Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a fatal disorder caused by the genetic absence of dystrophin. Oxidative stress and inflammation are directly involved in the progression of the disease. Ten patients with DMD were treated with 60 mg melatonin at 9pm plus 10 mg at 9am daily for 9 months. Plasma levels of 1) inflammatory cytokines interleukin (IL)-1beta, IL-2, IL-6, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, interferon-gamma; 2) markers of oxidative stress: lipid peroxidation (LPO), nitrites (NO(x)); and 3) plasma markers of muscle injury, were measured after 3, 6 and 9 months of treatment. Healthy age- and sex-matched subjects were used as controls. At baseline, DMD patients had elevated levels of LPO, NO(x), and cytokines compared with healthy controls. Melatonin administration reduced these values to control levels at 3 months of treatment, and decreased them further after 9 months. Melatonin also reduced plasma levels of creatine kinase (50%), lactate dehydrogenase (28%), aspartate aminotransferase (28%), alanine aminotransferase (20%), and myoglobin (13%). Melatonin administration reduced the oxidative and inflammatory process in DMD patients, and reduced markers of the muscle degenerative process. (J Pineal Res. 2010 Apr;48(3):282-9.) PMID: 20210854
