TY - JOUR AU - Glenister, Rachael AU - McDaniel, Kelly AU - Francis, Heather AU - Venter, Julie AU - Jensen, Kendal AU - Dusio, Giuseppina AU - Glaser, Shannon AU - Meng, Fanyin AU - Alpini, Gianfranco PY - 2012 TI - Therapeutic actions of melatonin on gastrointestinal cancer development and progression JF - Translational Gastrointestinal Cancer; Vol 2, No 1 (January 08, 2013): Translational Gastrointestinal Cancer Y2 - 2012 KW - N2 - Melatonin exerts a multitude of physiological functions including the regulation of the sleep cycle and circadian rhythm. Although the synthesis of melatonin in the pineal gland is regulated by changes in the light/dark cycle, the release of melatonin in the gastrointestinal tract is related to food consumption. Melatonin regulates antioxidative processes and it improves T-helper cell response by stimulating the production of specific cytokines. Melatonin is directly involved in preventing tumor initiation, promotion, and progression in a variety of cancers of the gastrointestinal tract including colorectal cancer, cholangiocarcinoma, hepatocarcinoma, and pancreatic carcinoma. This paper is a review of the literature regarding melatonin in the gastrointestinal tract and as a potential therapy for gastrointestinal cancers. UR - https://tgc.amegroups.com/article/view/976