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posted by Fnord666 on Thursday February 25 2021, @09:31AM   Printer-friendly
from the perchance-to-dream dept.

Worms Reveal How Melatonin Works in the Brain to Promote Sleep:

Melatonin is used as a dietary supplement to promote sleep and get over jet lag, but nobody really understands how it works in the brain. Now, researchers at UConn Health show that melatonin helps worms sleep, too, and they suspect they've identified what it does in us.

[...] Melatonin binds to melatonin receptors in the brain to produce its sleep-promoting effects. Think of a receptor as a keyhole, and melatonin as the key. The two keyholes for melatonin are called MT1 and MT2 in human brain cells. But scientists didn't really know what happens when the keyhole is unlocked. Now UConn Health School of Medicine neuroscientists Zhao-Wen Wang and Bojun Chen and their colleagues have identified that process through their work with C. elegans worms, as reported in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Journal Reference:
Longgang Niu, Yan Li, Pengyu Zong, et al. Melatonin promotes sleep by activating the BK channel in C. elegans [$], Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2010928117)


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  • (Score: 3, Informative) by fakefuck39 on Thursday February 25 2021, @10:02AM (15 children)

    by fakefuck39 (6620) on Thursday February 25 2021, @10:02AM (#1117197)

    melatonin is a tricky thing. it doesn't actually make you fall asleep. it does tell your body it's time to sleep. so it's useful for adjusting your daily schedule to a new timezone you've traveled to, but it's not that useful as a sleeping pill. for that, your body needs to think it's the time to go to sleep, and it needs to actually go to sleep.

    so I wouldn't call it sleep-promoting. It solves sleep issues for people whose brain is having issues producing the right amount of melatonin at the right time. It's a prerequisite to going to sleep. Except most people can't fall asleep because of other issues, not because their body thinks it's not time to fall asleep. I've done some digging on this, since falling asleep has been a long-term issue. Melatonin doesn't do jack for me to fall asleep when I can't. And as someone who's traveled extensively, it does do an awesome job of time-shifting the sleep cycle.

    so promote sleep? for very few people who have issues with melatonin, that the pill replaces. In general? Heroin works better.

    Now here's a doctor talking about this:
    https://www.parsleyhealth.com/blog/melatonin-doesnt-help-everyone-sleep/ [parsleyhealth.com]

    note he literally states melatonin doesn't promote sleep. now, I wonder what it is they studied in worms, when they seem to not know what the thing they're studying actually does. "It helps worms sleep?" Umm, no, it does not, nor does it help humans sleep. It tells us when it's time to sleep, and then we fall asleep due to something different and currently unknown. Now, if they took these worms on a plane across the ocean and gave them melatonin, that would be valid research.

    • (Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 25 2021, @01:31PM (10 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 25 2021, @01:31PM (#1117220)

      May not work for you, but it definitely works for some people.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 25 2021, @03:12PM (8 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 25 2021, @03:12PM (#1117235)

        This comment is the equivalent of "I reject your reality and replace it with my own" (or: "Those crystals with their magical powers work for me...")
        GP is correct in what melatonin does and doesn't do.

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 25 2021, @03:21PM (7 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 25 2021, @03:21PM (#1117238)

          GP is splitting hairs with his "does not promote sleep" argument.

          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 25 2021, @03:40PM (5 children)

            by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 25 2021, @03:40PM (#1117246)

            I guess science is not for you then... You're not incorrect, but you most certainly are not correct either.
            Precision is important.

            • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 25 2021, @04:31PM (4 children)

              by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 25 2021, @04:31PM (#1117263)

              Speaking of precision, your post makes no logical sense.
              "Incorrect" means, literally, "not correct." I hope you don't write any code with boolean logic.

              • (Score: 2) by fakefuck39 on Thursday February 25 2021, @09:56PM (3 children)

                by fakefuck39 (6620) on Thursday February 25 2021, @09:56PM (#1117366)

                good thing language isn't code with boolean logic. I'm sure some autistic nerds w/o social skills would like it to be, so they could communicate with people as well as they do w/ a C compiler, alas, you're stuck in your basement my friend.

                the post your are replying to says that being "not incorrect" does not mean you are correct. I'll let you think about that.. still nothing? that's because English used by people is not boolean logic, and you only speak boolean logic. this is why everyone laughed at you a long time back in school btw, and while we still laugh at the weird adult social reject version of you. because you don't fit in. because you're too dumb to figure out how basic language constructs work.

                • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 25 2021, @10:57PM (2 children)

                  by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 25 2021, @10:57PM (#1117390)

                  Sorry if your acceptance of a faddish and logically nonsense idiom makes you feel chapped. Find a way of expressing the sentiment that makes logical sense. Tell me if you are one of those people who also says, "I could care less." These things just make people who say them look as unknowing of the words coming out of their mouths as a parrot who just repeats the sounds it hears.

                  • (Score: 2) by fakefuck39 on Friday February 26 2021, @01:39AM

                    by fakefuck39 (6620) on Friday February 26 2021, @01:39AM (#1117423)

                    i am one of those people who understands that being incorrect does not make you correct. it's basic boolean logic. probably too advanced for you.

                  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 26 2021, @02:51AM

                    by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 26 2021, @02:51AM (#1117440)

                    LOL WTF does "chapped" mean.

                    What does 2+2 equal? You say a number. You are not incorrect. You are also not correct. Do you get it now? If you do, you are ready to move into the advanced English as a Second Language class. Maybe one day, after much very good talking practice to very many persons, society will stop referring to you as that weird socially-lacking foreigner.

          • (Score: 2) by fakefuck39 on Thursday February 25 2021, @07:37PM

            by fakefuck39 (6620) on Thursday February 25 2021, @07:37PM (#1117318)

            and the nra is splitting hairs with guns don't kill people, people kill people. and plastic quenches thirst, because water bottles. and having a road promotes getting you to work, driving is not required. and just putting scissors in your hand gives you haircut, no barber. required.

            having scissors doesn't cut your hair, a road in front of your house doesn't mean you've driven to work, and melatonin doesn't make you sleep.

      • (Score: 2) by fakefuck39 on Thursday February 25 2021, @07:26PM

        by fakefuck39 (6620) on Thursday February 25 2021, @07:26PM (#1117315)

        right, as i said melatonin for sleep works only for people whose issue is not enough melatonin. glad you can read and agree.

    • (Score: 2) by cmdrklarg on Thursday February 25 2021, @05:12PM (3 children)

      by cmdrklarg (5048) Subscriber Badge on Thursday February 25 2021, @05:12PM (#1117278)

      Completely anecdotal: I do use melatonin very occasionally when I'm having trouble falling asleep, usually because brain won't relax. I do have a different bedtime on weekend nights vs. workdays. I never needed it before I hit 50ish. I do know that I'll wake up groggy if I try to get up less than 6 hours after taking it.

      No it's not a sleeping pill. If you've got other issues with sleep it won't solve that. And no, I'm not big on using heroin instead.

      --
      The world is full of kings and queens who blind your eyes and steal your dreams.
      • (Score: 2) by fakefuck39 on Thursday February 25 2021, @07:30PM (2 children)

        by fakefuck39 (6620) on Thursday February 25 2021, @07:30PM (#1117317)

        maybe you're not into needles -just snort it instead. try htp and theanine to relax instead -you won't wake up groggy, as your body will make just enough melatonin from the htp so there's none left when you awake.

        • (Score: 2) by cmdrklarg on Thursday February 25 2021, @08:37PM (1 child)

          by cmdrklarg (5048) Subscriber Badge on Thursday February 25 2021, @08:37PM (#1117337)

          As I said, I don't use it more than a couple times a month, if that.

          And I also don't need help relaxing, it's my natural state. It's just every so often my brain will not stop when I lie down, usually if I'm a bit overstimulated. Usually I can get up and get a sip of water which will usually help me wind down. If that don't help the melatonin will do the trick.

          --
          The world is full of kings and queens who blind your eyes and steal your dreams.
          • (Score: 2) by fakefuck39 on Thursday February 25 2021, @09:44PM

            by fakefuck39 (6620) on Thursday February 25 2021, @09:44PM (#1117361)

            seriously, try the htp and theanine - 100mg of each. the theanine lowers anxiety, the htp combines w/ B6 and relaxes you w/ extra serotonin, and your brain will make its own melatonin from the serotonin - just enough to be metabolized by the time you wake up. it takes like 20min to kick in.

            the reason you wake up groggy is there's extra melatonin left over when you get up, so your body thinks you woke up early. in fact, with a set size melatonin pill, you never know how much you actually need, because it varies each time, depending on your body's current level. so a good way to not overshoot, is just to give your body extra raw material to make it itself, and it'll make just the right amount.

            but heroin works much better, and a couple of times a month won't get you addicted. it also works great for cough suppression - as originally marketed by bayer when they created it. it then metabolizes to morphine, which makes you fall asleep. so if you're coughing or can't fall asleep, forget the nyquil - reach for the syringe my friend. you'll have no trouble relaxing, and won't feel groggy in the am.

            but trust me on the sunscreen.

  • (Score: 2) by Gaaark on Thursday February 25 2021, @11:57AM

    by Gaaark (41) on Thursday February 25 2021, @11:57AM (#1117205) Journal

    I find that after putting my 'key' in a 'keyhole', i want to fall asleep afterwards too! ;)

    --
    --- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
  • (Score: 2) by inertnet on Thursday February 25 2021, @02:28PM (1 child)

    by inertnet (4071) on Thursday February 25 2021, @02:28PM (#1117230) Journal

    I don't want worms in my brain, no matter their elegance.

  • (Score: 2) by Joe Desertrat on Thursday February 25 2021, @08:22PM (1 child)

    by Joe Desertrat (2454) on Thursday February 25 2021, @08:22PM (#1117329)

    I tried melatonin supplements once, and I've tried a few others over the years. Anything that was supposed to affect the brain left me with headaches. I'll stick to alcohol.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 26 2021, @12:15AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 26 2021, @12:15AM (#1117407)

      Yeah, I tried melanin supplement, too. But it didn't make me sleep at all, and I got this weird side effect where my dick turned black and huge.

  • (Score: 2) by kazzie on Thursday February 25 2021, @09:39PM

    by kazzie (5309) Subscriber Badge on Thursday February 25 2021, @09:39PM (#1117355)

    Worms Reveal How Melatonin Works in the Brain to Promote Sheep

    Okay, I'm off to bed.

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