Yukitomo Morita Knihy

Melatonin is a hormonal signal for the photoperiod and is intricately involved in many aspects of circadian and seasonal physiology. This idoleamine is synthesized in the pineal gland and retinas of many vertebrate species. In mammals, melatonin of pineal origin is synthesized in pinealocytes that receive photic information indirectly via the retina, brain, and sympathetic nervous system. In many non-mammalian vertebrates, the hormone-producing cells of the pineal organ are the directly light-sensitive, pineal photoreceptors. This publication contains state-of-the-art approaches to the study of pinealocytes, including confocal microscopy with three-dimensional reconstruction, calcium imaging of identified cells, patch-clamp analysis of novel ion channels, and new techniques for the monitoring of circadian melatonin production. Moreover, recent findings on the molecular and pharmacological characteristics of melatonin receptors, mechanisms of melatonin action and human melatonin in health and disease are reviewed. This collection of papers offers a valuable resource in the study of circadian and seasonal physiology. It provides stimulating reading for chronobiologists, cell biologists, physiologists, pharmacologists, neuroendocrinologists, and other medical and biological researchers.