Skip to main content
Key Specialties
Cardiology Diabetology Endocrinology Gastroenterology Geriatrics and Gerontology Gynecology and Obstetrics Hematology Infectious Disease Internal Medicine Nephrology Neurology Oncology Pediatrics Respiratory Medicine Rheumatology Surgery
Congress Coverage
2024 ACC Congress 2023 ESMO Congress 2023 EASD Congress 2023 ERS Congress 2023 ESC Congress 2023 EHA Congress 2023 ASCO Annual Meeting
Clinical Collections
Advances in Alzheimer’s

At a glance: The ONWARDS insulin icodec trials

A round-up of the ONWARDS phase 3 clinical trials evaluating the novel weekly insulin icodec in people with diabetes.
ADVANCED SEARCH
Log in
Top
Italian Journal of Pediatrics
Published in: Italian Journal of Pediatrics 1/2016

Open Access 01-12-2016 | Review

Atopy and autoimmune thyroid diseases: melatonin can be useful?

Authors: Gabriella D’Angelo, Lucia Marseglia, Sara Manti, Laura Colavita, Caterina Cuppari, Pietro Impellizzeri, Salvatore Arena, Teresa Arrigo, Carmelo Salpietro, Eloisa Gitto

Published in: Italian Journal of Pediatrics | Issue 1/2016

Login to get access

Abstract

Recently, there has been growing interest in the relationship between allergic and autoimmune diseases. Allergy and autoimmunity can be considered two potential outcomes of dysregulated immunity and analysis of literature data shows a strong positive association between a history of Th2-mediated allergic disorders and Th1-mediated autoimmune disorders.
Autoimmune thyroid diseases are the most common of all autoimmune pathological conditions.
Currently, the mechanisms explaining an association among atopy, autoimmunity, and thyroid diseases are not fully understood.
There are data in literature pointing to the relationship between melatonin and thyroid activity. Several studies have suggested a paracrine role for this molecule in the regulation of thyroid activity, documenting that administration, as an antioxidant, in thyroid tissues under conditions of increased oxidative stress, could be helpful to reduce the oxidative processes involved in autoimmune thyroid diseases.
Although thyroid autoimmunity has been regularly associated with atopic conditions in children, the possible protective role of melatonin has not yet been investigated.
This review summarizes what is known regarding the connection between atopy and autoimmune thyroid diseases, and analyses the probable beneficial action of melatonin.
Literature
1.
Andersen YM, Egeberg A, Gislason GH, Skov L, Thyssen JP. Autoimmune diseases in adults with atopic dermatitis. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2016.
2.
Johansson SG, Hourihane JO, Bousquet J, Bruijnzeel-Koomen C, Dreborg S, Haahtela T, Kowalski ML, Mygind N, Ring J, van Cauwenberge P, van Hage-Hamsten M, Wüthrich B, EAACI (the European Academy of Allergology and Cinical Immunology) nomenclature task force. A revised nomenclature for allergy. An EAACI position statement from the EAACI nomenclature task force. Allergy. 2001;56:813–24.CrossRefPubMed
3.
Miraglia Del Giudice M, Maiello N, Decimo F, Fusco N, D’ Agostino B, Sullo N, Capasso M, Salpietro V, Gitto E, Ciprandi G, Marseglia GL, Perrone L. Airways allergic inflammation and L. reuterii treatment in asthmatic children. J Biol Regul Homeost Agents. 2012;26:S35–40.PubMed
4.
Spergel JM. Epidemiology of atopic dermatitis and atopic march in children. Immunol Allergy Clin North Am. 2010;30:269–80.CrossRefPubMed
5.
Spergel JM. From atopic dermatitis to asthma: the atopic march. Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol. 2010;105:99–106.CrossRefPubMed
6.
Bantz SK, Zhu Z, Zheng T. The atopic march: progression from atopic dermatitis to allergic rhinitis and asthma. J Clin Cell Immunol. 2014;5:2.
7.
Shah A. The pathologic and clinical intersection of atopic and autoimmune disease. Curr Allergy Asthma Rep. 2012;12:520–9.CrossRefPubMed
8.
Chen L, Cohen AC, Lewis DB. Impaired allogeneic activation and T-helper 1 differentiation of human cord blood naive CD4 T cells. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant. 2006;12(2):160-71.
9.
Wynn TA. T(H)-17: a giant step from T(H)1 and T(H)2. Nat Immunol. 2005;6(11):1069-70.
10.
11.
Bacchetta R, Gambineri E, Roncarolo MG. Role of regulatory T cells and FOXP3 in human diseases. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2007;120:227–35.CrossRefPubMed
12.
Skaaby T, Husemoen LL, Thuesen BH, Fenger RV, Linneberg A. Specific IgE positivity against inhalant allergens and development of autoimmune disease. Autoimmunity. 2015;48:282–8.CrossRefPubMed
13.
Kokkonen J, Niinimäki A. Increased incidence of autoimmune disorders as a late complication in children with early onset dermatitis and/or milk allergy. J Autoimmun. 2004;22:341–4.CrossRefPubMed
14.
Rabin RL, Levinson AI. The nexus between atopic disease and autoimmunity: a review of the epidemiological and mechanistic literature. Clin Exp Immunol. 2008;153:19–30.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral
15.
Joint Task Force on Practice Parameters. The diagnosis and management of urticaria: a practice parameter part I: acute urticaria/angioedema part II: chronic urticaria/angioedema. Joint Task Force on Practice Parameters. Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol. 2000;85:521–44.
16.
17.
Marseglia L, D’Angelo G, Manti S, Salpietro C, Arrigo T, Barberi I, Reiter RJ, Gitto E. Melatonin and atopy: role in atopic dermatitis and asthma. Int J Mol Sci. 2014;15:13482–93.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral
18.
Marseglia L, Cuppari C, Manti S, D’Angelo G, Salpietro C, Reiter RJ, Gitto E. Atopic dermatitis: melatonin as potential treatment. J Biol Regul Homeost Agents. 2015;29:142–9.PubMed
19.
Reiter RJ, Tan DX, Fuentes-Broto L. Melatonin: a multitasking molecule. Prog Brain Res. 2010;181:127–51.CrossRefPubMed
20.
Slominski A, Fischer TW, Zmijewski MA, Wortsman J, Semak I, Zbytek B, Slominski RM, Tobin DJ. On the role of melatonin in skin physiology and pathology. Endocrine. 2005;27:137–48.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral
21.
Fischer TW, Sweatman TW, Semak I, Sayre RM, Wortsman J, Slominski A. Constitutive and UV-induced metabolism of melatonin in keratinocytes and cell-free systems. FASEB J. 2006;20:1564–6.CrossRefPubMed
22.
Fischer TW, Scholz G, Knoll B, Hipler UC, Elsner P. Melatonin reduces UV-induced reactive oxygen species in a dose-dependent manner in IL-3-stimulated leukocytes. J Pineal Res. 2001;31:39–45.CrossRefPubMed
23.
Kilanczyk E, Bryszewska M. The effect of melatonin on antioxidant enzymes in human diabetic skin fibroblasts. Cell Mol Biol Lett. 2003;8:333–6.PubMed
24.
Fischer TW, Zbytek B, Sayre RM, Apostolov EO, Basnakian AG, Sweatman TW, Wortsman J, Elsner P, Slominski A. Melatonin increases survival of HaCaT keratinocytes by suppressing UV-induced apoptosis. J Pineal Res. 2006;40:18–26.CrossRefPubMed
25.
Weekley LB. Influence of melatonin on bovine pulmonary vascular and bronchial airway smooth muscle tone. Clin Auton Res. 1995;5:53–6.CrossRefPubMed
26.
Sutherland ER, Ellison MC, Kraft M, Martin RJ. Elevated serum melatonin is associated with the nocturnal worsening of asthma. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2003;112:513–7.CrossRefPubMed
27.
Garcia-Marin R, Fernandez-Santos JM, Morillo-Bernal J, Gordillo-Martinez F, Vazquez-Roman V, Utrilla JC, Carrillo-Vico A, Guerrero JM, Martin-Lacave I. Melatonin in the thyroid gland: regulation by thyroid-stimulating hormone and role in thyroglobulin gene expression. J Physiol Pharmacol. 2015;66:643–52.PubMed
28.
Simpson CR, Anderson WJ, Helms PJ, Taylor MW, Watson L, Prescott GJ, Godden DJ, Barker RN. Coincidence of immune-mediated diseases driven by Th1 and Th2 subsets suggests a common aetiology. A population-based study using computerized general practice data. Clin Exp Allergy. 2002;32:37–42.CrossRefPubMed
29.
30.
O’Garra A, Robinson D. Development and function of T helper 1 cells. Adv Immunol. 2004;83:133–62.CrossRefPubMed
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
Robinson DS. T-cell cytokines: what we have learned from human studies. Paediatr Respir Rev. 2004;5:S53–58.CrossRefPubMed
36.
Sornasse T, Larenas PV, Davis KA, de Vries JE, Yssel H. Differentiation and stability of T helper 1 and 2 cells derived from naive human neonatal CD4+ T cells, analyzed at the single-cell level. J Exp Med. 1996;184:473–83.CrossRefPubMed
37.
Steinman L. A brief history of T(H)17, the first major revision in the T(H)1/T(H)2 hypothesis of T cell-mediated tissue damage. Nat Med. 2007;13:139–45.CrossRefPubMed
38.
Mittermann I, Aichberger KJ, Bünder R, Mothes N, Renz H, Valenta R. Autoimmunity and atopic dermatitis. Curr Opin Allergy Clin Immunol. 2004;4:367–71.CrossRefPubMed
39.
Pedullá M, Fierro V, Papacciuolo V, Alfano R, Ruocco E. Atopy as a risk factor for thyroid autoimmunity in children affected with atopic dermatitis. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2014;28:1057–60.CrossRefPubMed
40.
Izumi Y, Hidaka Y, Tada H, Takano T, Kashiwai T, Tatsumi KI, Ichihara K, Amino N. Simple and practical parameters for differentiation between destruction-induced thyrotoxicosis and Graves’ thyrotoxicosis. Clin Endocrinol. 2002;57:51–8.CrossRef
41.
Hidaka Y, Kimura M, Izumi Y, Takano T, Tatsumi KI, Amino N. Increased serum concentration of eosinophil-derived neurotoxin in patients with Graves’ disease. Thyroid. 2003;13:129–32.CrossRefPubMed
42.
Karbownik M, Lewinski A. The role of oxidative stress in physiological and pathological processes in the thyroid gland; possible involvement in pineal-thyroid interactions. Neuro Endocrinol Lett. 2003;24:293–303.PubMed
43.
44.
Stepniak J, Lewinski A, Karbownik-Lewinska M. Membrane lipids and nuclear DNA are differently susceptive to Fenton reaction substrates in porcine thyroid. Toxicol In Vitro. 2013;27:71–8.CrossRefPubMed
45.
Milczarek M, Stepniak J, Lewinski A, Karbownik-Lewinska M. Potassium iodide, but not potassium iodate, as a potential protective agent against oxidative damage to membrane lipids in porcine thyroid. Thyroid Res. 2013;6:10.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral
46.
Gitto E, Marseglia L, Manti S, D’Angelo G, Barberi I, Salpietro C, Reiter RJ. Protective role of melatonin in neonatal diseases. Oxid Med Cell Longev. 2013;2013:980374.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral
47.
Marseglia L, D’Angelo G, Manti S, Aversa S, Reiter RJ, Antonuccio P, Centorrino A, Romeo C, Impellizzeri P, Gitto E. Oxidative stress-mediated damage in newborns with necrotizing enterocolitis: a possible role of melatonin. Am J Perinatol. 2015;32:905–9.CrossRefPubMed
48.
Karbownik M, Lewinski A. Melatonin reduces Fenton reaction-induced lipid peroxidation in porcine thyroid tissue. J Cell Biochem. 2003;90:806–11.CrossRefPubMed
49.
Kvetnoy IM. Extrapineal melatonin: location and role within diffuse neuroendocrine system. Histochem J. 1999;31:1–12.CrossRefPubMed
50.
Garcia-Marin R, de Miguel M, Fernandez-Santos JM, Carrillo-Vico A, Utrilla JC, Morillo-Bernal J, Díaz-Parrado E, Rodríguez-Prieto I, Guerrero JM, Martín-Lacave I. Melatonin-synthesizing enzymes and melatonin receptor in rat thyroid cells. Histol Histopathol. 2012;27:1429–38.PubMed
51.
Wright ML, Cuthbert KL, Donohue MJ, Solano SD, Proctor KL. Direct influence of melatonin on the thyroid and comparison with prolactin. J Exp Zool. 2000;286:625–31.CrossRefPubMed
52.
Lewinski A, Sewerynek E. Melatonin inhibits the basal and TSH-stimulated mitotic activity of thyroid follicular cells in vivo and in organ culture. J Pineal Res. 1986;3:291–9.CrossRefPubMed
53.
Rao MV, Chhunchha B. Protective role of melatonin against the mercury induced oxidative stress in the rat thyroid. Food Chem Toxicol. 2010;48:7–10.CrossRefPubMed
54.
Zasada K, Karbownik-Lewinska M. Comparison of potential protective effects of melatonin and propylthiouracil against lipid peroxidation caused by nitrobenzene in the thyroid gland. Toxicol Ind Health. 2015;31:1195–201.CrossRefPubMed
55.
Karbownik M, Stasiak M, Zasada K, Zygmunt A, Lewinski A. Comparison of potential protective effects of melatonin, indole-3-propionic acid, and propylthiouracil against lipid peroxidation caused by potassium bromate in the thyroid gland. J Cell Biochem. 2005;95:131–8.CrossRefPubMed
56.
Kokoszko-Bilska A, Stepniak J, Lewinski A, Karbownik-Lewinska M. Protective antioxidative effects of caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) in the thyroid and the liver are similar to those caused by melatonin. Thyroid Res. 2014;7:5.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral
57.
Curotto de Lafaille MA, Lafaille JJ. CD4(+) regulatory T cells in autoimmunity and allergy. Curr Opin Immunol. 2002;14:771–8.CrossRefPubMed
58.
Alfaro M, Tapadinhas F, Neves A, Costa TJ. Atopy and autoimmunity: a case report. Rev Port Pneumol. 2007;13:729–35.PubMed
59.
Hide M, Francis DM, Grattan CEH, Hakimi F, Greaves MW. Autoantibodies against the high-affinity IgE receptor as a cause for histamine release in chronic urticaria. N Engl J Med. 1993;328:1599–604.CrossRefPubMed
60.
Tong LJ, Balakrishnan G, Kochan JP, Kinét JP, Kaplan AP. Assessment of autoimmunity in patients with chronic urticaria. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 1997;99:461–5.CrossRefPubMed
61.
Rottem M. Chronic urticaria and autoimmune thyroid disease: is there a link? Autimmun Rev. 2003;2:69–72.CrossRef
62.
Dreskin SC, Andrews KY. The thyroid and urticaria. Curr Opin Allergy Clin Immunol. 2005;5:408–12.CrossRefPubMed
63.
Lewinski A, Karbownik M. Melatonin and the thyroid gland. Neuro Endocrinol Lett. 2002;23:73–8.PubMed
64.
Sanchez-Barcelo EJ, Mediavilla MD, Tan DX, Reiter RJ. Clinical uses of melatonin: evaluation of clinical trials. Curr Med Chem. 2010;17:2070–95.CrossRefPubMed
Metadata
Title
Atopy and autoimmune thyroid diseases: melatonin can be useful?
Authors
Gabriella D’Angelo
Lucia Marseglia
Sara Manti
Laura Colavita
Caterina Cuppari
Pietro Impellizzeri
Salvatore Arena
Teresa Arrigo
Carmelo Salpietro
Eloisa Gitto
Publication date
01-12-2016
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
Italian Journal of Pediatrics / Issue 1/2016
Electronic ISSN: 1824-7288
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s13052-016-0305-0

Other articles of this Issue 1/2016

Italian Journal of Pediatrics 1/2016 Go to the issue

Research

Kawasaki disease associated with Mycoplasma pneumoniae

Research

Henoch-Schönlein purpura and drug and vaccine use in childhood: a case-control study

Research

Kawasaki disease in Sicily: clinical description and markers of disease severity

Research

Long-term safety and efficacy of Omnitrope®, a somatropin biosimilar, in children requiring growth hormone treatment: Italian interim analysis of the PATRO Children study

Research

Genetic and epigenetic alterations in the GNAS locus and clinical consequences in Pseudohypoparathyroidism: Italian common healthcare pathways adoption

Letter to the Editor

The Paediatric Ambulatory Consulting Service (PACS) program: a role for family pediatricians in the hospital emergency rooms