Abstract:
Aim To evaluate the effi cacy of melatonin supplementation therapy as an alternative to estrogen replacement
therapy in an ovariectomized rat model and to assess diabetogenic metabolic dysregulation caused by estrogen
defi ciency in postmenopausal individuals.
Methods Ovariectomized adult Wistar rats were treated with either estrogen/progesterone, melatonin or a
combination of estrogen and melatonin. Body weight gain, feed effi ciency, serum glucose, insulin, glucose
tolerance and insulin response, serum and tissue lipids, tissue glycogen contents and activities of glycogen
phosphorylase and glucose-6-phosphatase were analyzed in all the experimental groups.
Results Ovariectomized animals showed increased body weight gain, feed effi ciency, fasting insulin resistance,
greater area under curve for the glucose tolerance test, higher serum and tissue lipids and reduced
glycogen content and insulin sensitivity. A low dose of melatonin was more effi cient than estrogen in reversing
all the ovariectomy-induced changes. The combination of estrogen melatonin was found to be best in
correcting glycemic dysregulation while high doses of melatonin could effectively regulate dyslipidemia.
Conclusion The present study provides strong evidence for melatonin supplementation therapy to be more
potent and effective in comparison to estrogen replacement therapy due to its single-handed ability to revert
all the ovariectomy-induced changes. No reported side-effect or long-term effect of melatonin, against the
known effects of estrogen replacement therapy, make it more attractive as a candidate to treat postmenopausal
symptoms.
