Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41961139›Full record

ArticleMolecular biology reports2026

Melatonin enhances the antitumor and immunomodulatory effects of Bacillus Calmette-Guérin immunotherapy in a murine bladder cancer model.

Iman Menbari Oskouie, Fatemeh Khatami, Gholamreza Mesbah, Leila Zareian Baghdadabad, Nooshin Eidinezhad, Rahil Mashhadi, Parisa Zahmatkesh, Ramin Heshamt, Parsa Nikoofar, Seyed Mohammad Kazem Aghamir

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Article in Molecular biology reports, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Iman Menbari OskouieUrology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Fatemeh KhatamiUrology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Gholamreza MesbahFaculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ardakan Univrsity, Ardakan, Iran.
Leila Zareian BaghdadabadUrology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Nooshin EidinezhadUrology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Rahil MashhadiUrology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Parisa ZahmatkeshUrology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Ramin HeshamtChronic Diseases Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Population Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Parsa NikoofarDepartment of Urology, Thunder Bay Regional Health Research Institute, Thunder Bay, ON, Canada.
Seyed Mohammad Kazem AghamirUrology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. mkaghamir@tums.ac.ir.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe intravesical Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) immunotherapy in Bladder Cancer (BC) is the standard adjuvant therapy with challenges such as limited efficacy and recurrence. We aimed to assess the synergistic antitumor effects of melatonin and BCG in vivo.

methodsThe xerograph C57BL/6J mice model developed with injection of 2.0 × 10⁶ MB49 cells. After two weeks, mice were grouped: control (PBS + DMSO), melatonin (200 µg), high-dose BCG (HDBCG, 3.0 × 10⁶ CFU), melatonin with low-dose BCG (LDBCG + MLT, 1.0 × 10⁶ CFU), and melatonin with HDBCG (HDBCG + MLT). At the end of the study the histologically was assessed for proliferation, microangiogenesis, and inflammation. Complete blood counts (CBC), Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and C-reactive protein (CRP) were measured. Gene expression was determined by real-time PCR.

resultsThe HDBCG + MLT decreased tumor weight and volume compared with to LDBCG + MLT and HDBCG alone (p < 0.05). Histopathology showed HDBCG + MLT increased apoptosis and immune cell infiltration, with reduced mitotic figures and micro-vessel density. Serological analysis indicates HDBCG alone induced significant increases in WBC count and CRP levels, whereas co-administration of melatonin markedly attenuated these elevations (p < 0.05) without altering ESR. In HDBCG + MLT group, BAX, P53, Syn3, E-cadherin, IL-2, IL-10, and IFN-γ upregulated, while BCL-2, VEGF-A, HIF-1α, and TGF-α downregulated.

conclusionsCo-administration of melatonin enhanced the antitumor efficacy of BCG immunotherapy in BC, as evidenced by increased apoptosis and immune cell infiltration, along with marked suppression of angiogenesis and the EMT pathway.

Indexed as

BCG VaccineMelatoninUrinary Bladder NeoplasmsAnimalsCell Line, TumorCell ProliferationDisease Models, AnimalFemaleImmunotherapyMiceMice, Inbred C57BLNeovascularization, PathologicBCG VaccineMelatoninBacillus Calmette-GuérinBladder cancerImmunotherapyMelatonin

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.