The roles of melatonin on kidney injury in obese and diabetic conditions

Abstract

Obesity is a common and complex health problem worldwide and can induce the development of Type 2 diabetes. Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a complication occurring as a result of obesity and diabetic conditions that lead to an increased mortality rate. There are several mechanisms and pathways contributing to kidney injury in obese and diabetic conditions. The expansion of adipocytes triggers proinflammatory cytokines release into blood circulation and bind with the receptors at the cell membranes of renal tissues leading to kidney injury. Obesity‐mediated inflammation, oxidative stress, apoptosis, and mitochondrial dysfunction are the important causes and progression of CKD. Melatonin (N‐acetyl‐5‐methoxytryptamine) is a neuronal hormone that is synthesized by the pineal gland and plays an essential role in regulating several physiological functions in the human body. Moreover, melatonin has pleiotropic effects such as antioxidant, anti‐inflammation, antiapoptosis. In this review, the relationship between obesity, diabetic condition, and kidney injury and the renoprotective effect of melatonin in obese and diabetic conditions from in vitro and in vivo studies have been summarized and discussed.

Anti-Warburg Effect of Melatonin: A Proposed Mechanism to Explain its Inhibition of Multiple Diseases

“…Parkinson disease Tang et al [194] Chen et al [195] Polycystic kidney disease Podrini et al [196] Millet-Boureima et al [197] Diabetic kidney disease Morita and Kawaski et al [198] Promsan and Lungkaphin et al [199 The altered glucose metabolism, known as the Warburg effect, was initially discovered in cancer cells [222] but within the last two decades, it has also been found to occur in non-neoplastic, diseased cells as well. In the case of tumors, reversing the Warburg effect is considered a potential target for tumor therapy and several synthetic molecules have been developed for this purpose.…”

Melatonin Alleviates Renal Injury in Mouse Model of Sepsis

“…MLT has been demonstrated to exert antioxidation effects in the skin, the intestine, and the lungs, and it can also assist in relieving chronic pelvic pain in women with endometriosis ( Maleki Dana et al, 2020 ). It has been shown that MLT can decrease the kidney damage induced by insulin resistance (IR), unilateral ureteral occlusion (UUO), and severe burns by acting as an antioxidation and antiapoptotic agent ( Promsan and Lungkaphin, 2020 ). In this study, an AKI mouse model was established via CLP surgery with the phenotype of renal tissue damage.…”

Mechanisms of Melatonin in Obesity: A Review

“…The powerful antioxidant function makes it possible for melatonin to fight obesity. Based on the reported evidence, the underlying mechanism can be explained as follows ( Figure 3 c): firstly, melatonin can directly scavenge ROS under OS conditions, such as H 2 O 2 and superoxide anion [ 165 ]. The direct action of melatonin is dependent on the buffering capacity of its aromatic indole ring reacting with ROS or reactive nitrogen species (RNS), which leads to the formation of metabolites that in turn exhibit antioxidant function through a cascade reaction mechanism [ 12 , 166 ].…”