Honma K, Hashimoto S, Endo T, Honma S
Department of Physiology, Hokkaido University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.
Biol Signals. 1997 Jul-Dec;6(4-6):307-12. doi: 10.1159/000109142.
Plasma melatonin rhythm in humans was investigated: its stability, relationship to the sleep-wake rhythm, and response to light. The so-called day-to-day variation of reference phases of plasma melatonin rhythm was within 1.4 h when blood was sampled at 1-hour intervals. Therefore, a change in phase beyond this value is regarded as a phase shift of melatonin rhythm in individuals. Plasma melatonin rhythm was spontaneously desynchronized from the sleep-wake rhythm and probably regulated by the common circadian pacemaker which drives the rhythm in rectal temperature. When a bright-light pulse was applied, the melatonin rhythm produced a phase shift, but the amount of phase shift seems to be different for the ascending and descending phases of nocturnal melatonin rise. Finally, a partial entrainment was observed in a subject who developed a non-24-hour sleep-wake syndrome later, in which the plasma melatonin rhythm was free-running whereas the sleep-wake rhythm was apparently entrained by a 24-hour day-night alternation. It is concluded that the plasma melatonin rhythm is the best marker of the human circadian pacemaker so far available.
包括其稳定性、与睡眠-觉醒节律的关系以及对光的反应。当每隔1小时采集一次血液时，血浆褪黑素节律参考相位的所谓每日变化在1.4小时以内。因此，超过此值的相位变化被视为个体褪黑素节律的相位偏移。血浆褪黑素节律与睡眠-觉醒节律自发去同步，可能由驱动直肠温度节律的共同昼夜节律起搏器调节。当施加强光脉冲时，褪黑素节律会产生相位偏移，但夜间褪黑素上升的上升期和下降期的相位偏移量似乎有所不同。最后，在一名后来出现非24小时睡眠-觉醒综合征的受试者中观察到部分同步，其中血浆褪黑素节律呈自由运行，而睡眠-觉醒节律显然由24小时昼夜交替所同步。结论是，血浆褪黑素节律是目前可用的人类昼夜节律起搏器的最佳标志物。
