The blood vascular bed of the rat pineal gland was reproduced through a low viscosity methacrylate casting medium and observed with a scanning electron microscope. The pineal gland was located in front of the confluens sinuum which was formed by the confluence of the left and right transverse sinuses and the superior sagittal and great cerebral veins. The pineal gland was found to contain a ric...

Many neurological diseases, including autism, depression, dementia, anxiety disorder and Parkinson’s disease, are associated with abnormal sleep patterns, which are directly linked to pineal gland dysfunction. The pineal gland is highly susceptible to environmental toxicants. Two pervasive substances in modern industrialized nations are aluminum and glyphosate, the active ingredient in the herb...

We investigated whether the genetic difference in plasma melatonin concentration in ewes was due to differences in the synthesis pathway from the pineal gland or in the catabolism of the hormone. Two groups of ewes [9 low (L) and 10 high (H)] were selected according to the breeding value of their mean nighttime plasma melatonin concentrations estimated at winter and summer solstices. In respons...

Melatonin (N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine) is a hormone secreted by the pineal gland of all animals as well as in human beings. It is not only synthesized in the pineal gland but also many other organs like eye (Cardinali and rosner, 1971), gastro-intestinal tract (Bubenik, 2002), skin (Slominiski, 2005), lymphocytes (Carrillo-Vico et al., 2004), thymus (Naranjo et al., 2007) etc. Besides being a...

M elatonin, a hormone produced and secreted by the pineal gland, is involved in promoting sleep onset and in the synchronization of the circadian sleep/wake rhythm (1-4). A recent estimate puts the US retail market for melatonin at $200 million annually, according to Genzyme, a major manufacturer of synthetic melatonin (5). The pineal gland secretes more melatonin at night, in part because ligh...

structural and immunocytochemical changes taking place during the day and at night in developing sheep pineal gland under natural non-stimulatory photoperiods (summer solstice). Additionally, the diurnal cycle of plasma melatonin levels was charted and differences between diurnal and nocturnal pineal melatonin concentrations were analyzed. 36 ewes of three different ages were examined: infants ...

Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease of the central nervous system which is accompanied by demyelinating the neurons. The imbalance between the T cell effectors and T cell regulators is thought to have a role in the pathogenesis of the disease. Melatonin is a hormone that is secreted by pineal gland which has an important role in circadian rhythm and immune-modulatory effects. Melatonin ...

The pineal region can be affected by different types of lesions, ranging from benign masses (e.g. pineal cysts) to highly malignant tumors. These neoplasms are typical of the pediatric age, while they are rarer in adults. Due to the extreme heterogeneity of the cell types of the pineal gland and its surrounding structures, these tumors include several entities, namely germ cell tumors (GCTs), w...

The purpose of this work is to identify a role of the pineal gland/suprachiasmatic nucleus system in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) aetiology and pathogenesis. To analyze electroencephalograms of 292 children with AIS and in 46 healthy subjects, a processing method was used to assess three-dimensional coordinates of electric equivalent dipole sources (EEDSs) within the brain. Amounts of ...

PATIENT Male, 58. FINAL DIAGNOSIS Papillary glioneuronal tumor of the pineal gland. SYMPTOMS Headache • loss of memory • hydrocephalus. MEDICATION - CLINICAL PROCEDURE - SPECIALTY Oncology • neurology • neurosurgery. OBJECTIVE Rare disease. BACKGROUND The authors report the third case of a rare papillary glioneuronal tumor of the pineal gland and only the second case reported with...