Capturing the circadian rhythms of free-running blind people with 0.5 mg melatonin

@article{Lewy2001CapturingTC,
  title={Capturing the circadian rhythms of free-running blind people with 0.5 mg melatonin},
  author={Alfred J. Lewy and Vance Bauer and Brant P. Hasler and A R Kendall and Maria Laura Nogueira Pires and Robert Sack},
  journal={Brain Research},
  year={2001},
  volume={918},
  pages={96-100}
}
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112 Citations
Highly Influential Citations
4
Background Citations
21
Methods Citations
2
Results Citations
2

112 Citations

Pretreatment circadian period in free-running blind people may predict the phase angle of entrainment to melatonin
Low, but not high, doses of melatonin entrained a free-running blind person with a long circadian period
TLDR
It is found that this person can be entrained to 0.5 mg of melatonin, but not to 20 mg, consistent with the idea that too much melatonin may spill over onto the wrong zone of the melatonin phase–response curve.
Eventual Entrainment of the Human Circadian Pacemaker by Melatonin is Independent of the Circadian Phase of Treatment Initiation: Clinical Implications
TLDR
It does not appear that low-dose melatonin treatment needs to be initiated on the advance zone to induce eventual entrainment in blind people with free-running rhythms > 24 h, and it is not essential that circadian phase be ascertained before starting low- doses ofmelatonin treatment of blind people.
Sleep and Circadian Rhythms in the Blind
TLDR
Although several treatment parameters continue to be determined, melatonin is likely to prove a safe and effective treatment for this type of sleep disorder.
Melatonin Entrains Free‐running Blind People According to a Physiological Dose‐response Curve
TLDR
It is reported that lower (physiological) doses of up to 300 µg can entrain (synchronize) free‐running circadian rhythms of 10 totally blind subjects that would otherwise drift later each day.
Melatonin as a Hormone and as a Marker for Circadian Phase Position in Humans
Zeitgeber Hierarchy in Humans: Resetting the Circadian Phase Positions of Blind People Using Melatonin
Four blind individuals who were thought to be entrained at an abnormal circadian phase position were reset to a more normal phase using exogenous melatonin administration. In one instance, circadian…
5-Hydroxy-L-tryptophan entrains the free-running rhythm in constant darkness in pygmy mice
TLDR
It is reported that 5-HTP entrains the free-running rhythm of Mus terricolor to 24’h, when presented once in 24 h at zeitgeber time (ZT) 6, corresponding to its previously known circadian time of maximum advance in complete darkness (CT 6), on the last pre-intervention day.
Diagnosis and Treatment of Non-24-h Sleep–Wake Disorder in the Blind
TLDR
Orally administered melatonin and the melatonin agonist tasimelteon have been shown to entrain (synchronize) the circadian clock, resulting in improvements in night-time sleep and daytime alertness.
Circadian Uses of Melatonin in Humans
TLDR
It is established that all blind free‐runners (BFRs) studied under high resolution appear to have phase‐advancing and phase‐delaying responses to as yet unidentified zeitgebers (time givers) that are usually too weak to result in entrainment.
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References

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TLDR
Administration of melatonin can entrain circadian rhythms in most blind people who have free-running rhythms, and in six of the seven subjects the rhythm was entrained to a 24.0-hour cycle during melatonin treatment.
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TLDR
The purpose of this study was to test the phase-shifting and entraining effects of melatonin in human subjects, and found five totally blind men found to have free-running endogenous melatonin rhythms to be remarkably stable.
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TLDR
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TLDR
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TLDR
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TLDR
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TLDR
The feeding of melatonin had no apparent effect on the baseline serum levels of either FSH or LH, the frequency and amplitude of the LH peaks, or the changes evoked in serum PRL after the ...
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