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melatonin

   Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Medical, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.01 sec.
melatonin: see pineal gland pineal gland , small organ (about the size of a pea) situated in the brain. Long considered vestigial in humans, the structure, which is also called the pineal body or the epiphysis, is present in most vertebrates.
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melatonin

Hormone secreted by the pineal gland of most vertebrates. It appears to be important in regulating sleeping cycles; more is produced at night, and test subjects injected with it become sleepy. Melatonin may be involved in seasonal affective disorder. In mammals other than humans, melatonin may act as a cue to breeding and mating in season.

melatonin [‚mel·ə′tōn·ən]
(biochemistry)
A hormone secreted by the pineal gland that acts on melanophores in the skins of amphibians and reptiles to concentrate the melanin in the center of the cells, lightening the body surface; in higher vertebrates it conveys information about time that influences reproduction and circadian physiology.
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