Axelrod, J. et al.: Control of Hydroxyindole 0-Methyltransferase Activity in the Rat Pineal Gland by Environmental Lighting

AXELROD J, WURTMAN RJ, SNYDER SH.: Control of Hydroxyindole 0-Methyltransferase Activity in
the Rat Pineal Gland by Environmental Lighting.
In: J Biol Chem. 1965 Feb;240:949-54.

Link: http://www.jbc.org/content/240/2/949.long


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The mammalian pineal gland has been shown to contain several enzymes involved in the formation and met,abolism of physiologically act,ive indoles and amines (l-3). The rat pineal gland contains the highest reported tissue levels of serotonin and 5-hydrosytryptophan decarbosylase (4, 5). In addition, the pineal gland is unique in that it is the only organ that contains hydrosyindole 0-methyltransferase, an enzyme that converts N-acetylserotonin to mclatonin (6). Since N-acetylation of serotonin has been shown to take placae in several tissues (7) and since the activity of hydrosyindole O-methyltransferase in the rat pineal is relatively low (, it appears that methylation is the rate-limiting step in the formation of melatonin and perhaps other methosyindoles in this species.
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