Melatonin for the treatment of sepsis: the scientific rationale
Sepsis affects 30 million people worldwide, leading to 6 million deaths every year (WHO), and despite decades of research, novel initiatives are drastically needed. According to the current literature, oxidative imbalance and mitochondrial dysfunction are common features of septic patients that can...
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Published in | Journal of thoracic disease Vol. 12; no. Suppl 1; pp. S54 - S65 |
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Main Authors | , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
China
AME Publishing Company
01.02.2020
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Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | Sepsis affects 30 million people worldwide, leading to 6 million deaths every year (WHO), and despite decades of research, novel initiatives are drastically needed. According to the current literature, oxidative imbalance and mitochondrial dysfunction are common features of septic patients that can cause multiorgan failure and death. Melatonin, alongside its traditionally accepted role as the master hormonal regulator of the circadian rhythm, is a promising adjunctive drug for sepsis through its anti-inflammatory, antiapoptotic and powerful antioxidant properties. Several animal models of sepsis have demonstrated that melatonin can prevent multiorgan dysfunction and improve survival through restoring mitochondrial electron transport chain (ETC) function, inhibiting nitric oxide synthesis and reducing cytokine production. The purpose of this article is to review the current evidence for the role of melatonin in sepsis, review its pharmacokinetic profile and virtual absence of side effects. While clinical data is limited, we propose the adjunctive use of melatonin is patients with severe sepsis and septic shock. |
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Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-2 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-3 content type line 23 ObjectType-Review-1 Contributions: (I) Conception and design: RML Colunga Biancatelli, PE Marik; (II) Administrative support: PE Marik; (III) Provision of study materials or patients: None; (IV) Collection and assembly of data: None; (V) Data analysis and interpretation: None; (VI) Manuscript writing: All authors; (VII) Final approval of manuscript: All authors. |
ISSN: | 2072-1439 2077-6624 |
DOI: | 10.21037/jtd.2019.12.85 |