Melatonin seems to be a mediator that transfers the environmental stimuli to oocytes for inheritance of adaptive changes through epigenetic inheritance system.

Summary Possibility of inheritance of epigenetic modifications have led us to consider that adaptive geographic variations in humans may result from interactions between environmental factors and epigenetic inheritance system. In this system melatonin seems to be a mediator that transfers the environmental stimuli to germ cells (oocytes). While environmental factors produce modifications in the body, they simultaneously induce epigenetic modifications in the oocytes with the help of melatonin, and these changes are inherited to offspring. In this way, adaptive changes could be passed on to the next generation. This kind of heritable long-term changes is generally labeled biological adaptation. But, how can melatonin cause epigenetic changes in oocytes? We suggest that melatonin induces epigenetic modifications by affecting the nuclear melatonin receptors that can in turn change the superstructure of DNA. It was previously suggested that biological adaptation is limited to neural crest derivatives such as, craniofacial tissues, melanocytes, and structures related to stature, hair form and body proportions. Thus, inheritance of adaptive changes is possible only where environmental factors affect the neural crest derivatives, including the cells that produce the next generation.