Expression of melatonin receptor in chondrocyte of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis

Increasing evidence showed that AIS might be related to dysfunction of melatonin signaling pathway. Melatonin is a focus of studies of the mechanism underlying the development of scoliosis, and there is no research on the expression of melatonin receptors in the chondrocyte of patients with AIS. Thirty cases were divided into two groups, AIS group consisted of 22 patients (2 males and 20 females) with an average of 13.5±1.4 years old, ranging from 10 to 15 years old; and average Cobb angle of 50.9°±10.1° (range, 40°~72°). Control group consisted of 8 patients without scoliosis (3 males and 5 females), with an average of 13.4±1.1 years old, and ranging from 10 to 15 years old. The mRNA expression of melatonin subtypes melatonin recepter 1A (MT1) and melatonin receptor 1B (MT2) in chondrocyte detected by RT-PCR method. The MT1 and MT2 mRNA expression of chondrocyte in AIS patients was significantly lower than that in the control group (P<0.05). There is decreasing expression of MT1 and MT2 mRNA in chondrocytes of AIS patients, and this abnormal expression may be related to the molecular mechanism of the pathogenesis of AIS.