights, decreased testes weights and serum testosterone levels, and had no effect on immunoglobulin G content in the spleen. Likewise, melatonin injections at 17:00 hr, but not at 08:00 hr, increased serum interferon-gamma levels, had no effect on interleukin-2 levels, and appeared to increase interleukin-4 levels. Since melatonin injections at 08:00 hr were ineffective in altering immune measurements and correlations between reproductive measures and immune measures were high, the most parsimonious explanation for these results is that melatonin injections at 17:00 hr depressed reproductive hormone levels and these depressed levels altered immune measures.
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