Melatonin from different fruit sources, functional roles, and analytical methods

•The contributing factors on melatonin amounts in different fruits are reviewed.•The current analytical approaches of melatonin in fruits are discussed.•The potential health benefits of dietetic melatonin are analyzed.•Future trends on fruit melatonin are proposed.

Recently melatonin has been reported in different fruits and its exact amount is influenced by many factors, including fruit type, variety and ripening stage, growth location and condition, and analytical method employed. Validated analytical methods with adequate sample treatment are required to obtain accurate measurement of melatonin in fruits. Importantly, diet high in melatonin from fruits could enhance human health. Also, melatonin could be used to improve the phytoremediation efficiency of plants against different pollutants such as heavy metals. This review discussed the contributing factors on the production and amount of melatonin in fruits, current analytical approaches, its functional roles, as well as the future research needs to clarify the mechanisms of fruit melatonin for improving human health and environment contaminations.