2007•Unpublished venueRequires access
MELATONIN'S EFFECTS ON FREE RADICAL LEVELS IN RAT HIPPOCAMPUS, MEASURED BY ELECTRONIC PARAMAGNETIC RESONANCE.
Mireya Velázquez-Paniagua, R Contreras-Pérez, Gómez-Vidales, Bertha Prieto-Gómez
Open publisher page 4 citations
Abstract
Summary Associated with aging is the idea of neurodegeneratives diseases that are linked to an increase of free radicals. Melatonin has been postulated as the principal free radical scavenger in the organism. The present work analyzes the chronically applied melatonin effects on the free radical levels in the hippocampus of Wistar rats. It was determined by means of Electronic Paramagnetic Resonance that in melatonin-rats as well as control rats there was an increase in the hippocampal free radical levels in a directly proportional fashion with the age of the animals. However, the melatonin-rats exhibited lower free radical levels than the control rats, the most significant difference at 14-month-old. The analyzed frozen-dried tissue exhibited a stable free radical. On the control samples was spotted a radical with characteristics (g value and magnetic field) that look like similar to an ascorbyl radical which was not observed in the melatonin-treated animals. It suggests that melatonin could produce a”neuronal protection” on the hippocampal cells by reducing the free radicals on this central nervous structure.