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Melatonin and vitamin D, two sides of the same coin, better to land on its edge to improve multiple sclerosis

Previous studies revealed a latitudinal gradient of multiple sclerosis (MS) prevalence, increasing by moving from the equator to the poles. The duration and quality of an individual’s exposure to sunlight vary with latitude. Skin exposure to sunlight activates vitamin D synthesis, while light absenc...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Ghareghani, Majid, Zibara, Kazem, Rivest, Serge
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: National Academy of Sciences 2023
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10083587/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/36972442
http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2219334120
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author Ghareghani, Majid
Zibara, Kazem
Rivest, Serge
author_facet Ghareghani, Majid
Zibara, Kazem
Rivest, Serge
author_sort Ghareghani, Majid
collection PubMed
description Previous studies revealed a latitudinal gradient of multiple sclerosis (MS) prevalence, increasing by moving from the equator to the poles. The duration and quality of an individual’s exposure to sunlight vary with latitude. Skin exposure to sunlight activates vitamin D synthesis, while light absence, as perceived by the eyes, activates melatonin synthesis in the pineal gland. Vitamin D or melatonin deficiency/insufficiency or overdose can occur at any latitude due to specific lifestyles and diets. Moving away from the equator, especially beyond 37°, decreases vitamin D while raising melatonin. Furthermore, melatonin synthesis increases in cold habitats like northern countries. Since melatonin's beneficial role was shown in MS, it is expected that northern countries whose individuals have higher endogenous melatonin should show a lower MS prevalence; however, these are ranked with the highest scores. In addition, countries like the United States and Canada have uncontrolled over-the-counter usage. In high latitudes, vitamin D deficiency and a higher MS prevalence persist even though vitamin D is typically compensated for by supplementation and not sunlight. Recently, we found that prolonged darkness increased MS melatonin levels, mimicking the long-term increase in northern countries. This caused a reduction in cortisol and increased infiltration, inflammation, and demyelination, which were all rescued by constant light therapy. In this review, we explain melatonin and vitamin D's possible roles in MS prevalence. The possible causes in northern countries are then discussed. Finally, we suggest strategies to treat MS by manipulating vitamin D and melatonin, preferably with sunlight or darkness, not supplements.
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spelling pubmed-100835872023-09-27 Melatonin and vitamin D, two sides of the same coin, better to land on its edge to improve multiple sclerosis Ghareghani, Majid Zibara, Kazem Rivest, Serge Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A Perspective Previous studies revealed a latitudinal gradient of multiple sclerosis (MS) prevalence, increasing by moving from the equator to the poles. The duration and quality of an individual’s exposure to sunlight vary with latitude. Skin exposure to sunlight activates vitamin D synthesis, while light absence, as perceived by the eyes, activates melatonin synthesis in the pineal gland. Vitamin D or melatonin deficiency/insufficiency or overdose can occur at any latitude due to specific lifestyles and diets. Moving away from the equator, especially beyond 37°, decreases vitamin D while raising melatonin. Furthermore, melatonin synthesis increases in cold habitats like northern countries. Since melatonin's beneficial role was shown in MS, it is expected that northern countries whose individuals have higher endogenous melatonin should show a lower MS prevalence; however, these are ranked with the highest scores. In addition, countries like the United States and Canada have uncontrolled over-the-counter usage. In high latitudes, vitamin D deficiency and a higher MS prevalence persist even though vitamin D is typically compensated for by supplementation and not sunlight. Recently, we found that prolonged darkness increased MS melatonin levels, mimicking the long-term increase in northern countries. This caused a reduction in cortisol and increased infiltration, inflammation, and demyelination, which were all rescued by constant light therapy. In this review, we explain melatonin and vitamin D's possible roles in MS prevalence. The possible causes in northern countries are then discussed. Finally, we suggest strategies to treat MS by manipulating vitamin D and melatonin, preferably with sunlight or darkness, not supplements. National Academy of Sciences 2023-03-27 2023-04-04 /pmc/articles/PMC10083587/ /pubmed/36972442 http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2219334120 Text en Copyright © 2023 the Author(s). Published by PNAS. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/This article is distributed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License 4.0 (CC BY-NC-ND) (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) .
spellingShingle Perspective
Ghareghani, Majid
Zibara, Kazem
Rivest, Serge
Melatonin and vitamin D, two sides of the same coin, better to land on its edge to improve multiple sclerosis
title Melatonin and vitamin D, two sides of the same coin, better to land on its edge to improve multiple sclerosis
title_full Melatonin and vitamin D, two sides of the same coin, better to land on its edge to improve multiple sclerosis
title_fullStr Melatonin and vitamin D, two sides of the same coin, better to land on its edge to improve multiple sclerosis
title_full_unstemmed Melatonin and vitamin D, two sides of the same coin, better to land on its edge to improve multiple sclerosis
title_short Melatonin and vitamin D, two sides of the same coin, better to land on its edge to improve multiple sclerosis
title_sort melatonin and vitamin d, two sides of the same coin, better to land on its edge to improve multiple sclerosis
topic Perspective
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10083587/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/36972442
http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2219334120
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