Table 2.

Reprogramming effects of melatonin in animal models of developmental programming.

Dose and Period of Melatonin Treatment	Animal Models	Species/Gender	Age at Evaluation	Reprogramming Effects	References
Melatonin 10 mg/kg/day s.c. throughout pregnancy	Maternal methionine intake-induced hyperhomocysteinemia	Wistar rat/M and F	75 days	Prevented cognition deficit	[74]
0.01% melatonin in drinking water during pregnancy and lactation	Maternal caloric restriction	SD rat/M	12 wks	Prevented hypertension and increased renal NO	[75]
0.01% melatonin in drinking water during pregnancy and lactation	Maternal L-NAME exposure	SD rat/M	12 wks	Prevented hypertension and increased renal NO	[76]
0.01% melatonin in drinking water during pregnancy and lactation	Maternal high-fructose diet	SD rat/M	12 wks	Prevented hypertension and increased renal NO	[77]
Melatonin (40 μg/mL) in drinking water from gestational days 0 to 19	Maternal phenytoin exposure	Wistar rat/M and F	12 wks	Protected neurobehavioral dysfunctions	[78]
0.01% melatonin in drinking water during pregnancy and lactation	Maternal continuous light exposure	SD rat/M	12 wks	Prevented hypertension	[79]
Melatonin 1 mg/kg s.c. injection at circadian time 12, from day 17 to 21 of pregnancy	Constant light exposure from gestational day 10 to 21	Wistar rat/M	16 wks	Protected anxiety-like and sexual behaviors	[80]
0.01% melatonin in drinking water during pregnancy and lactation	Maternal high methyl-donor diet	SD rat/M	12 wks	Attenuated hypertension and altered renal transcriptome	[81]
0.01% melatonin in drinking water during pregnancy and lactation	Maternal high-fructose diet plus post-weaning high-salt diet	SD rat/M	12 wks	Attenuated hypertension and restored NO system	[82]
0.01% melatonin in drinking water during pregnancy and lactation	Prenatal dexamethasone exposure	SD rat/M	16 wks	Protected hippocampal morphology and reelin level	[83]
0.01% melatonin in drinking water during pregnancy and lactation	Prenatal dexamethasone exposure	SD rat/M	16 wks	Prevented hypertension and increased nephron number	[48]
0.01% melatonin in drinking water during pregnancy and lactation	Neonatal dexamethasone exposure	SD rat/M	16 wks	Prevented hypertension and preserved histone deacetylase gene expression	[84]
0.01% melatonin in drinking water during lactation	Neonatal dexamethasone exposure	SD rat/M	16 wks	Prevented hypertension and increased renal melatonin level and MT2 protein	[85]
0.01% melatonin in drinking water during pregnancy and lactation	Prenatal dexamethasone exposure plus post-weaning high-fat diet	SD rat/M	16 wks	Prevented hypertension and up-regulated Agtr1b and Mas1 expression	[86]

Studies tabulated according to animal models, species, and age at evaluation. Legend: SD, Sprague-Dawley; M, male; F, female; s.c., subcutaneous; L-NAME, N^G-nitro-l-arginine methyl ester.