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Circadian Variation in Coronary Stent Thrombosis
Mahmoud, Karim D.; Lennon, Ryan J.; Ting, Henry H.; Rihal, Charanjit S.; Holmes, David R.
Objectives We sought to determine the circadian, weekly, and seasonal variation of coronary stent thrombosis. Background Other adverse cardiovascular events such as acute myocardial infarction are known to have higher incidences during the early morning hours, Mondays, and winter months. Methods The
Circadian Variation Of Stroke Onset
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Kamath vasantha
Full Text Available Diurnal variations in various physiological and biochemical functions and certain pathological events like myocardial infarction and stroke have been documented. We studied prospectively one hundred and seven patients of acute onset stroke confirmed by computed tomography for the exact time of onset, risk factors and type of stroke. Patients who were unclear of time of onset and with a diagnosis of cerebral venous thrombosis or sub-arachnoid hemorrhage were excluded. Infarction was detected in 71 patients and hemorrhage in 33 patients. Men out numbered women (1:6:1. Hypertension was more frequent in hemorrhage in the morning time (5 AM-12 noon and more infarction between 12-6 pm. However there was no relation between the time of onset of stroke and various risk-factors of stroke.
Circadian variation in unexpected postoperative death
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Rosenberg, J; Pedersen, M H; Ramsing, T;
Unexpected deaths still occur following major surgical procedures. The cause is often unknown but may be cardiac or thromboembolic in nature. Postoperative ischaemia, infarction and sudden cardiac death may be triggered by episodic or constant arterial hypoxaemia, which increases during the night...... deaths occurred at night-time. These results suggest a need for further studies of sleep- and respiration-related effects on postoperative nocturnal cardiac function. The efficacy of monitoring during this apparent high-risk period should be evaluated.......Unexpected deaths still occur following major surgical procedures. The cause is often unknown but may be cardiac or thromboembolic in nature. Postoperative ischaemia, infarction and sudden cardiac death may be triggered by episodic or constant arterial hypoxaemia, which increases during the night....... This study examined the circadian variation of sudden unexpected death following abdominal surgery between 1985 and 1989 inclusive. Deaths were divided into those occurring during the day (08.00-16.00 hours), evening (16.00-24.00 hours) and night (24.00-08.00 hours). Twenty-three deaths were considered...
Circadian variation in dominant atrial fibrillation frequency in persistent atrial fibrillation
International Nuclear Information System (INIS)
Circadian variation in atrial fibrillation (AF) frequency is explored in this paper by employing recent advances in signal processing. Once the AF frequency has been estimated and tracked by a hidden Markov model approach, the resulting trend is analyzed for the purpose of detecting and characterizing the presence of circadian variation. With cosinor analysis, the results show that the short-term variations in the AF frequency exceed the variation that may be attributed to circadian. Using the autocorrelation method, circadian variation was found in 13 of 18 ambulatory ECG recordings (Holter) acquired from patients with long-standing persistent AF. Using the ensemble correlation method, the highest AF frequency usually occurred during the afternoon, whereas the lowest usually occurred during late night. It is concluded that circadian variation is present in most patients with long-standing persistent AF though the short-term variation in the AF frequency is considerable and should be taken into account
Social memory in the rat: circadian variation and effect of circadian rhythm disruption
Reijmers, L.G.J.E.; Leus, I.E.; Burbach, J.P.H.; Spruijt, B.M.; Ree, van J.M.
Disruption of circadian rhythm can impair long-term passive avoidance memory of rats and mice. The present study investigated whether disruption of circadian rhythm can also impair social memory of male rats. Social memory was assessed using the social discrimination test, in which a short-term olfa
Mass spectrometry-based absolute quantification reveals rhythmic variation of mouse circadian clock proteins.
Narumi, Ryohei; Shimizu, Yoshihiro; Ukai-Tadenuma, Maki; Ode, Koji L; Kanda, Genki N; Shinohara, Yuta; Sato, Aya; Matsumoto, Katsuhiko; Ueda, Hiroki R
Absolute values of protein expression levels in cells are crucial information for understanding cellular biological systems. Precise quantification of proteins can be achieved by liquid chromatography (LC)-mass spectrometry (MS) analysis of enzymatic digests of proteins in the presence of isotope-labeled internal standards. Thus, development of a simple and easy way for the preparation of internal standards is advantageous for the analyses of multiple target proteins, which will allow systems-level studies. Here we describe a method, termed MS-based Quantification By isotope-labeled Cell-free products (MS-QBiC), which provides the simple and high-throughput preparation of internal standards by using a reconstituted cell-free protein synthesis system, and thereby facilitates both multiplexed and sensitive quantification of absolute amounts of target proteins. This method was applied to a systems-level dynamic analysis of mammalian circadian clock proteins, which consist of transcription factors and protein kinases that govern central and peripheral circadian clocks in mammals. Sixteen proteins from 20 selected circadian clock proteins were successfully quantified from mouse liver over a 24-h time series, and 14 proteins had circadian variations. Quantified values were applied to detect internal body time using a previously developed molecular timetable method. The analyses showed that single time-point data from wild-type mice can predict the endogenous state of the circadian clock, whereas data from clock mutant mice are not applicable because of the disappearance of circadian variation. PMID:27247408
Identification of scalp EEG circadian variation using a novel correlation sum measure
Shahidi Zandi, Ali; Boudreau, Philippe; Boivin, Diane B.; Dumont, Guy A.
Objective. In this paper, we propose a novel method to determine the circadian variation of scalp electroencephalogram (EEG) in both individual and group levels using a correlation sum measure, quantifying self-similarity of the EEG relative energy across waking epochs. Approach. We analysed EEG recordings from central-parietal and occipito-parietal montages in nine healthy subjects undergoing a 72 h ultradian sleep-wake cycle protocol. Each waking epoch (˜1 s) of every nap opportunity was decomposed using the wavelet packet transform, and the relative energy for that epoch was calculated in the desired frequency band using the corresponding wavelet coefficients. Then, the resulting set of energy values was resampled randomly to generate different subsets with equal number of elements. The correlation sum of each subset was then calculated over a range of distance thresholds, and the average over all subsets was computed. This average value was finally scaled for each nap opportunity and considered as a new circadian measure. Main results. According to the evaluation results, a clear circadian rhythm was identified in some EEG frequency ranges, particularly in 4-8 Hz and 10-12 Hz. The correlation sum measure not only was able to disclose the circadian rhythm on the group data but also revealed significant circadian variations in most individual cases, as opposed to previous studies only reporting the circadian rhythms on a population of subjects. Compared to a naive measure based on the EEG absolute energy in the frequency band of interest, the proposed measure showed a clear superiority using both individual and group data. Results also suggested that the acrophase (i.e., the peak) of the circadian rhythm in 10-12 Hz occurs close to the core body temperature minimum. Significance. These results confirm the potential usefulness of the proposed EEG-based measure as a non-invasive circadian marker.
Lack of circadian variation in the activity of the autonomic nervous system after major abdominal operations
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Gögenur, Ismail; Rosenberg-Adamsen, Susan; Lie, Claus;
OBJECTIVE: Most sudden postoperative deaths occur during the night and we conjectured that this was associated with circadian variations in the autonomic nervous tone, reflected in heart rate variability. DESIGN: Prospective clinical study. SETTINGS: University hospital, Denmark. SUBJECTS: 44...... interval for the period of measurement (SDNN), the root mean square of the standard deviation of the differences between NN intervals (RMSSD), the percentage of NN intervals differing by more than 50 msec from adjacent NN intervals (pNN50) and the coefficient of component variance (meanNN/SDNN). MAIN...... OUTCOME MEASURES: Heart rate and heart rate variability. RESULTS: Circadian variation calculated from the SDNN (p = 0.43) the pNN50 (p = 0.11), the RMSSD (p = 0.47), and mean NN:SDNN ratio (p = 0.13) was absent postoperatively. Circadian variation in the heart rate was present but was set on a higher...
Circadian variation of the human metabolome captured by real-time breath analysis.
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Pablo Martinez-Lozano Sinues
Full Text Available Circadian clocks play a significant role in the correct timing of physiological metabolism, and clock disruption might lead to pathological changes of metabolism. One interesting method to assess the current state of metabolism is metabolomics. Metabolomics tries to capture the entirety of small molecules, i.e. the building blocks of metabolism, in a given matrix, such as blood, saliva or urine. Using mass spectrometric approaches we and others have shown that a significant portion of the human metabolome in saliva and blood exhibits circadian modulation; independent of food intake or sleep/wake rhythms. Recent advances in mass spectrometry techniques have introduced completely non-invasive breathprinting; a method to instantaneously assess small metabolites in human breath. In this proof-of-principle study, we extend these findings about the impact of circadian clocks on metabolomics to exhaled breath. As previously established, our method allows for real-time analysis of a rich matrix during frequent non-invasive sampling. We sampled the breath of three healthy, non-smoking human volunteers in hourly intervals for 24 hours during total sleep deprivation, and found 111 features in the breath of all individuals, 36-49% of which showed significant circadian variation in at least one individual. Our data suggest that real-time mass spectrometric "breathprinting" has high potential to become a useful tool to understand circadian metabolism, and develop new biomarkers to easily and in real-time assess circadian clock phase and function in experimental and clinical settings.
Circadian variation in QT dispersion determined from a 12-lead Holter recording
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Hansen, Stig; Rasmussen, Verner; Larsen, Klaus;
Background: QT dispersion is considered to reflect inhomogeneity of myocardial repolarization. Method: The circadian variation of QT interval dispersion was examined in 95 healthy subjects using 24-hour Holter monitoring. Three different methods of lead selection were applied: all 12 leads (QTdisp...
Circadian variation in QT dispersion determined from a 12-lead Holter recording
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Hansen, S; Rasmussen, Verner; Larsen, Klaus;
Background: QT dispersion is considered to reflect inhomogeneity of myocardial repolarization. Method: The circadian variation of QT interval dispersion was examined in 95 healthy subjects using 24-hour Holter monitoring. Three different methods of lead selection were applied: all 12 leads (QTdis...
Common Genetic Variation in Circadian Rhythm Genes and Risk of Epithelial Ovarian Cancer (EOC)
Jim, Heather S.L.; Lin, Hui-Yi; Tyrer, Jonathan P.; Lawrenson, Kate; Dennis, Joe; Chornokur, Ganna; Chen, Zhihua; Chen, Ann Y.; Permuth-Wey, Jennifer; Aben, Katja KH.; Anton-Culver, Hoda; Antonenkova, Natalia; Bruinsma, Fiona; Bandera, Elisa V.; Bean, Yukie T.; Beckmann, Matthias W.; Bisogna, Maria; Bjorge, Line; Bogdanova, Natalia; Brinton, Louise A.; Brooks-Wilson, Angela; Bunker, Clareann H.; Butzow, Ralf; Campbell, Ian G.; Carty, Karen; Chang-Claude, Jenny; Cook, Linda S.; Cramer, Daniel W.; Cunningham, Julie M.; Cybulski, Cezary; Dansonka-Mieszkowska, Agnieszka; du Bois, Andreas; Despierre, Evelyn; Sieh, Weiva; Doherty, Jennifer A.; Dörk, Thilo; Dürst, Matthias; Easton, Douglas F.; Eccles, Diana M.; Edwards, Robert P.; Ekici, Arif B.; Fasching, Peter A.; Fridley, Brooke L.; Gao, Yu-Tang; Gentry-Maharaj, Aleksandra; Giles, Graham G.; Glasspool, Rosalind; Goodman, Marc T.; Gronwald, Jacek; Harter, Philipp; Hasmad, Hanis N.; Hein, Alexander; Heitz, Florian; Hildebrandt, Michelle A.T.; Hillemanns, Peter; Hogdall, Claus K.; Hogdall, Estrid; Hosono, Satoyo; Iversen, Edwin S.; Jakubowska, Anna; Jensen, Allan; Ji, Bu-Tian; Karlan, Beth Y.; Kellar, Melissa; Kiemeney, Lambertus A.; Krakstad, Camilla; Kjaer, Susanne K.; Kupryjanczyk, Jolanta; Vierkant, Robert A.; Lambrechts, Diether; Lambrechts, Sandrina; Le, Nhu D.; Lee, Alice W.; Lele, Shashi; Leminen, Arto; Lester, Jenny; Levine, Douglas A.; Liang, Dong; Lim, Boon Kiong; Lissowska, Jolanta; Lu, Karen; Lubinski, Jan; Lundvall, Lene; Massuger, Leon F.A.G.; Matsuo, Keitaro; McGuire, Valerie; McLaughlin, John R.; McNeish, Ian; Menon, Usha; Milne, Roger L.; Modugno, Francesmary; Thomsen, Lotte; Moysich, Kirsten B.; Ness, Roberta B.; Nevanlinna, Heli; Eilber, Ursula; Odunsi, Kunle; Olson, Sara H.; Orlow, Irene; Orsulic, Sandra; Palmieri Weber, Rachel; Paul, James; Pearce, Celeste L.; Pejovic, Tanja; Pelttari, Liisa M.; Pike, Malcolm C.; Poole, Elizabeth M.; Schernhammer, Eva; Risch, Harvey A.; Rosen, Barry; Rossing, Mary Anne; Rothstein, Joseph H.; Rudolph, Anja; Runnebaum, Ingo B.; Rzepecka, Iwona K.; Salvesen, Helga B.; Schwaab, Ira; Shu, Xiao-Ou; Shvetsov, Yurii B.; Siddiqui, Nadeem; Song, Honglin; Southey, Melissa C.; Spiewankiewicz, Beata; Sucheston-Campbell, Lara; Teo, Soo-Hwang; Terry, Kathryn L.; Thompson, Pamela J.; Tangen, Ingvild L.; Tworoger, Shelley S.; van Altena, Anne M.; Vergote, Ignace; Walsh, Christine S.; Wang-Gohrke, Shan; Wentzensen, Nicolas; Whittemore, Alice S.; Wicklund, Kristine G.; Wilkens, Lynne R.; Wu, Anna H.; Wu, Xifeng; Woo, Yin-Ling; Yang, Hannah; Zheng, Wei; Ziogas, Argyrios; Amankwah, Ernest; Berchuck, Andrew; Schildkraut, Joellen M.; Kelemen, Linda E.; Ramus, Susan J.; Monteiro, Alvaro N.A.; Goode, Ellen L.; Narod, Steven A.; Gayther, Simon A.; Pharoah, Paul D. P.; Sellers, Thomas A.; Phelan, Catherine M.
Disruption in circadian gene expression, whether due to genetic variation or environmental factors (e.g., light at night, shiftwork), is associated with increased incidence of breast, prostate, gastrointestinal and hematologic cancers and gliomas. Circadian genes are highly expressed in the ovaries where they regulate ovulation; circadian disruption is associated with several ovarian cancer risk factors (e.g., endometriosis). However, no studies have examined variation in germline circadian genes as predictors of ovarian cancer risk and invasiveness. The goal of the current study was to examine single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in circadian genes BMAL1, CRY2, CSNK1E, NPAS2, PER3, REV1 and TIMELESS and downstream transcription factors KLF10 and SENP3 as predictors of risk of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) and histopathologic subtypes. The study included a test set of 3,761 EOC cases and 2,722 controls and a validation set of 44,308 samples including 18,174 (10,316 serous) cases and 26,134 controls from 43 studies participating in the Ovarian Cancer Association Consortium (OCAC). Analysis of genotype data from 36 genotyped SNPs and 4600 imputed SNPs indicated that the most significant association was rs117104877 in BMAL1 (OR = 0.79, 95% CI = 0.68–0.90, p = 5.59 × 10−4]. Functional analysis revealed a significant down regulation of BMAL1 expression following cMYC overexpression and increasing transformation in ovarian surface epithelial (OSE) cells as well as alternative splicing of BMAL1 exons in ovarian and granulosa cells. These results suggest that variation in circadian genes, and specifically BMAL1, may be associated with risk of ovarian cancer, likely through disruption of hormonal pathways. PMID:26807442
Acute myocardial infarction and infarct size: do circadian variations play a role?
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Ibáñez B
Full Text Available Aída Suárez-Barrientos,1 Borja Ibáñez1,21Cardiovascular Institute, Hospital Clínico San Carlos, 2Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares, Madrid, SpainAbstract: The circadian rhythm influences cardiovascular system physiology, inducing diurnal variations in blood pressure, heart rate, cardiac output, endothelial functions, platelet aggregation, and coronary arterial flow, among other physiological parameters. Indeed, an internal circadian network modulates cardiovascular physiology by regulating heart rate, metabolism, and even myocyte growth and repair ability. Consequently, cardiovascular pathology is also controlled by circadian oscillations, with increased morning incidence of cardiovascular events. The potential circadian influence on the human tolerance to ischemia/reperfusion has not been systematically scrutinized until recently. It has since been proven, in both animals and humans, that infarct size varies during the day depending on the symptom onset time, while circadian fluctuations in spontaneous cardioprotection in humans with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI have also been demonstrated. Furthermore, several studies have proposed that the time of day at which revascularization occurs in patients with STEMI may also influence infarct size and reperfusion outcomes. The potential association of the circadian clock with infarct size advocates the acknowledgment of time of day as a new prognostic factor in patients suffering acute myocardial infarction, which would open up a new field for chronotherapeutic targets and lead to the inclusion of time of day as a variable in clinical trials that test novel cardioprotective strategies.Keywords: cardioprotection, circadian rhythm, reperfusion injury, ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction
Effects of diurnal variation of gut microbes and high-fat feeding on host circadian clock function and metabolism.
Leone, Vanessa; Gibbons, Sean M; Martinez, Kristina; Hutchison, Alan L; Huang, Edmond Y; Cham, Candace M; Pierre, Joseph F; Heneghan, Aaron F; Nadimpalli, Anuradha; Hubert, Nathaniel; Zale, Elizabeth; Wang, Yunwei; Huang, Yong; Theriault, Betty; Dinner, Aaron R; Musch, Mark W; Kudsk, Kenneth A; Prendergast, Brian J; Gilbert, Jack A; Chang, Eugene B
Circadian clocks and metabolism are inextricably intertwined, where central and hepatic circadian clocks coordinate metabolic events in response to light-dark and sleep-wake cycles. We reveal an additional key element involved in maintaining host circadian rhythms, the gut microbiome. Despite persistence of light-dark signals, germ-free mice fed low or high-fat diets exhibit markedly impaired central and hepatic circadian clock gene expression and do not gain weight compared to conventionally raised counterparts. Examination of gut microbiota in conventionally raised mice showed differential diurnal variation in microbial structure and function dependent upon dietary composition. Additionally, specific microbial metabolites induced under low- or high-fat feeding, particularly short-chain fatty acids, but not hydrogen sulfide, directly modulate circadian clock gene expression within hepatocytes. These results underscore the ability of microbially derived metabolites to regulate or modify central and hepatic circadian rhythm and host metabolic function, the latter following intake of a Westernized diet. PMID:25891358
Comparison of circadian variations using FEV1 and peak expiratory flow rates among normal and asthmatic subjects.
Troyanov, S; Ghezzo, H; Cartier, A; Malo, J.L.
BACKGROUND--Most studies that describe circadian variations in asthma have used maximum rate of peak expiratory flow (PEF) rather than forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) to assess airway calibre. This study was designed to assess circadian variations in PEF and FEV1 measured simultaneously and to compare variations in these measurements in normal and asthmatic subjects in a stable clinical state. METHODS--Twenty nine subjects (nine asthmatic subjects on bronchodilators, 10 on inhal...
Circadian variation in murine hepatotoxicity to the antituberculosis agent «Isoniazide».
Souayed, Nouha; Chennoufi, Malek; Boughattas, Fida; Haouas, Zohra; Maaroufi, Khira; Miled, Abdelhedi; Ben-Attia, Mosaddok; Aouam, Karim; Reinberg, Alain; Boughattas, Naceur A
The circadian time is an important process affecting both pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of drugs. Consequently, the desired and/or undesired effects vary according to the time of drug administration in the 24 h scale. This study investigates whether the toxicity in liver as well as oxidative stress varies according to the circadian dosing-time of isoniazid (INH) in mice. A potentially toxic INH dose (120 mg/kg) was injected by i.p. route to different groups of animals at three different circadian times: 1, 9, and 17 Zeitgeber time (ZT). INH administration at 1 ZT resulted in a maximum hepatotoxicity assessed by the significant increase in both serum transaminase (ALAT: alanine aminotransferase) and (ASAT: aspartate aminotransferase) and antioxidant enzyme activities (catalase: CAT and superoxide dismutase: SOD). The highest malondialdehyde (MDA) level indicating an induction of lipid peroxidation resulting in oxidative damage was also observed at 1 ZT. Liver histopathology from INH groups at 9 ZT and at 1 ZT showed moderate to severe cytoplasma vacuolation, hepatocyte hypertrophy, ballooning, and necrosis. The circadian variation in INH toxicity may help realize a chronotherapy protocol in humans based on the selection of the best time associated to optimal tolerance or least side effects.
Circadian variation in salivary testosterone across age classes in Ache Amerindian males of Paraguay.
Bribiescas, Richard G; Hill, Kim R
Testosterone levels exhibit a circadian rhythm in healthy men, with morning levels tending to be higher compared to evening titers. However, circadian rhythms wane with age. Although this has been described in males living within industrialized settings, age-related changes have not received similar attention in populations outside these contexts. Because many nonindustrialized populations, such as Ache Amerindians of Paraguay, exhibit testosterone levels that are lower than what is commonly reported in the clinical literature and lack age-associated variation in testosterone, it was hypothesized that Ache men would not show age-related variation in testosterone circadian rhythms. Diurnal rhythmicity in testosterone within and between Ache men in association with age (n = 52; age range, 18-64) was therefore examined. A significant negative association was evident between the ratio of morning and evening salivary testosterone and age (r = -0.28, P = 0.04). Men in their third decade of life exhibited significant diurnal variation (P = 0.0003), whereas older and younger age classes did not. Men between the ages of 30 and 39 also exhibited a higher AM:PM testosterone ratio compared to 40-49 and 50< year old men (P = 0.002, 0.006). Overall, declines in testosterone with aging may not be universal among human males, however, within-individual analyses of diurnal variation capture age-related contrasts in daily testosterone fluctuations. Circadian rhythmicity differs with age among the Ache and may be a common aspect of reproductive senescence among men regardless of ecological context.
Effect of tiotropium bromide on circadian variation in airflow limitation in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
Calverley, P.; Lee, A.; Towse, L; van Noord, J; Witek, T; Kelsen, S.
Background: In chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the degree of circadian variation in forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) and the influence of anticholinergic blockade is not known. Tiotropium is a long acting inhaled anticholinergic bronchodilator that increases daytime FEV1 in COPD. We hypothesised that tiotropium would modify the overnight change in FEV1, and this would be unaffected by the timing of drug administration.
Circadian variation of EEG power spectra in NREM and REM sleep in humans: dissociation from body temperature
Dijk, D. J.
In humans, EEG power spectra in REM and NREM sleep, as well as characteristics of sleep spindles such as their duration, amplitude, frequency and incidence, vary with circadian phase. Recently it has been hypothesized that circadian variations in EEG spectra in humans are caused by variations in brain or body temperature and may not represent phenomena relevant to sleep regulatory processes. To test this directly, a further analysis of EEG power spectra - collected in a forced desynchrony protocol in which sleep episodes were scheduled to a 28-h period while the rhythms of body temperature and plasma melatonin were oscillating at their near 24-h period - was carried out. EEG power spectra were computed for NREM and REM sleep occurring between 90-120 and 270-300 degrees of the circadian melatonin rhythm, i.e. just after the clearance of melatonin from plasma in the 'morning' and just after the 'evening' increase in melatonin secretion. Average body temperatures during scheduled sleep at these two circadian phases were identical (36.72 degrees C). Despite identical body temperatures, the power spectra in NREM sleep were very different at these two circadian phases. EEG activity in the low frequency spindle range was significantly and markedly enhanced after the evening increase in plasma melatonin as compared to the morning phase. For REM sleep, significant differences in power spectra during these two circadian phases, in particular in the alpha range, were also observed. The results confirm that EEG power spectra in NREM and REM sleep vary with circadian phase, suggesting that the direct contribution of temperature to the circadian variation in EEG power spectra is absent or only minor, and are at variance with the hypothesis that circadian variations in EEG power spectra are caused by variations in temperature.
Expression conservation within the circadian clock of a monocot: natural variation at barley Ppd-H1 affects circadian expression of flowering time genes, but not clock orthologs
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Campoli Chiara
Full Text Available Abstract Background The circadian clock is an endogenous mechanism that coordinates biological processes with daily changes in the environment. In plants, circadian rhythms contribute to both agricultural productivity and evolutionary fitness. In barley, the photoperiod response regulator and flowering-time gene Ppd-H1 is orthologous to the Arabidopsis core-clock gene PRR7. However, relatively little is known about the role of Ppd-H1 and other components of the circadian clock in temperate crop species. In this study, we identified barley clock orthologs and tested the effects of natural genetic variation at Ppd-H1 on diurnal and circadian expression of clock and output genes from the photoperiod-response pathway. Results Barley clock orthologs HvCCA1, HvGI, HvPRR1, HvPRR37 (Ppd-H1, HvPRR73, HvPRR59 and HvPRR95 showed a high level of sequence similarity and conservation of diurnal and circadian expression patterns, when compared to Arabidopsis. The natural mutation at Ppd-H1 did not affect diurnal or circadian cycling of barley clock genes. However, the Ppd-H1 mutant was found to be arrhythmic under free-running conditions for the photoperiod-response genes HvCO1, HvCO2, and the MADS-box transcription factor and vernalization responsive gene Vrn-H1. Conclusion We suggest that the described eudicot clock is largely conserved in the monocot barley. However, genetic differentiation within gene families and differences in the function of Ppd-H1 suggest evolutionary modification in the angiosperm clock. Our data indicates that natural variation at Ppd-H1 does not affect the expression level of clock genes, but controls photoperiodic output genes. Circadian control of Vrn-H1 in barley suggests that this vernalization responsive gene is also controlled by the photoperiod-response pathway. Structural and functional characterization of the barley circadian clock will set the basis for future studies of the adaptive significance of the circadian clock in
Circadian variations and chronotherapeutic implications for cardiovascular management: a focus on COER verapamil.
Glasser, S P
The circadian variation in biologic functions (chronobiology) may play a large role in the pathogenesis and exacerbation of many different diseases. Traditional treatment regimens for medical conditions associated with circadian variation often do not account for fluctuations in disease activity. A novel type of treatment approach, known as chronotherapy, is being evaluated in the treatment of many different disorders, including cardiovascular disease. Chronotherapeutic regimens are designed to provide pharmacologic intervention at the most appropriate time point in accordance with circadian rhythms, and may offer benefits over traditional regimens. This can be accomplished through appropriate dose scheduling (e.g., scheduling higher doses during greater disease activity and lower doses during low disease activity) or through unique drug-delivery systems. One chronotherapeutic formulation that uses a unique drug-delivery system, controlled-onset extended-release (COER) verapamil, aligns peak plasma drug levels with times when blood pressure, heart rate, and myocardial oxygen demand are at their highest levels. The efficacy and safety of COER verapamil have been evaluated in several clinical trials in patients with hypertension and angina. The purpose of this article is to review the concepts of chronobiology and chronotherapy and to review results of key efficacy and safety trials of COER verapamil. PMID:11720629
Circadian variation on oxygen consumption in preterm infants
Bauer, Jacqueline; Janecke, Andreas; Gerss, Joachim; Masjosthusmann, Katja; Werner, Claudius; Hoffmann, Georg
Objective: We investigated the diurnal variation in oxygen consumption to determine the optimal time periods of calorimetry in preterm infants. Methods: Oxygen consumption (VO2) was measured continuously for 24 h using indirect calorimetry. Twenty-two premature infants with gestational age of 27–31 (31±1.7) weeks were enrolled in the study. Heart rate, respiratory rate, oxygen saturation, skin and rectal temperature and physical activity were monitored continuously. Results: The averaged va...
Circadian Variation in the Response to Experimental Endotoxemia and Modulatory Effects of Exogenous Melatonin
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Alamili, Mahdi; Klein, Mads; Lykkesfeldt, Jens;
Disturbances in circadian rhythms are commonly observed in the development of several medical conditions and may also be involved in the pathophysiology of sepsis. Melatonin, with its antioxidative and anti-inflammatory effects, is known to modulate the response to endotoxemia. In this paper, we...... investigated the circadian variation with or without melatonin administration in an experimental endotoxemia model based on lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Sixty male Sprague-Dawley rats were assigned to six groups receiving an intraperitoneal injection of either LPS (5 mg/kg), LPS + melatonin (1 mg/kg), or LPS...... + melatonin (10 mg/kg) at either daytime or nighttime. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) was analyzed in liver samples collected after decapitation. Furthermore, inflammatory plasma markers (cytokines interleukin [IL]-6, IL-10) and oxidative plasma markers (ascorbic acid [AA], dehydroascorbic acid [DHA], and...
Circadian variation of blood pressure in patients with chronic renal failure on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Clausen, P; Feldt-Rasmussen, B; Ladefoged, Jens
The circadian pattern of blood pressure variation was investigated in 10 patients with advanced chronic renal failure on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) and in an age-matched group of controls without renal disease with similar office blood pressure level. Monitoring was done using....... In patients with chronic renal failure undergoing CAPD, an otherwise unnoticed 24-h hypertension and nocturnal blood pressure elevation can be discovered by use of 24-h blood pressure monitoring and this may indicate a need of earlier start of antihypertensive treatment in CAPD patients with borderline...
Circadian variation of transient myocardial ischemia in the early out-of-hospital period after first acute myocardial infarction
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Mickley, H; Pless, P; Nielsen, J R;
Circadian rhythms have been demonstrated in acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and in other clinical cardiac dysfunctions. The purpose of this study was to elucidate whether a circadian pattern of transient myocardial ischemia exists after first AMI. Prospectively, 24-hour ambulatory ST......-segment monitoring was initiated at discharge on day 11 +/- 5 in 123 consecutive survivors of first AMI. A total of 93 ischemic episodes (91 asymptomatic) occurred in 21 of the 123 patients (17%) (mean duration of 30 minutes, range 4 to 292). A significant circadian rhythm of transient myocardial ischemia was found...... was significantly higher during morning episodes (p less than 0.02). Patients with transient myocardial ischemia had a diurnal distribution similar to the circadian variation displayed during ischemic activity. Thus, 16 of the 21 patients had ischemic episodes from 6 P.M. to 12 midnight versus 10 patients from 6 A...
Circadian variation in serum free and total insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I and IGF-II in untreated and treated acromegaly and growth hormone deficiency
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Skjaerbaek, Christian; Frystyk, Jan; Kaal, Andreas;
to the nocturnal increase in IGF binding protein-1. In this study we have investigated the circadian variation in circulating free IGF-I and IGF-II in patients with acromegaly and patients with adult onset growth hormone deficiency. PATIENTS: Seven acromegalic patients were studied with and without treatment...... no significant circadian variations in free IGF-I or free IGF-II in either of the two occasions. In contrast, there was a significant circadian variation of total IGF-I after adjustment for changes in plasma volume in both treated and untreated acromegaly and GH deficiency in all cases with a peak between 0300 h...
Circadian Systems and Metabolism
Roenneberg, Till; Merrow, Martha
Circadian systems direct many metabolic parameters and, at the same time, they appear to be exquisitely shielded from metabolic variations. Although the recent decade of circadian research has brought insights into how circadian periodicity may be generated at the molecular level, little is known ab
The circadian variation in Anti-Mullerian hormone in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome differs significantly from normally ovulating women.
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Leif Bungum
Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: [corrected] To improve the biologic understanding of the Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS condition by examining the circadian variation and relationship between Anti Müllerian Hormone (AMH, gonadotropins and ovarian steroids in PCOS patients compared to normally ovulating and menstruating women. By comparing the pattern of co-variation between AMH and Luteinizing Hormone, two compounds closely linked to hyperandrogenism and anovulation in PCOS, the involvement of the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Ovarian axis in PCOS pathology could be elucidated. PATIENTS: Eight normal-weighted young, anovulatory PCOS-women as study group and ten normal menstruating and ovulating women as controls. INTERVENTIONS: Observational prospective study of the circadian variation in AMH, gonadotropins, sex steroids and androgens in a study and a control group. A circadian profile was performed in each study and control subject during a 24-h period by blood sampling every second hour, starting at 8:00 a.m. and continuing until 8:00 a.m. the following day. RESULTS: Significant differences in hormonal levels were found between the groups, with higher concentrations of AMH, LH and androgens in the PCOS group and lower amounts of FSH and progesterone. A distinct difference in the circadian variation pattern of AMH and LH between PCOS patients and normal controls was seen, with PCOS patients presenting a uniform pattern in serum levels of AMH and LH throughout the study period, without significant nadir late-night values as was seen in the control group. In PCOS women, a significant positive association between LH/ FSH and testosterone was found opposite to controls. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Circadian variation in Anti-Müllerian Hormone, gonadotropins and ovarian steroids and the covariation between them. CONCLUSION: A significant difference in the circadian secretion of LH and AMH in PCOS women compared to normally ovulating women indicate an increased GnRH pulse
Does the clock make the poison? Circadian variation in response to pesticides.
Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)
Louisa A Hooven
Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Circadian clocks govern daily physiological and molecular rhythms, and putative rhythms in expression of xenobiotic metabolizing (XM genes have been described in both insects and mammals. Such rhythms could have important consequences for outcomes of chemical exposures at different times of day. To determine whether reported XM gene expression rhythms result in functional rhythms, we examined daily profiles of enzyme activity and dose responses to the pesticides propoxur, deltamethrin, fipronil, and malathion. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Published microarray expression data were examined for temporal patterns. Male Drosophila were collected for ethoxycoumarin-O-deethylase (ECOD, esterase, glutathione-S-transferase (GST, and, and uridine 5'-diphosphoglucosyltransferase (UGT enzyme activity assays, or subjected to dose-response tests at four hour intervals throughout the day in both light/dark and constant light conditions. Peak expression of several XM genes cluster in late afternoon. Significant diurnal variation was observed in ECOD and UGT enzyme activity, however, no significant daily variation was observed in esterase or GST activity. Daily profiles of susceptibility to lethality after acute exposure to propoxur and fipronil showed significantly increased resistance in midday, while susceptibility to deltamethrin and malathion varied little. In constant light, which interferes with clock function, the daily variation in susceptibility to propoxur and in ECOD and UGT enzyme activity was depressed. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Expression and activities of specific XM enzymes fluctuate during the day, and for specific insecticides, the concentration resulting in 50% mortality varies significantly during the day. Time of day of chemical exposure should be an important consideration in experimental design, use of pesticides, and human risk assessment.
Increase in circadian variation after continuous-flow ventricular assist device implantation.
Slaughter, Mark S; Ising, Michael S; Tamez, Daniel; O'Driscoll, Gerry; Voskoboynikov, Neil; Bartoli, Carlo R; Koenig, Steven C; Giridharan, Guruprasad A
The circadian rhythm of varying blood pressure and heart rate is attenuated or absent in patients with severe heart failure. In 28 patients supported by a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) for at least 30 days, a restoration of the circadian rhythm was demonstrated by a consistent nocturnal decrease, and then increase, of the LVAD flow while at a constant LVAD speed. The return of the circadian rhythm has implications for cardiac recovery, and the observation indicates that the continuous-flow LVAD has an intrinsic automatic response to physiologic demands. PMID:20207167
Circadian variation in stroke onset: identical temporal pattern in ischemic and hemorrhagic events.
Manfredini, Roberto; Boari, Benedetta; Smolensky, Michael H; Salmi, Raffaella; la Cecilia, Olga; Maria Malagoni, Anna; Haus, Erhard; Manfredini, Fabio
Stroke is the culmination of a heterogeneous group of cerebrovascular diseases that is manifested as ischemia or hemorrhage of one or more blood vessels of the brain. The occurrence of many acute cardiovascular events--such as myocardial infarction, sudden cardiac death, pulmonary embolism, critical limb ischemia, and aortic aneurysm rupture--exhibits prominent 24 h patterning, with a major morning peak and secondary early evening peak. The incidence of stroke exhibits the same 24 h pattern. Although ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes are different entities and are characterized by different pathophysiological mechanisms, they share an identical double-peak 24 h pattern. A constellation of endogenous circadian rhythms and exogenous cyclic factors are involved. The staging of the circadian rhythms in vascular tone, coagulative balance, and blood pressure plus temporal patterns in posture, physical activity, emotional stress, and medication effects play central and/or triggering roles. Features of the circadian rhythm of blood pressure, in terms of their chronic and acute effects on cerebral vessels, and of coagulation are especially important. Clinical medicine has been most concerned with the prevention of stroke in the morning, when population-based studies show it is of greatest risk during the 24 h; however, improved protection of at-risk patients against stroke in the early evening, the second most vulnerable time of cerebrovascular accidents, has received relatively little attention thus far. PMID:16076646
Lack of circadian variation and reduction of heart rate variability in women with breast cancer undergoing lumpectomy
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Hansen, Melissa V; Rosenberg, Jacob; Gögenur, Ismail
Changes in the autonomic nervous system with increased sympathetic tone may be a cause of postoperative short-, and long-term cardiovascular complications. Heart rate variability (HRV) is assessed by Holter monitoring as a measure of autonomic tone and has not been investigated in patients...... with breast cancer undergoing surgery. We aimed to investigate evening- and night-time HRV after lumpectomy. Twelve patients were included in this descriptive study. HRV was measured the night before surgery (PREOP), the night after surgery (PO1) and 14 days after surgery (PO14) from 1900 to 0700 h...... analyzed the variation of the overall time period and the circadian variation between evening and night (sympathetic vs. parasympathetic tonus). Mean heart rate increased from PREOP to PO1 (p ...
Circadian variations in salivary chromogranin a concentrations during a 24-hour period in dogs
Kanai, Kazutaka; Hino, Mariko; Hori, Yasutomo; Nakao, Ruriko; HOSHI, Fumio; Itoh, Naoyuki; HIGUCHI, Seiichi
The purpose of this study was to determine if salivary chromogranin a secretion in dogs exhibits a circadian rhythm. Saliva sampling was performed during three different sessions occurring in three nonconsecutive 24-h periods. Sixteen healthy adult beagle dogs (8 males and 8 females) were moved to a sampling room and housed individually in cages. Saliva samples were obtained every 4 h from 12:00 p.m. to 12:00 p.m. the following day. In the interest of habituation, saliva was obtained hourly f...
Circadian variation in concentration of anti-Mullerian hormone in regularly menstruating females: relation to age, gonadotrophin and sex steroid levels
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Bungum, Leif; Jacobsson, Anna-Karin; Rosén, Fredrik;
Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) is a promising marker of ovarian reserve. The aim of the study is to assess the circadian variation in AMH, and to evaluate its clinical relevance and biological aspects as an effect of age and other endocrine mechanisms involved in the regulation of AMH secretion....
The circadian variation in Anti-Müllerian hormone in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome differs significantly from normally ovulating women
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Bungum, Leif Johan; Franssohn, Florencia; Bungum, Mona Berger Håkonsen;
To improve the biologic understanding of the Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) condition by examining the circadian variation and relationship between Anti Müllerian Hormone (AMH), gonadotropins and ovarian steroids in PCOS patients compared to normally ovulating and menstruating women. By compa...
Circadian variations in blood pressure in health and disease: implications for patient management
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Slaughter MS
Full Text Available Atul R Chugh1, John H Loughran1, Mark S Slaughter21Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, 2Division of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY, USAAbstract: Traditionally, blood pressure measurements have been performed in office settings and have provided the basis for all diagnostic and therapeutic decisions. However, the development of a clinically relevant 24-hour blood pressure monitoring system has added greatly to the ability of blood pressure values to confer additional clinical information, including prognostic value. Mechanistically, the circadian rhythm of blood pressure is mediated by a complex process as a part of the neurohormonal cascade. Pattern recognition of blood pressure peaks and troughs over a 24-hour period has led to categorization into specific subsets namely, ie, dippers, nondippers, extreme dippers, and reverse dippers. Cardiovascular risk is associated with certain pattern types, as has been demonstrated in large observational and prospective studies. The development of therapies for the purpose of restoring more pathological patterns to normal ones continues to grow. These include both pharmaceutical and device therapy. This article describes the development of 24-hour blood pressure monitoring systems, the identification of circadian blood pressure patterns, and the treatment strategies studied thus far which affect these newer blood pressure parameters.Keywords: ambulatory blood pressure measurement, nocturnal blood pressure, dippers, nondippers, extreme dippers, device therapy
Circadian and diurnal variation of circulating immune complexes, complement-mediated solubilization, and the complement split product C3d in rheumatoid arthritis
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Petersen, Ivan; Baatrup, Gunnar; Brandslund, I;
Nine patients with active classical rheumatoid arthritis (ARA criteria) were studied with reference to circadian variation of immunological and clinical parameters. Complement-mediated solubilization (CMS) of immune complexes (IC) and the level of circulating IC were found to be inversely related...... with low CMS and increased IC levels in the morning, and vice versa in the afternoon. Bed rest and exercise did not influence these fluctuations. The C3d concentration in plasma was increased but showed no diurnal or circadian periodic fluctuations when the levels were corrected for fluctuations in plasma...
Blood pressure circadian rhythm and obesity: Blood pressure variations and obesity
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Despotović Nebojša
Full Text Available Introduction The association between obesity and arterial hypertension has been established in a great number of studies. Our objective was to investigate whether circadian rhythm of blood pressure is disturbed among obese people. Material and methods In this cross-sectional, randomized study, Schiller BR-102 device was used for ambulatory blood pressure monitoring. One hundred and twenty outpatients were divided into three randomized groups: obese body mass index 30 kg/m2 (52 patients, overweight (28 patients, with body mass index 25,0-29,9 kg/m2 and normal weight (control group (48 patients, with body mass index 18,5-24,9 kg/m2. In all patients we investigated the following blood pressure parameters: average blood pressure (total, day-time and night-time, maximal blood pressure and dipping or non-dipping blood pressure pattern during night (for systolic and diastolic blood pressure, respectively. Results In body mass index beyond 30 kg/m2 only systolic blood pressure parameters were significantly higher - average blood pressure - during daytime (P=0.034 and during night (P=0.014; maximal blood pressure (P=0.001. In body mass index beyond 30 kg/m2, absence of normal blood pressure during night was significantly more often registered (P=0.007. Discussion and Conclusion The non-dipping blood pressure pattern and increase of systolic blood pressure only reveal hyper activation of sympathetic nervous system as a leading pathophysiological mechanism causing arterial hypertension in obese patients.
Circadian Rhythms of Locomotor Activity in Captive Birds and Mammals : Their Variations with Season and Latitude
Daan, Serge; Aschoff, Jürgen
1. The seasonal variations in time of daily onset and end of locomotor activity are described for 3 species of mammals and 5 species of birds kept in captivity at the arctic circle and at lower latitude. These variations are most pronounced at high latitude. 2. The duration of daily activity plotted
... body function and health? Circadian rhythms can influence sleep-wake cycles, hormone release, body temperature and other important bodily functions. They have been linked to various sleep disorders, such as insomnia. Abnormal circadian rhythms have also ...
Circadian and seasonal variations in pineal gland intercellular canaliculi in the white rat
Martínez Soriano, F.; Cimas García, C.; Ruíz Torner, A.
Seventy Wistar rats are used to study the changes in pineal intercellular canaliculi over a 21-hour period and for two different photoperiods (pre-autumn, first week of September, and winter, first week of February). The study considers these changes at pineal body, cortical and medullar level separately, and compares the values obtained. The results show variations in canalicular surface at different point times (10:00, 14:00,18:00) and for both photoperiods. ...
Long-term stability and circadian variation in circulating levels of surfactant protein D
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Hoegh, Silje Vermedal; Sorensen, Grith Lykke; Tornoe, Ida;
to be used as a biomarker for disease e.g. in COPD. We aimed to investigate the variation of circulating SP-D in healthy individuals in and between days for 6 months. In addition, we studied the SP-D response to a standardized physical exercise programme. SP-D was measured in serum using a 5-layered ELISA...... pre-exercise level of SP-D was 746 ng/ml (95% CI: 384-2035), and immediately after cessation of physical activity the median SP-D level was 767 ng/ml (95% CI: 367-1885) (P=0.248). Our findings underscore the importance of standardized blood sampling conditions in future studies on the potential role...... of SP-D as a biomarker. Importantly, stable measures of systemic SP-D over a prolonged period support that SP-D is suitable for biomarker studies....
Quantitative Variation in Water-Use Efficiency across Water Regimes and Its Relationship with Circadian, Vegetative, Reproductive, and Leaf Gas-Exchange Traits
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)
Christine E. Edwards; Brent E. Ewers; C. Robertson McClung; Ping Lou; Cynthia Weinig
Drought limits light harvesting,resulting in lower plant growth and reproduction.One trait important for plant drought response is water-use efficiency (WUE).We investigated (1) how the joint genetic architecture of WUE,reproductive characters,and vegetative traits changed across drought and well-watered conditions,(2) whether traits with distinct developmental bases (e.g.leaf gas exchange versus reproduction) differed in the environmental sensitivity of their genetic architecture,and (3) whether quantitative variation in circadian period was related to drought response in Brassica rapa.Overall,WUE increased in drought,primarily because stomatal conductance,and thus water loss,declined more than carbon fixation.Genotypes with the highest WUE in drought expressed the lowest WUE in well-watered conditions,and had the largest vegetative and floral organs in both treatments.Thus,large changes in WUE enabled some genotypes to approach vegetative and reproductive trait optima across environments.The genetic architecture differed for gas-exchange and vegetative traits across drought and well-watered conditions,but not for floral traits.Correlations between circadian and leaf gas-exchange traits were significant but did not vary across treatments,indicating that circadian period affects physiological function regardless of water availability.These results suggest that WUE is important for drought tolerance in Brassica rapa and that artificial selection for increased WUE in drought will not result in maladaptive expression of other traits that are correlated with WUE.
Comparison of circadian, weekly, and seasonal variations of electrical storms and single events of ventricular fibrillation in patients with Brugada syndrome
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Yoshiyasu Aizawa
Full Text Available In patients with Brugada syndrome (BS, VF occurred predominantly during the nocturnal period. Some patients also developed ESs. In addition to the circadian rhythm, patients showed weekly and seasonal patterns. The patients with ESs had peak episodes of VF on Saturday and in the winter and spring, while episodes of VF in patients with single VF events occurred most often on Monday with smaller seasonal variation. Except for age, there was no difference in the clinical or ECG characteristics between the patients with ESs and those with single VF episodes.
Postoperative circadian disturbances
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Gögenur, Ismail
in patients with lower than median pain levels for a three days period after laparoscopic cholecystectomy. In the series of studies included in this thesis we have systematically shown that circadian disturbances are found in the secretion of hormones, the sleep-wake cycle, core body temperature rhythm......An increasing number of studies have shown that circadian variation in the excretion of hormones, the sleep wake circle, the core body temperature rhythm, the tone of the autonomic nervous system and the activity rhythm are important both in health and in disease processes. An increasing attention...... these endogenous rhythms have been investigated in relation to surgery we performed a series of studies exploring different endogenous rhythms and factors affecting these rhythms. We also wanted to examine whether the disturbances in the postoperative circadian rhythms could be correlated to postoperative recovery...
Die circadiane Uhr im Immunsystem
Keller, Maren
Daily rhythms of a variety of immunological phenomena and functions are well known, but so far they have largely been neglected. Examples of daily rhythms in the immune system are: circadian differences in susceptibility to bacterial infection and daily variations in the symptoms of diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis or asthma. Therefore, it is very important for clinical diagnosis and pharmacological therapies to elucidate the connections between the circadian clock and the immune system....
Circadian aspects of post-operative morbidity and mortality
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Kvaslerud, T.; Hansen, M.V.; Rosenberg, J.;
concerning post-operative circadian disturbances. We also present the literature concerning circadian variation in post-operative morbidity and mortality. PubMed and the Cochrane database were searched for papers using a combination of 'circadian,' 'surgery,' 'post-operative,' 'mortality' and 'morbidity....... There is a peak incidence of myocardial ischemia, fatal thromboembolism and sudden unexpected death in the morning hours. A circadian variation exists in post-operative morbidity and mortality. The observed circadian variation in post-operative morbidity and mortality may warrant a chronopharmacological approach...
Extreme obesity is associated with variation in genes related to the circadian rhythm of food intake and hypothalamic signaling.
Mariman, Edwin C M; Bouwman, Freek G; Aller, Erik E J G; van Baak, Marleen A; Wang, Ping
The hypothalamus is important for regulation of energy intake. Mutations in genes involved in the function of the hypothalamus can lead to early-onset severe obesity. To look further into this, we have followed a strategy that allowed us to identify rare and common gene variants as candidates for the background of extreme obesity from a relatively small cohort. For that we focused on subjects with a well-selected phenotype and on a defined gene set and used a rich source of genetic data with stringent cut-off values. A list of 166 genes functionally related to the hypothalamus was generated. In those genes complete exome sequence data from 30 extreme obese subjects (60 genomes) were screened for novel rare indel, nonsense, and missense variants with a predicted negative impact on protein function. In addition, (moderately) common variants in those genes were analyzed for allelic association using the general population as reference (false discovery rategenes for BAIAP3, NBEA, PRRC2A, RYR1, SIM1, and TRH, and a novel indel variant in LEPR. Common variants in the six genes for MBOAT4, NPC1, NPW, NUCB2, PER1, and PRRC2A showed significant allelic association with extreme obesity. Our findings underscore the complexity of the genetic background of extreme obesity involving rare and common variants of genes from defined metabolic and physiologic processes, in particular regulation of the circadian rhythm of food intake and hypothalamic signaling.
Analysis of Circadian Leaf Movements.
Müller, Niels A; Jiménez-Gómez, José M
The circadian clock is a molecular timekeeper that controls a wide variety of biological processes. In plants, clock outputs range from the molecular level, with rhythmic gene expression and metabolite content, to physiological processes such as stomatal conductance or leaf movements. Any of these outputs can be used as markers to monitor the state of the circadian clock. In the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, much of the current knowledge about the clock has been gained from time course experiments profiling expression of endogenous genes or reporter constructs regulated by the circadian clock. Since these methods require labor-intensive sample preparation or transformation, monitoring leaf movements is an interesting alternative, especially in non-model species and for natural variation studies. Technological improvements both in digital photography and image analysis allow cheap and easy monitoring of circadian leaf movements. In this chapter we present a protocol that uses an autonomous point and shoot camera and free software to monitor circadian leaf movements in tomato. PMID:26867616
Circadian aspects of post-operative morbidity and mortality
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Kvaslerud, T.; Hansen, M.V.; Rosenberg, J.;
concerning post-operative circadian disturbances. We also present the literature concerning circadian variation in post-operative morbidity and mortality. PubMed and the Cochrane database were searched for papers using a combination of 'circadian,' 'surgery,' 'post-operative,' 'mortality' and 'morbidity.......' Eleven relevant studies were found, and seven of these were excluded due to the use of time of surgery and not time of morbidity or mortality as the main variable. The results from the four articles showed a circadian distribution of morbidity and mortality that mimics the one seen without surgery....... There is a peak incidence of myocardial ischemia, fatal thromboembolism and sudden unexpected death in the morning hours. A circadian variation exists in post-operative morbidity and mortality. The observed circadian variation in post-operative morbidity and mortality may warrant a chronopharmacological approach...
Circadian Rhythm Abnormalities
Zee, Phyllis C.; Attarian, Hrayr; Videnovic, Aleksandar
Purpose: This article reviews the recent advances in understanding of the fundamental properties of circadian rhythms and discusses the clinical features, diagnosis, and treatment of circadian rhythm sleep disorders (CRSDs).
Circadian Clock Regulates Bone Resorption in Mice.
Xu, Cheng; Ochi, Hiroki; Fukuda, Toru; Sato, Shingo; Sunamura, Satoko; Takarada, Takeshi; Hinoi, Eiichi; Okawa, Atsushi; Takeda, Shu
The circadian clock controls many behavioral and physiological processes beyond daily rhythms. Circadian dysfunction increases the risk of cancer, obesity, and cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. Although clinical studies have shown that bone resorption is controlled by circadian rhythm, as indicated by diurnal variations in bone resorption, the molecular mechanism of circadian clock-dependent bone resorption remains unknown. To clarify the role of circadian rhythm in bone resorption, aryl hydrocarbon receptor nuclear translocator-like (Bmal1), a prototype circadian gene, was knocked out specifically in osteoclasts. Osteoclast-specific Bmal1-knockout mice showed a high bone mass phenotype due to reduced osteoclast differentiation. A cell-based assay revealed that BMAL1 upregulated nuclear factor of activated T cells, cytoplasmic, calcineurin-dependent 1 (Nfatc1) transcription through its binding to an E-box element located on the Nfatc1 promoter in cooperation with circadian locomotor output cycles kaput (CLOCK), a heterodimer partner of BMAL1. Moreover, steroid receptor coactivator (SRC) family members were shown to interact with and upregulate BMAL1:CLOCK transcriptional activity. Collectively, these data suggest that bone resorption is controlled by osteoclastic BMAL1 through interactions with the SRC family and binding to the Nfatc1 promoter. © 2016 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research. PMID:26841172
Postoperative circadian disturbances
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Gögenur, Ismail
night after minimally invasive surgery. The core body temperature rhythm was disturbed after both major and minor surgery. There was a change in the sleep wake cycle with a significantly increased duration of REM-sleep in the day and evening time after major surgery compared with preoperatively......An increasing number of studies have shown that circadian variation in the excretion of hormones, the sleep wake circle, the core body temperature rhythm, the tone of the autonomic nervous system and the activity rhythm are important both in health and in disease processes. An increasing attention...... surgery was increased on the fourth day after surgery and the total excretion of AMT6s in urine was correlated to sleep efficiency and wake time after sleep onset, but was not correlated to the occurrence of postoperative cognitive dysfunction. We could only prove an effect of melatonin substitution...
Domestication selected for deceleration of the circadian clock in cultivated tomato
Müller, Niels A.; Wijnen, Cris L.; Srinivasan, Arunkumar; Ryngajllo, M.; Ofner, I.; Lin, Tao; Ranjan, Aashish; West, Donelly; Maloof, J.N.; Sinha, Neelima R.; Huang, Sanwen; Zamir, Dani; Jimenez-Gomez, J.M.
The circadian clock is a critical regulator of plant physiology and development, controlling key agricultural traits in crop plants1. In addition, natural variation in circadian rhythms is important for local adaptation2, 3, 4. However, quantitative modulation of circadian rhythms due to artificial
Neuroimaging, cognition, light and circadian rhythms
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Giulia eGaggioni
Full Text Available In humans, sleep and wakefulness and the associated cognitive processes are regulated through interactions between sleep homeostasis and the circadian system. Chronic disruption of sleep and circadian rhythmicity is common in our society and there is a need for a better understanding of the brain mechanisms regulating sleep, wakefulness and associated cognitive processes. This review summarizes recent investigations which provide first neural correlates of the combined influence of sleep homeostasis and circadian rhythmicity on cognitive brain activity. Markers of interindividual variations in sleep-wake regulation, such as chronotype and polymorphisms in sleep and clock genes, are associated with changes in cognitive brain responses in subcortical and cortical areas in response to manipulations of the sleep-wake cycle. This review also includes recent data showing that cognitive brain activity is regulated by light, which is a powerful modulator of cognition and alertness and also directly impacts sleep and circadian rhythmicity. The effect of light varied with age, psychiatric status, PERIOD3 genotype and changes in sleep homeostasis and circadian phase. These data provide new insights into the contribution of demographic characteristics, the sleep-wake cycle, circadian rhythmicity and light to brain functioning.
Duffy, Jeanne F; Zitting, Kirsi-Marja; Chinoy, Evan D
Aging is associated with numerous changes, including changes in sleep timing, duration, and quality. The circadian timing system interacts with a sleep-wake homeostatic system to regulate human sleep, including sleep timing and structure. This article reviews key features of the human circadian timing system, age-related changes in the circadian timing system, and how those changes may contribute to the observed alterations in sleep. PMID:26568120
Integration of human sleep-wake regulation and circadian rhythmicity
Dijk, Derk-Jan; Lockley, Steven W.
The human sleep-wake cycle is generated by a circadian process, originating from the suprachiasmatic nuclei, in interaction with a separate oscillatory process: the sleep homeostat. The sleep-wake cycle is normally timed to occur at a specific phase relative to the external cycle of light-dark exposure. It is also timed at a specific phase relative to internal circadian rhythms, such as the pineal melatonin rhythm, the circadian sleep-wake propensity rhythm, and the rhythm of responsiveness of the circadian pacemaker to light. Variations in these internal and external phase relationships, such as those that occur in blindness, aging, morning and evening, and advanced and delayed sleep-phase syndrome, lead to sleep disruptions and complaints. Changes in ocular circadian photoreception, interindividual variation in the near-24-h intrinsic period of the circadian pacemaker, and sleep homeostasis can contribute to variations in external and internal phase. Recent findings on the physiological and molecular-genetic correlates of circadian sleep disorders suggest that the timing of the sleep-wake cycle and circadian rhythms is closely integrated but is, in part, regulated differentially.
Circadian variation of heart rate is affected by environment: a study of continuous electrocardiographic monitoring in members of a symphony orchestra.
Mulcahy, D; Keegan, J; Fingret, A; Wright, C; Park, A; Sparrow, J; Curcher, D; Fox, K M
Twenty four hour ambulatory ST segment monitoring was performed on 48 members (43 players and five members of the management/technical team) of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) symphony orchestra without a history of cardiac disease. This period included final rehearsals and live performances (for audience and radio) of music by Richard Strauss and Mozart at the Royal Festival Hall (n = 36) and Rachmaninov and Tchaikovsky at the Barbican Arts Centre (n = 21). During the period of monitoring one person (2%) had transient ST segment changes. Mean heart rates were significantly higher during the live performances than during the rehearsals. Mean heart rates during the live performance of Rachmaninov and Tchaikovsky were significantly higher than during Strauss and Mozart in those (n = 6) who were monitored on both occasions. Mean heart rates in the management and technical team were higher than those of the players. The recognised circadian pattern of heart rate, with a peak in the morning waking hours, was altered similarly during both concert days, with a primary peak occurring in the evening hours and a lesser peak in the morning for both musicians and management/technical staff. This study showed that environmental factors are of primary importance in defining the circadian pattern of heart rate. This has important implications when identifying peak periods of cardiovascular stress and tailoring drug treatment for patients with angina pectoris.
Circadian clocks and breast cancer
Blakeman, Victoria; Jack L. Williams; Meng, Qing-Jun; Streuli, Charles H
Circadian clocks respond to environmental time cues to coordinate 24-hour oscillations in almost every tissue of the body. In the breast, circadian clocks regulate the rhythmic expression of numerous genes. Disrupted expression of circadian genes can alter breast biology and may promote cancer. Here we overview circadian mechanisms, and the connection between the molecular clock and breast biology. We describe how disruption of circadian genes contributes to cancer via multiple mechanisms, an...
Circadian Misalignment and Health
Baron, Kelly Glazer; Reid, Kathryn J.
Circadian rhythms are near 24-hour patterns of physiology and behavior that are present independent of external cues including hormones, body temperature, mood, and sleep propensity. The term "circadian misalignment" describes a variety of circumstances, such as inappropriately timed sleep and wake, misalignment of sleep/wake with feeding rhythms, or misaligned central and peripheral rhythms. The predominance of early research focused on misalignment of sleep to the biological night. However,...
Circadian rhythm sleep disorders
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Morgenthaler TI
Full Text Available Bhanu P Kolla,1,2 R Robert Auger,1,2 Timothy I Morgenthaler11Mayo Center for Sleep Medicine, 2Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Rochester, MN, USAAbstract: Misalignment between endogenous circadian rhythms and the light/dark cycle can result in pathological disturbances in the form of erratic sleep timing (irregular sleep–wake rhythm, complete dissociation from the light/dark cycle (circadian rhythm sleep disorder, free-running type, delayed sleep timing (delayed sleep phase disorder, or advanced sleep timing (advanced sleep phase disorder. Whereas these four conditions are thought to involve predominantly intrinsic mechanisms, circadian dysrhythmias can also be induced by exogenous challenges, such as those imposed by extreme work schedules or rapid transmeridian travel, which overwhelm the ability of the master clock to entrain with commensurate rapidity, and in turn impair approximation to a desired sleep schedule, as evidenced by the shift work and jet lag sleep disorders. This review will focus on etiological underpinnings, clinical assessments, and evidence-based treatment options for circadian rhythm sleep disorders. Topics are subcategorized when applicable, and if sufficient data exist. The length of text associated with each disorder reflects the abundance of associated literature, complexity of management, overlap of methods for assessment and treatment, and the expected prevalence of each condition within general medical practice.Keywords: circadian rhythm sleep disorders, assessment, treatment
Immunity's fourth dimension: approaching the circadian-immune connection
Arjona, Alvaro; Adam C Silver; Walker, Wendy E; Fikrig, Erol
The circadian system ensures the generation and maintenance of self-sustained ~24 h rhythms in physiology that are linked to internal and environmental changes. In mammals, daily variations in light intensity and other cues are integrated by a hypothalamic master clock that conveys circadian information to peripheral molecular clocks that orchestrate physiology. Multiple immune parameters also vary throughout the day and disruption of circadian homeostasis is associated with immune-related di...
The circadian clock, reward and memory
Urs eAlbrecht
During our daily activities, we experience variations in our cognitive performance, which is often accompanied by cravings for small rewards, such as consuming coffee or chocolate. This indicates that the time of day, cognitive performance, and reward may be related to one another. This review will summarize data that describe the influence of the circadian clock on addiction and mood-related behavior and put the data into perspective in relation to memory processes.
Metabolic rate changes proportionally to circadian frequency in tau mutant Syrian hamsters
Oklejewicz, M; Hut, RA; Daan, S; Loudon, ASI; Stirland, AJ; Loudon, Andrew S.I.; Stirland, Anne J.
The tau mutation in Syrian hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus) is phenotypically expressed in a period of the circadian rhythm of about 20 h in homozygotes (SS) and about 22 h in heterozygotes (S+). The authors investigate whether this well-defined model for variation in circadian period exhibits associ
Disturbances in the circadian pattern of activity and sleep after laparoscopic versus open abdominal surgery
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Gögenur, Ismail; Bisgaard, Thue; Burgdorf, Stefan;
BACKGROUND: Studies on the circadian variation in bodily functions and sleep are important for understanding the pathophysiological processes in the postoperative period. We aimed to investigate changes in the circadian variation in activity after minimally invasive surgery (laparoscopic cholecys......BACKGROUND: Studies on the circadian variation in bodily functions and sleep are important for understanding the pathophysiological processes in the postoperative period. We aimed to investigate changes in the circadian variation in activity after minimally invasive surgery (laparoscopic...... scale (sleep quality, general well-being and pain) and fatigue was measured by a ten-point fatigue scale. The activity levels of the patients were monitored by actigraphy (a wrist-worn device measuring patient activity). Measures of circadian activity level [interday stability (IS), intraday variability...... to the circadian activity parameters (IS, IV and AMP). CONCLUSION: Severely disturbed circadian activity parameters was found after both LC and MAS with worse changes after MAS. Measures of circadian activity pattern analyses correlated significantly with postoperative subjective recovery parameters....
Circadian rhythms in cognitive performance: implications for neuropsychological assessment
Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)
Valdez P
Full Text Available Pablo Valdez, Candelaria Ramírez, Aída GarcíaLaboratory of Psychophysiology, School of Psychology, University of Nuevo León, Monterrey, Nuevo León, MéxicoAbstract: Circadian variations have been found in human performance, including the efficiency to execute many tasks, such as sensory, motor, reaction time, time estimation, memory, verbal, arithmetic calculations, and simulated driving tasks. Performance increases during the day and decreases during the night. Circadian rhythms have been found in three basic neuropsychological processes (attention, working memory, and executive functions, which may explain oscillations in the performance of many tasks. The time course of circadian rhythms in cognitive performance may be modified significantly in patients with brain disorders, due to chronotype, age, alterations of the circadian rhythm, sleep deprivation, type of disorder, and medication. This review analyzes the recent results on circadian rhythms in cognitive performance, as well as the implications of these rhythms for the neuropsychological assessment of patients with brain disorders such as traumatic head injury, stroke, dementia, developmental disorders, and psychiatric disorders.Keywords: human circadian rhythms, cognitive performance, neuropsychological assessment, attention, working memory, executive functions
Chromatin Dynamics of Circadian Transcription
Aguilar-Arnal, Lorena; Sassone-Corsi, Paolo
The molecular circadian clock orchestrates the daily cyclical expression of thousands of genes. Disruption of this transcriptional program leads to a variety of pathologies, including insomnia, depression and metabolic disorders. Circadian rhythms in gene expression rely on specific chromatin transitions which are ultimately coordinated by the molecular clock. As a consequence, a highly plastic and dynamic circadian epigenome can be delineated across different tissues and cell types. Intrigui...
Monk, Timothy H.
Three interacting processes are involved in the preservation of circadian rhythms: (1) endogenous rhythm generation mechanisms, (2) entrainment mechanisms to keep these rhythms 'on track', and (3) exogenous masking processes stemming from changes in environment and bahavior. These processes, particularly the latter two, can be dramatically affected in individuals of advanced age and in space travelers, with a consequent disruption in sleep and daytime functioning. This paper presents results of a phase-shift experiment investigating the age-related effects of the exogeneous component of circadian rhythms in various physiological and psychological functions by comparing these functions in middle aged and old subjects. Dramatic differences were found between the two age groups in measures of sleep, mood, activation, and performance efficiency.
Circadian rhythms of fetal liver transcription persist in the absence of canonical circadian clock gene expression rhythms in vivo.
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Chengwei Li
Full Text Available The cellular circadian clock and systemic cues drive rhythmicity in the transcriptome of adult peripheral tissues. However, the oscillating status of the circadian clocks in fetal tissues, and their response to maternal cues, are less clear. Most clock genes do not cycle in fetal livers from mice and rats, although tissue level rhythms rapidly emerge when fetal mouse liver explants are cultured in vitro. Thus, in the fetal mouse liver, the circadian clock does not oscillate at the cellular level (but is induced to oscillate in culture. To gain a comprehensive overview of the clock status in the fetal liver during late gestation, we performed microarray analyses on fetal liver tissues. In the fetal liver we did not observe circadian rhythms of clock gene expression or many other transcripts known to be rhythmically expressed in the adult liver. Nevertheless, JTK_CYCLE analysis identified some transcripts in the fetal liver that were rhythmically expressed, albeit at low amplitudes. Upon data filtering by coefficient of variation, the expression levels for transcripts related to pancreatic exocrine enzymes and zymogen secretion were found to undergo synchronized daily fluctuations at high amplitudes. These results suggest that maternal cues influence the fetal liver, despite the fact that we did not detect circadian rhythms of canonical clock gene expression in the fetal liver. These results raise important questions on the role of the circadian clock, or lack thereof, during ontogeny.
Domestication selected for deceleration of the circadian clock in cultivated tomato.
Müller, Niels A; Wijnen, Cris L; Srinivasan, Arunkumar; Ryngajllo, Malgorzata; Ofner, Itai; Lin, Tao; Ranjan, Aashish; West, Donnelly; Maloof, Julin N; Sinha, Neelima R; Huang, Sanwen; Zamir, Dani; Jiménez-Gómez, José M
The circadian clock is a critical regulator of plant physiology and development, controlling key agricultural traits in crop plants. In addition, natural variation in circadian rhythms is important for local adaptation. However, quantitative modulation of circadian rhythms due to artificial selection has not yet been reported. Here we show that the circadian clock of cultivated tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) has slowed during domestication. Allelic variation of the tomato homolog of the Arabidopsis gene EID1 is responsible for a phase delay. Notably, the genomic region harboring EID1 shows signatures of a selective sweep. We find that the EID1 allele in cultivated tomatoes enhances plant performance specifically under long day photoperiods, suggesting that humans selected slower circadian rhythms to adapt the cultivated species to the long summer days it encountered as it was moved away from the equator.
Circadian rhythms in microalgae production
Winter, de L.
Abstract Thesis: Circadian rhythms in microalgae production Lenneke de Winter The sun imposes a daily cycle of light and dark on nearly all organisms. The circadian clock evolved to help organisms program their activities at an appropriate time during this daily cycle. For example,
Circadian systems biology in Metazoa.
Lin, Li-Ling; Huang, Hsuan-Cheng; Juan, Hsueh-Fen
Systems biology, which can be defined as integrative biology, comprises multistage processes that can be used to understand components of complex biological systems of living organisms and provides hierarchical information to decoding life. Using systems biology approaches such as genomics, transcriptomics and proteomics, it is now possible to delineate more complicated interactions between circadian control systems and diseases. The circadian rhythm is a multiscale phenomenon existing within the body that influences numerous physiological activities such as changes in gene expression, protein turnover, metabolism and human behavior. In this review, we describe the relationships between the circadian control system and its related genes or proteins, and circadian rhythm disorders in systems biology studies. To maintain and modulate circadian oscillation, cells possess elaborative feedback loops composed of circadian core proteins that regulate the expression of other genes through their transcriptional activities. The disruption of these rhythms has been reported to be associated with diseases such as arrhythmia, obesity, insulin resistance, carcinogenesis and disruptions in natural oscillations in the control of cell growth. This review demonstrates that lifestyle is considered as a fundamental factor that modifies circadian rhythm, and the development of dysfunctions and diseases could be regulated by an underlying expression network with multiple circadian-associated signals.
Circadian Pacemaker – Temperature Compensation
Gerkema, Menno P.; Binder, Marc D.; Hirokawa, Nobutaka; Windhorst, Uwe
One of the defining characteristics of circadian pacemakers and indicates the independence of the speed of circadian clock processes of environmental temperature. Mechanisms involved, so far not elucidated in full detail, entail at least two processes that are similarly affected by temperature chang
Circadian polymorphisms associated with affective disorders
Kripke, Daniel F; Nievergelt, Caroline M; Joo, EJ; Shekhtman, Tatyana; Kelsoe, John R.
Background: Clinical symptoms of affective disorders, their response to light treatment, and sensitivity to other circadian interventions indicate that the circadian system has a role in mood disorders. Possibly the mechanisms involve circadian seasonal and photoperiodic mechanisms. Since genetic susceptibilities contribute a strong component to affective disorders, we explored whether circadian gene polymorphisms were associated with affective disorders in four complementary studies.Methods:...
Circadian clocks, epigenetics, and cancer
Masri, Selma
The interplay between circadian rhythm and cancer has been suggested for more than a decade based on the observations that shift work and cancer incidence are linked. Accumulating evidence implicates the circadian clock in cancer survival and proliferation pathways. At the molecular level, multiple control mechanisms have been proposed to link circadian transcription and cell-cycle control to tumorigenesis.The circadian gating of the cell cycle and subsequent control of cell proliferation is an area of active investigation. Moreover, the circadian clock is a transcriptional system that is intricately regulated at the epigenetic level. Interestingly, the epigenetic landscape at the level of histone modifications, DNA methylation, and small regulatory RNAs are differentially controlled in cancer cells. This concept raises the possibility that epigenetic control is a common thread linking the clock with cancer, though little scientific evidence is known to date.This review focuses on the link between circadian clock and cancer, and speculates on the possible connections at the epigenetic level that could further link the circadian clock to tumor initiation or progression.
Circadian variation in the pharmacokinetics of verapamil
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Jespersen, C M; Frederiksen, M; Hansen, J F;
greater bioavailability (AUC) and a prolonged time to peak concentration was found. During the night (24.00 h-06.00 h) the half-life of verapamil was significantly longer than during the day (16.00 h-22.00 h). These differences in pharmacokinetics may be due to reduced hepatic blood flow at night...
Endocrine Effects of Circadian Disruption.
Bedrosian, Tracy A; Fonken, Laura K; Nelson, Randy J
Disruption of circadian rhythms, provoked by artificial lighting at night, inconsistent sleep-wake schedules, and transmeridian air travel, is increasingly prevalent in modern society. Desynchrony of biological rhythms from environmental light cycles has dramatic consequences for human health. In particular, disrupting homeostatic oscillations in endocrine tissues and the hormones that these tissues regulate can have cascading effects on physiology and behavior. Accumulating evidence suggests that chronic disruption of circadian organization of endocrine function may lead to metabolic, reproductive, sleep, and mood disorders. This review discusses circadian control of endocrine systems and the consequences of distorting rhythmicity of these systems. PMID:26208951
Circadian Rhythm Management System Project
National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The value of measuring sleep-wake cycles is significantly enhanced by measuring other physiological signals that depend on circadian rhythms (such as heart rate and...
Circadian Control of Global Transcription
Li, Shujing; Zhang, Luoying
Circadian rhythms exist in most if not all organisms on the Earth and manifest in various aspects of physiology and behavior. These rhythmic processes are believed to be driven by endogenous molecular clocks that regulate rhythmic expression of clock-controlled genes (CCGs). CCGs consist of a significant portion of the genome and are involved in diverse biological pathways. The transcription of CCGs is tuned by rhythmic actions of transcription factors and circadian alterations in chromatin. Here, we review the circadian control of CCG transcription in five model organisms that are widely used, including cyanobacterium, fungus, plant, fruit fly, and mouse. Comparing the similarity and differences in the five organisms could help us better understand the function of the circadian clock, as well as its output mechanisms adapted to meet the demands of diverse environmental conditions. PMID:26682214
Circadian Control of Global Transcription
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Shujing Li
Full Text Available Circadian rhythms exist in most if not all organisms on the Earth and manifest in various aspects of physiology and behavior. These rhythmic processes are believed to be driven by endogenous molecular clocks that regulate rhythmic expression of clock-controlled genes (CCGs. CCGs consist of a significant portion of the genome and are involved in diverse biological pathways. The transcription of CCGs is tuned by rhythmic actions of transcription factors and circadian alterations in chromatin. Here, we review the circadian control of CCG transcription in five model organisms that are widely used, including cyanobacterium, fungus, plant, fruit fly, and mouse. Comparing the similarity and differences in the five organisms could help us better understand the function of the circadian clock, as well as its output mechanisms adapted to meet the demands of diverse environmental conditions.
Endocrine regulation of circadian physiology.
Tsang, Anthony H; Astiz, Mariana; Friedrichs, Maureen; Oster, Henrik
Endogenous circadian clocks regulate 24-h rhythms of behavior and physiology to align with external time. The endocrine system serves as a major clock output to regulate various biological processes. Recent findings suggest that some of the rhythmic hormones can also provide feedback to the circadian system at various levels, thus contributing to maintaining the robustness of endogenous rhythmicity. This delicate balance of clock-hormone interaction is vulnerable to modern lifestyle factors such as shiftwork or high-calorie diets, altering physiological set points. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge on the communication between the circadian timing and endocrine systems, with a focus on adrenal glucocorticoids and metabolic peptide hormones. We explore the potential role of hormones as systemic feedback signals to adjust clock function and their relevance for the maintenance of physiological and metabolic circadian homeostasis. PMID:27106109
The circadian clock in mammals
Zordan, Mauro; Kyriacou, Charalambos P
The basic physiological and anatomical basis for circadian rhythms in mammalian behaviour and physiology is introduced. The pathways involved in photic entrainment of the circadian clock are discussed in relation of new findings that identify the molecules that are involved in signalling between the environment and the clock. The molecular basis of endogenous cycles is described in the mouse, and compared to the mechanism that is present in the fly. Finally we speculate on the relationship be...
The circadian clock in mammals
Zordan, M. A.; Kyriacou, C P
The basic physiological and anatomical basis for circadian rhythms in mammalian behaviour and physiology is introduced. The pathways involved in photic entrainment of the circadian clock are discussed in relation of new findings that identify the molecules that are involved in signalling between the environment and the clock. The molecular basis of endogenous cycles is described in the mouse, and compared to the mechanism that is present in the fly. Finally we speculate on the relationship be...
Drugs of Abuse Can Entrain Circadian Rhythms
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Ann E. K. Kosobud
Full Text Available Circadian rhythms prepare organisms for predictable events during the Earth's 24-h day. These rhythms are entrained by a variety of stimuli. Light is the most ubiquitous and best known zeitgeber, but a number of others have been identified, including food, social cues, locomotor activity, and, most recently drugs of abuse. Given the diversity of zeitgebers, it is probably not surprising that genes capable of clock functions are located throughout almost all organs and tissues. Recent evidence suggests that drugs of abuse can directly entrain some circadian rhythms. We have report here that entrainment by drugs of abuse is independent of the suprachiasmatic nucleus and the light/dark cycle, is not dependent on direct locomotor stimulation, and is shared by a variety of classes of drugs of abuse. We suggest that drug-entrained rhythms reflect variations in underlying neurophysiological states. This could be the basis for known daily variations in drug metabolism, tolerance, and sensitivity to drug reward. These rhythms could also take the form of daily periods of increased motivation to seek and take drugs, and thus contribute to abuse, addiction and relapse.
Circadian rhythms and period expression in the Hawaiian cricket genus Laupala.
Fergus, Daniel J; Shaw, Kerry L
Daily activity times and circadian rhythms of crickets have been a subject of behavioral and physiological study for decades. However, recent studies suggest that the underlying molecular mechanism of cricket endogenous clocks differ from the model of circadian rhythm generation in Drosophila. Here we examine the circadian free-running periods of walking and singing in two Hawaiian swordtail cricket species, Laupala cerasina and Laupala paranigra, that differ in the daily timing of mating related activities. Additionally, we examine variation in sequence and daily cycling of the period (per) gene transcript between these species. The species differed significantly in free-running period of singing, but did not differ significantly in the free-running period of locomotion. Like in Drosophila, per transcript abundance showed cycling consistent with a role in circadian rhythm generation. The amino acid differences identified between these species suggest a potential of the per gene in interspecific behavioral variation in Laupala.
Circadian molecular clocks and cancer.
Kelleher, Fergal C; Rao, Aparna; Maguire, Anne
Physiological processes such as the sleep-wake cycle, metabolism and hormone secretion are controlled by a circadian rhythm adapted to 24h day-night periodicity. This circadian synchronisation is in part controlled by ambient light decreasing melatonin secretion by the pineal gland and co-ordinated by the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the hypothalamus. Peripheral cell autonomous circadian clocks controlled by the suprachiasmatic nucleus, the master regulator, exist within every cell of the body and are comprised of at least twelve genes. These include the basic helix-loop-helix/PAS domain containing transcription factors; Clock, BMal1 and Npas2 which activate transcription of the periodic genes (Per1 and Per2) and cryptochrome genes (Cry1 and Cry2). Points of coupling exist between the cellular clock and the cell cycle. Cell cycle genes which are affected by the molecular circadian clock include c-Myc, Wee1, cyclin D and p21. Therefore the rhythm of the circadian clock and cancer are interlinked. Molecular examples exist including activation of Per2 leads to c-myc overexpression and an increased tumor incidence. Mice with mutations in Cryptochrome 1 and 2 are arrhythmic (lack a circadian rhythm) and arrhythmic mice have a faster rate of growth of implanted tumors. Epidemiological finding of relevance include 'The Nurses' Health Study' where it was established that women working rotational night shifts have an increased incidence of breast cancer. Compounds that affect circadian rhythm exist with attendant future therapeutic possibilities. These include casein kinase I inhibitors and a candidate small molecule KL001 that affects the degradation of cryptochrome. Theoretically the cell cycle and malignant disease may be targeted vicariously by selective alteration of the cellular molecular clock. PMID:24099911
Nutrition and the circadian system.
Potter, Gregory D M; Cade, Janet E; Grant, Peter J; Hardie, Laura J
The human circadian system anticipates and adapts to daily environmental changes to optimise behaviour according to time of day and temporally partitions incompatible physiological processes. At the helm of this system is a master clock in the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN) of the anterior hypothalamus. The SCN are primarily synchronised to the 24-h day by the light/dark cycle; however, feeding/fasting cycles are the primary time cues for clocks in peripheral tissues. Aligning feeding/fasting cycles with clock-regulated metabolic changes optimises metabolism, and studies of other animals suggest that feeding at inappropriate times disrupts circadian system organisation, and thereby contributes to adverse metabolic consequences and chronic disease development. 'High-fat diets' (HFD) produce particularly deleterious effects on circadian system organisation in rodents by blunting feeding/fasting cycles. Time-of-day-restricted feeding, where food availability is restricted to a period of several hours, offsets many adverse consequences of HFD in these animals; however, further evidence is required to assess whether the same is true in humans. Several nutritional compounds have robust effects on the circadian system. Caffeine, for example, can speed synchronisation to new time zones after jetlag. An appreciation of the circadian system has many implications for nutritional science and may ultimately help reduce the burden of chronic diseases. PMID:27221157
Circadian systems : different levels of complexity
Roenneberg, Till; Merrow, Martha
After approximately 50 years of circadian research, especially in selected circadian model systems (Drosophila, Neurospora, Gonyaulax and, more recently, cyanobacteria and mammals), we appreciate the enormous complexity of the circadian programme in organisms and cells, as well as in physiological a
Individual differences in circadian waveform of Siberian hamsters under multiple lighting conditions.
Evans, Jennifer A; Elliott, Jeffrey A; Gorman, Michael R
Because the circadian clock in the mammalian brain derives from a network of interacting cellular oscillators, characterizing the nature and bases of circadian coupling is fundamental to understanding how the pacemaker operates. Various phenomena involving plasticity in circadian waveform have been theorized to reflect changes in oscillator coupling; however, it remains unclear whether these different behavioral paradigms reference a unitary underlying process. To test whether disparate coupling assays index a common mechanism, we examined whether there is covariation among behavioral responses to various lighting conditions that produce changes in circadian waveform. Siberian hamsters, Phodopus sungorus, were transferred from long to short photoperiods to distinguish short photoperiod responders (SP-R) from nonresponders (SP-NR). Short photoperiod chronotyped hamsters were subsequently transferred, along with unselected controls, to 24-h light:dark:light: dark cycles (LDLD) with dim nighttime illumination, a procedure that induces bifurcated entrainment. Under LDLD, SP-R hamsters were more likely to bifurcate their rhythms than were SP-NR hamsters or unselected controls. After transfer from LDLD to constant dim light, SP-R hamsters were also more likely to become arrhythmic compared to SP-NR hamsters and unselected controls. In contrast, short photoperiod chronotype did not influence more transient changes in circadian waveform. The present data reveal a clear relationship in the plasticity of circadian waveform across 3 distinct lighting conditions, suggesting a common mechanism wherein individual differences reflect variation in circadian coupling.
Circadian pacemaker in the suprachiasmatic nuclei of teleost fish revealed by rhythmic period2 expression.
Watanabe, Nanako; Itoh, Kae; Mogi, Makoto; Fujinami, Yuichiro; Shimizu, Daisuke; Hashimoto, Hiroshi; Uji, Susumu; Yokoi, Hayato; Suzuki, Tohru
In mammals, the role of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) as the primary circadian clock that coordinates the biological rhythms of peripheral oscillators is well known. However, in teleosts, it remains unclear whether the SCN also functions as a circadian pacemaker. We used in situ hybridization (ISH) techniques to demonstrate that the molecular clock gene, per2, is expressed in the SCN of flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus) larvae during the day and down-regulated at night, demonstrating that a circadian pacemaker exists in the SCN of this teleost. The finding that per2 expression in the SCN was also observed in the amberjack (Seriola dumerili), but not in medaka (Oryzias latipes), implies that interspecific variation exists in the extent to which the SCN controls the circadian rhythms of fish species, presumably reflecting their lifestyle. Rhythmic per2 expression was also detected in the pineal gland and pituitary, and aperiodic per2 expression was observed in the habenula, which is known to exhibit circadian rhythms in rodents. Since the ontogeny of per2 expression in the brain of early flounder larvae can be monitored by whole mount ISH, it is possible to investigate the effects of drugs and environmental conditions on the functional development of circadian clocks in the brain of fish larvae. In addition, flounder would be a good model for understanding the rhythmicity of marine fish. Our findings open a new frontier for investigating the role of the SCN in teleost circadian rhythms. PMID:22732079
Circadian rhythms in cognitive performance: implications for neuropsychological assessment
Valdez, Pablo
Pablo Valdez, Candelaria Ramírez, Aída GarcíaLaboratory of Psychophysiology, School of Psychology, University of Nuevo León, Monterrey, Nuevo León, MéxicoAbstract: Circadian variations have been found in human performance, including the efficiency to execute many tasks, such as sensory, motor, reaction time, time estimation, memory, verbal, arithmetic calculations, and simulated driving tasks. Performance increases during the d...
Circadian regulation of bioluminescence in Gonyaulax involves translational control.
Morse, D.; Milos, P M; Roux, E.; Hastings, J. W.
A 10-fold circadian variation in the amount of luciferin binding protein (LBP) in the marine dinoflagellate Gonyaulax polyedra is reported. This protein binds and stabilizes luciferin, the bioluminescence substrate. In early night phase, when bioluminescence is increasing and LBP levels are rising in the cell, pulse labeling experiments show that LBP is being rapidly synthesized in vivo. At other times, the rate of LBP synthesis is at least 50 times lower, while the rate of synthesis of most ...
Circadian Rhythms, the Mesolimbic Dopaminergic Circuit, and Drug Addiction
McClung, Colleen A.
Drug addiction is a devastating disease that affects millions of individuals worldwide. Through better understanding of the genetic variations that create a vulnerability for addiction and the molecular mechanisms that underlie the progression of addiction, better treatment options can be created for those that suffer from this condition. Recent studies point to a link between abnormal or disrupted circadian rhythms and the development of addiction. In addition, studies suggest a role for spe...
Entrainment of the mammalian cell cycle by the circadian clock: modeling two coupled cellular rhythms.
Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)
Claude Gérard
Full Text Available The cell division cycle and the circadian clock represent two major cellular rhythms. These two periodic processes are coupled in multiple ways, given that several molecular components of the cell cycle network are controlled in a circadian manner. For example, in the network of cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks that governs progression along the successive phases of the cell cycle, the synthesis of the kinase Wee1, which inhibits the G2/M transition, is enhanced by the complex CLOCK-BMAL1 that plays a central role in the circadian clock network. Another component of the latter network, REV-ERBα, inhibits the synthesis of the Cdk inhibitor p21. Moreover, the synthesis of the oncogene c-Myc, which promotes G1 cyclin synthesis, is repressed by CLOCK-BMAL1. Using detailed computational models for the two networks we investigate the conditions in which the mammalian cell cycle can be entrained by the circadian clock. We show that the cell cycle can be brought to oscillate at a period of 24 h or 48 h when its autonomous period prior to coupling is in an appropriate range. The model indicates that the combination of multiple modes of coupling does not necessarily facilitate entrainment of the cell cycle by the circadian clock. Entrainment can also occur as a result of circadian variations in the level of a growth factor controlling entry into G1. Outside the range of entrainment, the coupling to the circadian clock may lead to disconnected oscillations in the cell cycle and the circadian system, or to complex oscillatory dynamics of the cell cycle in the form of endoreplication, complex periodic oscillations or chaos. The model predicts that the transition from entrainment to 24 h or 48 h might occur when the strength of coupling to the circadian clock or the level of growth factor decrease below critical values.
Reduced anxiety and depression-like behaviours in the circadian period mutant mouse afterhours.
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Robert Keers
Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Disruption of the circadian rhythm is a key feature of bipolar disorder. Variation in genes encoding components of the molecular circadian clock has been associated with increased risk of the disorder in clinical populations. Similarly in animal models, disruption of the circadian clock can result in altered mood and anxiety which resemble features of human mania; including hyperactivity, reduced anxiety and reduced depression-like behaviour. One such mutant, after hours (Afh, an ENU-derived mutant with a mutation in a recently identified circadian clock gene Fbxl3, results in a disturbed (long circadian rhythm of approximately 27 hours. METHODOLOGY: Anxiety, exploratory and depression-like behaviours were evaluated in Afh mice using the open-field, elevated plus maze, light-dark box, holeboard and forced swim test. To further validate findings for human mania, polymorphisms in the human homologue of FBXL3, genotyped by three genome wide case control studies, were tested for association with bipolar disorder. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Afh mice showed reduced anxiety- and depression-like behaviour in all of the behavioural tests employed, and some evidence of increased locomotor activity in some tests. An analysis of three separate human data sets revealed a gene wide association between variation in FBXL3 and bipolar disorder (P = 0.009. CONCLUSIONS: Our results are consistent with previous studies of mutants with extended circadian periods and suggest that disruption of FBXL3 is associated with mania-like behaviours in both mice and humans.
Circadian influences on myocardial infarction.
Virag, Jitka A I; Lust, Robert M
Components of circadian rhythm maintenance, or "clock genes," are endogenous entrainable oscillations of about 24 h that regulate biological processes and are found in the suprachaismatic nucleus (SCN) and many peripheral tissues, including the heart. They are influenced by external cues, or Zeitgebers, such as light and heat, and can influence such diverse phenomena as cytokine expression immune cells, metabolic activity of cardiac myocytes, and vasodilator regulation by vascular endothelial cells. While it is known that the central master clock in the SCN synchronizes peripheral physiologic rhythms, the mechanisms by which the information is transmitted are complex and may include hormonal, metabolic, and neuronal inputs. Whether circadian patterns are causally related to the observed periodicity of events, or whether they are simply epi-phenomena is not well established, but a few studies suggest that the circadian effects likely are real in their impact on myocardial infarct incidence. Cycle disturbances may be harbingers of predisposition and subsequent response to acute and chronic cardiac injury, and identifying the complex interactions of circadian rhythms and myocardial infarction may provide insights into possible preventative and therapeutic strategies for susceptible populations. PMID:25400588
Development of a circadian light source
Nicol, David B.; Ferguson, Ian T.
Solid state lighting presents a new paradigm for lighting - controllability. Certain characteristics of the lighting environment can be manipulated, because of the possibility of using multiple LEDs of different emission wavelengths as the illumination source. This will provide a new, versatile, general illumination source due to the ability to vary the spectral power distribution. New effects beyond the visual may be achieved that are not possible with conventional light sources. Illumination has long been the primary function of lighting but as the lighting industry has matured the psychological aspects of lighting have been considered by designers; for example, choosing a particular lighting distribution or color variation in retail applications. The next step in the evolution of light is to consider the physiological effects of lighting that cause biological changes in a person within the environment. This work presents the development of a source that may have important bearing on this area of lighting. A circadian light source has been developed to provide an illumination source that works by modulating its correlated color temperature to mimic the changes in natural daylight through the day. In addition, this source can cause or control physiological effects for a person illuminated by it. The importance of this is seen in the human circadian rhythm's peak response corresponding to blue light at ~460 nm which corresponds to the primary spectral difference in increasing color temperature. The device works by adding blue light to a broadband source or mixing polychromatic light to mimic the variation of color temperature observed for the Planckian Locus on the CIE diagram. This device can have several applications including: a tool for researchers in this area, a general illumination lighting technology, and a light therapy device.
Circadian Transcription from Beta Cell Function to Diabetes Pathophysiology.
Perelis, Mark; Ramsey, Kathryn Moynihan; Marcheva, Biliana; Bass, Joseph
The mammalian circadian clock plays a central role in the temporal coordination of physiology across the 24-h light-dark cycle. A major function of the clock is to maintain energy constancy in anticipation of alternating periods of fasting and feeding that correspond with sleep and wakefulness. While it has long been recognized that humans exhibit robust variation in glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity across the sleep-wake cycle, experimental genetic analysis has now revealed that the clock transcription cycle plays an essential role in insulin secretion and metabolic function within pancreatic beta cells. This review addresses how studies of the beta cell clock may elucidate the etiology of subtypes of diabetes associated with circadian and sleep cycle disruption, in addition to more general forms of the disease. PMID:27440914
Circadian clocks optimally adapt to sunlight for reliable synchronization
Hasegawa, Yoshihiko
Circadian oscillation provides selection advantages through synchronization to the daylight cycle. However, a reliable clock must be designed through two conflicting properties: entrainability to properly respond to external stimuli such as sunlight, and regularity to oscillate with a precise period. These two aspects do not easily coexist because better entrainability favors higher sensitivity, which may sacrifice the regularity. To investigate conditions for satisfying the two properties, we analytically calculated the optimal phase-response curve with a variational method. Our result indicates an existence of a dead zone, i.e., a time during which external stimuli neither advance nor delay the clock. This result is independent of model details and a dead zone appears only when the input stimuli obey the time course of actual insolation. Our calculation demonstrates that every circadian clock with a dead zone is optimally adapted to the daylight cycle. Our result also explains the lack of a dead zone in osc...
Gravitational biology and the mammalian circadian timing system.
Fuller, C A; Murakami, D M; Sulzman, F M
Mammals have evolved under the influence of many selective pressures. Two of these pressures have been the static force of gravity and the daily variations in the environment due to the rotation of the earth. It is now clear that each of these pressures has led to specific adaptations which influence how organisms respond to changes in either gravity or daily time cues. However, several unpredicted responses to altered gravitational environments occur within the homeostatic and circadian control systems. These results may be particularly relevant to biological and medical issues related to spaceflight. This paper demonstrates that the homeostatic regulation of rat body temperature, heart rate, and activity become depressed following exposure to a 2 G hyperdynamic field, and recovers within 5-6 days. In addition, the circadian rhythms of these same variables exhibit a depression of rhythm amplitude; however, recovery required a minimum of 7 days. PMID:11537343
Effect of melatonin on endogenous circadian rhythm
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)
XU Feng; WANG Min; ZANG Ling-he
Objective To further authenticate the role of melatonin on endogenous biologic clock system. Methods Pinealectomized mice were used in the experiments, a series of circadian rhythm of physiology index, such as glucocorticoid, amino acid neurotransmitter, immune function, sensitivity of algesia and body temperature were measured. Results Effects of melatonin on endogenous circadian rhythm roughly appeared four forms: 1) The model of inherent rhythm was invariant, but midvalue was removed. 2) Pacing function: pinealectomy and melatonin administration changed amplitude of the circadian vibration of aspartate, peripheral blood WBC and serum hemolysin. 3) Phase of rhythm changed, such as the effects on percentage of lymphocyte and sensitivity of algesia. 4) No effect, the circadian rhythm of body temperature belong to this form Conclusions Melatonin has effects some circadian rhythm, and it can adjust endogenous inherent rhythm and make the rhythm keep step with environmental cycle. Melatonin may be a kind of Zeitgeber, Pineal gland might being a rhythm bearing organ to some circadian rhythm.
Peripheral Skin Temperature and Circadian Biological Clock in Shift Nurses after a Day off.
Bracci, Massimo; Ciarapica, Veronica; Copertaro, Alfredo; Barbaresi, Mariella; Manzella, Nicola; Tomasetti, Marco; Gaetani, Simona; Monaco, Federica; Amati, Monica; Valentino, Matteo; Rapisarda, Venerando; Santarelli, Lory
The circadian biological clock is essentially based on the light/dark cycle. Some people working with shift schedules cannot adjust their sleep/wake cycle to the light/dark cycle, and this may result in alterations of the circadian biological clock. This study explored the circadian biological clock of shift and daytime nurses using non-invasive methods. Peripheral skin temperature, cortisol and melatonin levels in saliva, and Per2 expression in pubic hair follicle cells were investigated for 24 h after a day off. Significant differences were observed in peripheral skin temperature and cortisol levels between shift and daytime nurses. No differences in melatonin levels were obtained. Per2 maximum values were significantly different between the two groups. Shift nurses exhibited lower circadian variations compared to daytime nurses, and this may indicate an adjustment of the circadian biological clock to continuous shift schedules. Non-invasive procedures, such as peripheral skin temperature measurement, determination of cortisol and melatonin in saliva, and analysis of clock genes in hair follicle cells, may be effective approaches to extensively study the circadian clock in shift workers. PMID:27128899
Peripheral Skin Temperature and Circadian Biological Clock in Shift Nurses after a Day off
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Massimo Bracci
Full Text Available The circadian biological clock is essentially based on the light/dark cycle. Some people working with shift schedules cannot adjust their sleep/wake cycle to the light/dark cycle, and this may result in alterations of the circadian biological clock. This study explored the circadian biological clock of shift and daytime nurses using non-invasive methods. Peripheral skin temperature, cortisol and melatonin levels in saliva, and Per2 expression in pubic hair follicle cells were investigated for 24 h after a day off. Significant differences were observed in peripheral skin temperature and cortisol levels between shift and daytime nurses. No differences in melatonin levels were obtained. Per2 maximum values were significantly different between the two groups. Shift nurses exhibited lower circadian variations compared to daytime nurses, and this may indicate an adjustment of the circadian biological clock to continuous shift schedules. Non-invasive procedures, such as peripheral skin temperature measurement, determination of cortisol and melatonin in saliva, and analysis of clock genes in hair follicle cells, may be effective approaches to extensively study the circadian clock in shift workers.
Circadian modulation of gene expression, but not glutamate uptake, in mouse and rat cortical astrocytes.
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Christian Beaulé
Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Circadian clocks control daily rhythms including sleep-wake, hormone secretion, and metabolism. These clocks are based on intracellular transcription-translation feedback loops that sustain daily oscillations of gene expression in many cell types. Mammalian astrocytes display circadian rhythms in the expression of the clock genes Period1 (Per1 and Period2 (Per2. However, a functional role for circadian oscillations in astrocytes is unknown. Because uptake of extrasynaptic glutamate depends on the presence of Per2 in astrocytes, we asked whether glutamate uptake by glia is circadian. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We measured glutamate uptake, transcript and protein levels of the astrocyte-specific glutamate transporter, Glast, and the expression of Per1 and Per2 from cultured cortical astrocytes and from explants of somatosensory cortex. We found that glutamate uptake and Glast mRNA and protein expression were significantly reduced in Clock/Clock, Per2- or NPAS2-deficient glia. Uptake was augmented when the medium was supplemented with dibutyryl-cAMP or B27. Critically, glutamate uptake was not circadian in cortical astrocytes cultured from rats or mice or in cortical slices from mice. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: We conclude that glutamate uptake levels are modulated by CLOCK, PER2, NPAS2, and the composition of the culture medium, and that uptake does not show circadian variations.
Metabolic consequences of sleep and circadian disorders
Depner, Christopher M.; Stothard, Ellen R.; Wright, Kenneth P.
Sleep and circadian rhythms modulate or control daily physiological patterns with importance for normal metabolic health. Sleep deficiencies associated with insufficient sleep schedules, insomnia with short-sleep duration, sleep apnea, narcolepsy, circadian misalignment, shift work, night eating syndrome and sleep-related eating disorder may all contribute to metabolic dysregulation. Sleep deficiencies and circadian disruption associated with metabolic dysregulation may contribute to weight g...
The circadian system is a target and modulator of prenatal cocaine effects.
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Eva H Shang
variation in these effects of cocaine and their attenuation by melatonin suggest a potential prophylactic or therapeutic role for circadian factors in prenatal cocaine exposure.
Circadian clocks are designed optimally
Hasegawa, Yoshihiko
Circadian rhythms are acquired through evolution to increase the chances for survival by synchronizing to the daylight cycle. Reliable synchronization is realized through two trade-off properties: regularity to keep time precisely, and entrainability to synchronize the internal time with daylight. Since both properties have been tuned through natural selection, their adaptation can be formalized in the framework of mathematical optimization. By using a succinct model, we found that simultaneous optimization of regularity and entrainability entails inherent features of the circadian mechanism irrespective of model details. At the behavioral level we discovered the existence of a dead zone, a time during which light pulses neither advance nor delay the clock. At the molecular level we demonstrate the role-sharing of two light inputs, phase advance and delay, as is well observed in mammals. We also reproduce the results of phase-controlling experiments and predict molecular elements responsible for the clockwork...
The Drosophila melanogaster circadian pacemaker circuit
Indian Academy of Sciences (India)
Vasu Sheeba
As an experimental model system, the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster has been seminal in shaping our understanding of the circadian clockwork. The wealth of genetic tools at our disposal over the past four decades has enabled discovery of the genetic and molecular bases of circadian rhythmicity. More recently, detailed investigation leading to the anatomical, neurochemical and electrophysiological characterization of the various neuronal subgroups that comprise the circadian machinery has revealed pathways through which these neurons come together to act as a neuronal circuit. Thus the D. melanogaster circadian pacemaker circuit presents a relatively simple and attractive model for the study of neuronal circuits and their functions.
Consequences of circadian dysregulation on metabolism
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Cissé YM
Full Text Available Yasmine M Cissé, Randy J Nelson Department of Neuroscience, Neuroscience Research Institute, Behavioral Neuroendocrinology Group, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, OH, USA Abstract: Most organisms display endogenously produced rhythms in physiology and behavior of ~24 hours in duration. These rhythms, termed circadian rhythms, are entrained to precisely 24 hours by the daily extrinsic light–dark cycle. Circadian rhythms are driven by a transcriptional–translational feedback loop that is hierarchically expressed throughout the brain and body; the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the hypothalamus is the master circadian oscillator at the top of the hierarchy. Precise timing of the circadian clocks is critical for many homeostatic processes, including energy regulation and metabolism. Many genes involved in metabolism display rhythmic oscillations. Because circadian rhythms are most potently synchronized with the external environment by light, exposure to light at night potentially disrupts circadian regulation. Other potential disruptors of circadian organization include night shift work, social jet lag, restricted sleep, and misaligned feeding. Each of these environmental conditions has been associated with metabolic changes and obesity. The goal of this review is to highlight how disruption of circadian organization, primarily due to night shift work and exposure to light at night, has downstream effects on metabolic function. Keywords: circadian disruption, light at night, obesity, shift work
Design principles underlying circadian clocks.
Rand, D.A.; Shulgin, B. V.; D. Salazar; Millar, A. J.
A fundamental problem for regulatory networks is to understand the relation between form and function: to uncover the underlying design principles of the network. Circadian clocks present a particularly interesting instance, as recent work has shown that they have complex structures involving multiple interconnected feedback loops with both positive and negative feedback. While several authors have speculated on the reasons for this, a convincing explanation is still lacking.We analyse both t...
Circadian influences on myocardial infarction
Virag, Jitka A. I.; Lust, Robert M.
Components of circadian rhythm maintenance, or "clock genes," are endogenous entrainable oscillations of about 24 h that regulate biological processes and are found in the suprachaismatic nucleus (SCN) and many peripheral tissues, including the heart. They are influenced by external cues, or Zeitgebers, such as light and heat, and can influence such diverse phenomena as cytokine expression immune cells, metabolic activity of cardiac myocytes, and vasodilator regulation by vascular endothelial...
Molecular Mechanisms of Circadian Regulation During Spaceflight
Zanello, S. B.; Boyle, R.
The physiology of both vertebrates and invertebrates follows internal rhythms coordinated in phase with the 24-hour daily light cycle. This circadian clock is governed by a central pacemaker, the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) in the brain. However, peripheral circadian clocks or oscillators have been identified in most tissues. How the central and peripheral oscillators are synchronized is still being elucidated. Light is the main environmental cue that entrains the circadian clock. Under the absence of a light stimulus, the clock continues its oscillation in a free-running condition. In general, three functional compartments of the circadian clock are defined. The vertebrate retina contains endogenous clocks that control many aspects of retinal physiology, including retinal sensitivity to light, neurohormone synthesis (melatonin and dopamine), rod disk shedding, signalling pathways and gene expression. Neurons with putative local circadian rhythm generation are found among all the major neuron populations in the mammalian retina. In the mouse, clock genes and function are more localized to the inner retinal and ganglion cell layers. The photoreceptor, however, secrete melatonin which may still serve a an important circadian signal. The reception and transmission of the non-visual photic stimulus resides in a small subpopulation (1-3%) or retinal ganglion cells (RGC) that express the pigment melanopsin (Opn4) and are called intrisically photoreceptive RGC (ipRGC). Melanopsin peak absorption is at 420 nm and all the axons of the ipRGC reach the SCN. A common countermeasure for circadian re-entrainment utilizes blue-green light to entrain the circadian clock and mitigate the risk of fatigue and health and performance decrement due to circadian rhythm disruption. However, an effective countermeasure targeting the photoreceptor system requires that the basic circadian molecular machinery remains intact during spaceflight. We hypothesize that spaceflight may affect ip
Variação circadiana dos leucócitos, fibrinogênio e plaquetas no sangue de cães submetidos a processo inflamatório, tratados com escina Leucocytes, fibrinogen and platelets circadian variation in dogs exposed to an inflamatory process and treated with aescin
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Maria Vargas dos Santos
Full Text Available Foram utilizados 20 cães machos, sem raça definida, divididos em dois grupos de 10 para análise da variação circadiana dos leucócitos, fibrinogênio e plaquetas. Todos os cães foram submetidos a um processo inflamatório subcutâneo induzido pela administração de Terebentina. Após 24 horas os animais do grupo 1 foram tratados com duas doses de 1,3mg/kg de escina com intervalos de 12 horas e os cães do grupo II mantidos como testemunha. Coletas de sangue foram feitas em todos os animais às 0, 4, 8, 12, 16, 20 e 24 horas do dia para determinação dos leucócitos, fibrinogênio e plaquetas. A escina determinou nos animais do grupo I monocitose às 0, 8, 12, 16 e 24 horas, linfopenia às 12, 16 e 24 horas, leucocitose às 0, 20 e 24 horas, aumento da taxa de fibrinogênio às 16 e 24 horas e uma diminuição das plaquetas durante todo o dia. Conclui-se que a escina determina variações circadiana instáveis do número de leucócitos, plaquetas e quantidade de fibrinogênio em cães com processo inflamatório.To analyse the circadian variations of the leucocyte, fibrinogen and platelet 20 mongrel male dogs were used divided into two groups of ten animals. The first group was exposed to an inflamatory process induced by the administration of turpentine and after 24 hours the animals were treated with Aesein 1.3mg/kg from 12 to 12 hours. The second group was only exposed to the inflamatory process. Blood samples were performed in all the animals at 0,4am, 8am, 12am, 4pm, 8pm and 12pm hours of the day to examine the parameters. Aescin has determined monocytose at 0,8am, 12am, 4pm and 12pm; linfopenia at 4pm and 12pm; leucocitosis at 0,8pm and 12 pm, as well as an increase in the amount of fibrinogen at 4pm and 12pm; and a decrease in the platelets during all day. Aescin determines unstable circadian variations in the number of leucocyte, platelet and in the amount of fibrinogen in dogs with inflamatory process.
A circadian clock in Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Eelderink-Chen, Zheng; Mazzotta, Gabriella; Sturre, Marcel; Bosman, Jasper; Roenneberg, Till; Merrow, Martha
Circadian timing is a fundamental biological process, underlying cellular physiology in animals, plants, fungi, and cyanobacteria. Circadian clocks organize gene expression, metabolism, and behavior such that they occur at specific times of day. The biological clocks that orchestrate these daily cha
A colorful model of the circadian clock.
Reppert, Steven M
The migration of the colorful monarch butterfly provides biologists with a unique model system with which to study the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying a sophisticated circadian clock. The monarch circadian clock is involved in the induction of the migratory state and navigation over long distances, using the sun as a compass. PMID:16439193
Circadian oscillators in the mouse brain
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Rath, Martin F; Rovsing, Louise; Møller, Morten
The circadian timekeeper of the mammalian brain resides in the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the hypothalamus (SCN), and is characterized by rhythmic expression of a set of clock genes with specific 24-h daily profiles. An increasing amount of data suggests that additional circadian oscillators resi...
Circadian regulation of human cortical excitability.
Ly, Julien Q M; Gaggioni, Giulia; Chellappa, Sarah L; Papachilleos, Soterios; Brzozowski, Alexandre; Borsu, Chloé; Rosanova, Mario; Sarasso, Simone; Middleton, Benita; Luxen, André; Archer, Simon N; Phillips, Christophe; Dijk, Derk-Jan; Maquet, Pierre; Massimini, Marcello; Vandewalle, Gilles
Prolonged wakefulness alters cortical excitability, which is essential for proper brain function and cognition. However, besides prior wakefulness, brain function and cognition are also affected by circadian rhythmicity. Whether the regulation of cognition involves a circadian impact on cortical excitability is unknown. Here, we assessed cortical excitability from scalp electroencephalography (EEG) responses to transcranial magnetic stimulation in 22 participants during 29 h of wakefulness under constant conditions. Data reveal robust circadian dynamics of cortical excitability that are strongest in those individuals with highest endocrine markers of circadian amplitude. In addition, the time course of cortical excitability correlates with changes in EEG synchronization and cognitive performance. These results demonstrate that the crucial factor for cortical excitability, and basic brain function in general, is the balance between circadian rhythmicity and sleep need, rather than sleep homoeostasis alone. These findings have implications for clinical applications such as non-invasive brain stimulation in neurorehabilitation. PMID:27339884
The circadian clock coordinates ribosome biogenesis.
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Céline Jouffe
Full Text Available Biological rhythms play a fundamental role in the physiology and behavior of most living organisms. Rhythmic circadian expression of clock-controlled genes is orchestrated by a molecular clock that relies on interconnected negative feedback loops of transcription regulators. Here we show that the circadian clock exerts its function also through the regulation of mRNA translation. Namely, the circadian clock influences the temporal translation of a subset of mRNAs involved in ribosome biogenesis by controlling the transcription of translation initiation factors as well as the clock-dependent rhythmic activation of signaling pathways involved in their regulation. Moreover, the circadian oscillator directly regulates the transcription of ribosomal protein mRNAs and ribosomal RNAs. Thus the circadian clock exerts a major role in coordinating transcription and translation steps underlying ribosome biogenesis.
Acute and phase-shifting effects of ocular and extraocular light in human circadian physiology
Ruger, M; Gordijn, MCM; Beersma, DGM; de Vries, B; Daan, S
Light can influence physiology and performance of humans in two distinct ways. It can acutely change the level of physiological and behavioral parameters, and it can induce a phase shift in the circadian oscillators underlying variations in these levels. Until recently, both effects were thought to
Stochastic models of cellular circadian rhythms in plants help to understand the impact of noise on robustness and clock structure
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Maria Luisa eGuerriero
Full Text Available Rhythmic behavior is essential for plants; for example, daily (circadian rhythms control photosynthesis and seasonal rhythms regulate their life cycle. The core of the circadian clock is a genetic network that coordinates the expression of specific clock genes in a circadian rhythm reflecting the 24-hour day/night cycle.Circadian clocks exhibit stochastic noise due to the low copy numbers of clock genes and the consequent cell-to-cell variation: this intrinsic noise plays a major role in circadian clocks by inducing more robust oscillatory behavior. Another source of noise is the environment, which causes variation in temperature and light intensity: this extrinsic noise is part of the requirement for the structural complexity of clock networks.Advances in experimental techniques now permit single-cell measurements and the development of single-cell models. Here we present some modeling studies showing the importance of considering both types of noise in understanding how plants adapt to regular and irregular light variations. Stochastic models have proven useful for understanding the effect of regular variations. By contrast, the impact of irregular variations and the interaction of different noise sources are less studied.
The circadian clock in skin: implications for adult stem cells, tissue regeneration, cancer, aging, and immunity.
Plikus, Maksim V; Van Spyk, Elyse N; Pham, Kim; Geyfman, Mikhail; Kumar, Vivek; Takahashi, Joseph S; Andersen, Bogi
Historically, work on peripheral circadian clocks has been focused on organs and tissues that have prominent metabolic functions, such as the liver, fat, and muscle. In recent years, skin has emerged as a model for studying circadian clock regulation of cell proliferation, stem cell functions, tissue regeneration, aging, and carcinogenesis. Morphologically, skin is complex, containing multiple cell types and structures, and there is evidence for a functional circadian clock in most, if not all, of its cell types. Despite the complexity, skin stem cell populations are well defined, experimentally tractable, and exhibit prominent daily cell proliferation cycles. Hair follicle stem cells also participate in recurrent, long-lasting cycles of regeneration: the hair growth cycles. Among other advantages of skin is a broad repertoire of available genetic tools enabling the creation of cell type-specific circadian mutants. Also, due to the accessibility of skin, in vivo imaging techniques can be readily applied to study the circadian clock and its outputs in real time, even at the single-cell level. Skin provides the first line of defense against many environmental and stress factors that exhibit dramatic diurnal variations such as solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation and temperature. Studies have already linked the circadian clock to the control of UVB-induced DNA damage and skin cancers. Due to the important role that skin plays in the defense against microorganisms, it also represents a promising model system to further explore the role of the clock in the regulation of the body's immune functions. To that end, recent studies have already linked the circadian clock to psoriasis, one of the most common immune-mediated skin disorders. Skin also provides opportunities to interrogate the clock regulation of tissue metabolism in the context of stem cells and regeneration. Furthermore, many animal species feature prominent seasonal hair molt cycles, offering an attractive model
The output signal of Purkinje cells of the cerebellum and circadian rhythmicity.
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Jérôme Mordel
Full Text Available Measurement of clock gene expression has recently provided evidence that the cerebellum, like the master clock in the SCN, contains a circadian oscillator. The cerebellar oscillator is involved in anticipation of mealtime and possibly resides in Purkinje cells. However, the rhythmic gene expression is likely transduced into a circadian cerebellar output signal to exert an effective control of neuronal brain circuits that are responsible for feeding behavior. Using electrophysiological recordings from acute and organotypic cerebellar slices, we tested the hypothesis whether Purkinje cells transmit a circadian modulated signal to their targets in the brain. Extracellular recordings from brain slices revealed the typical discharge pattern previously described in vivo in single cell recordings showing basically a tonic or a trimodal-like firing pattern. However, in acute sagittal cerebellar slices the average spike rate of randomly selected Purkinje cells did not exhibit significant circadian variations, irrespective of their specific firing pattern. Also, frequency and amplitude of spontaneous inhibitory postsynaptic currents and the amplitude of GABA- and glutamate-evoked currents did not vary with circadian time. Long-term recordings using multielectrode arrays (MEA allowed to monitor neuronal activity at multiple sites in organotypic cerebellar slices for several days to weeks. With this recording technique we observed oscillations of the firing rate of cerebellar neurons, presumably of Purkinje cells, with a period of about 24 hours which were stable for periods up to three days. The daily renewal of culture medium could induce circadian oscillations of the firing rate of Purkinje cells, a feature that is compatible with the behavior of slave oscillators. However, from the present results it appears that the circadian expression of cerebellar clock genes exerts only a weak influence on the electrical output of cerebellar neurons.
Microarray analysis of natural socially regulated plasticity in circadian rhythms of honey bees.
Rodriguez-Zas, Sandra L; Southey, Bruce R; Shemesh, Yair; Rubin, Elad B; Cohen, Mira; Robinson, Gene E; Bloch, Guy
Honey bee workers care for ("nurse") the brood around the clock without circadian rhythmicity, but then they forage outside with strong circadian rhythms and a consolidated nightly rest. This chronobiological plasticity is associated with variation in the expression of the canonical "clock genes" that regulate the circadian clock: nurse bees show no brain rhythms of expression, while foragers do. These results suggest that the circadian system is organized differently in nurses and foragers. Nurses switch to activity with circadian rhythms shortly after being removed from the hive, suggesting that at least some clock cells in their brain continue to measure time while in the hive. We performed a microarray genome-wide survey to determine general patterns of brain gene expression in nurses and foragers sampled around the clock. We found 160 and 541 transcripts that exhibited significant sinusoidal oscillations in nurses and foragers, respectively, with peaks of expression distributed throughout the day in both task groups. Consistent with earlier studies, transcripts of genes involved in circadian rhythms, including Clockwork Orange that has not been studied before in bees, oscillated in foragers but not in nurses. The oscillating transcripts also were enriched for genes involved in the visual system, "development" and "response to stimuli" (foragers), "muscle contraction" and "microfilament motor gene expression" (nurses), and "generation of precursor metabolites" and "energy" (both). Transcripts of genes encoding P450 enzymes oscillated in both nurses and foragers but with a different phase. This study identified new putative clock-controlled genes in the honey bee and suggests that some brain functions show circadian rhythmicity even in nurse bees that are active around the clock.
Transcripts from the Circadian Clock: Telling Time and Season
Brand, Karl
textabstractWe all know it when we wake mere moments before an alarm clock is scheduled to wake us: our body clock made the alarm clock redundant. This phenomenon is driven by an endogenous timer known as the biological, or circadian clock. Each revolution of the Earth about its own axis produces periods of light and dark which define what we all experience as a 'day'. This profound cyclic variation in solar energy is responsible for driving the evolution of adaptive responses as early as 3.8...
Nonphotic entrainment of the human circadian pacemaker
Klerman, E. B.; Rimmer, D. W.; Dijk, D. J.; Kronauer, R. E.; Rizzo, J. F. 3rd; Czeisler, C. A.
In organisms as diverse as single-celled algae and humans, light is the primary stimulus mediating entrainment of the circadian biological clock. Reports that some totally blind individuals appear entrained to the 24-h day have suggested that nonphotic stimuli may also be effective circadian synchronizers in humans, although the nonphotic stimuli are probably comparatively weak synchronizers, because the circadian rhythms of many totally blind individuals "free run" even when they maintain a 24-h activity-rest schedule. To investigate entrainment by nonphotic synchronizers, we studied the endogenous circadian melatonin and core body temperature rhythms of 15 totally blind subjects who lacked conscious light perception and exhibited no suppression of plasma melatonin in response to ocular bright-light exposure. Nine of these fifteen blind individuals were able to maintain synchronization to the 24-h day, albeit often at an atypical phase angle of entrainment. Nonphotic stimuli also synchronized the endogenous circadian rhythms of a totally blind individual to a non-24-h schedule while living in constant near darkness. We conclude that nonphotic stimuli can entrain the human circadian pacemaker in some individuals lacking ocular circadian photoreception.
Circadian rhythms of women with fibromyalgia
Klerman, E. B.; Goldenberg, D. L.; Brown, E. N.; Maliszewski, A. M.; Adler, G. K.
Fibromyalgia syndrome is a chronic and debilitating disorder characterized by widespread nonarticular musculoskeletal pain whose etiology is unknown. Many of the symptoms of this syndrome, including difficulty sleeping, fatigue, malaise, myalgias, gastrointestinal complaints, and decreased cognitive function, are similar to those observed in individuals whose circadian pacemaker is abnormally aligned with their sleep-wake schedule or with local environmental time. Abnormalities in melatonin and cortisol, two hormones whose secretion is strongly influenced by the circadian pacemaker, have been reported in women with fibromyalgia. We studied the circadian rhythms of 10 women with fibromyalgia and 12 control healthy women. The protocol controlled factors known to affect markers of the circadian system, including light levels, posture, sleep-wake state, meals, and activity. The timing of the events in the protocol were calculated relative to the habitual sleep-wake schedule of each individual subject. Under these conditions, we found no significant difference between the women with fibromyalgia and control women in the circadian amplitude or phase of rhythms of melatonin, cortisol, and core body temperature. The average circadian phases expressed in hours posthabitual bedtime for women with and without fibromyalgia were 3:43 +/- 0:19 and 3:46 +/- 0:13, respectively, for melatonin; 10:13 +/- 0:23 and 10:32 +/- 0:20, respectively for cortisol; and 5:19 +/- 0:19 and 4:57 +/- 0:33, respectively, for core body temperature phases. Both groups of women had similar circadian rhythms in self-reported alertness. Although pain and stiffness were significantly increased in women with fibromyalgia compared with healthy women, there were no circadian rhythms in either parameter. We suggest that abnormalities in circadian rhythmicity are not a primary cause of fibromyalgia or its symptoms.
Characterisation of circadian rhythms of various duckweeds.
Muranaka, T; Okada, M; Yomo, J; Kubota, S; Oyama, T
The plant circadian clock controls various physiological phenomena that are important for adaptation to natural day-night cycles. Many components of the circadian clock have been identified in Arabidopsis thaliana, the model plant for molecular genetic studies. Recent studies revealed evolutionary conservation of clock components in green plants. Homologues of clock-related genes have been isolated from Lemna gibba and Lemna aequinoctialis, and it has been demonstrated that these homologues function in the clock system in a manner similar to their functioning in Arabidopsis. While clock components are widely conserved, circadian phenomena display diversity even within the Lemna genus. In order to survey the full extent of diversity in circadian rhythms among duckweed plants, we characterised the circadian rhythms of duckweed by employing a semi-transient bioluminescent reporter system. Using a particle bombardment method, circadian bioluminescent reporters were introduced into nine strains representing five duckweed species: Spirodela polyrhiza, Landoltia punctata, Lemna gibba, L. aequinoctialis and Wolffia columbiana. We then monitored luciferase (luc+) reporter activities driven by AtCCA1, ZmUBQ1 or CaMV35S promoters under entrainment and free-running conditions. Under entrainment, AtCCA1::luc+ showed similar diurnal rhythms in all strains. This suggests that the mechanism of biological timing under day-night cycles is conserved throughout the evolution of duckweeds. Under free-running conditions, we observed circadian rhythms of AtCCA1::luc+, ZmUBQ1::luc+ and CaMV35S::luc+. These circadian rhythms showed diversity in period length and sustainability, suggesting that circadian clock mechanisms are somewhat diversified among duckweeds. PMID:24942699
When the clock strikes: Modeling the relation between circadian rhythms and cardiac arrhythmias
Seenivasan, Pavithraa; Sridhar, S; Sinha, Sitabhra
It has recently been observed that the occurrence of sudden cardiac death has a close statistical relationship with the time of day, viz., ventricular fibrillation is most likely to occur between 12 am-6 am, with 6 pm-12 am being the next most likely period. Consequently there has been significant interest in understanding how cardiac activity is influenced by the circadian clock, i.e., temporal oscillations in physiological activity with a period close to 24 hours and synchronized with the day-night cycle. Although studies have identified the genetic basis of circadian rhythms at the intracellular level, the mechanisms by which they influence cardiac pathologies are not yet fully understood. Evidence has suggested that diurnal variations in the conductance properties of ion channel proteins that govern the excitation dynamics of cardiac cells may provide the crucial link. In this paper, we investigate the relationship between the circadian rhythm as manifested in modulations of ion channel properties and the...
Questing for circadian dependence in ST-segment-elevation acute myocardial infarction: A multicentric and multiethnic study
Ammirati, Enrico
Rationale: Four monocentric studies reported that circadian rhythms can affect left ventricular infarct size after ST-segment-elevation acute myocardial infarction (STEMI). Objective: To further validate the circadian dependence of infarct size after STEMI in a multicentric and multiethnic population. Methods and Results: We analyzed a prospective cohort of subjects with first STEMI from the First Acute Myocardial Infarction study that enrolled 1099 patients (ischemic time <6 hours) in Italy, Scotland, and China. We confirmed a circadian variation of STEMI incidence with an increased morning incidence (from 6:00 am till noon). We investigated the presence of circadian dependence of infarct size plotting the peak creatine kinase against time onset of ischemia. In addition, we studied the patients from the 3 countries separately, including 624 Italians; all patients were treated with percutaneous coronary intervention. We adopted several levels of analysis with different inclusion criteria consistent with previous studies. In all the analyses, we did not find a clear-cut circadian dependence of infarct size after STEMI. Conclusions: Although the circadian dependence of infarct size supported by previous studies poses an intriguing hypothesis, we were unable to converge toward their conclusions in a multicentric and multiethnic setting. Parameters that vary as a function of latitude could potentially obscure the circadian variations observed in monocentric studies. We believe that, to assess whether circadian rhythms can affect the infarct size, future study design should not only include larger samples but also aim to untangle the molecular time-dynamic mechanisms underlying such a relation. © 2013 American Heart Association, Inc.
Circadian clocks and the regulation of virulence in fungi: Getting up to speed.
Hevia, Montserrat A; Canessa, Paulo; Larrondo, Luis F
You cannot escape time. Therefore, it seems wise to learn how to keep track of it and use it to your advantage. Circadian clocks are molecular circuits that allow organisms to temporally coordinate a plethora of processes, including gene expression, with a close to 24h rhythm, optimizing cellular function in synchrony with daily environmental cycles. The molecular bases of these clocks have been extensively studied in the fungus Neurospora crassa, providing a detailed molecular description. Surprisingly, there is scarce molecular information of clocks in fungi other than Neurospora, despite the existence of rhythmic phenomena in many fungal species, including pathogenic ones. This review will comment on the overall importance of clocks, what is known in Neurospora and what has been described in other fungi including new insights on the evolution of fungal clock components. The molecular description of the circadian system of the phytopathogenic fungus Botrytis cinerea will be revisited, as well as time-of-the-day variation in host-pathogen interaction dynamics, utilizing an Arabidopsis-Botrytis system, including also what is known regarding circadian regulation of defense mechanisms in the Arabidopsis thaliana plant model. Finally, this review will mention how little is known about circadian regulation of human pathogenic fungi, commenting on potential future directions and the overall perspective of fungal circadian studies. PMID:27039027
Entrainment of the Neurospora circadian clock
Merrow, M; Boesl, C; Ricken, J; Messerschmitt, M; Goedel, M; Roenneberg, T
Neurospora crassa has been systematically investigated for circadian entrainment behavior. Many aspects of synchronization can be investigated in this simple, cellular system, ranging from systematic entrainment and drivenness to masking. Clock gene expression during entrainment and entrainment with
Neuroimaging, cognition, light and circadian rhythms
Gaggioni, Giulia; Maquet, Pierre; Schmidt, Christina, 1984-; Dijk, Derk-Jan; Vandewalle, Gilles
In humans, sleep and wakefulness and the associated cognitive processes are regulated through interactions between sleep homeostasis and the circadian system. Chronic disruption of sleep and circadian rhythmicity is common in our society and there is a need for a better understanding of the brain mechanisms regulating sleep, wakefulness and associated cognitive processes. This review summarizes recent investigations which provide first neural correlates of the combined influence of sleep home...
Neuroanatomy of the Extended Circadian Rhythm System
Morin, Lawrence P
The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), site of the primary clock in the circadian rhythm system, has three major afferent connections. The most important consists of a retinohypothalamic projection through which photic information, received by classical rod/cone photoreceptors and intrinsically photoreceptive retinal ganglion cells, gains access to the clock. This information influences phase and period of circadian rhythms. The two other robust afferent projections are the median raphe serotoner...
Sleep and circadian rhythm disruption in schizophrenia†
Wulff, Katharina; Dijk, Derk-Jan; Middleton, Benita; Foster, Russell G.; Joyce, Eileen M.
Background Sleep disturbances comparable with insomnia occur in up to 80% of people with schizophrenia, but very little is known about the contribution of circadian coordination to these prevalent disruptions. Aims A systematic exploration of circadian time patterns in individuals with schizophrenia with recurrent sleep disruption. Method We examined the relationship between sleep-wake activity, recorded actigraphically over 6 weeks, along with ambient light exposure and simultaneous circadia...
Circadian clock proteins in mood regulation
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Timo ePartonen
Full Text Available Mood regulation is known to be affected by the change of seasons. Recent research findings have suggested that mood regulation may be influenced by the function of circadian clocks. In addition, the activity of brown adipocytes has been hypothesized to contribute to mood regulation. Here, the overarching link to mood disorders might be the circadian clock protein NR1D1 (nuclear receptor subfamily 1, group D, member 1.
Evolution of circadian organization in vertebrates
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M. Menaker
Full Text Available Circadian organization means the way in which the entire circadian system above the cellular level is put together physically and the principles and rules that determine the interactions among its component parts which produce overt rhythms of physiology and behavior. Understanding this organization and its evolution is of practical importance as well as of basic interest. The first major problem that we face is the difficulty of making sense of the apparently great diversity that we observe in circadian organization of diverse vertebrates. Some of this diversity falls neatly into place along phylogenetic lines leading to firm generalizations: i in all vertebrates there is a "circadian axis" consisting of the retinas, the pineal gland and the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN, ii in many non-mammalian vertebrates of all classes (but not in any mammals the pineal gland is both a photoreceptor and a circadian oscillator, and iii in all non-mammalian vertebrates (but not in any mammals there are extraretinal (and extrapineal circadian photoreceptors. An interesting explanation of some of these facts, especially the differences between mammals and other vertebrates, can be constructed on the assumption that early in their evolution mammals passed through a "nocturnal bottleneck". On the other hand, a good deal of the diversity among the circadian systems of vertebrates does not fall neatly into place along phylogenetic lines. In the present review we will consider how we might better understand such "phylogenetically incoherent" diversity and what sorts of new information may help to further our understanding of the evolution of circadian organization in vertebrates
Circadian Gene Networks In Bone Regeneration
Hassan, Nathaniel
BACKGROUND: Previous studies suggested that vitamin D played a significant role in bone regeneration, facilitating the establishment of implant osseointegration. A whole genome microarray study further suggested that the vitamin D axis might involve circadian rhythm gene expression in the bone peripheral tissue.OBJECTIVES: To identify key gene networks involved with vitamin D receptor in the bone regeneration process and to explore any correlation with circadian rhythm gene expression in bone...
Circadian rhythm variations of clock gene PER1 expression in oral squamous cell carcinoma and their relations with tumor growth in vivo%生物钟PER1基因在口腔鳞癌中的昼夜节律变化及与体内肿瘤生长的关系
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)
赵宁波; 杨凯; 陈丹; 唐洪; 赵丹; 赵春蓉
目的 探讨生物钟PER1基因在口腔鳞癌中的昼夜节律变化情况和与肿瘤体内生长的关系.方法 60只裸鼠置于12 h光照和12 h黑暗交替环境中饲养3周后,将人颊鳞癌BcaCD885细胞接种于裸鼠颊部,建立口腔颊鳞癌模型.3周成瘤后,在24 h内按灯亮后4、10、16、22 h(4 HALO、10 HALO、16 HALO、22 HALO)的4个时间点分别处死15只裸鼠,取出肿瘤,称量,常规切片在HE染色下计算各时间点肿瘤的有丝分裂指数(MI);分别用S-P免疫组化、Western blot和Real-time RT-PCR检测各时间点癌细胞中PER1蛋白和mRNA的表达;分别用方差分析和余弦分析检验各指标在4个时间点的差异性和是否具有昼夜节律性.结果 颊鳞癌细胞PER1蛋白、PER1 mRNA、肿瘤MI和肿瘤质量在昼夜不同时间点具有显著性差异(P<0.01),其变化波动具有昼夜节律性特征(P<0.05);肿瘤MI和肿瘤质量与PER1的表达水平呈反比关系,PER1 mRNA表达的峰值与肿瘤MI和质量的谷值均位于活动相的中期,而PER1 mRNA表达的谷值与肿瘤MI和质量的峰值均位于休息相中期.结论 口腔鳞癌中PER1的表达、肿瘤MI和质量在昼夜不同时间点的波动具有24 h昼夜节律性规律,PER1在口腔鳞癌中为抑癌基因.%Objective To determine the circadian rhythm variations of the expression of clock gene PER1 in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and their relations with tumor growth in vivo.Methods Sixty nude mice were raised under 12 h light/12 h dark cycles for 3 weeks.Human OSCC cell line BcaCD885 was inoculated in the cheek of nude mice to establish a nude mice model of OSCC.In 3 weeks after the implantation,15 mice were sacrificed at 4 time points,including 4 h after light onset (HALO),10 HALO,16 HALO and 22 HALO,respectively,during a period of 24 h.Tumor tissues were excised and weighed.HE stained sections were prepared and mitotic index (MI) was calculated.The protein and mRNA expression of PER1 in the tumor
Circadian rhythms in human performance and mood under constant conditions
Monk, T. H.; Buysse, D. J.; Reynolds, C. F. 3rd; Berga, S. L.; Jarrett, D. B.; Begley, A. E.; Kupfer, D. J.
This study explored the relationship between circadian performance rhythms and rhythms in rectal temperature, plasma cortisol, plasma melatonin, subjective alertness and well-being. Seventeen healthy young adults were studied under 36 h of 'unmasking' conditions (constant wakeful bedrest, temporal isolation, homogenized 'meals') during which rectal temperatures were measured every minute, and plasma cortisol and plasma melatonin measured every 20 min. Hourly subjective ratings of global vigour (alertness) and affect (well-being) were obtained followed by one of two performance batteries. On odd-numbered hours performance (speed and accuracy) of serial search, verbal reasoning and manual dexterity tasks was assessed. On even-numbered hours, performance (% hits, response speed) was measured at a 25-30 min visual vigilance task. Performance of all tasks (except search accuracy) showed a significant time of day variation usually with a nocturnal trough close to the trough in rectal temperature. Performance rhythms appeared not to reliably differ with working memory load. Within subjects, predominantly positive correlations emerged between good performance and higher temperatures and better subjective alertness; predominantly negative correlations between good performance and higher plasma levels of cortisol and melatonin. Temperature and cortisol rhythms correlated with slightly more performance measures (5/7) than did melatonin rhythms (4/7). Global vigour correlated about as well with performance (5/7) as did temperature, and considerably better than global affect (1/7). In conclusion: (1) between-task heterogeneity in circadian performance rhythms appeared to be absent when the sleep/wake cycle was suspended; (2) temperature (positively), cortisol and melatonin (negatively) appeared equally good as circadian correlates of performance, and (3) subjective alertness correlated with performance rhythms as well as (but not better than) body temperature, suggesting that
Probing entrainment of Ostreococcus tauri circadian clock by green and blue light through a mathematical modeling approach.
Thommen, Quentin; Pfeuty, Benjamin; Schatt, Philippe; Bijoux, Amandine; Bouget, François-Yves; Lefranc, Marc
Most organisms anticipate daily environmental variations and orchestrate cellular functions thanks to a circadian clock which entrains robustly to the day/night cycle, despite fluctuations in light intensity due to weather or seasonal variations. Marine organisms are also subjected to fluctuations in light spectral composition as their depth varies, due to differential absorption of different wavelengths by sea water. Studying how light input pathways contribute to circadian clock robustness is therefore important. Ostreococcus tauri, a unicellular picoplanktonic marine green alga with low genomic complexity and simple cellular organization, has become a promising model organism for systems biology. Functional and modeling approaches have shown that a core circadian oscillator based on orthologs of Arabidopsis TOC1 and CCA1 clock genes accounts for most experimental data acquired under a wide range of conditions. Some evidence points at putative light input pathway(s) consisting of a two-component signaling system (TCS) controlled by the only two histidine kinases (HK) of O. tauri. LOV-HK is a blue light photoreceptor under circadian control, that is required for circadian clock function. An involvement of Rhodopsin-HK (Rhod-HK) is also conceivable since rhodopsin photoreceptors mediate blue to green light input in animal circadian clocks. Here, we probe the role of LOV-HK and Rhod-HK in mediating light input to the TOC1-CCA1 oscillator using a mathematical model incorporating the TCS hypothesis. This model agrees with clock gene expression time series representative of multiple environmental conditions in blue or green light, characterizing entrainment by light/dark cycles, free-running in constant light, and resetting. Experimental and theoretical results indicate that both blue and green light can reset O. tauri circadian clock. Moreover, our mathematical analysis suggests that Rhod-HK is a blue-green light receptor and drives the clock together with LOV-HK.
Probing entrainment of Ostreococcus tauri circadian clock by blue and green light through a mathematical modeling approach
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Quentin eThommen
Full Text Available Most organisms anticipate daily environmental variations and orchestrate cellular functions thanks to a circadian clock which entrains robustly to the day/night cycle, despite fluctuations in light intensity due to weather or seasonal variations. Marine organisms are also subjected to fluctuations in light spectral composition as their depth varies, due to differential absorption of different wavelengths by sea water. Studying how light input pathways contribute to circadian clock robustness is therefore important.Ostreococcus tauri, a unicellular picoplanktonic marine green alga with low genomic complexity and simple cellular organization, has become a promising model organism for systems biology. Functional and modeling approaches have shown that a core circadian oscillator based on orthologs of Arabidopsis TOC1 and CCA1 clock genes accounts for most experimental data acquired under a wide range of conditions. Some evidence points at putative light input pathway(s consisting of a two-component signaling system (TCS controlled by the only two histidine kinases (HK of O. tauri. LOVHK is a blue light photoreceptor under circadian control, that is required for circadian clock function. An involvement of Rhodopsin-HK (RhodHK is also conceivable since rhodopsin photoreceptors mediate blue to green light input in animal circadian clocks.Here, we probe the role of LOVHK and RhodHK in mediating light input to the TOC1-CCA1 oscillator using a mathematical model incorporating the TCS hypothesis. This model agrees with clock gene expression time series representative of multiple environmental conditions in blue or green light, characterizing entrainment by light/dark cycles, free-running in constant light, and resetting. Experimental and theoretical results indicate that both blue and green light can reset O. tauri circadian clock. Moreover, our mathematical analysis suggests that Rhod-HK is a blue-green light receptor and drives the clock together with
A software solution for recording circadian oscillator features in time-lapse live cell microscopy
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Salmon Patrick
Full Text Available Abstract Background Fluorescent and bioluminescent time-lapse microscopy approaches have been successfully used to investigate molecular mechanisms underlying the mammalian circadian oscillator at the single cell level. However, most of the available software and common methods based on intensity-threshold segmentation and frame-to-frame tracking are not applicable in these experiments. This is due to cell movement and dramatic changes in the fluorescent/bioluminescent reporter protein during the circadian cycle, with the lowest expression level very close to the background intensity. At present, the standard approach to analyze data sets obtained from time lapse microscopy is either manual tracking or application of generic image-processing software/dedicated tracking software. To our knowledge, these existing software solutions for manual and automatic tracking have strong limitations in tracking individual cells if their plane shifts. Results In an attempt to improve existing methodology of time-lapse tracking of a large number of moving cells, we have developed a semi-automatic software package. It extracts the trajectory of the cells by tracking theirs displacements, makes the delineation of cell nucleus or whole cell, and finally yields measurements of various features, like reporter protein expression level or cell displacement. As an example, we present here single cell circadian pattern and motility analysis of NIH3T3 mouse fibroblasts expressing a fluorescent circadian reporter protein. Using Circadian Gene Express plugin, we performed fast and nonbiased analysis of large fluorescent time lapse microscopy datasets. Conclusions Our software solution, Circadian Gene Express (CGE, is easy to use and allows precise and semi-automatic tracking of moving cells over longer period of time. In spite of significant circadian variations in protein expression with extremely low expression levels at the valley phase, CGE allows accurate and
Natural selection against a circadian clock gene mutation in mice
Spoelstra, K.; Wikelski, Martin; Daan, Serge; Loudon, Andrew; Hau, Michaela
Circadian rhythms with an endogenous period close or equal to the natural light-dark cycle are considered evolutionarily adaptive ('circadian resonance hypothesis'). Despite remarkable insight into the molecular mechanisms driving circadian cycles, this hypothesis has not been tested under natural c
Phase resetting of the mammalian circadian clock by DNA damage
Oklejewicz, Malgorzata; Destici, Eugin; Tamanini, Filippo; Hut, Roelof A.; Janssens, Roel; van der Horst, Gijsbertus T. J.
To anticipate the momentum of the day, most organisms have developed an internal clock that drives circadian rhythms in metabolism, physiology, and behavior [1]. Recent studies indicate that cell-cycle progression and DNA-damage-response pathways are under circadian control [2-4]. Because circadian
Do Urgent Caesarean Sections Have a Circadian Rhythm?
Doğru, Serkan; Doğru, Hatice Yılmaz; Karaman, Tuğba; Şahin, Aynur; Tapar, Hakan; Karaman, Serkan; Arıcı, Semih; Özsoy, Asker Zeki; Çakmak, Bülent; İşgüder, Çiğdem Kunt; Delibaş, İlhan Bahri; Karakış, Alkan
Objective The primary goal of the present study was to demonstrate the existence of a possible circadian variation in urgent operative deliveries. Methods All urgent caesarean sections between 1 January 2014 and 1 January 2015 with known exact onset times of operation were included in this retrospective study. Cases that were previously scheduled for elective caesarean section were excluded. Information regarding age, delivery date, onset time of operation and type of anaesthesia was collected from the database. Analyses were completed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA) version 20.0 software. The statistical significance for all analyses was set at p<0.05. Results A total of 285 urgent caesarean section deliveries were included in the study. There were 126 (44.2%) deliveries during the day shift and 159 (55.8%) during the night shift. 80 patients (28.1%) received general anaesthesia and 65 (22.8%) received spinal anaesthesia in the morning shift, whereas 54 patients (18.9%) received general anaesthesia and 86 (30.2%) received spinal anaesthesia during the night shift. Conclusion The present study suggested that urgent caesarean sections revealed a circadian rhythm during the day. PMID:27366574
Circadian clock: linking epigenetics to aging.
Orozco-Solis, Ricardo; Sassone-Corsi, Paolo
Circadian rhythms are generated by an intrinsic cellular mechanism that controls a large array of physiological and metabolic processes. There is erosion in the robustness of circadian rhythms during aging, and disruption of the clock by genetic ablation of specific genes is associated with aging-related features. Importantly, environmental conditions are thought to modulate the aging process. For example, caloric restriction is a very strong environmental effector capable of delaying aging. Intracellular pathways implicating nutrient sensors, such as SIRTs and mTOR complexes, impinge on cellular and epigenetic mechanisms that control the aging process. Strikingly, accumulating evidences indicate that these pathways are involved in both the modulation of the aging process and the control of the clock. Hence, innovative therapeutic strategies focused at controlling the circadian clock and the nutrient sensing pathways might beneficially influence the negative effects of aging. PMID:25033025
Coordination of the maize transcriptome by a conserved circadian clock
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Harmon Frank G
Full Text Available Abstract Background The plant circadian clock orchestrates 24-hour rhythms in internal physiological processes to coordinate these activities with daily and seasonal changes in the environment. The circadian clock has a profound impact on many aspects of plant growth and development, including biomass accumulation and flowering time. Despite recent advances in understanding the circadian system of the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, the contribution of the circadian oscillator to important agronomic traits in Zea mays and other cereals remains poorly defined. To address this deficit, this study investigated the transcriptional landscape of the maize circadian system. Results Since transcriptional regulation is a fundamental aspect of circadian systems, genes exhibiting circadian expression were identified in the sequenced maize inbred B73. Of the over 13,000 transcripts examined, approximately 10 percent displayed circadian expression patterns. The majority of cycling genes had peak expression at subjective dawn and dusk, similar to other plant circadian systems. The maize circadian clock organized co-regulation of genes participating in fundamental physiological processes, including photosynthesis, carbohydrate metabolism, cell wall biogenesis, and phytohormone biosynthesis pathways. Conclusions Circadian regulation of the maize genome was widespread and key genes in several major metabolic pathways had circadian expression waveforms. The maize circadian clock coordinated transcription to be coincident with oncoming day or night, which was consistent with the circadian oscillator acting to prepare the plant for these major recurring environmental changes. These findings highlighted the multiple processes in maize plants under circadian regulation and, as a result, provided insight into the important contribution this regulatory system makes to agronomic traits in maize and potentially other C4 plant species.
BMAL1 and CLOCK, two essential components of the circadian clock, are involved in glucose homeostasis.
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R Daniel Rudic
Full Text Available Circadian timing is generated through a unique series of autoregulatory interactions termed the molecular clock. Behavioral rhythms subject to the molecular clock are well characterized. We demonstrate a role for Bmal1 and Clock in the regulation of glucose homeostasis. Inactivation of the known clock components Bmal1 (Mop3 and Clock suppress the diurnal variation in glucose and triglycerides. Gluconeogenesis is abolished by deletion of Bmal1 and is depressed in Clock mutants, but the counterregulatory response of corticosterone and glucagon to insulin-induced hypoglycaemia is retained. Furthermore, a high-fat diet modulates carbohydrate metabolism by amplifying circadian variation in glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity, and mutation of Clock restores the chow-fed phenotype. Bmal1 and Clock, genes that function in the core molecular clock, exert profound control over recovery from insulin-induced hypoglycaemia. Furthermore, asynchronous dietary cues may modify glucose homeostasis via their interactions with peripheral molecular clocks.
Defence responses of Arabidopsis thaliana to infection by Pseudomonas syringae are regulated by the circadian clock.
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Vaibhav Bhardwaj
Full Text Available The circadian clock allows plants to anticipate predictable daily changes in abiotic stimuli, such as light; however, whether the clock similarly allows plants to anticipate interactions with other organisms is unknown. Here we show that Arabidopsis thaliana (Arabidopsis has circadian clock-mediated variation in resistance to the virulent bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000 (Pst DC3000, with plants being least susceptible to infection in the subjective morning. We suggest that the increased resistance to Pst DC3000 observed in the morning in Col-0 plants results from clock-mediated modulation of pathogen associated molecular pattern (PAMP-triggered immunity. Analysis of publicly available microarray data revealed that a large number of Arabidopsis defence-related genes showed both diurnal- and circadian-regulation, including genes involved in the perception of the PAMP flagellin which exhibit a peak in expression in the morning. Accordingly, we observed that PAMP-triggered callose deposition was significantly higher in wild-type plants inoculated with Pst DC3000 hrpA in the subjective morning than in the evening, while no such temporal difference was evident in arrhythmic plants. Our results suggest that PAMP-triggered immune responses are modulated by the circadian clock and that temporal regulation allows plants to anticipate and respond more effectively to pathogen challenges in the daytime.
Circadian rhythms in glucose and lipid metabolism in nocturnal and diurnal mammals.
Kumar Jha, Pawan; Challet, Etienne; Kalsbeek, Andries
Most aspects of energy metabolism display clear variations during day and night. This daily rhythmicity of metabolic functions, including hormone release, is governed by a circadian system that consists of the master clock in the suprachiasmatic nuclei of the hypothalamus (SCN) and many secondary clocks in the brain and peripheral organs. The SCN control peripheral timing via the autonomic and neuroendocrine system, as well as via behavioral outputs. The sleep-wake cycle, the feeding/fasting rhythm and most hormonal rhythms, including that of leptin, ghrelin and glucocorticoids, usually show an opposite phase (relative to the light-dark cycle) in diurnal and nocturnal species. By contrast, the SCN clock is most active at the same astronomical times in these two categories of mammals. Moreover, in both species, pineal melatonin is secreted only at night. In this review we describe the current knowledge on the regulation of glucose and lipid metabolism by central and peripheral clock mechanisms. Most experimental knowledge comes from studies in nocturnal laboratory rodents. Nevertheless, we will also mention some relevant findings in diurnal mammals, including humans. It will become clear that as a consequence of the tight connections between the circadian clock system and energy metabolism, circadian clock impairments (e.g., mutations or knock-out of clock genes) and circadian clock misalignments (such as during shift work and chronic jet-lag) have an adverse effect on energy metabolism, that may trigger or enhancing obese and diabetic symptoms. PMID:25662277
Defence responses of arabidopsis thaliana to infection by pseudomonas syringae are regulated by the circadian clock
Bhardwaj, Vaibhav
The circadian clock allows plants to anticipate predictable daily changes in abiotic stimuli, such as light; however, whether the clock similarly allows plants to anticipate interactions with other organisms is unknown. Here we show that Arabidopsis thaliana (Arabidopsis) has circadian clock-mediated variation in resistance to the virulent bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000 (Pst DC3000), with plants being least susceptible to infection in the subjective morning. We suggest that the increased resistance to Pst DC3000 observed in the morning in Col-0 plants results from clock-mediated modulation of pathogen associated molecular pattern (PAMP)-triggered immunity. Analysis of publicly available microarray data revealed that a large number of Arabidopsis defence-related genes showed both diurnal- and circadian-regulation, including genes involved in the perception of the PAMP flagellin which exhibit a peak in expression in the morning. Accordingly, we observed that PAMP-triggered callose deposition was significantly higher in wild-type plants inoculated with Pst DC3000 hrpA in the subjective morning than in the evening, while no such temporal difference was evident in arrhythmic plants. Our results suggest that PAMP-triggered immune responses are modulated by the circadian clock and that temporal regulation allows plants to anticipate and respond more effectively to pathogen challenges in the daytime. © 2011 Bhardwaj et al.
Circadian Metabolism in the Light of Evolution
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Gerhart-Hines, Zachary; Lazar, Mitchell A.
-tuned the body's clock to anticipate and respond to numerous environmental cues in order to maintain homeostatic balance and promote survival. However, we now live in a society in which these classic circadian entrainment stimuli have been dramatically altered from the conditions under which the clock machinery......A review. Circadian rhythm, or daily oscillation, of behaviors and biol. processes is a fundamental feature of mammalian physiol. that has developed over hundreds of thousands of years under the continuous evolutionary pressure of energy conservation and efficiency. Evolution has fine...
Modelling of intercellular synchronization in the Drosophila circadian clock
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)
Wang Jun-Wei; Chen Ai-Min; Zhang Jia-Jun; Yuan Zhan-Jiang; Zhou Tian-Shou
In circadian rhythm generation, intercellular signaling factors are shown to play a crucial role in both sustaining intrinsic cellular rhythmicity and acquiring collective behaviours across a population of circadian neurons. However, the physical mechanism behind their role remains to be fully understood. In this paper, we propose an indirectly coupled multicellular model for the synchronization of Drosophila circadian oscillators combining both intracellular and intercellular dynamics. By simulating different experimental conditions, we find that such an indirect coupling way can synchronize both heterogeneous self-sustained circadian neurons and heterogeneous mutational damped circadian neurons. Moreover, they can also be entrained to ambient light-dark (LD) cycles depending on intercellular signaling.
Influence of sleep-wake and circadian rhythm disturbances in psychiatric disorders
Boivin, DB
Recent evidence shows that the temporal alignment between the sleep-wake cycle and the circadian pacemaker affects self-assessment of mood in healthy subjects. Despite the differences in affective state between healthy subjects and patients with psychiatric disorders, these results have implications for analyzing diurnal variation of mood in unipolar and bipolar affective disorders and sleep disturbances in other major psychiatric conditions such as chronic schizophrenia. In a good proportion...
Circadian rhythms of hydraulic conductance and growth are enhanced by drought and improve plant performance
Caldeira, Cecilio Frois; Jeanguenin, Linda; Chaumont, François; Tardieu, Francois
Supplementary information available for this article at http://www.nature.com/ncomms/2014/141105/ncomms6365/suppinfo/ncomms6365_S1.html Circadian rhythms enable plants to anticipate daily environmental variations, resulting in growth oscillations under continuous light. Because plants daily transpire up to 200% of their water content, their water status oscillates from favourable during the night to unfavourable during the day. We show that rhythmic leaf growth under continuous light is ob...
Circadian affective, cardiopulmonary, and cortisol variability in depressed and nondepressed individuals at risk for cardiovascular disease
Conrad, Ansgar; Wilhelm, Frank H.; Roth, Walton T.; Spiegel, David; Taylor, C. Barr
Depression is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) perhaps mediated by hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis or vagal dysregulation. We investigated circadian mood variation and HPA-axis and autonomic function in older (≥55 years) depressed and nondepressed volunteers at risk for CVD by assessing diurnal positive and negative affect (PA, NA), cortisol, and cardiopulmonary variables in 46 moderately depressed and 19 nondepressed volunteers with elevated CVD risk. Participants sat...
Association among epicardial fat, heart rate recovery and circadian blood pressure variability in patients with hypertension
Kim, Da-Jung; Cho, Kyoung-Im; Cho, Eun-A; Lee, Jin-Wook; Park, Hyun-Joon; Kim, Sun-Min; Kim, Hyun-Su; Heo, Jung Ho
Background Epicardial fat tissue is known to have an unique endocrine function which affect the cardiac autonomic system. Heart rate recovery (HRR) is a simple non-invasive measurement that assesses autonomic nervous system dysfunction. We aimed to investigate the association among epicardial fat thickness (EFT), HRR and circadian blood pressure (BP) variation in patients with hypertension. Methods A total of 358 consecutive patients who underwent both 24-hour ambulatory BP monitoring (ABPM) ...
Development of circadian oscillators in neurosphere cultures during adult neurogenesis.
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Astha Malik
Full Text Available Circadian rhythms are common in many cell types but are reported to be lacking in embryonic stem cells. Recent studies have described possible interactions between the molecular mechanism of circadian clocks and the signaling pathways that regulate stem cell differentiation. Circadian rhythms have not been examined well in neural stem cells and progenitor cells that produce new neurons and glial cells during adult neurogenesis. To evaluate circadian timing abilities of cells undergoing neural differentiation, neurospheres were prepared from the mouse subventricular zone (SVZ, a rich source of adult neural stem cells. Circadian rhythms in mPer1 gene expression were recorded in individual spheres, and cell types were characterized by confocal immunofluorescence microscopy at early and late developmental stages in vitro. Circadian rhythms were observed in neurospheres induced to differentiate into neurons or glia, and rhythms emerged within 3-4 days as differentiation proceeded, suggesting that the neural stem cell state suppresses the functioning of the circadian clock. Evidence was also provided that neural stem progenitor cells derived from the SVZ of adult mice are self-sufficient clock cells capable of producing a circadian rhythm without input from known circadian pacemakers of the organism. Expression of mPer1 occurred in high frequency oscillations before circadian rhythms were detected, which may represent a role for this circadian clock gene in the fast cycling of gene expression responsible for early cell differentiation.
The Pentose Phosphate Pathway Regulates the Circadian Clock.
Rey, Guillaume; Valekunja, Utham K; Feeney, Kevin A; Wulund, Lisa; Milev, Nikolay B; Stangherlin, Alessandra; Ansel-Bollepalli, Laura; Velagapudi, Vidya; O'Neill, John S; Reddy, Akhilesh B
The circadian clock is a ubiquitous timekeeping system that organizes the behavior and physiology of organisms over the day and night. Current models rely on transcriptional networks that coordinate circadian gene expression of thousands of transcripts. However, recent studies have uncovered phylogenetically conserved redox rhythms that can occur independently of transcriptional cycles. Here we identify the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP), a critical source of the redox cofactor NADPH, as an important regulator of redox and transcriptional oscillations. Our results show that genetic and pharmacological inhibition of the PPP prolongs the period of circadian rhythms in human cells, mouse tissues, and fruit flies. These metabolic manipulations also cause a remodeling of circadian gene expression programs that involves the circadian transcription factors BMAL1 and CLOCK, and the redox-sensitive transcription factor NRF2. Thus, the PPP regulates circadian rhythms via NADPH metabolism, suggesting a pivotal role for NADPH availability in circadian timekeeping.
Circadian and Circalunar Clock Interactions in a Marine Annelid
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Juliane Zantke
Full Text Available Life is controlled by multiple rhythms. Although the interaction of the daily (circadian clock with environmental stimuli, such as light, is well documented, its relationship to endogenous clocks with other periods is little understood. We establish that the marine worm Platynereis dumerilii possesses endogenous circadian and circalunar (monthly clocks and characterize their interactions. The RNAs of likely core circadian oscillator genes localize to a distinct nucleus of the worm's forebrain. The worm's forebrain also harbors a circalunar clock entrained by nocturnal light. This monthly clock regulates maturation and persists even when circadian clock oscillations are disrupted by the inhibition of casein kinase 1δ/ε. Both circadian and circalunar clocks converge on the regulation of transcript levels. Furthermore, the circalunar clock changes the period and power of circadian behavior, although the period length of the daily transcriptional oscillations remains unaltered. We conclude that a second endogenous noncircadian clock can influence circadian clock function.
Mechanics and Resonance of the Cyanobacterial Circadian Oscillator
Karafyllidis, Ioannis G
Recent experiments elucidated the structure and function of the cyanobacterial circadian oscillator, which is driven by sunlight intensity variation and therefore by Earth's rotation. It is known that cyanobacteria appeared about 3.5 billion years ago and that Earth's rotational speed is continuously decreasing because of tidal friction. What is the effect of the continuous slowdown of Earth's rotation on the operation of the cyanobacterial oscillator? To answer this question we derived the oscillator's equation of motion directly from experimental data, coupled it with Earth's rotation and computed its natural periods and its resonance curve. The results show that there are two resonance peaks of the "cyanobacterial oscillator-rotating Earth" system, indicating that cyanobacteria used more efficiently the solar energy during the geological period in which the day length varied from about 11 to 15 hours and make more efficient use of solar energy at the geological period which started with a day length of 21 ...
Impact of nutrients on circadian rhythmicity
Oosterman, Johanneke E; Kalsbeek, A.; la Fleur, Susanne E; Belsham, Denise D
The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) in the mammalian hypothalamus functions as an endogenous pacemaker that generates and maintains circadian rhythms throughout the body. Next to this central clock, peripheral oscillators exist in almost all mammalian tissues. Whereas the SCN is mainly entrained to th
Light and the human circadian clock
Roenneberg, Till; Kantermann, Thomas; Juda, Myriam; Vetter, Céline; Allebrandt, Karla V
The circadian clock can only reliably fulfil its function if it is stably entrained. Most clocks use the light-dark cycle as environmental signal (zeitgeber) for this active synchronisation. How we think about clock function and entrainment has been strongly influenced by the early concepts of the f
Circadian systems biology: When time matters
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Luise Fuhr
In this manuscript we review the combination of experimental methodologies, bioinformatics and theoretical models that have been essential to explore this remarkable timing-system. Such an integrative and interdisciplinary approach may provide new strategies with regard to chronotherapeutic treatment and new insights concerning the restoration of the circadian timing in clock-associated diseases.
Circadian rhythms in liver metabolism and disease
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Jessica M. Ferrell
Full Text Available Mounting research evidence demonstrates a significant negative impact of circadian disruption on human health. Shift work, chronic jet lag and sleep disturbances are associated with increased incidence of metabolic syndrome, and consequently result in obesity, type 2 diabetes and dyslipidemia. Here, these associations are reviewed with respect to liver metabolism and disease.
How Temperature Changes Reset a Circadian Oscillator
Merrow, Martha; Loros, Jennifer J.; Dunlap, Jay C.
Circadian rhythms control many physiological activities. The environmental entrainment of rhythms involves the immediate responses of clock components. Levels of the clock protein FRQ were measured in Neurospora at various temperatures; at higher temperatures, the amount of FRQ oscillated around hig
Harmonics of circadian gene transcription in mammals.
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Michael E Hughes
Full Text Available The circadian clock is a molecular and cellular oscillator found in most mammalian tissues that regulates rhythmic physiology and behavior. Numerous investigations have addressed the contribution of circadian rhythmicity to cellular, organ, and organismal physiology. We recently developed a method to look at transcriptional oscillations with unprecedented precision and accuracy using high-density time sampling. Here, we report a comparison of oscillating transcription from mouse liver, NIH3T3, and U2OS cells. Several surprising observations resulted from this study, including a 100-fold difference in the number of cycling transcripts in autonomous cellular models of the oscillator versus tissues harvested from intact mice. Strikingly, we found two clusters of genes that cycle at the second and third harmonic of circadian rhythmicity in liver, but not cultured cells. Validation experiments show that 12-hour oscillatory transcripts occur in several other peripheral tissues as well including heart, kidney, and lungs. These harmonics are lost ex vivo, as well as under restricted feeding conditions. Taken in sum, these studies illustrate the importance of time sampling with respect to multiple testing, suggest caution in use of autonomous cellular models to study clock output, and demonstrate the existence of harmonics of circadian gene expression in the mouse.
Sleep, Hormones, and Circadian Rhythms throughout the Menstrual Cycle in Healthy Women and Women with Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder
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Ari Shechter
Full Text Available A relationship exists between the sleep-wake cycle and hormone secretion, which, in women, is further modulated by the menstrual cycle. This interaction can influence sleep across the menstrual cycle in healthy women and in women with premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD, who experience specific alterations of circadian rhythms during their symptomatic luteal phase along with sleep disturbances during this time. This review will address the variation of sleep at different menstrual phases in healthy and PMDD women, as well as changes in circadian rhythms, with an emphasis on their relationship with female sex hormones. It will conclude with a brief discussion on nonpharmacological treatments of PMDD which use chronotherapeutic methods to realign circadian rhythms as a means of improving sleep and mood in these women.
Sudden Cardiac Death : Epidemiology, Circadian Variation, and Triggers
Mahmoud, Karim D.; de Smet, Bart J. G. L.; Zijlstra, Felix; Rihal, Charanjit S.; Holmes, David R.
Sudden cardiac death (SCD) remains a major health issue accounting for over 5% of annual mortality in the Western world. There are several causes of SCD, most commonly, coronary artery disease. Although identifying the prodrome of SCD has attracted considerable interest, a large proportion of patien
No Circadian Variation in Surgeons' Ability to Diagnose Acute Appendicitis
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Jørgensen, Anders Bech; Amirian, Ilda; Watt, Sara Kehlet;
patients were included. There were no age limitations or selection in sex. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in the ability to diagnose appendicitis in day-evening hours vs night hours (p = 0.391), nor was any significant difference found on weekdays (Monday-Thursday) vs weekends (Friday...... of imaging had no effect on the ability to diagnose appendicitis. Male sex showed a higher probability of the diagnosis being appendicitis compared with other or no pathology (odds ratio: 3.094; p
Influence of food intake on the 24-hr variations of plasma iron concentration in the rabbit
Schümann, K; Haen, Ekkehard
Circadian variations in plasma iron levels were first reported in humans in 1937. Influences of the sleeping pattern and of plasma cortisol and adrenaline levels on these variations as well as the reproducibility of the phenomenon itself are discussed controversially in the literature. The influence of food intake, however, was not considered in most of the studies and is therefore subject of this investigation. Circadian plasma iron and plasma transferrin variations were determined in rabbit...
Circadian adaptations to meal timing: Neuroendocrine mechanisms
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Danica F Patton
Full Text Available Circadian rhythms of behavior and physiology are generated by central and peripheral circadian oscillators entrained by periodic environmental or physiological stimuli. A master circadian pacemaker in the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nucleus is directly entrained by daily light-dark cycles, and coordinates the timing of other oscillators by direct and indirect neural, hormonal and behavioral outputs. The daily rhythm of food intake provides stimuli that entrain most peripheral and central oscillators, some of which can drive a daily rhythm of food anticipatory activity if food is restricted to one daily mealtime. The location of food-entrainable oscillators (FEOs that drive food anticipatory rhythms, and the food-related stimuli that entrain these oscillators, remain to be clarified. Here, we critically examine the role of peripheral metabolic hormones as potential internal entrainment stimuli or outputs for FEOs controlling food anticipatory rhythms in rats and mice. Hormones for which data are available include corticosterone, ghrelin, leptin, insulin, glucagon, and glucagon-like peptide 1. All of these hormones exhibit daily rhythms of synthesis and secretion that are synchronized by meal timing. There is some evidence that ghrelin and leptin modulate the expression of food anticipatory rhythms, but none of the hormones examined so far are necessary for entrainment. Ghrelin and leptin likely modulate food-entrained rhythms by actions in hypothalamic circuits utilizing melanocortin and orexin signaling, although again food-entrained behavioral rhythms can persist in lesion and gene knockout models in which these systems are disabled. Actions of these hormones on circadian oscillators in central reward circuits remain to be evaluated. Food-entrained activity rhythms are likely mediated by a distributed system of circadian oscillators sensitive to multiple feeding related inputs. Metabolic hormones appear to play a modulatory role within this
Circadian and sleep-dependent regulation of hormone release in humans
Czeisler, C. A.; Klerman, E. B.
Daily oscillations characterize the release of nearly every hormone. The circadian pacemaker, located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the hypothalamus, generates circadian, approximately 24-hour rhythms in many physiologic functions. However, the observed hormonal oscillations do not simply reflect the output of this internal clock. Instead, daily hormonal profiles are the product of a complex interaction between the output of the circadian pacemaker, periodic changes in behavior, light exposure, neuroendocrine feedback mechanisms, gender, age, and the timing of sleep and wakefulness. The interaction of these factors can affect hormonal secretory pulse frequency and amplitude, with each endocrine system differentially affected by these factors. This chapter examines recent advances in understanding the effects on endocrine rhythms of a number of these factors. Sleep exerts a profound effect on endocrine secretion. Sleep is a dynamic process that is characterized by periodic changes in electrophysiologic activity. These electrophysiologic changes, which are used to mark the state and depth of sleep, are associated with periodic, short-term variations in hormonal levels. The secretion of hormones such as renin and human growth hormone are strongly influenced by sleep or wake state, while melatonin and cortisol levels are relatively unaffected by sleep or wake state. In addition, sleep is associated with changes in posture, behavior, and light exposure, each of which is known to affect endocrine secretion. Furthermore, the tight concordance of habitual sleep and wake times with certain circadian phases has made it difficult to distinguish sleep and circadian effects on these hormones. Specific protocols, designed to extract circadian and sleep information semi-independently, have been developed and have yielded important insights into the effects of these regulatory processes. These results may help to account for changes in endocrine rhythms observed in circadian
Carcinogenic effects of circadian disruption: an epigenetic viewpoint.
Salavaty, Abbas
Circadian rhythms refer to the endogenous rhythms that are generated to synchronize physiology and behavior with 24-h environmental cues. These rhythms are regulated by both external cues and molecular clock mechanisms in almost all cells. Disruption of circadian rhythms, which is called circadian disruption, affects many biological processes within the body and results in different long-term diseases, including cancer. Circadian regulatory pathways result in rhythmic epigenetic modifications and the formation of circadian epigenomes. Aberrant epigenetic modifications, such as hypermethylation, due to circadian disruption may be involved in the transformation of normal cells into cancer cells. Several studies have indicated an epigenetic basis for the carcinogenic effects of circadian disruption. In this review, I first discuss some of the circadian genes and regulatory proteins. Then, I summarize the current evidence related to the epigenetic modifications that result in circadian disruption. In addition, I explain the carcinogenic effects of circadian disruption and highlight its potential role in different human cancers using an epigenetic viewpoint. Finally, the importance of chronotherapy in cancer treatment is highlighted.
Circadian rhythm of blood and urinary copper in presumably healthy subjects of vegetarian food habit
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Bhattacharya, R.D.
Circadian rhythm of blood and urinary copper has been studied in presumably healthy subjects of a particular ethnic group in India who are vegetarians. A definite 24-hr variation has been observed for both blood and urinary copper. The peak for blood copper was 1500 hr and the lowest value was 0600 hr, with values of 0.185 mg/100 ml and 0.160 mg/100 ml respectively. The urinary peak and trough occurred at 0600 and 0300 hr, respectively. Remarkably higher 24-hr copper excretion values were noted (64.49 ..mu..g/day) with a range of 15-100 ..mu..g/day. The blood level of copper (0.134 mg/100 ml) remained within the range reported. One subject out of 25 deviated from the group with respect to circadian phasing and amplitude to urinary copper excretion. 20 references.
A Circadian and Cardiac Intraocular Pressure Sensor for Smart Implantable Lens.
Donida, Achille; Di Dato, Giuseppe; Cunzolo, Paolo; Sala, Marco; Piffaretti, Filippo; Orsatti, Paolo; Barrettino, Diego
This paper presents a new system to measure the Intraocular Pressure (IOP) with very high accuracy (0.036 mbar) used for monitoring glaucoma. The system not only monitors the daily variation of the IOP (circadian IOP), but also allows to perform an spectral analysis of the pressure signal generated by the heartbeat (cardiac IOP). The system comprises a piezoresistive pressure sensor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) to read out the sensor data and an external reader installed on customized glasses. The ASIC readout electronics combines chopping modulation with correlated double sampling (CDS) in order to eliminate both the amplifier offset and the chopper ripple at the sampling frequency. In addition, programmable current sources are used to compensate for the atmospheric pressure ( 800-1200 mbar ) and the circadian component (± 7 mbar) thus allowing to read out the very weak cardiac signals (± 1.6 mbar) with a maximum accuracy of 0.036 mbar.
The role of circadian rhythm in breast cancer
Li, Shujing; Ao, Xiang
The circadian rhythm is an endogenous time keeping system shared by most organisms. The circadian clock is comprised of both peripheral oscillators in most organ tissues of the body and a central pacemaker located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the central nervous system. The circadian rhythm is crucial in maintaining the normal physiology of the organism including, but not limited to, cell proliferation, cell cycle progression, and cellular metabolism; whereas disruption of the circadian rhythm is closely related to multi-tumorigenesis. In the past several years, studies from different fields have revealed that the genetic or functional disruption of the molecular circadian rhythm has been found in various cancers, such as breast, prostate, and ovarian. In this review, we will investigate and present an overview of the current research on the influence of circadian rhythm regulating proteins on breast cancer. PMID:23997531
Circadian Organization of Behavior and Physiology in Drosophila
Allada, Ravi; Chung, Brian Y.
Circadian clocks organize behavior and physiology to adapt to daily environmental cycles. Genetic approaches in the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, have revealed widely conserved molecular gears of these 24-h timers. Yet much less is known about how these cell-autonomous clocks confer temporal information to modulate cellular functions. Here we discuss our current knowledge of circadian clock function in Drosophila, providing an overview of the molecular underpinnings of circadian clocks. We then describe the neural network important for circadian rhythms of locomotor activity, including how these molecular clocks might influence neuronal function. Finally, we address a range of behaviors and physiological systems regulated by circadian clocks, including discussion of specific peripheral oscillators and key molecular effectors where they have been described. These studies reveal a remarkable complexity to circadian pathways in this "simple" model organism. PMID:20148690
Diurnal Variations in Human Pulmonary Function
Medarov, Boris I.; Pavlov, Valentin A.; Rossoff, Leonard
Pulmonary function has circadian modulations. Variations in human pulmonary function during the daytime hours (diurnal variations) remain to be well characterized. Discerning these variations will contribute to better understanding the relationship between biorhythms and lung physiology and to improving clinical management of pulmonary diseases. The aim of this study was to determine the magnitude of pulmonary function variability during the usual daytime hours in a population of patients ref...
Circadian Organization of Behavior and Physiology in Drosophila
Allada, Ravi; Chung, Brian Y.
Circadian clocks organize behavior and physiology to adapt to daily environmental cycles. Genetic approaches in the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, have revealed widely conserved molecular gears of these 24-h timers. Yet much less is known about how these cell-autonomous clocks confer temporal information to modulate cellular functions. Here we discuss our current knowledge of circadian clock function in Drosophila, providing an overview of the molecular underpinnings of circadian clocks....
A Clinical Approach to Circadian Rhythm Sleep Disorders
Barion, Ana; Zee, Phyllis C.
Circadian rhythm sleep disorders are characterized by complaints of insomnia and excessive sleepiness that are primarily due to alterations in the internal circadian timing system or a misalignment between the timing of sleep and the 24-hour social and physical environment. In addition to physiological and environmental factors, maladaptive behaviors often play an important role in the development of many of the circadian rhythm sleep disorders. This review will focus on the clinical approach...
Circadian Rhythms, the Molecular Clock, and Skeletal Muscle
Lefta, Mellani; Wolff, Gretchen; Esser, Karyn A
Almost all organisms ranging from single cell bacteria to humans exhibit a variety of behavioral, physiological, and biochemical rhythms. In mammals, circadian rhythms control the timing of many physiological processes over a 24-h period, including sleep-wake cycles, body temperature, feeding, and hormone production. This body of research has led to defined characteristics of circadian rhythms based on period length, phase, and amplitude. Underlying circadian behaviors is a molecular clock me...
Circadian Clock Genes: Effects on Dopamine, Reward and Addiction
Parekh, Puja K.; Ozburn, Angela R; McClung, Colleen A.
Addiction is a widespread public health issue with social and economic ramifications. Substance abuse disorders are often accompanied by disruptions in circadian rhythms including sleep/wake cycles, which can exacerbate symptoms of addiction and dependence. Additionally, genetic disturbance of circadian molecular mechanisms can predispose some individuals to substance abuse disorders. In this review, we will discuss how circadian genes can regulate midbrain dopaminergic activity and subsequen...
Circadian rhythm and cell population growth
Clairambault, Jean; Lepoutre, Thomas
Molecular circadian clocks, that are found in all nucleated cells of mammals, are known to dictate rhythms of approximately 24 hours (circa diem) to many physiological processes. This includes metabolism (e.g., temperature, hormonal blood levels) and cell proliferation. It has been observed in tumor-bearing laboratory rodents that a severe disruption of these physiological rhythms results in accelerated tumor growth. The question of accurately representing the control exerted by circadian clocks on healthy and tumour tissue proliferation to explain this phenomenon has given rise to mathematical developments, which we review. The main goal of these previous works was to examine the influence of a periodic control on the cell division cycle in physiologically structured cell populations, comparing the effects of periodic control with no control, and of different periodic controls between them. We state here a general convexity result that may give a theoretical justification to the concept of cancer chronothera...
Circadian clock components in the rat neocortex
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Rath, Martin Fredensborg; Rohde, Kristian; Fahrenkrug, Jan;
have shown the presence of peripheral clocks in extra-hypothalamic areas of the central nervous system. However, knowledge on the clock gene network in the cerebral cortex is limited. We here show that the mammalian clock genes Per1, Per2, Per3, Cry1, Cry2, Bmal1, Clock, Nr1d1 and Dbp are expressed...... expression in the neocortex is dependent on the SCN. In situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry showed that products of the canonical clock gene Per2 are located in perikarya throughout all areas of the neocortex. These findings show that local circadian oscillators driven by the SCN reside within......The circadian master clock of the mammalian brain resides in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus. At the molecular level, the clock of the SCN is driven by a transcriptional/posttranslational autoregulatory network with clock gene products as core elements. Recent investigations...
Circadian clock, cell cycle and cancer
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Cansu Özbayer
Full Text Available There are a few rhythms of our daily lives that we are under the influence. One of them is characterized by predictable changes over a 24-hour timescale called circadian clock. This cellular clock is coordinated by the suprachiasmatic nucleus in the anterior hypothalamus. The clock consist of an autoregulatory transcription-translation feedback loop compose of four genes/proteins; BMAL1, Clock, Cyrptochrome, and Period. BMAL 1 and Clock are transcriptional factors and Period and Cyrptochrome are their targets. Period and Cyrptochrome dimerize in the cytoplasm to enter the nucleus where they inhibit Clock/BMAL activity.It has been demonstrate that circadian clock plays an important role cellular proliferation, DNA damage and repair mechanisms, checkpoints, apoptosis and cancer.
Central Circadian Control of Female Reproductive Function
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Brooke H Miller
Full Text Available Over the past two decades, it has become clear just how much of our physiology is under the control of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN and the cell-intrinsic molecular clock that ticks with a periodicity of approximately 24 hours. The SCN prepares our digestive system for meals, our adrenal axis for the stress of waking up in the morning, and the genes expressed in our muscles when we prepare to exercise, Long before molecular studies of genes such as Clock, Bmal1, and the Per homologs were possible, it was obvious that female reproductive function was under strict circadian control at every level of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG axis, and in the establishment and successful maintenance of pregnancy. This review highlights our current understanding of the role that the SCN plays in regulating female reproductive physiology, with a special emphasis on the advances made possible through the use of circadian mutant mice.
How to reduce circadian misalignment in rotating shift workers
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Eastman CI
Full Text Available Charmane I EastmanBiological Rhythms Research Laboratory, Behavioral Sciences Department, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, USAI have often thought that rapidly rotating shift work schedules that include night shifts should be abolished and replaced with fixed shifts. But maybe I was wrong, I used to think that there is no way to reduce the circadian misalignment between the master internal circadian clock (and thus all the circadian rhythms of the body and the times for sleeping, working, and eating, because the circadian clock cannot reset (phase shift fast enough to keep up with rapidly rotating shift work schedules.
Circadian Clocks as Modulators of Metabolic Comorbidity in Psychiatric Disorders.
Barandas, Rita; Landgraf, Dominic; McCarthy, Michael J; Welsh, David K
Psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depressive disorder are often accompanied by metabolic dysfunction symptoms, including obesity and diabetes. Since the circadian system controls important brain systems that regulate affective, cognitive, and metabolic functions, and neuropsychiatric and metabolic diseases are often correlated with disturbances of circadian rhythms, we hypothesize that dysregulation of circadian clocks plays a central role in metabolic comorbidity in psychiatric disorders. In this review paper, we highlight the role of circadian clocks in glucocorticoid, dopamine, and orexin/melanin-concentrating hormone systems and describe how a dysfunction of these clocks may contribute to the simultaneous development of psychiatric and metabolic symptoms. PMID:26483181
Circadian Phase Preference in Pediatric Bipolar Disorder
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Kerri L. Kim
Full Text Available Pediatric bipolar disorder (BD rates have notably increased over the past three decades. Given the significant morbidity and mortality associated with BD, efforts are needed to identify factors useful in earlier detection to help address this serious public health concern. Sleep is particularly important to consider given the sequelae of disrupted sleep on normative functioning and that sleep is included in diagnostic criteria for both Major Depressive and Manic Episodes. Here, we examine one component of sleep—i.e., circadian phase preference with the behavioral construct of morningness/eveningness (M/E. In comparing 30 BD and 45 typically developing control (TDC participants, ages 7–17 years, on the Morningness-Eveningness Scale for Children (MESC, no between-group differences emerged. Similar results were found when comparing three groups (BD−ADHD; BD+ADHD; TDC. Consistent with data available on circadian phase preference in adults with BD, however, we found that BD adolescents, ages 13 years and older, endorsed significantly greater eveningness compared to their TDC peers. While the current findings are limited by reliance on subjective report and the high-rate of comorbid ADHD among the BD group, this finding that BD teens demonstrate an exaggerated shift towards eveningness than would be developmentally expected is important. Future studies should compare the circadian rhythms across the lifespan for individuals diagnosed with BD, as well as identify the point at which BD youth part ways with their healthy peers in terms of phase preference. In addition, given our BD sample was overall euthymic, it may be that M/E is more state vs. trait specific in latency age youth. Further work would benefit from assessing circadian functioning using a combination of rating forms and laboratory-based measures. Improved understanding of sleep in BD may identify behavioral targets for inclusion in prevention and intervention protocols.
Shift work and circadian dysregulation of reproduction
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Karen L. Gamble
Full Text Available Health impairments, including reproductive issues, are associated with working nights or rotating shifts. For example, shift work has been associated with an increased risk of irregular menstrual cycles, endometriosis, infertility, miscarriage, low birth weight or pre-term delivery, and reduced incidence of breastfeeding. Based on what is known about circadian regulation of endocrine rhythms in rodents (and much less in humans, the circadian clock is an integral regulatory part of the reproductive system. When this 24-h program is disordered by environmental perturbation (such as shift work or genetic alterations, the endocrine system can be impaired. The purpose of this review is to explore the hypothesis that misalignment of reproductive hormones with the environmental light-dark cycle and/or sleep wake rhythms can disrupt menstrual cycles, pregnancy, and parturition. We highlight the role of the circadian clock in regulating human reproductive physiology and shift work-induced pathology within each step of the reproductive axis while exploring potential mechanisms from the animal model literature. In addition to documenting the reproductive hazards of shift work, we also point out important gaps in our knowledge as critical areas for future investigation. For example, future studies should examine whether forced desynchronization disrupts gonadotropin secretion rhythms and whether there are sleep/wake schedules that are better or worse for the adaptation of the reproductive system to shift work. These studies are necessary in order to define not only whether or not shift-work induced circadian misalignment impairs reproductive capacity, but also to identify strategies for the future that can minimize this desynchronization.
Links between circadian rhythms and psychiatric disease
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Ilia N Karatsoreos
Full Text Available Determining the cause of psychiatric disorders is a goal of modern neuroscience, and will hopefully lead to the discovery of treatments to either prevent or alleviate the suffering caused by these diseases. One roadblock to attaining this goal is the realization that neuropsychiatric diseases are rarely due to a single gene polymorphism, environmental exposure, or developmental insult. Rather, it is a complex interaction between these various influences that likely leads to the development of clinically relevant syndromes. Our lab is exploring the links between environmental exposures and neurobehavioral function by investigating how disruption of the circadian (daily clock alters the structure and function of neural circuits, with the hypothesis that disrupting this crucial homeostatic system can directly contribute to altered vulnerability of the organism to other factors that interact to produce psychiatric illness. This review explores some historical and more recent findings that link disrupted circadian clocks to neuropsychiatric disorders, particularly depression, mania, and schizophrenia. We take a comparative approach by exploring the effects observed in human populations, as well as some experimental models used in the laboratory to unravel mechanistic and causal relationships between disruption of the circadian clock and behavioral abnormalities. This is a rich area of research that we predict will contribute greatly to our understanding of how genes, environment, and development interact to modulate an individual's vulnerability to psychiatric disorders.
Circadian behaviour in neuroglobin deficient mice.
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Christian A Hundahl
Full Text Available Neuroglobin (Ngb, a neuron-specific oxygen-binding globin with an unknown function, has been proposed to play a key role in neuronal survival. We have previously shown Ngb to be highly expressed in the rat suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN. The present study addresses the effect of Ngb deficiency on circadian behavior. Ngb-deficient and wild-type (wt mice were placed in running wheels and their activity rhythms, endogenous period and response to light stimuli were investigated. The effect of Ngb deficiency on the expression of Period1 (Per1 and the immediate early gene Fos was determined after light stimulation at night and the neurochemical phenotype of Ngb expressing neurons in wt mice was characterized. Loss of Ngb function had no effect on overall circadian entrainment, but resulted in a significantly larger phase delay of circadian rhythm upon light stimulation at early night. A light-induced increase in Per1, but not Fos, gene expression was observed in Ngb-deficient mice. Ngb expressing neurons which co-stored Gastrin Releasing Peptide (GRP and were innervated from the eye and the geniculo-hypothalamic tract expressed FOS after light stimulation. No PER1 expression was observed in Ngb-positive neurons. The present study demonstrates for the first time that the genetic elimination of Ngb does not affect core clock function but evokes an increased behavioural response to light concomitant with increased Per1 gene expression in the SCN at early night.
Circadian behaviour in neuroglobin deficient mice.
Hundahl, Christian A; Fahrenkrug, Jan; Hay-Schmidt, Anders; Georg, Birgitte; Faltoft, Birgitte; Hannibal, Jens
Neuroglobin (Ngb), a neuron-specific oxygen-binding globin with an unknown function, has been proposed to play a key role in neuronal survival. We have previously shown Ngb to be highly expressed in the rat suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). The present study addresses the effect of Ngb deficiency on circadian behavior. Ngb-deficient and wild-type (wt) mice were placed in running wheels and their activity rhythms, endogenous period and response to light stimuli were investigated. The effect of Ngb deficiency on the expression of Period1 (Per1) and the immediate early gene Fos was determined after light stimulation at night and the neurochemical phenotype of Ngb expressing neurons in wt mice was characterized. Loss of Ngb function had no effect on overall circadian entrainment, but resulted in a significantly larger phase delay of circadian rhythm upon light stimulation at early night. A light-induced increase in Per1, but not Fos, gene expression was observed in Ngb-deficient mice. Ngb expressing neurons which co-stored Gastrin Releasing Peptide (GRP) and were innervated from the eye and the geniculo-hypothalamic tract expressed FOS after light stimulation. No PER1 expression was observed in Ngb-positive neurons. The present study demonstrates for the first time that the genetic elimination of Ngb does not affect core clock function but evokes an increased behavioural response to light concomitant with increased Per1 gene expression in the SCN at early night.
Imaging Multidimensional Therapeutically Relevant Circadian Relationships
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Jamil Singletary
Full Text Available Circadian clocks gate cellular proliferation and, thereby, therapeutically target availability within proliferative pathways. This temporal coordination occurs within both cancerous and noncancerous proliferating tissues. The timing within the circadian cycle of the administration of drugs targeting proliferative pathways necessarily impacts the amount of damage done to proliferating tissues and cancers. Concurrently measuring target levels and associated key pathway components in normal and malignant tissues around the circadian clock provides a path toward a fuller understanding of the temporal relationships among the physiologic processes governing the therapeutic index of antiproliferative anticancer therapies. The temporal ordering among these relationships, paramount to determining causation, is less well understood using two- or three-dimensional representations. We have created multidimensional multimedia depictions of the temporal unfolding of putatively causative and the resultant therapeutic effects of a drug that specifically targets these ordered processes at specific times of the day. The systems and methods used to create these depictions are provided, as well as three example supplementary movies.
Cardiovascular tissues contain independent circadian clocks
Davidson, A. J.; London, B.; Block, G. D.; Menaker, M.
Acute cardiovascular events exhibit a circadian rhythm in the frequency of occurrence. The mechanisms underlying these phenomena are not yet fully understood, but they may be due to rhythmicity inherent in the cardiovascular system. We have begun to characterize rhythmicity of the clock gene mPer1 in the rat cardiovascular system. Luciferase activity driven by the mPer1 gene promoter is rhythmic in vitro in heart tissue explants and a wide variety of veins and arteries cultured from the transgenic Per1-luc rat. The tissues showed between 3 and 12 circadian cycles of gene expression in vitro before damping. Whereas peak per1-driven bioluminescence consistently occurred during the late night in the heart and all arteries sampled, the phases of the rhythms in veins varied significantly by anatomical location. Varying the time of the culture procedure relative to the donor animal's light:dark cycle revealed that, unlike some other rat tissues such as liver, the phases of in vitro rhythms of arteries, veins, and heart explants were affected by culture time. However, phase relationships among tissues were consistent across culture times; this suggests diversity in circadian regulation among components of the cardiovascular system.
Synergistic interactions between the molecular and neuronal circadian networks drive robust behavioral circadian rhythms in Drosophila melanogaster.
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Ron Weiss
Full Text Available Most organisms use 24-hr circadian clocks to keep temporal order and anticipate daily environmental changes. In Drosophila melanogaster CLOCK (CLK and CYCLE (CYC initiates the circadian system by promoting rhythmic transcription of hundreds of genes. However, it is still not clear whether high amplitude transcriptional oscillations are essential for circadian timekeeping. In order to address this issue, we generated flies in which the amplitude of CLK-driven transcription can be reduced partially (approx. 60% or strongly (90% without affecting the average levels of CLK-target genes. The impaired transcriptional oscillations lead to low amplitude protein oscillations that were not sufficient to drive outputs of peripheral oscillators. However, circadian rhythms in locomotor activity were resistant to partial reduction in transcriptional and protein oscillations. We found that the resilience of the brain oscillator is depending on the neuronal communication among circadian neurons in the brain. Indeed, the capacity of the brain oscillator to overcome low amplitude transcriptional oscillations depends on the action of the neuropeptide PDF and on the pdf-expressing cells having equal or higher amplitude of molecular rhythms than the rest of the circadian neuronal groups in the fly brain. Therefore, our work reveals the importance of high amplitude transcriptional oscillations for cell-autonomous circadian timekeeping. Moreover, we demonstrate that the circadian neuronal network is an essential buffering system that protects against changes in circadian transcription in the brain.
Circadian arrhythmia dysregulates emotional behaviors in aged Siberian hamsters.
Prendergast, Brian J; Onishi, Kenneth G; Patel, Priyesh N; Stevenson, Tyler J
Emotional behaviors are influenced by the circadian timing system. Circadian disruptions are associated with depressive-like symptoms in clinical and preclinical populations. Circadian rhythm robustness declines markedly with aging and may contribute to susceptibility to emotional dysregulation in aged individuals. The present experiments used a model of chronic circadian arrhythmia generated noninvasively, via a series of circadian-disruptive light treatments, to investigate interactions between circadian desynchrony and aging on depressive- and anxiety-like behaviors, and on limbic neuroinflammatory gene expression that has been linked with emotionality. We also examined whether a social manipulation (group housing) would attenuate effects of arrhythmia on emotionality. In aged (14-18 months of age) male Siberian hamsters, circadian arrhythmia increased behavioral despair and decreased social motivation, but decreased exploratory anxiety. These effects were not evident in younger (5-9 months of age) hamsters. Social housing (3-5 hamsters/cage) abolished the effects of circadian arrhythmia on emotionality. Circadian arrhythmia alone was without effect on hippocampal or cortical interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (Ido) mRNA expression in aged hamsters, but social housing decreased hippocampal IL-1β and Ido mRNAs. The data demonstrate that circadian disruption can negatively impact affective state, and that this effect is pronounced in older individuals. Although clear associations between circadian arrhythmia and constitutive limbic proinflammatory activity were not evident, the present data suggest that social housing markedly inhibits constitutive hippocampal IL-1β and Ido activity, which may contribute to the ameliorating effects of social housing on a number of emotional behaviors.
A combined experimental and mathematical approach for molecular-based optimization of irinotecan circadian delivery.
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Annabelle Ballesta
Full Text Available Circadian timing largely modifies efficacy and toxicity of many anticancer drugs. Recent findings suggest that optimal circadian delivery patterns depend on the patient genetic background. We present here a combined experimental and mathematical approach for the design of chronomodulated administration schedules tailored to the patient molecular profile. As a proof of concept we optimized exposure of Caco-2 colon cancer cells to irinotecan (CPT11, a cytotoxic drug approved for the treatment of colorectal cancer. CPT11 was bioactivated into SN38 and its efflux was mediated by ATP-Binding-Cassette (ABC transporters in Caco-2 cells. After cell synchronization with a serum shock defining Circadian Time (CT 0, circadian rhythms with a period of 26 h 50 (SD 63 min were observed in the mRNA expression of clock genes REV-ERBα, PER2, BMAL1, the drug target topoisomerase 1 (TOP1, the activation enzyme carboxylesterase 2 (CES2, the deactivation enzyme UDP-glucuronosyltransferase 1, polypeptide A1 (UGT1A1, and efflux transporters ABCB1, ABCC1, ABCC2 and ABCG2. DNA-bound TOP1 protein amount in presence of CPT11, a marker of the drug PD, also displayed circadian variations. A mathematical model of CPT11 molecular pharmacokinetics-pharmacodynamics (PK-PD was designed and fitted to experimental data. It predicted that CPT11 bioactivation was the main determinant of CPT11 PD circadian rhythm. We then adopted the therapeutics strategy of maximizing efficacy in non-synchronized cells, considered as cancer cells, under a constraint of maximum toxicity in synchronized cells, representing healthy ones. We considered exposure schemes in the form of an initial concentration of CPT11 given at a particular CT, over a duration ranging from 1 to 27 h. For any dose of CPT11, optimal exposure durations varied from 3h40 to 7h10. Optimal schemes started between CT2h10 and CT2h30, a time interval corresponding to 1h30 to 1h50 before the nadir of CPT11 bioactivation rhythm in
Effect of pinealectomy and prolonged melatonin administration on circadian testicular function in food restricted rats
Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)
Ostrowska, Z.; Zwirska-Korczala, K.; Kajdaniuk, D.; Gorski, J.; Buntner, B. [Slaska Akademia Medyczna, Katowice (Poland)
The effect of pinealectomy and exogenous melatonin on the circadian testosterone variations was investigated (using the radioimmunoassay method) after 3 weeks of 50% food restriction in sexually mature male Wistar rats at 3-h intervals under 12:12 light-dark cycle. The circadian periodicity of testosterone secretion was maintained after caloric deprivation, however its mean 24-h concentration was lower and rhythm disturbances appeared in the form of acrophase shifts from 18.00 to 0.50 h. In pinealectomized animals the mean 24-h testosterone level and amplitude values were significantly increased without the rhythm disturbances. As compared to the control animals, underfed pinealectomized rats had a partial recovery of reduced testosterone levels during the 24-h cycle and showed a normalization of the rhythm acrophase. Melatonin administration was found to inhibit the testosterone mesor value in pinealectomized rats with acrophase shifts from 16.58 to 14.51 h. In comparison with the pinealectomized ones the underfed pinealectomized rats had a greater reduction of the mesor and amplitude values after the melatonin administration. These findings indicate that long-term food restriction sensitizes the circadian testicular axis to antigonadotropic action of the pineal gland. (author). 42 refs, 3 figs, 1 tab.
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I. Rajagopal
Full Text Available The purpose of the study was to find out the effect of gender difference and circadian rhythm on diastolic blood pressure for volleyball players. METHODS: To achieve the purpose, a total of thirty volleyball players [men (n = 15 and women (n = 15] age between 19 years and 22 years from Einstein College of Engineering, Tamil Nadu, India were selected as subjects. The two independent variables of gender and circadian variations and dependent variable of diastolic blood pressure were selected for this study. The experimental design used was static group factorial design. The data were collected at 02:00, 06:00, 10:00, 14:00, 18:00 and 22:00 hours on diastolic blood pressure by using Erkameter during the academic year of 2009 – 2010. Collected data were subjected to statistical analysis by using two-way factorial (2 x 6 Analysis of Variance (ANOVA and Cosinor analysis. RESULTS: There was insignificant difference between genders, significant difference at different times of the day and insignificant circadian rhythmicity exists on diastolic blood pressure for women and significant for men. CONCLUSION: It is recommended to the physical educators to adopt the findings of this study while planning to improve sports skills for the players and athletes.
Circadian rhythms and fractal fluctuations in forearm motion
Hu, Kun; Hilton, Michael F.
Recent studies have shown that the circadian pacemaker --- an internal body clock located in the brain which is normally synchronized with the sleep/wake behavioral cycles --- influences key physiologic functions such as the body temperature, hormone secretion and heart rate. Surprisingly, no previous studies have investigated whether the circadian pacemaker impacts human motor activity --- a fundamental physiologic function. We investigate high-frequency actigraph recordings of forearm motion from a group of young and healthy subjects during a forced desynchrony protocol which allows to decouple the sleep/wake cycles from the endogenous circadian cycle while controlling scheduled behaviors. We investigate both static properties (mean value, standard deviation), dynamical characteristics (long-range correlations), and nonlinear features (magnitude and Fourier-phase correlations) in the fluctuations of forearm acceleration across different circadian phases. We demonstrate that while the static properties exhibit significant circadian rhythms with a broad peak in the afternoon, the dynamical and nonlinear characteristics remain invariant with circadian phase. This finding suggests an intrinsic multi-scale dynamic regulation of forearm motion the mechanism of which is not influenced by the circadian pacemaker, thus suggesting that increased cardiac risk in the early morning hours is not related to circadian-mediated influences on motor activity.
Heritable circadian period length in a wild bird population
Helm, B.; Visser, M.E.
Timing is essential, but circadian clocks, which play a crucial role in timekeeping, are almost unaddressed in evolutionary ecology. A key property of circadian clocks is their free-running period length (τ), i.e. the time taken for a full cycle under constant conditions. Under laboratory conditions
The cholinergic system, circadian rhythmicity, and time memory
Hut, R. A.; Van der Zee, E. A.
This review provides an overview of the interaction between the mammalian cholinergic system and circadian system, and its possible role in time memory. Several studies made clear that circadian (daily) fluctuations in acetylcholine (ACh) release, cholinergic enzyme activity and cholinergic receptor
Physiological effects of light on the human circadian pacemaker
Shanahan, T. L.; Czeisler, C. A.
The physiology of the human circadian pacemaker and its influence and on the daily organization of sleep, endocrine and behavioral processes is an emerging interest in science and medicine. Understanding the development, organization and fundamental properties underlying the circadian timing system may provide insight for the application of circadian principles to the practice of clinical medicine, both diagnostically (interpretation of certain clinical tests are dependent on time of day) and therapeutically (certain pharmacological responses vary with the time of day). The light-dark cycle is the most powerful external influence acting upon the human circadian pacemaker. It has been shown that timed exposure to light can both synchronize and reset the phase of the circadian pacemaker in a predictable manner. The emergence of detectable circadian rhythmicity in the neonatal period is under investigation (as described elsewhere in this issue). Therefore, the pattern of light exposure provided in the neonatal intensive care setting has implications. One recent study identified differences in both amount of sleep time and weight gain in infants maintained in a neonatal intensive care environment that controlled the light-dark cycle. Unfortunately, neither circadian phase nor the time of day has been considered in most clinical investigations. Further studies with knowledge of principles characterizing the human circadian timing system, which governs a wide array of physiological processes, are required to integrate these findings with the practice of clinical medicine.
CRY links the circadian clock and CREB-mediated gluconeogenesis
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)
Megumi Hatori; Satchidananda Panda
@@ Circadian oscillators based on a transcriptional feedback loop exist in almost all cells of animals. The cellular oscillators synchronize each other via paracrine or systemic communications,resulting in rhythmic changes of tissue- and whole body-level physiologies and behaviors. Circadian regulation of metabolism is well documented and disruption of such temporal regulation is known to predispose organisms to metabolic diseases.
Circadian rhythms and endocrine functions in adult insects.
Bloch, Guy; Hazan, Esther; Rafaeli, Ada
Many behavioral and physiological processes in adult insects are influenced by both the endocrine and circadian systems, suggesting that these two key physiological systems interact. We reviewed the literature and found that experiments explicitly testing these interactions in adult insects have only been conducted for a few species. There is a shortage of measurements of hormone titers throughout the day under constant conditions even for the juvenile hormones (JHs) and ecdysteroids, the best studied insect hormones. Nevertheless, the available measurements of hormone titers coupled with indirect evidence for circadian modulation of hormone biosynthesis rate, and the expression of genes encoding proteins involved in hormone biosynthesis, binding or degradation are consistent with the hypothesis that the circulating levels of many insect hormones are influenced by the circadian system. Whole genome microarray studies suggest that the modulation of farnesol oxidase levels is important for the circadian regulation of JH biosynthesis in honey bees, mosquitoes, and fruit flies. Several studies have begun to address the functional significance of circadian oscillations in endocrine signaling. The best understood system is the circadian regulation of Pheromone Biosynthesis Activating Neuropeptide (PBAN) titers which is important for the temporal organization of sexual behavior in female moths. The evidence that the circadian and endocrine systems interact has important implications for studies of insect physiology and behavior. Additional studies on diverse species and physiological processes are needed for identifying basic principles underlying the interactions between the circadian and endocrine systems in insects.
Diurnal oscillations of soybean circadian clock and drought responsive genes.
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Juliana Marcolino-Gomes
Full Text Available Rhythms produced by the endogenous circadian clock play a critical role in allowing plants to respond and adapt to the environment. While there is a well-established regulatory link between the circadian clock and responses to abiotic stress in model plants, little is known of the circadian system in crop species like soybean. This study examines how drought impacts diurnal oscillation of both drought responsive and circadian clock genes in soybean. Drought stress induced marked changes in gene expression of several circadian clock-like components, such as LCL1-, GmELF4- and PRR-like genes, which had reduced expression in stressed plants. The same conditions produced a phase advance of expression for the GmTOC1-like, GmLUX-like and GmPRR7-like genes. Similarly, the rhythmic expression pattern of the soybean drought-responsive genes DREB-, bZIP-, GOLS-, RAB18- and Remorin-like changed significantly after plant exposure to drought. In silico analysis of promoter regions of these genes revealed the presence of cis-elements associated both with stress and circadian clock regulation. Furthermore, some soybean genes with upstream ABRE elements were responsive to abscisic acid treatment. Our results indicate that some connection between the drought response and the circadian clock may exist in soybean since (i drought stress affects gene expression of circadian clock components and (ii several stress responsive genes display diurnal oscillation in soybeans.
The Molecular Circadian Clock and Alcohol-Induced Liver Injury
Udoh, Uduak S.; Valcin, Jennifer A.; Gamble, Karen L.; Bailey, Shannon M.
Emerging evidence from both experimental animal studies and clinical human investigations demonstrates strong connections among circadian processes, alcohol use, and alcohol-induced tissue injury. Components of the circadian clock have been shown to influence the pathophysiological effects of alcohol. Conversely, alcohol may alter the expression of circadian clock genes and the rhythmic behavioral and metabolic processes they regulate. Therefore, we propose that alcohol-mediated disruption in circadian rhythms likely underpins many adverse health effects of alcohol that cut across multiple organ systems. In this review, we provide an overview of the circadian clock mechanism and showcase results from new studies in the alcohol field implicating the circadian clock as a key target of alcohol action and toxicity in the liver. We discuss various molecular events through which alcohol may work to negatively impact circadian clock-mediated processes in the liver, and contribute to tissue pathology. Illuminating the mechanistic connections between the circadian clock and alcohol will be critical to the development of new preventative and pharmacological treatments for alcohol use disorders and alcohol-mediated organ diseases. PMID:26473939
The Molecular Circadian Clock and Alcohol-Induced Liver Injury
Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)
Uduak S. Udoh
Full Text Available Emerging evidence from both experimental animal studies and clinical human investigations demonstrates strong connections among circadian processes, alcohol use, and alcohol-induced tissue injury. Components of the circadian clock have been shown to influence the pathophysiological effects of alcohol. Conversely, alcohol may alter the expression of circadian clock genes and the rhythmic behavioral and metabolic processes they regulate. Therefore, we propose that alcohol-mediated disruption in circadian rhythms likely underpins many adverse health effects of alcohol that cut across multiple organ systems. In this review, we provide an overview of the circadian clock mechanism and showcase results from new studies in the alcohol field implicating the circadian clock as a key target of alcohol action and toxicity in the liver. We discuss various molecular events through which alcohol may work to negatively impact circadian clock-mediated processes in the liver, and contribute to tissue pathology. Illuminating the mechanistic connections between the circadian clock and alcohol will be critical to the development of new preventative and pharmacological treatments for alcohol use disorders and alcohol-mediated organ diseases.
Assignment of circadian function for the Neurospora clock gene frequency
Merrow, Martha; Brunner, Michael; Roenneberg, Till
Circadian clocks consist of three elements: entrainment pathways (inputs), the mechanism generating the rhythmicity (oscillator), and the output pathways that control the circadian rhythms. It is difficult to assign molecular clock components to any one of these elements. Experiments show that input
Heritable circadian period length in a wild bird population
Helm, Barbara; Visser, Marcel E.
Timing is essential, but circadian clocks, which play a crucial role in timekeeping, are almost unaddressed in evolutionary ecology. A key property of circadian clocks is their free-running period length (tau), i.e. the time taken for a full cycle under constant conditions. Under laboratory conditio
Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)
Rajagopal I
Full Text Available The purpose of the study was to find out the effect of gender difference and circadian rhythm on total mood disturbance (TMD for volleyball players. METHODS: To achieve the purpose, a total of thirty volleyball players [men (n = 15 and women (n = 15] age between 19 years and 22 years from Einstein College of Engineering, Tamil Nadu, India were selected as subjects. The two independent variables of gender and circadian variations and dependent variable of total mood disturbance were selected for this study. The experimental design used was static group factorial design. The data were collected at 02:00, 06:00, 10:00, 14:00, 18:00 and 22:00 hours on total mood disturbance by using profile of mood state (POMS questionnaire during the academic year of 2009 – 2010. Collected data were subjected to statistical analysis by using two-way factorial (2 x 6 Analysis of Variance (ANOVA and Cosinor analysis. RESULTS: 1 There was significant difference in total mood disturbance between genders, 2 significant difference in total mood disturbance at different times of the day irrespective of gender status and 3 significant difference in total mood disturbance for men and women volleyball players at different times of the day. 4 Significant circadian rhythmicity exists on total mood disturbance for women and 5 Insignificant circadian rhythmicity exists on total mood disturbance for men. CONCLUSION: It is recommended to the physical educators to adopt the findings of this study while planning to improve sports skills for the players and athletes.
Rhythmic Degradation Explains and Unifies Circadian Transcriptome and Proteome Data
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Sarah Lück
Full Text Available The rich mammalian cellular circadian output affects thousands of genes in many cell types and has been the subject of genome-wide transcriptome and proteome studies. The results have been enigmatic because transcript peak abundances do not always follow the peaks of gene-expression activity in time. We posited that circadian degradation of mRNAs and proteins plays a pivotal role in setting their peak times. To establish guiding principles, we derived a theoretical framework that fully describes the amplitudes and phases of biomolecules with circadian half-lives. We were able to explain the circadian transcriptome and proteome studies with the same unifying theory, including cases in which transcripts or proteins appeared before the onset of increased production rates. Furthermore, we estimate that 30% of the circadian transcripts in mouse liver and Drosophila heads are affected by rhythmic posttranscriptional regulation.
Circadian rhythms in floral scent emission
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Myles eFenske
Full Text Available To successfully recruit pollinators, plants often release attractive floral scents at specific times of day to coincide with pollinator foraging. This timing of scent emission is thought to be evolutionarily beneficial to maximize resource efficiency while attracting only useful pollinators. Temporal regulation of scent emission is tied to the activity of the specific metabolic pathways responsible for scent production. Although floral volatile profiling in various plants indicated a contribution by the circadian clock, the mechanisms by which the circadian clock regulates timing of floral scent emission remained elusive. Recent studies using two species in the Solanaceae family provided initial insight into molecular clock regulation of scent emission timing. In Petunia hybrida, the benzenoid/phenylpropanoid (FVBP pathway is the major metabolic pathway that produces floral volatiles. Three MYB-type transcription factors, ODORANT1 (ODO1, EMISSION OF BENZENOIDS I (EOBI, and EOBII, all of which show diurnal rhythms in mRNA expression, act as positive regulators for several enzyme genes in the FVBP pathway. Recently, in P. hybrida and Nicotiana attenuata, homologs of the Arabidopsis clock gene LATE ELONGATED HYPOCOTYL (LHY have been shown to have a similar role in the circadian clock in these plants, and to also determine the timing of scent emission. In addition, in P. hybrida, PhLHY directly represses ODO1 and several enzyme genes in the FVBP pathway during the morning as an important negative regulator of scent emission. These findings facilitate our understanding of the relationship between a molecular timekeeper and the timing of scent emission, which may influence reproductive success.
Circadian molecular clock in lung pathophysiology.
Sundar, Isaac K; Yao, Hongwei; Sellix, Michael T; Rahman, Irfan
Disrupted daily or circadian rhythms of lung function and inflammatory responses are common features of chronic airway diseases. At the molecular level these circadian rhythms depend on the activity of an autoregulatory feedback loop oscillator of clock gene transcription factors, including the BMAL1:CLOCK activator complex and the repressors PERIOD and CRYPTOCHROME. The key nuclear receptors and transcription factors REV-ERBα and RORα regulate Bmal1 expression and provide stability to the oscillator. Circadian clock dysfunction is implicated in both immune and inflammatory responses to environmental, inflammatory, and infectious agents. Molecular clock function is altered by exposomes, tobacco smoke, lipopolysaccharide, hyperoxia, allergens, bleomycin, as well as bacterial and viral infections. The deacetylase Sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) regulates the timing of the clock through acetylation of BMAL1 and PER2 and controls the clock-dependent functions, which can also be affected by environmental stressors. Environmental agents and redox modulation may alter the levels of REV-ERBα and RORα in lung tissue in association with a heightened DNA damage response, cellular senescence, and inflammation. A reciprocal relationship exists between the molecular clock and immune/inflammatory responses in the lungs. Molecular clock function in lung cells may be used as a biomarker of disease severity and exacerbations or for assessing the efficacy of chronotherapy for disease management. Here, we provide a comprehensive overview of clock-controlled cellular and molecular functions in the lungs and highlight the repercussions of clock disruption on the pathophysiology of chronic airway diseases and their exacerbations. Furthermore, we highlight the potential for the molecular clock as a novel chronopharmacological target for the management of lung pathophysiology.
Circadian Kisspeptin expression in human term placenta.
de Pedro, M A; Morán, J; Díaz, I; Murias, L; Fernández-Plaza, C; González, C; Díaz, E
Kisspeptin is an essential gatekeeper of reproductive function. During pregnancy high circulating levels of kisspeptin have been described, however the clear role of this neuropeptide in pregnancy remains unknown. We tested the existence of rhythmic kisspeptin expression in human full-term placenta from healthy pregnant women at six different time points during the day. The data obtained by Western blotting were fitted to a mathematical model (Fourier series), demonstrating, for the first time, the existence of a circadian rhythm in placental kisspeptin expression.
Circadian behaviour in neuroglobin deficient mice
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Hundahl, Christian A; Fahrenkrug, Jan; Hay-Schmidt, Anders;
on circadian behavior. Ngb-deficient and wild-type (wt) mice were placed in running wheels and their activity rhythms, endogenous period and response to light stimuli were investigated. The effect of Ngb deficiency on the expression of Period1 (Per1) and the immediate early gene Fos was determined after light......-positive neurons. The present study demonstrates for the first time that the genetic elimination of Ngb does not affect core clock function but evokes an increased behavioural response to light concomitant with increased Per1 gene expression in the SCN at early night....
Circadian control of mouse heart rate and blood pressure by the suprachiasmatic nuclei: behavioral effects are more significant than direct outputs.
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W John Sheward
Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Diurnal variations in the incidence of events such as heart attack and stroke suggest a role for circadian rhythms in the etiology of cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN circadian clock on cardiovascular function. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Heart rate (HR, blood pressure (BP and locomotor activity (LA were measured in circadian mutant (Vipr2(-/- mice and wild type littermates, using implanted radio-telemetry devices. Sleep and wakefulness were studied in similar mice implanted with electroencephalograph (EEG electrodes. There was less diurnal variation in the frequency and duration of bouts of rest/activity and sleep/wake in Vipr2(-/- mice than in wild type (WT and short "ultradian" episodes of arousal were more prominent, especially in constant conditions (DD. Activity was an important determinant of circadian variation in BP and HR in animals of both genotypes; altered timing of episodes of activity and rest (as well as sleep and wakefulness across the day accounted for most of the difference between Vipr2(-/- mice and WT. However, there was also a modest circadian rhythm of resting HR and BP that was independent of LA. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: If appropriate methods of analysis are used that take into account sleep and locomotor activity level, mice are a good model for understanding the contribution of circadian timing to cardiovascular function. Future studies of the influence of sleep and wakefulness on cardiovascular physiology may help to explain accumulating evidence linking disrupted sleep with cardiovascular disease in man.
Diurnal and circadian regulation of a melatonin receptor, MT1, in the golden rabbitfish, Siganus guttatus.
Park, Yong-Ju; Park, Ji-Gweon; Hiyakawa, Nanae; Lee, Young-Don; Kim, Se-Jae; Takemura, Akihiro
The golden rabbitfish Siganus guttatus is a reef fish with a restricted lunar-synchronized spawning rhythmicity and releases gametes simultaneously around the first quarter moon period during the spawning season. In order to understand the molecular aspects of the "circa" rhythms in this species, the full-length melatonin receptor (MT1) cDNA was cloned, and its diurnal/circadian regulation was examined. The full-length MT1 cDNA (1257 bp) contained an open reading frame that encodes a protein of 350 amino acids; this protein is highly homologous to MT1 of nonmammalian species. A high expression of MT1 mRNA with a day-night difference was observed in the whole brain, retina, liver, and kidney. When diurnal variations in MT1 mRNA expression in the retina and whole brain were examined using real-time quantitative RT-PCR, an increase in the mRNA expression was observed during nighttime in both tissues under conditions of light/dark, constant darkness, and constant light. This suggests that MT1 mRNA expression is under circadian regulation. The expression of MT1 mRNA in the cultured pineal gland also showed diurnal variations with high expression levels during nighttime; this suggests that the increased expression level observed in the whole brain is partially of pineal origin. Alternation of light conditions in the pineal gland cultures resulted in the changes in melatonin release into the culture medium as well as MT1 mRNA expression in the pineal gland. The present results suggest that melatonin and its receptors play an important role in the exertion of daily and circadian variations in the neural tissues.
Sleep, Hormones, and Circadian Rhythms throughout the Menstrual Cycle in Healthy Women and Women with Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder
Ari Shechter; Boivin, Diane B.
A relationship exists between the sleep-wake cycle and hormone secretion, which, in women, is further modulated by the menstrual cycle. This interaction can influence sleep across the menstrual cycle in healthy women and in women with premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), who experience specific alterations of circadian rhythms during their symptomatic luteal phase along with sleep disturbances during this time. This review will address the variation of sleep at different menstrual phases i...
The transcription factor DBP affects circadian sleep consolidation and rhythmic EEG activity
Franken, Paulus; Lopez Molina, Luis; Marcacci, Lysiane; Schibler, Ulrich; Tafti, Mehdi
Albumin D-binding protein (DBP) is a PAR leucine zipper transcription factor that is expressed according to a robust circadian rhythm in the suprachiasmatic nuclei, harboring the circadian master clock, and in most peripheral tissues. Mice lacking DBP display a shorter circadian period in locomotor activity and are less active. Thus, although DBP is not essential for circadian rhythm generation, it does modulate important clock outputs. We studied the role of DBP in the circadian and homeosta...
Osmotic stress at the barley root affects expression of circadian clock genes in the shoot.
Habte, Ermias; Müller, Lukas M; Shtaya, Munqez; Davis, Seth J; von Korff, Maria
The circadian clock is an important timing system that controls physiological responses to abiotic stresses in plants. However, there is little information on the effects of the clock on stress adaptation in important crops, like barley. In addition, we do not know how osmotic stress perceived at the roots affect the shoot circadian clock. Barley genotypes, carrying natural variation at the photoperiod response and clock genes Ppd-H1 and HvELF3, were grown under control and osmotic stress conditions to record changes in the diurnal expression of clock and stress-response genes and in physiological traits. Variation at HvELF3 affected the expression phase and shape of clock and stress-response genes, while variation at Ppd-H1 only affected the expression levels of stress genes. Osmotic stress up-regulated expression of clock and stress-response genes and advanced their expression peaks. Clock genes controlled the expression of stress-response genes, but had minor effects on gas exchange and leaf transpiration. This study demonstrated that osmotic stress at the barley root altered clock gene expression in the shoot and acted as a spatial input signal into the clock. Unlike in Arabidopsis, barley primary assimilation was less controlled by the clock and more responsive to environmental perturbations, such as osmotic stress. PMID:24895755
Photoperiodic plasticity in circadian clock neurons in insects
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Sakiko eShiga
Full Text Available Since Bünning's observation of circadian rhythms and photoperiodism in the runner bean Phaseolus multiflorus in 1936, many studies have shown that photoperiodism is based on the circadian clock system. In insects, involvement of circadian clock genes or neurons has been recently shown in the photoperiodic control of developmental arrests, diapause. Based on molecular and neuronal studies in Drosophila melanogaster, photoperiodic changes have been reported for expression patterns of the circadian clock genes, subcellular distribution of clock proteins, fiber distribution, or the number of plausible clock neurons in different species. Photoperiod sets peaks of per or tim mRNA abundance at lights-off in Sarcophaga crassipalpis, Chymomyza costata and Protophormia terraenovae. Abundance of per and Clock mRNA changes by photoperiod in Pyrrhocoris apterus. Subcellular Per distribution in circadian clock neurons changes with photoperiod in P. terraenovae. Although photoperiodism is not known in Leucophaea maderae, under longer day length, more stomata and longer commissural fibers of circadian clock neurons have been found. These plastic changes in the circadian clock neurons could be an important constituent for photoperiodic clock mechanisms to integrate repetitive photoperiodic information and produce different outputs based on day length.
On the adaptive significance of circadian clocks for their owners.
Vaze, Koustubh M; Sharma, Vijay Kumar
Circadian rhythms are believed to be an evolutionary adaptation to daily environmental cycles resulting from Earth's rotation about its axis. A trait evolved through a process of natural selection is considered as adaptation; therefore, rigorous demonstration of adaptation requires evidence suggesting evolution of a trait by natural selection. Like any other adaptive trait, circadian rhythms are believed to be advantageous to living beings through some perceived function. Circadian rhythms are thought to confer advantage to their owners through scheduling of biological functions at appropriate time of daily environmental cycle (extrinsic advantage), coordination of internal physiology (intrinsic advantage), and through their role in responses to seasonal changes. So far, the adaptive value of circadian rhythms has been tested in several studies and evidence indeed suggests that they confer advantage to their owners. In this review, we have discussed the background for development of the framework currently used to test the hypothesis of adaptive significance of circadian rhythms. Critical examination of evidence reveals that there are several lacunae in our understanding of circadian rhythms as adaptation. Although it is well known that demonstrating a given trait as adaptation (or setting the necessary criteria) is not a trivial task, here we recommend some of the basic criteria and suggest the nature of evidence required to comprehensively understand circadian rhythms as adaptation. Thus, we hope to create some awareness that may benefit future studies in this direction.
A circadian rhythm regulating hyphal melanization in Cercospora kikuchii.
Bluhm, Burton H; Burnham, A Michele; Dunkle, Larry D
Many metabolic and developmental processes in fungi are controlled by biological rhythms. Circadian rhythms approximate a daily (24 h) cycle and have been thoroughly studied in the model fungus, Neurospora crassa. However relatively few examples of true circadian rhythms have been documented among other filamentous fungi. In this study we describe a circadian rhythm underlying hyphal melanization in Cercospora kikuchii, an important pathogen of soybean. After growth in light or light : dark cycles, colonies transferred to darkness produced zonate bands of melanized hyphae interspersed with bands of hyaline hyphae. Rhythmic production of bands was remarkably persistent in the absence of external cues, lasting at least 7 d after transfer to darkness, and was compensated over a range of temperatures. As in N. crassa, blue light but not red light was sufficient to entrain the circadian rhythm in C. kikuchii, and a putative ortholog of white collar-1, one of the genes required for light responses in N. crassa, was identified in C. kikuchii. Circadian regulation of melanization is conserved in other members of the genus: Similar rhythms were identified in another field isolate of C. kikuchii as well as field isolates of C. beticola and C. sorghi, but not in wild-type strains of C. zeae-maydis or C. zeina. This report represents the first documented circadian rhythm among Dothideomycete fungi and provides a new opportunity to dissect the molecular basis of circadian rhythms among filamentous fungi.
Circadian Role in Daily Pattern of Cardiovascular Risk
Ivanov, Plamen Ch.; Hu, Kun; Chen, Zhi; Hilton, Michael F.; Stanley, H. Eugene; Shea, Steven A.
Numerous epidemiological studies demonstrate that sudden cardiac death, pulmonary embolism, myocardial infarction, and stroke have a 24-hour daily pattern with a broad peak between 9-11am. Such a daily pattern in cardiovascular risk could be attributable to external factors, such as the daily behavior patterns, including sleep-wake cycles and activity levels, or internal factors, such as the endogenous circadian pacemaker. Findings of significant alternations in the temporal organization and nonlinear properties of heartbeat fluctuations with disease and with sleep-wake transitions raise the intriguing possibility that changes in the mechanism of control associated with behavioral sleep-wake transition may be responsible for the increased cardiac instability observed in particular circadian phases. Alternatively, we hypothesize that there is a circadian clock, independent of the sleep-wake cycle, which affects the cardiac dynamics leading to increased cardiovascular risk. We analyzed continuous recordings from healthy subjects during 7 cycles of forced desynchrony routine wherein subjects' sleep-wake cycles are adjusted to 28 hours so that their behaviors occur across all circadian phases. Heartbeat data were divided into one-hour segments. For each segment, we estimated the correlations and the nonlinear properties of the heartbeat fluctuations at the corresponding circadian phase. Since the sleep and wake contributions are equally weighted in our experiment, a change of the properties of the heartbeat dynamics with circadian phase suggest a circadian rhythm. We show significant circadian-mediated alterations in the correlation and nonlinear properties of the heartbeat resembling those observed in patients with heart failure. Remarkably, these dynamical alterations are centered at 60 degrees circadian phase, coinciding with the 9-11am window of cardiac risk.
Sleep Deprivation and Circadian Disruption: Stress, Allostasis, and Allostatic Load.
McEwen, Bruce S; Karatsoreos, Ilia N
Sleep has important homeostatic functions, and circadian rhythms organize physiology and behavior on a daily basis to insure optimal function. Sleep deprivation and circadian disruption can be stressors, enhancers of other stressors that have consequences for the brain and many body systems. Whether the origins of circadian disruption and sleep disruption and deprivation are from anxiety, depression, shift work, long-distance air travel, or a hectic lifestyle, there are consequences that impair brain functions and contribute to the cumulative wear and tear on body systems caused by too much stress and/or inefficient management of the systems that promote adaptation. PMID:26055668
[Directional hearing in relation to individual circadian biorhythm].
Karnicki, C
Acuity angle of the directional hearing was investigated in connection with the individual circadian rhythm. Two groups of 15 persons represented the morning and evening form of the circadian rhythm. Body temperature fixed the rhythm character. The evaluations of the angle acuity of the directional hearing were performed in the highest and the lowest point of body temperature as well as in the neutral point, which was determined in the morning group in the middle between the two extremes. The possibility of the sound localization in individual and linked with the body temperature circadian rhythm. PMID:2234972
Synchronization and entrainment of coupled circadian oscillators
Komin, Niko; Hernandez-Garcia, Emilio; Toral, Raul
Circadian rhythms in mammals are controlled by the neurons located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the hypothalamus. In physiological conditions, the system of neurons is very efficiently entrained by the 24-hour light-dark cycle. Most of the studies carried out so far emphasize the crucial role of the periodicity imposed by the light dark cycle in neuronal synchronization. Nevertheless, heterogeneity as a natural and permanent ingredient of these cellular interactions is seemingly to play a major role in these biochemical processes. In this paper we use a model that considers the neurons of the suprachiasmatic nucleus as chemically-coupled modified Goodwin oscillators, and introduce non-negligible heterogeneity in the periods of all neurons in the form of quenched noise. The system response to the light-dark cycle periodicity is studied as a function of the interneuronal coupling strength, external forcing amplitude and neuronal heterogeneity. Our results indicate that the right amount of heterogeneity hel...
Circadian control sheds light on fungal bioluminescence.
Oliveira, Anderson G; Stevani, Cassius V; Waldenmaier, Hans E; Viviani, Vadim; Emerson, Jillian M; Loros, Jennifer J; Dunlap, Jay C
Bioluminescence, the creation and emission of light by organisms, affords insight into the lives of organisms doing it. Luminous living things are widespread and access diverse mechanisms to generate and control luminescence [1-5]. Among the least studied bioluminescent organisms are phylogenetically rare fungi-only 71 species, all within the ∼ 9,000 fungi of the temperate and tropical Agaricales order-are reported from among ∼ 100,000 described fungal species [6, 7]. All require oxygen [8] and energy (NADH or NADPH) for bioluminescence and are reported to emit green light (λmax 530 nm) continuously, implying a metabolic function for bioluminescence, perhaps as a byproduct of oxidative metabolism in lignin degradation. Here, however, we report that bioluminescence from the mycelium of Neonothopanus gardneri is controlled by a temperature-compensated circadian clock, the result of cycles in content/activity of the luciferase, reductase, and luciferin that comprise the luminescent system. Because regulation implies an adaptive function for bioluminescence, a controversial question for more than two millennia [8-15], we examined interactions between luminescent fungi and insects [16]. Prosthetic acrylic resin "mushrooms," internally illuminated by a green LED emitting light similar to the bioluminescence, attract staphilinid rove beetles (coleopterans), as well as hemipterans (true bugs), dipterans (flies), and hymenopterans (wasps and ants), at numbers far greater than dark control traps. Thus, circadian control may optimize energy use for when bioluminescence is most visible, attracting insects that can in turn help in spore dispersal, thereby benefitting fungi growing under the forest canopy, where wind flow is greatly reduced.
Spectral sensitivity of the circadian system
Figueiro, Mariana G.; Bullough, John D.; Rea, Mark S.
Light exposure regulates several circadian functions in normal humans including the sleep-wake cycle. Individuals with Alzheimer"s Disease (AD) often do not have regular patterns of activity and rest, but, rather, experience random periods of sleep and agitation during both day and night. Bright light during the day and darkness at night has been shown to consolidate activity periods during the day and rest periods at night in AD patients. The important characteristics of bright light exposure (quantity, spectrum, distribution, timing and duration) for achieving these results in AD patients is not yet understood. Recent research has shown that moderate (~18 lx at the cornea) blue (~470 nm) light is effective at suppressing melatonin in normal humans. It was hypothesized that blue light applied just before AD patients retire to their beds for the night would have a measurable impact on their behavior. A pilot study was conducted for 30 days in a senior health care facility using four individuals diagnosed with mild to moderate levels of dementia. Four AD patients were exposed to arrays of blue light from light emitting diodes (max wavelength = 470 nm) in two-hour sessions (18:00 to 20:00 hours) for 10 days. As a control, they were exposed to red light (max wavelength = 640 nm) in two-hour sessions for 10 days prior to the blue light exposure. Despite the modest sample size, exposure to blue LEDs has shown to affect sleep quality and median body temperature peak of these AD patients. Median body temperature peak was delayed by approximately 2 hours after exposure to blue LEDs compared to exposure to red LEDs and sleep quality was improved. This pilot study demonstrated that light, especially LEDs, can be an important contribution to helping AD patients regulate their circadian functions.
Amplitude metrics for cellular circadian bioluminescence reporters.
St John, Peter C; Taylor, Stephanie R; Abel, John H; Doyle, Francis J
Bioluminescence rhythms from cellular reporters have become the most common method used to quantify oscillations in circadian gene expression. These experimental systems can reveal phase and amplitude change resulting from circadian disturbances, and can be used in conjunction with mathematical models to lend further insight into the mechanistic basis of clock amplitude regulation. However, bioluminescence experiments track the mean output from thousands of noisy, uncoupled oscillators, obscuring the direct effect of a given stimulus on the genetic regulatory network. In many cases, it is unclear whether changes in amplitude are due to individual changes in gene expression level or to a change in coherence of the population. Although such systems can be modeled using explicit stochastic simulations, these models are computationally cumbersome and limit analytical insight into the mechanisms of amplitude change. We therefore develop theoretical and computational tools to approximate the mean expression level in large populations of noninteracting oscillators, and further define computationally efficient amplitude response calculations to describe phase-dependent amplitude change. At the single-cell level, a mechanistic nonlinear ordinary differential equation model is used to calculate the transient response of each cell to a perturbation, whereas population-level dynamics are captured by coupling this detailed model to a phase density function. Our analysis reveals that amplitude changes mediated at either the individual-cell or the population level can be distinguished in tissue-level bioluminescence data without the need for single-cell measurements. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the method by modeling experimental bioluminescence profiles of light-sensitive fibroblasts, reconciling the conclusions of two seemingly contradictory studies. This modeling framework allows a direct comparison between in vitro bioluminescence experiments and in silico ordinary
Tissue-intrinsic dysfunction of circadian clock confers transplant arteriosclerosis.
Cheng, Bo; Anea, Ciprian B; Yao, Lin; Chen, Feng; Patel, Vijay; Merloiu, Ana; Pati, Paramita; Caldwell, R William; Fulton, David J; Rudic, R Daniel
The suprachiasmatic nucleus of the brain is the circadian center, relaying rhythmic environmental and behavioral information to peripheral tissues to control circadian physiology. As such, central clock dysfunction can alter systemic homeostasis to consequently impair peripheral physiology in a manner that is secondary to circadian malfunction. To determine the impact of circadian clock function in organ transplantation and dissect the influence of intrinsic tissue clocks versus extrinsic clocks, we implemented a blood vessel grafting approach to surgically assemble a chimeric mouse that was part wild-type (WT) and part circadian clock mutant. Arterial isografts from donor WT mice that had been anastamosed to common carotid arteries of recipient WT mice (WT:WT) exhibited no pathology in this syngeneic transplant strategy. Similarly, when WT grafts were anastamosed to mice with disrupted circadian clocks, the structural features of the WT grafts immersed in the milieu of circadian malfunction were normal and absent of lesions, comparable to WT:WT grafts. In contrast, aortic grafts from Bmal1 knockout (KO) or Period-2,3 double-KO mice transplanted into littermate control WT mice developed robust arteriosclerotic disease. These lesions observed in donor grafts of Bmal1-KO were associated with up-regulation in T-cell receptors, macrophages, and infiltrating cells in the vascular grafts, but were independent of hemodynamics and B and T cell-mediated immunity. These data demonstrate the significance of intrinsic tissue clocks as an autonomous influence in experimental models of arteriosclerotic disease, which may have implications with regard to the influence of circadian clock function in organ transplantation.
The circadian clock and cell cycle: Interconnected biological circuits
Masri, Selma; Cervantes, Marlene; Sassone-Corsi, Paolo
The circadian clock governs biological timekeeping on a systemic level, helping to regulate and maintain physiological processes, including endocrine and metabolic pathways with a periodicity of 24-hours. Disruption within the circadian clock machinery has been linked to numerous pathological conditions, including cancer, suggesting that clock-dependent regulation of the cell cycle is an essential control mechanism. This review will highlight recent advances on the 'gating' controls of the ci...
Comprehensive analysis of circadian periodic pattern in plant transcriptome
Ptitsyn Andrey
Abstract Background Circadian rhythm is a crucial factor in orchestration of plant physiology, keeping it in synchrony with the daylight cycle. Previous studies have reported that up to 16% of plant transcriptome are circadially expressed. Results Our studies of mammalian gene expression revealed circadian baseline oscillation in nearly 100% of genes. Here we present a comprehensive analysis of periodicity in two independent data sets. Application of the advanced algorithms and analytic appro...
Heritable circadian period length in a wild bird population
Helm, Barbara; Visser, Marcel E
Timing is essential, but circadian clocks, which play a crucial role in timekeeping, are almost unaddressed in evolutionary ecology. A key property of circadian clocks is their free-running period length (τ), i.e. the time taken for a full cycle under constant conditions. Under laboratory conditions, concordance of τ with the ambient light–dark cycle confers major fitness benefits, but little is known about period length and its implications in natural populations. We therefore studied natura...
Temperature as a universal resetting cue for mammalian circadian oscillators
Buhr, Ethan D.; Yoo, Seung-Hee; Takahashi, Joseph S.
Environmental temperature cycles are a universal entraining cue for all circadian systems at the organismal level with the exception of homeothermic vertebrates. We report here that resistance to temperature entrainment is a property of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) network and is not a cell autonomous property of mammalian clocks. This differential sensitivity to temperature allows the SCN to drive circadian rhythms in body temperature which can then act as a universal cue for the entrai...
Bajgar, Adam
This thesis considers various roles of circadian clock genes in insect physiology. Application of molecular-biology methods in Pyrrhocoris apterus, non-model insect species, enable us to investigate involvement of circadian clock genes in photoperiod induced physiological responses. We discover involvement of neuroendocrine cells, and a role of Juvenile hormone (JH) signalization in transduction of photoperiodic signalization to peripheral tissues. We found new principles of JH signal diversi...
The Melanocortin-4 Receptor Integrates Circadian Light Cues and Metabolism
Arble, Deanna M.; Holland, Jenna; Ottaway, Nickki; Sorrell, Joyce; Pressler, Joshua W.; Morano, Rachel; Woods, Stephen C.; Seeley, Randy J.; Herman, James P.; Sandoval, Darleen A.; Perez-Tilve, Diego
The melanocortin system directs diverse physiological functions from coat color to body weight homoeostasis. A commonality among melanocortin-mediated processes is that many animals modulate similar processes on a circannual basis in response to longer, summer days, suggesting an underlying link between circadian biology and the melanocortin system. Despite key neuroanatomical substrates shared by both circadian and melanocortin-signaling pathways, little is known about the relationship betwe...
Circadian Rhythms of Oxidative Stress Markers and Melatonin Metabolite in Patients with Xeroderma Pigmentosum Group A
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Rie Miyata
Full Text Available Xeroderma pigmentosum group A (XPA is a genetic disorder in DNA nucleotide excision repair (NER with severe neurological disorders, in which oxidative stress and disturbed melatonin metabolism may be involved. Herein we confirmed the diurnal variation of melatonin metabolites, oxidative stress markers, and antioxidant power in urine of patients with XPA and age-matched controls, using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA. The peak of 6-sulfatoxymelatonin, a metabolite of melatonin, was seen at 6:00 in both the XPA patients and controls, though the peak value is lower, specifically in the younger age group of XPA patients. The older XPA patients demonstrated an increase in the urinary levels of 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine and hexanoyl-lysine, a marker of oxidative DNA damage and lipid peroxidation, having a robust peak at 6:00 and 18:00, respectively. In addition, the urinary level of total antioxidant power was decreased in the older XPA patients. Recently, it is speculated that oxidative stress and antioxidant properties may have a diurnal variation, and the circadian rhythm is likely to influence the NER itself. We believe that the administration of melatonin has the possibility of ameliorating the augmented oxidative stress in neurodegeneration, especially in the older XPA patients, modulating the melatonin metabolism and the circadian rhythm.
Circadian Rhythms of Oxidative Stress Markers and Melatonin Metabolite in Patients with Xeroderma Pigmentosum Group A.
Miyata, Rie; Tanuma, Naoyuki; Sakuma, Hiroshi; Hayashi, Masaharu
Xeroderma pigmentosum group A (XPA) is a genetic disorder in DNA nucleotide excision repair (NER) with severe neurological disorders, in which oxidative stress and disturbed melatonin metabolism may be involved. Herein we confirmed the diurnal variation of melatonin metabolites, oxidative stress markers, and antioxidant power in urine of patients with XPA and age-matched controls, using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The peak of 6-sulfatoxymelatonin, a metabolite of melatonin, was seen at 6:00 in both the XPA patients and controls, though the peak value is lower, specifically in the younger age group of XPA patients. The older XPA patients demonstrated an increase in the urinary levels of 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine and hexanoyl-lysine, a marker of oxidative DNA damage and lipid peroxidation, having a robust peak at 6:00 and 18:00, respectively. In addition, the urinary level of total antioxidant power was decreased in the older XPA patients. Recently, it is speculated that oxidative stress and antioxidant properties may have a diurnal variation, and the circadian rhythm is likely to influence the NER itself. We believe that the administration of melatonin has the possibility of ameliorating the augmented oxidative stress in neurodegeneration, especially in the older XPA patients, modulating the melatonin metabolism and the circadian rhythm. PMID:27213030
Hippocampal-dependent learning requires a functional circadian system.
Ruby, Norman F; Hwang, Calvin E; Wessells, Colin; Fernandez, Fabian; Zhang, Pei; Sapolsky, Robert; Heller, H Craig
Decades of studies have shown that eliminating circadian rhythms of mammals does not compromise their health or longevity in the laboratory in any obvious way. These observations have raised questions about the functional significance of the mammalian circadian system, but have been difficult to address for lack of an appropriate animal model. Surgical ablation of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) and clock gene knockouts eliminate rhythms, but also damage adjacent brain regions or cause developmental effects that may impair cognitive or other physiological functions. We developed a method that avoids these problems and eliminates rhythms by noninvasive means in Siberian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus). The present study evaluated cognitive function in arrhythmic animals by using a hippocampal-dependent learning task. Control hamsters exhibited normal circadian modulation of performance in a delayed novel-object recognition task. By contrast, arrhythmic animals could not discriminate a novel object from a familiar one only 20 or 60 min after training. Memory performance was not related to prior sleep history as sleep manipulations had no effect on performance. The GABA antagonist pentylenetetrazol restored learning without restoring circadian rhythms. We conclude that the circadian system is involved in memory function in a manner that is independent of sleep. Circadian influence on learning may be exerted via cyclic GABA output from the SCN to target sites involved in learning. Arrhythmic hamsters may have failed to perform this task because of chronic inhibitory signaling from the SCN that interfered with the plastic mechanisms that encode learning in the hippocampus.
CCL2 mediates the circadian response to low dose endotoxin.
Duhart, José M; Brocardo, Lucila; Mul Fedele, Malena L; Guglielmotti, Angelo; Golombek, Diego A
The mammalian circadian system is mainly originated in a master oscillator located in the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN) in the hypothalamus. Previous reports from our and other groups have shown that the SCN are sensitive to systemic immune activation during the early night, through a mechanism that relies on the action of proinflammatory factors within this structure. Chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 2 (CCL2) is induced in the brain upon peripheral immune activation, and it has been shown to modulate neuronal physiology. In the present work we tested whether CCL2 might be involved in the response of the circadian clock to peripheral endotoxin administration. The CCL2 receptor, C-C chemokine receptor type 2 (CCR2), was detected in the SCN of mice, with higher levels of expression during the early night, when the clock is sensitive to immune activation. Ccl2 was induced in the SCN upon intraperitoneal lipopolysaccharide (LPS) administration. Furthermore, mice receiving an intracerebroventricular (Icv) administration of a CCL2 synthesis inhibitor (Bindarit), showed a reduction LPS-induced circadian phase changes and Icv delivery of CCL2 led to phase delays in the circadian clock. In addition, we tested the possibility that CCL2 might also be involved in the photic regulation of the clock. Icv administration of Bindarit did not modify the effects of light pulses on the circadian clock. In summary, we found that CCL2, acting at the SCN level is important for the circadian effects of immune activation. PMID:27178133
Circadian gating of neuronal functionality: a basis for iterative metaplasticity.
Iyer, Rajashekar; Wang, Tongfei A; Gillette, Martha U
Brain plasticity, the ability of the nervous system to encode experience, is a modulatory process leading to long-lasting structural and functional changes. Salient experiences induce plastic changes in neurons of the hippocampus, the basis of memory formation and recall. In the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), the central circadian (~24-h) clock, experience with light at night induces changes in neuronal state, leading to circadian plasticity. The SCN's endogenous ~24-h time-generator comprises a dynamic series of functional states, which gate plastic responses. This restricts light-induced alteration in SCN state-dynamics and outputs to the nighttime. Endogenously generated circadian oscillators coordinate the cyclic states of excitability and intracellular signaling molecules that prime SCN receptivity to plasticity signals, generating nightly windows of susceptibility. We propose that this constitutes a paradigm of ~24-h iterative metaplasticity, the repeated, patterned occurrence of susceptibility to induction of neuronal plasticity. We detail effectors permissive for the cyclic susceptibility to plasticity. We consider similarities of intracellular and membrane mechanisms underlying plasticity in SCN circadian plasticity and in hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP). The emerging prominence of the hippocampal circadian clock points to iterative metaplasticity in that tissue as well. Exploring these links holds great promise for understanding circadian shaping of synaptic plasticity, learning, and memory. PMID:25285070
Mammalian circadian clock and metabolism - the epigenetic link.
Bellet, Marina Maria; Sassone-Corsi, Paolo
Circadian rhythms regulate a wide variety of physiological and metabolic processes. The clock machinery comprises complex transcriptional-translational feedback loops that, through the action of specific transcription factors, modulate the expression of as many as 10% of cellular transcripts. This marked change in gene expression necessarily implicates a global regulation of chromatin remodeling. Indeed, various descriptive studies have indicated that histone modifications occur at promoters of clock-controlled genes (CCGs) in a circadian manner. The finding that CLOCK, a transcription factor crucial for circadian function, has intrinsic histone acetyl transferase (HAT) activity has paved the way to unraveling the molecular mechanisms that govern circadian chromatin remodeling. A search for the histone deacetylase (HDAC) that counterbalances CLOCK activity revealed that SIRT1, a nicotinamide adenin dinucleotide (NAD(+))-dependent HDAC, functions in a circadian manner. Importantly, SIRT1 is a regulator of aging, inflammation and metabolism. As many transcripts that oscillate in mammalian peripheral tissues encode proteins that have central roles in metabolic processes, these findings establish a functional and molecular link between energy balance, chromatin remodeling and circadian physiology. Here we review recent studies that support the existence of this link and discuss their implications for understanding mammalian physiology and pathology. PMID:21048160
Circadian dysfunction in a rotenone-induced parkinsonian rodent model.
Lax, Pedro; Esquiva, Gema; Esteve-Rudd, Julian; Otalora, Beatriz Baño; Madrid, Juan Antonio; Cuenca, Nicolás
Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder that also involves circadian rhythm alterations. Modifications of circadian rhythm parameters have been shown to occur in both PD patients and toxin-induced PD animal models. In the latter case, rotenone, a potent inhibitor of mitochondrial complex I (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide [NADH]-quinone reductase), has been used to elicit degeneration of dopaminergic neurons and development of parkinsonian syndrome. The present work addresses alterations induced by rotenone on both locomotor and body temperature circadian rhythms in rats. Rotenone-treated rats exhibited abnormalities in equilibrium, postural instability, and involuntary movements. Long-term subcutaneous administration of rotenone significantly reduced mean daily locomotor activity in most animals. During rotenone administration, mean body temperatures (BTs) and BT rhythm amplitudes were significantly lower than those observed in the control group. After long-term rotenone administration, the circadian rhythms of both locomotor activity (LA) and BT displayed decreased amplitudes, lower interdaily phase stability, and higher rhythm fragmentation, as compared to the control rats. The magnitude of the LA and BT circadian rhythm alterations induced by rotenone positively correlated with degree of motor impairment. These results indicate that rotenone induces circadian dysfunction in rats through some of the same mechanisms as those responsible for the development of motor disturbances.
Circadian disruption and breast cancer: an epigenetic link?
Kochan, David Z; Kovalchuk, Olga
Breast cancer is already the most common malignancy affecting women worldwide, and evidence is mounting that breast cancer induced by circadian disruption (CD) is a warranted concern. Numerous studies have investigated various aspects of the circadian clock in relation to breast cancer, and evidence from these studies indicates that melatonin and the core clock genes can play a crucial role in breast cancer development. Even though epigenetics has been increasingly recognized as a key player in the etiology of breast cancer and linked to circadian rhythms, and there is evidence of overlap between epigenetic deregulation and breast cancer induced by circadian disruption, only a handful of studies have directly investigated the role of epigenetics in CD-induced breast cancer. This review explores the circadian clock and breast cancer, and the growing role of epigenetics in breast cancer development and circadian rhythms. We also summarize the current knowledge and next steps for the investigation of the epigenetic link in CD-induced breast cancer. PMID:26220712
Melanopsin Gene Variations Interact With Season to Predict Sleep Onset and Chronotype
Roecklein, Kathryn A.; Wong, Patricia M.; Franzen, Peter L.; HASLER, BRANT P.; Wood-Vasey, W. Michael; Nimgaonkar, Vishwajit L.; Miller, Megan A.; Kepreos, Kyle M.; Ferrell, Robert E.; Manuck, Stephen B.
The human melanopsin gene has been reported to mediate risk for seasonal affective disorder (SAD), which is hypothesized to be caused by decreased photic input during winter when light levels fall below threshold, resulting in differences in circadian phase and/or sleep. However, it is unclear if melanopsin increases risk of SAD by causing differences in sleep or circadian phase, or if those differences are symptoms of the mood disorder. To determine if melanopsin sequence variations are asso...
Glucocorticoids mediate circadian timing in peripheral osteoclasts resulting in the circadian expression rhythm of osteoclast-related genes.
Fujihara, Yuko; Kondo, Hisataka; Noguchi, Toshihide; Togari, Akifumi
Circadian rhythms are prevalent in bone metabolism. However, the molecular mechanisms involved are poorly understood. Recently, we suggested that output signals from the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) are transmitted from the master circadian rhythm to peripheral osteoblasts through β-adrenergic and glucocorticoid signaling. In this study, we examined how the master circadian rhythm is transmitted to peripheral osteoclasts and the role of clock gene in osteoclast. Mice were maintained under 12-hour light/dark periods and sacrificed at Zeitgeber times 0, 4, 8, 12, 16 and 20. mRNA was extracted from femur (cancellous bone) and analyzed for the expression of osteoclast-related genes and clock genes. Osteoclast-related genes such as cathepsin K (CTSK) and nuclear factor of activated T-cells, cytoplasmic 1 (NFATc1) showed circadian rhythmicity like clock genes such as period 1 (PER1), PER2 and brain and muscle Arnt-like protein 1 (BMAL1). In an in vitro study, not β-agonist but glucocorticoid treatment remarkably synchronized clock and osteoclast-related genes in cultured osteoclasts. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assay showed the interaction between BMAL1 proteins and promoter region of CTSK and NFATc1. To examine whether endogenous glucocorticoids influence the osteoclast circadian rhythms, mice were adrenalectomized (ADX) and maintained under 12-hour light/dark periods at least two weeks before glucocorticoid injection. A glucocorticoid injection restarted the circadian expression of CTSK and NFATc1 in ADX mice. These results suggest that glucocorticoids mediate circadian timing to peripheral osteoclasts and osteoclast clock contributes to the circadian expression of osteoclast-related genes such as CTSK and NFATc1.
Circadian expression of clock genes and angiotensin Ⅱ type 1 receptors in suprachiasmatic nuclei of sinoaortic-denervated rats
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)
Hui LI; Ning-ling SUN; Jin WANG; Ai-jun LIU; Ding-feng SU
Aim: To investigate whether the circadian expression of central clock genes and angiotensin Ⅱ type 1 (AT1) receptors was altered in sinoaortic-denervated (SAD)rats. Methods: Male Sprague-Dawley rats underwent sinoaortic denervation or a sham operation at the age of 12 weeks. Four weeks after the operation, blood pressure and heart period were measured in the conscious state in a group of sham-operated (n=10) and SAD rats (n=9). Rest SAD and sham-operated rats were divided into 6 groups (n=6 in each group). The suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN)tissues were taken every 4 h throughout the day from each group for the determi-nation of the mRNA expression of clock genes (Per2 and Bmall) and the AT1receptor by RT-PCR; the protein expression of Per2 and Bmall was determined by Western blotting. Results: Blood pressure levels in the SAD rats were similar to those of the sham-operated rats. However, blood pressure variabilities signifi-cantly increased in the SAD rats compared with the sham-operated rats. The circadian variation of clock genes in the SCN of the sham-operated rats was char-acterized by a marked increase in the mRNA and protein expression during dark periods. Per2 and Bmall mRNA levels were significantly lower in the SAD rats,especially during dark periods. Western blot analysis confirmed an attenuation of the circadian rhythm of the 2 clock proteins in the SCN of the SAD rats. AT1 receptor mRNA expressions in the SCN were abnormally upregulated in the light phase, changed to a 12-h cycle in the SAD rats. Conclusion: The circadian varia-tion of the 2 central clock genes was attenuated in the SAD rats. Arterial baroreflex dysfunction also induced a disturbance in the expression of AT1 receptors in the SCN.
Metabolic Profiling of Intact Arabidopsis thaliana Leaves during Circadian Cycle Using 1H High Resolution Magic Angle Spinning NMR
van Schadewijk, R.; de Groot, H. J. M.; Alia, A.
Arabidopsis thaliana is the most widely used model organism for research in plant biology. While significant advances in understanding plant growth and development have been made by focusing on the molecular genetics of Arabidopsis, extracting and understanding the functional framework of metabolism is challenging, both from a technical perspective due to losses and modification during extraction of metabolites from the leaves, and from the biological perspective, due to random variation obscuring how well the function is performed. The purpose of this work is to establish the in vivo metabolic profile directly from the Arabidopsis thaliana leaves without metabolite extraction, to reduce the complexity of the results by multivariate analysis, and to unravel the mitigation of cellular complexity by predominant functional periodicity. To achieve this, we use the circadian cycle that strongly influences metabolic and physiological processes and exerts control over the photosynthetic machinery. High resolution-magic angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance (HR-MAS NMR) was applied to obtain the metabolic profile directly from intact Arabidopsis leaves. Combining one- and two-dimensional 1H HR-MAS NMR allowed the identification of several metabolites including sugars and amino acids in intact leaves. Multivariate analysis on HR-MAS NMR spectra of leaves throughout the circadian cycle revealed modules of primary metabolites with significant and consistent variations of their molecular components at different time points of the circadian cycle. Since robust photosynthetic performance in plants relies on the functional periodicity of the circadian rhythm, our results show that HR-MAS NMR promises to be an important non-invasive method that can be used for metabolomics of the Arabidopsis thaliana mutants with altered physiology and photosynthetic efficiency. PMID:27662620
Diurnal variation of hepatic antioxidant gene expression in mice.
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Yi-Qiao Xu
Full Text Available BACKGROUND: This study was aimed to examine circadian variations of hepatic antioxidant components, including the Nrf2- pathway, the glutathione (GSH system, antioxidant enzymes and metallothionein in mouse liver. METHODS AND RESULTS: Adult mice were housed in light- and temperature-controlled facilities for 2 weeks, and livers were collected every 4 h during the 24 h period. Total RNA was isolated, purified, and subjected to real-time RT-PCR analysis. Hepatic mRNA levels of Nrf2, Keap1, Nqo1 and Gclc were higher in the light-phase than the dark-phase, and were female-predominant. Hepatic GSH presented marked circadian fluctuations, along with glutathione S-transferases (GST-α1, GST-µ, GST-π and glutathione peroxidase (GPx1. The expressions of GPx1, GST-µ and GST-π mRNA were also higher in females. Antioxidant enzymes Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (Sod1, catalase (CAT, cyclooxygenase-2 (Cox-2 and heme oxygenase-1 (Ho-1 showed circadian rhythms, with higher expressions of Cox-2 and CAT in females. Metallothionein, a small non-enzymatic antioxidant protein, showed dramatic circadian variation in males, but higher expression in females. The circadian variations of the clock gene Brain and Muscle Arnt-like Protein-1(Bmal1, albumin site D-binding protein (Dbp, nuclear receptor Rev-Erbα (Nr1d1, period protein (Per1 and Per2 and cryptochrome 1(Cry1 were in agreement with the literature. Furthermore, acetaminophen hepatotoxicity is more severe when administered in the afternoon when hepatic GSH was lowest. CONCLUSIONS: Circadian variations and gender differences in transcript levels of antioxidant genes exist in mouse liver, which could affect body responses to oxidative stress at different times of the day.
Circadian disturbances after night-shift work onboard a naval ship.
Goh, V H; Tong, T Y; Lim, C L; Low, E C; Lee, L K
The aim of the present study was to investigate how night duties can affect the circadian rhythms of military personnel working onboard a naval ship. Twenty individuals on a regular day-work schedule from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. (serving as controls) and 40 individuals on night-shift duties participated in the study. Salivary melatonin and cortisol profiles were established within two 24-hour periods from 2-hour saliva samplings. Under the condition of abrupt shift in work/rest schedule, the majority of the navy officers (52%) retained their normal melatonin profiles. Twelve percent displayed a right phase shift in melatonin rhythm after night work. Nineteen percent exhibited distortions in the form of abnormal peaks or troughs, and 17% showed signs of disrupted rhythm in the form of low daytime levels of melatonin throughout the sampling period. No consistent relationship was found between the melatonin changes and various work stations of the ship. Prominent changes in the cortisol profile included unexpected peaks or troughs that may be related to the conditions that individuals were exposed to, i.e., high noise level in the engine room, as well as to performing intense tracking operations. The findings of this study (1) show the possible detrimental effects of shift duties on circadian rhythms, (2) highlight a wide interindividual variation in the manner in which the circadian systems respond to an abrupt phase shift in work/rest schedules, and (3) form the basis for further investigations into effective strategies to help military personnel cope with shift work, thereby maintaining health and high working standards while on duty.
Circadian disturbances after night-shift work onboard a naval ship.
Goh, V H; Tong, T Y; Lim, C L; Low, E C; Lee, L K
The aim of the present study was to investigate how night duties can affect the circadian rhythms of military personnel working onboard a naval ship. Twenty individuals on a regular day-work schedule from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. (serving as controls) and 40 individuals on night-shift duties participated in the study. Salivary melatonin and cortisol profiles were established within two 24-hour periods from 2-hour saliva samplings. Under the condition of abrupt shift in work/rest schedule, the majority of the navy officers (52%) retained their normal melatonin profiles. Twelve percent displayed a right phase shift in melatonin rhythm after night work. Nineteen percent exhibited distortions in the form of abnormal peaks or troughs, and 17% showed signs of disrupted rhythm in the form of low daytime levels of melatonin throughout the sampling period. No consistent relationship was found between the melatonin changes and various work stations of the ship. Prominent changes in the cortisol profile included unexpected peaks or troughs that may be related to the conditions that individuals were exposed to, i.e., high noise level in the engine room, as well as to performing intense tracking operations. The findings of this study (1) show the possible detrimental effects of shift duties on circadian rhythms, (2) highlight a wide interindividual variation in the manner in which the circadian systems respond to an abrupt phase shift in work/rest schedules, and (3) form the basis for further investigations into effective strategies to help military personnel cope with shift work, thereby maintaining health and high working standards while on duty. PMID:10709369
'The clocks that time us'-circadian rhythms in neurodegenerative disorders
Videnovic, A.; Lazar, A.S.; Barker, R.A.; Overeem, S.
Circadian rhythms are physiological and behavioural cycles generated by an endogenous biological clock, the suprachiasmatic nucleus. The circadian system influences the majority of physiological processes, including sleep-wake homeostasis. Impaired sleep and alertness are common symptoms of neurodeg
Interactions between the circadian clock and metabolism: there are good times and bad times
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)
Mi Shi; Xiangzhong Zheng
An endogenous circadian (~24 h) clock regulates rhythmic processes of physiology,metabolism and behavior in most living organisms.While able to free-run under constant conditions,the circadian clock is coupled to day:night cycles to increase its amplitude and align the phase of circadian rhythms to the right time of the day.Disruptions of the circadian clock are correlated with brain dysfunctions,cardiovascular diseases and metabolic disorders.In this review,we focus on the interactions between the circadian clock and metabolism.We discuss recent findings on circadian clock regulation of feeding behavior and rhythmic expression of metabolic genes,and present evidence of metabolic input to the circadian clock.We emphasize how misalignment of circadian clocks within the body and with environmental cycles or daily schedules leads to the increasing prevalence of metabolic syndromes in modern society.
Variations of biorhythm composition in healthy people
Aptikaeva, O. I.; Gamburtsev, A. G.; Stepanova, S. I.
We have investigated variations in the spectral composition of some physiological characteristics (heart rate, sublingual temperature, potassium renal excretion, and respiratory rate). It has been shown that, in regular social and domestic conditions, the human responses to permanently changing external influences are different and depend on their individual adaptation ability. Some test subjects show a prevalence of the major circadian rhythm in the rhythmic composition of physiological characteristics, which stays almost unchanged under significant variations in external factors; other test subjects are characterized by a rapid change in the rhythmic composition following variations, for example, of solar activity; for a third type of test subject, this change occurs with a significant time delay.
Human Peripheral Clocks: Applications for Studying Circadian Phenotypes in Physiology and Pathophysiology
Saini, Camille; Brown, Steven A.; Dibner, Charna
Most light-sensitive organisms on earth have acquired an internal system of circadian clocks allowing the anticipation of light or darkness. In humans, the circadian system governs nearly all aspects of physiology and behavior. Circadian phenotypes, including chronotype, vary dramatically among individuals and over individual lifespan. Recent studies have revealed that the characteristics of human skin fibroblast clocks correlate with donor chronotype. Given the complexity of circadian phenot...
Circadian Rhythms and Mood Disorders: Are the Phenomena and Mechanisms Causally Related?
Bechtel, William
This paper reviews some of the compelling evidence of disrupted circadian rhythms in individuals with mood disorders (major depressive disorder, seasonal affective disorder, and bipolar disorder) and that treatments such as bright light, designed to alter circadian rhythms, are effective in treating these disorders. Neurotransmitters in brain regions implicated in mood regulation exhibit circadian rhythms. A mouse model originally employed to identify a circadian gene has proven a potent mode...
Circadian Rhythms and Mood Disorders: Are The Phenomena and Mechanisms Causally Related?
William eBechtel
This paper reviews some of the compelling evidence of disrupted circadian rhythms in individuals with mood disorders (major depressive disorder, seasonal affective disorder, and bipolar disorder) and that treatments such as bright light, designed to alter circadian rhythms, are effective in treating these disorders. Neurotransmitters in brain regions implicated in mood regulation exhibit circadian rhythms. A mouse model originally employed to identify a circadian gene has proven a potent mode...
Circadian rhythm profiles in women with night eating syndrome.
Goel, Namni; Stunkard, Albert J; Rogers, Naomi L; Van Dongen, Hans P A; Allison, Kelly C; O'Reardon, John P; Ahima, Rexford S; Cummings, David E; Heo, Moonseong; Dinges, David F
Night eating syndrome (NES) is characterized by evening hyperphagia and frequent awakenings accompanied by food intake. Patients with NES display a delayed circadian pattern of food intake but retain a normal sleep-wake cycle. These characteristics initiated the current study, in which the phase and amplitude of behavioral and neuroendocrine circadian rhythms in patients with NES were evaluated. Fifteen women with NES (mean age +/- SD, 40.8 +/- 8.7 y) and 14 control subjects (38.6 +/- 9.5 y) were studied in the laboratory for 3 nights, with food intake measured daily. Blood also was collected for 25 h (every 2 h from 0800 to 2000 h, and then hourly from 2100 to 0900 h) and assayed for glucose and 7 hormones (insulin, ghrelin, leptin, melatonin, cortisol, thyroid-stimulating hormone [TSH] and prolactin). Statistical analyses utilized linear mixed-effects cosinor analysis. Control subjects displayed normal phases and amplitudes for all circadian rhythms. In contrast, patients with NES showed a phase delay in the timing of meals, and delayed circadian rhythms for total caloric, fat, and carbohydrate intake. In addition, phase delays of 1.0 to 2.8 h were found in 2 food-regulatory rhythms-leptin and insulin-and in the circadian melatonin rhythm (with a trend for a delay in the circadian cortisol rhythm). In contrast, circulating levels of ghrelin, the primary hormone that stimulates food intake, were phase advanced by 5.2 h. The glucose rhythm showed an inverted circadian pattern. Patients with NES also showed reduced amplitudes in the circadian rhythms of food intake, cortisol, ghrelin, and insulin, but increased TSH amplitude. Thus, patients with NES demonstrated significant changes in the timing and amplitude of various behavioral and physiological circadian markers involved in appetite and neuroendocrine regulation. As such, NES may result from dissociations between central (suprachiasmatic nucleus) timing mechanisms and putative oscillators elsewhere in the
Sleep disturbances and circadian CLOCK genes in borderline personality disorder.
Fleischer, Monika; Schäfer, Michael; Coogan, Andrew; Häßler, Frank; Thome, Johannes
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is characterised by a deep-reaching pattern of affective instability, incoherent identity, self-injury, suicide attempts, and disturbed interpersonal relations and lifestyle. The daily activities of BPD patients are often chaotic and disorganized, with patients often staying up late while sleeping during the day. These behavioural patterns suggest that altered circadian rhythms may be associated with BPD. Furthermore, BPD patients frequently report suffering from sleep disturbances. In this review, we overview the evidence that circadian rhythms and sleep are disturbed in BPD, and we explore the possibility that personality traits that are pertinent for BPD may be associated with circadian typology, and perhaps to circadian genotypes. With regards to sleep architecture, we review the evidence that BPD patients display altered non-REM and REM sleep. A possible cue to a deeper understanding of this temporal dysregulation might be an analysis of the circadian clock at the molecular and cellular level, as well as behavioural studies using actigraphy and we suggest avenues for further exploration of these factors. PMID:22806005
When clocks go bad: neurobehavioural consequences of disrupted circadian timing.
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Alun R Barnard
Full Text Available Progress in unravelling the cellular and molecular basis of mammalian circadian regulation over the past decade has provided us with new avenues through which we can explore central nervous system disease. Deteriorations in measurable circadian output parameters, such as sleep/wake deficits and dysregulation of circulating hormone levels, are common features of most central nervous system disorders. At the core of the mammalian circadian system is a complex of molecular oscillations within the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nucleus. These oscillations are modifiable by afferent signals from the environment, and integrated signals are subsequently conveyed to remote central neural circuits where specific output rhythms are regulated. Mutations in circadian genes in mice can disturb both molecular oscillations and measurable output rhythms. Moreover, systematic analysis of these mutants indicates that they can express an array of abnormal behavioural phenotypes that are intermediate signatures of central nervous system disorders. Furthermore, the response of these mutants to psychoactive drugs suggests that clock genes can modify a number of the brain's critical neurotransmitter systems. This evidence has led to promising investigations into clock gene polymorphisms in psychiatric disease. Preliminary indications favour the systematic investigation of the contribution of circadian genes to central nervous system disease.
Dynamical mechanism of circadian singularity behavior in Neurospora
Sun, Maorong; Wang, Yi; Xu, Xin; Yang, Ling
Many organisms have oscillators with a period of about 24 hours, called "circadian clocks". They employ negative biochemical feedback loops that are self-contained within a single cell (requiring no cell-to-cell interaction). Circadian singularity behavior is a phenomenon of the abolishment of circadian rhythmicities by a critical stimulus. These behaviors have been found experimentally in Neurospora, human and hamster, by temperature step-up or light pulse. Two alternative models have been proposed to explain this phenomenon: desynchronization of cell populations, and loss of oscillations in all cells by resetting each cell close to a steady state. In this work, we use a mathematical model to investigate the dynamical mechanism of circadian singularity behavior in Neurospora. Our findings suggest that the arrhythmic behavior after the critical stimulus is caused by the collaboration of the desynchronization and the loss of oscillation amplitude. More importantly, we found that the stable manifold of the unstable equilibrium point, instead of the steady state itself, plays a crucial role in circadian singularity behavior.
Analysis of the redox oscillations in the circadian clockwork
Milev, Nikolay B.; Rey, Guillaume; Valekunja, Utham K.; Edgar, Rachel S.; O'Neill, John S.; Reddy, Akhilesh B.
The evolution of tight coupling between the circadian system and redox homeostasis of the cell has been proposed to coincide roughly with the appearance of the first aerobic organisms, around 3 billion years ago. The rhythmic production of oxygen and its effect on core metabolism are thought to have exerted selective pressure for the temporal segregation of numerous metabolic pathways. Until recently, the only evidence for such coupling came from studies showing circadian cycles in the abundance of various redox metabolites, with many arguing that these oscillations are simply an output from the transcription/translation-feedback loop (TTFL). The recent discovery that the peroxiredoxin (PRX) proteins exhibit circadian cycles in their oxidation status, even in the absence of transcription, demonstrated the existence of autonomous oscillations in the redox status of the cell. The PRXs are a family of cellular thiol peroxidases whose abundance and high reaction rate make them the major cellular sink for cellular peroxides. Interestingly, as part of the normal catalytic cycle, PRXs become inactivated by their own substrate via over-oxidation of the catalytic residue, with the inactivated form of the enzyme displaying circadian accumulation. Here, we describe the biochemical properties of the PRX system, with particular emphasis on the features important for the experimental analysis of these enzymes. We will also present a detailed protocol for measuring PRX over-oxidation across circadian time in adherent cell cultures, red blood cells and fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster), providing practical suggestions for ensuring consistency and reproducibility of the results. PMID:25707278
Circadian typology and emotional intelligence in healthy adults.
Antúnez, Juan Manuel; Navarro, José Francisco; Adan, Ana
Several aspects related to health, such as satisfaction with life, perceived well-being, and psychopathological symptomatology have been associated with circadian typology and with emotional intelligence. Nevertheless, the relationships between circadian typology and emotional intelligence have not been explored yet. The purpose of the present study is to examine the relationships between circadian typology and emotional intelligence, taking into account the possible interactions between sex and physical exercise, and controlling for age. A sample of 1011 participants (649 women), aged between 18 and 50 yrs (26.92 ± 6.53) completed the reduced Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire (rMEQ) and the Trait Meta-Mood Scale-24 (TMMS-24). The TMMS-24 considers three dimensions of emotional intelligence: emotional attention, emotional clarity, and emotional repair. Women showed higher values for emotional attention, whereas men showed higher values for emotional repair (p physical exercise weekly showed higher values for emotional repair (p = 0.001) regardless of circadian typology or sex. Circadian typology presents differences in all scores of emotional intelligence dimensions. Morning-type had lower emotional attention than evening- and neither-type; neither-type had lower emotional repair than morning-type, and lower emotional clarity than both evening- and morning-type (p intelligence we can conclude that morning typology may be a protective factor in terms of general health, whereas we should be aware that the neither-type may present a possible vulnerability to develop psychological problems.
GRK2: putting the brakes on the circadian clock
Mendoza-Viveros, Lucia; Cheng, Arthur H.
G protein-coupled receptor kinases (GRKs) are a family of serine/threonine protein kinases that terminate G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) signaling by phosphorylating the receptor and inducing its internalization. In addition to their canonical function, some GRKs can phosphorylate non-GPCR substrates and regulate GPCR signaling in a kinase-independent manner. GPCRs are abundantly expressed in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), a structure in the mammalian brain that serves as the central circadian pacemaker. Various facets of circadian timekeeping are under the influence of GPCR signaling, and thus are potential targets for GRK regulation. Despite this, little attention has been given to the role of GRKs in circadian rhythms. In this research highlight, we discuss our latest findings on the functional involvement of GRK2 in mammalian circadian timekeeping in the SCN. Using grk2 knockout mice, we demonstrate that GRK2 is critical for maintaining proper clock speed and ensuring that the clock is appropriately synchronized to environmental light cycles. Although grk2 deficiency expectedly alters the expression of a key GPCR in the SCN, our study also reveals that GRK2 has a more direct function that touches the heart of the circadian clock. PMID:27088110
Circadian dynamics in measures of cortical excitation and inhibition balance.
Chellappa, Sarah L; Gaggioni, Giulia; Ly, Julien Q M; Papachilleos, Soterios; Borsu, Chloé; Brzozowski, Alexandre; Rosanova, Mario; Sarasso, Simone; Luxen, André; Middleton, Benita; Archer, Simon N; Dijk, Derk-Jan; Massimini, Marcello; Maquet, Pierre; Phillips, Christophe; Moran, Rosalyn J; Vandewalle, Gilles
Several neuropsychiatric and neurological disorders have recently been characterized as dysfunctions arising from a 'final common pathway' of imbalanced excitation to inhibition within cortical networks. How the regulation of a cortical E/I ratio is affected by sleep and the circadian rhythm however, remains to be established. Here we addressed this issue through the analyses of TMS-evoked responses recorded over a 29 h sleep deprivation protocol conducted in young and healthy volunteers. Spectral analyses of TMS-evoked responses in frontal cortex revealed non-linear changes in gamma band evoked oscillations, compatible with an influence of circadian timing on inhibitory interneuron activity. In silico inferences of cell-to-cell excitatory and inhibitory connectivity and GABA/Glutamate receptor time constant based on neural mass modeling within the Dynamic causal modeling framework, further suggested excitation/inhibition balance was under a strong circadian influence. These results indicate that circadian changes in EEG spectral properties, in measure of excitatory/inhibitory connectivity and in GABA/glutamate receptor function could support the maintenance of cognitive performance during a normal waking day, but also during overnight wakefulness. More generally, these findings demonstrate a slow daily regulation of cortical excitation/inhibition balance, which depends on circadian-timing and prior sleep-wake history. PMID:27651114
Temperature regulates transcription in the zebrafish circadian clock.
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Full Text Available It has been well-documented that temperature influences key aspects of the circadian clock. Temperature cycles entrain the clock, while the period length of the circadian cycle is adjusted so that it remains relatively constant over a wide range of temperatures (temperature compensation. In vertebrates, the molecular basis of these properties is poorly understood. Here, using the zebrafish as an ectothermic model, we demonstrate first that in the absence of light, exposure of embryos and primary cell lines to temperature cycles entrains circadian rhythms of clock gene expression. Temperature steps drive changes in the basal expression of certain clock genes in a gene-specific manner, a mechanism potentially contributing to entrainment. In the case of the per4 gene, while E-box promoter elements mediate circadian clock regulation, they do not direct the temperature-driven changes in transcription. Second, by studying E-box-regulated transcription as a reporter of the core clock mechanism, we reveal that the zebrafish clock is temperature-compensated. In addition, temperature strongly influences the amplitude of circadian transcriptional rhythms during and following entrainment by light-dark cycles, a property that could confer temperature compensation. Finally, we show temperature-dependent changes in the expression levels, phosphorylation, and function of the clock protein, CLK. This suggests a mechanism that could account for changes in the amplitude of the E-box-directed rhythm. Together, our results imply that several key transcriptional regulatory elements at the core of the zebrafish clock respond to temperature.
Adverse metabolic and cardiovascular consequences of circadian misalignment.
Scheer, Frank A J L; Hilton, Michael F; Mantzoros, Christos S; Shea, Steven A
There is considerable epidemiological evidence that shift work is associated with increased risk for obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, perhaps the result of physiologic maladaptation to chronically sleeping and eating at abnormal circadian times. To begin to understand underlying mechanisms, we determined the effects of such misalignment between behavioral cycles (fasting/feeding and sleep/wake cycles) and endogenous circadian cycles on metabolic, autonomic, and endocrine predictors of obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular risk. Ten adults (5 female) underwent a 10-day laboratory protocol, wherein subjects ate and slept at all phases of the circadian cycle-achieved by scheduling a recurring 28-h "day." Subjects ate 4 isocaloric meals each 28-h "day." For 8 days, plasma leptin, insulin, glucose, and cortisol were measured hourly, urinary catecholamines 2 hourly (totaling approximately 1,000 assays/subject), and blood pressure, heart rate, cardiac vagal modulation, oxygen consumption, respiratory exchange ratio, and polysomnographic sleep daily. Core body temperature was recorded continuously for 10 days to assess circadian phase. Circadian misalignment, when subjects ate and slept approximately 12 h out of phase from their habitual times, systematically decreased leptin (-17%, P work. PMID:19255424
Timing of temporal and frontal seizures in relation to the circadian phase : A prospective pilot study
Hofstra, Wytske A.; Gordijn, Marijke C. M.; van der Palen, Job; van Regteren, Renate; Grootemarsink, Bertine E.; de Weerd, Al W.
There is strong evidence that epileptic seizures occur in diurnal or 24-h patterns. A study in rat models of partial epilepsy showed circadian seizure patterns, and in humans circadian rhythmicity in interictal discharges has been found, suggesting that circadian rhythm may play a role in epilepsy.
Chronotype influences activity circadian rhythm and sleep: differences in sleep quality between weekdays and weekend.
Vitale, Jacopo A; Roveda, Eliana; Montaruli, Angela; Galasso, Letizia; Weydahl, Andi; Caumo, Andrea; Carandente, Franca
Several studies have shown the differences among chronotypes in the circadian rhythm of different physiological variables. Individuals show variation in their preference for the daily timing of activity; additionally, there is an association between chronotype and sleep duration/sleep complaints. Few studies have investigated sleep quality during the week days and weekends in relation to the circadian typology using self-assessment questionnaires or actigraphy. The purpose of this study was to use actigraphy to assess the relationship between the three chronotypes and the circadian rhythm of activity levels and to determine whether sleep parameters respond differently with respect to time (weekdays versus the weekend) in Morning-types (M-types), Neither-types (N-types) and Evening-types (E-types). The morningness-eveningness questionnaire (MEQ) was administered to 502 college students to determine their chronotypes. Fifty subjects (16 M-types, 15 N-types and 19 E-types) were recruited to undergo a 7-days monitoring period with an actigraph (Actiwacth® actometers, CNT, Cambridge, UK) to evaluate their sleep parameters and the circadian rhythm of their activity levels. To compare the amplitude and the acrophase among the three chronotypes, we used a one-way ANOVA followed by the Tukey-Kramer post-hoc test. To compare the Midline Estimating Statistic of Rhythm (MESOR) among the three chronotypes, we used a Kruskal-Wallis non-parametric test followed by pairwise comparisons that were performed using Dunn's procedure with a Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons. The analysis of each sleep parameter was conducted using the mixed ANOVA procedure. The results showed that the chronotype was influenced by sex (χ(2) with p = 0.011) and the photoperiod at birth (χ(2) with p reduced sleep quality and quantity compared with the M- and N-types during weekdays, whereas the E-types reached the same levels as the other chronotypes during the weekends. These
Evidences of Polymorphism Associated with Circadian System and Risk of Pathologies: A Review of the Literature
Valenzuela, F. J.; Vera, J.; Venegas, C.; Muñoz, S.; Oyarce, S.; Muñoz, K.; Lagunas, C.
The circadian system is a supraphysiological system that modulates different biological functions such as metabolism, sleep-wake, cellular proliferation, and body temperature. Different chronodisruptors have been identified, such as shift work, feeding time, long days, and stress. The environmental changes and our modern lifestyle can alter the circadian system and increase the risk of developing pathologies such as cancer, preeclampsia, diabetes, and mood disorder. This system is organized by transcriptional/tranductional feedback loops of clock genes Clock, Bmal1, Per1–3, and Cry1-2. How molecular components of the clock are able to influence the development of diseases and their risk relation with genetic components of polymorphism of clock genes is unknown. This research describes different genetic variations in the population and how these are associated with risk of cancer, metabolic diseases such as diabetes, obesity, and dyslipidemias, and also mood disorders such as depression, bipolar disease, excessive alcohol intake, and infertility. Finally, these findings will need to be implemented and evaluated at the level of genetic interaction and how the environment factors trigger the expression of these pathologies will be examined. PMID:27313610
Evidences of Polymorphism Associated with Circadian System and Risk of Pathologies: A Review of the Literature
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F. J. Valenzuela
Full Text Available The circadian system is a supraphysiological system that modulates different biological functions such as metabolism, sleep-wake, cellular proliferation, and body temperature. Different chronodisruptors have been identified, such as shift work, feeding time, long days, and stress. The environmental changes and our modern lifestyle can alter the circadian system and increase the risk of developing pathologies such as cancer, preeclampsia, diabetes, and mood disorder. This system is organized by transcriptional/tranductional feedback loops of clock genes Clock, Bmal1, Per1–3, and Cry1-2. How molecular components of the clock are able to influence the development of diseases and their risk relation with genetic components of polymorphism of clock genes is unknown. This research describes different genetic variations in the population and how these are associated with risk of cancer, metabolic diseases such as diabetes, obesity, and dyslipidemias, and also mood disorders such as depression, bipolar disease, excessive alcohol intake, and infertility. Finally, these findings will need to be implemented and evaluated at the level of genetic interaction and how the environment factors trigger the expression of these pathologies will be examined.
Effects of Different Electromagnetic Fields on Circadian Rhythms of Some Haematochemical Parameters in Rats
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)
Objectives To investigate the effects of different electromagnetic fields on some haematochemical parameters of circadian rhythms in Sprague-Dawley rats. Methods The study was carried out in 18 male and 18 female rats in good health conditions exposed to 50 Hz magnetic sinusoid fields at the intensity of 1000μT, 100μT, and 0μT (control group) respectively, and in 18 male and 18 female rats in good health conditions exposed to 1.8 GHz electromagnetic fields at the intensity of 50 V/m, 25 V/m and 0 V/m (control group), respectively. Following haematochemical parameters for glucose, triglycerides, and total cholesterol were measured. Results Different effects of electromagnetic fields on circadian rhythms of both male and female rats were observed. Different changes occurred in some haematochemical parameters for glucose, triglycerides, and total cholesterol (P<0.05). Conclusion Exposure to different electromagnetic fields is responsible for the variations of some haematochemical parameters in rats.
Evidences of Polymorphism Associated with Circadian System and Risk of Pathologies: A Review of the Literature.
Valenzuela, F J; Vera, J; Venegas, C; Muñoz, S; Oyarce, S; Muñoz, K; Lagunas, C
The circadian system is a supraphysiological system that modulates different biological functions such as metabolism, sleep-wake, cellular proliferation, and body temperature. Different chronodisruptors have been identified, such as shift work, feeding time, long days, and stress. The environmental changes and our modern lifestyle can alter the circadian system and increase the risk of developing pathologies such as cancer, preeclampsia, diabetes, and mood disorder. This system is organized by transcriptional/tranductional feedback loops of clock genes Clock, Bmal1, Per1-3, and Cry1-2. How molecular components of the clock are able to influence the development of diseases and their risk relation with genetic components of polymorphism of clock genes is unknown. This research describes different genetic variations in the population and how these are associated with risk of cancer, metabolic diseases such as diabetes, obesity, and dyslipidemias, and also mood disorders such as depression, bipolar disease, excessive alcohol intake, and infertility. Finally, these findings will need to be implemented and evaluated at the level of genetic interaction and how the environment factors trigger the expression of these pathologies will be examined. PMID:27313610
Circadian rhythm of serum sulfate levels in man and acetaminophen pharmacokinetics.
Hoffman, D A; Wallace, S M; Verbeeck, R K
The circadian variation of serum inorganic sulfate levels was studied in healthy volunteers. The effect of subchronic acetaminophen administration (650 mg q.i.d. for 4 days) on serum inorganic sulfate levels was investigated and the possible role of fluctuating serum inorganic sulfate levels on the pharmacokinetics of acetaminophen was evaluated. During a 24 h cycle, serum inorganic sulfate levels were lowest in the morning (11.00 h) and typically increased in the afternoon to reach a maximum in the early evening (19.00 h). Average 24 h serum concentrations were 360 microM and the difference between minimum and maximum levels was on average 25.8%. Subchronic administration of acetaminophen (650 mg q.i.d. for 4 days) significantly reduced serum inorganic sulfate levels to a 24 h average of 253 microM. The circadian rhythm, however, was not affected and the difference between minimum (12.00 h) and maximum (18.50 h) serum concentrations was 31.3%. Subchronic acetaminophen administration lead to a significant decrease in the renal excretion (-51%) and renal clearance (-33%) of inorganic sulfate. No significant differences were found in the disposition kinetics of acetaminophen and its glucuronide and sulfate conjugates during two consecutive dosing intervals (08.00-14.00 h, 14.00-20.00 h) on Day 4 of the acetaminophen regimen. PMID:2253663
Circadian rhythmicity of active GSK3 isoforms modulates molecular clock gene rhythms in the suprachiasmatic nucleus.
Besing, Rachel C; Paul, Jodi R; Hablitz, Lauren M; Rogers, Courtney O; Johnson, Russell L; Young, Martin E; Gamble, Karen L
The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) drives and synchronizes daily rhythms at the cellular level via transcriptional-translational feedback loops comprising clock genes such as Bmal1 and Period (Per). Glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3), a serine/threonine kinase, phosphorylates at least 5 core clock proteins and shows diurnal variation in phosphorylation state (inactivation) of the GSK3β isoform. Whether phosphorylation of the other primary isoform (GSK3α) varies across the subjective day-night cycle is unknown. The purpose of this study was to determine if the endogenous rhythm of GSK3 (α and β) phosphorylation is critical for rhythmic BMAL1 expression and normal amplitude and periodicity of the molecular clock in the SCN. Significant circadian rhythmicity of phosphorylated GSK3 (α and β) was observed in the SCN from wild-type mice housed in constant darkness for 2 weeks. Importantly, chronic activation of both GSK3 isoforms impaired rhythmicity of the GSK3 target BMAL1. Furthermore, chronic pharmacological inhibition of GSK3 with 20 µM CHIR-99021 enhanced the amplitude and shortened the period of PER2::luciferase rhythms in organotypic SCN slice cultures. These results support the model that GSK3 activity status is regulated by the circadian clock and that GSK3 feeds back to regulate the molecular clock amplitude in the SCN.
Circadian integration of sleep-wake and feeding requires NPY receptor-expressing neurons in the mediobasal hypothalamus.
Wiater, M F; Mukherjee, S; Li, A-J; Dinh, T T; Rooney, E M; Simasko, S M; Ritter, S
Sleep and feeding rhythms are highly coordinated across the circadian cycle, but the brain sites responsible for this coordination are unknown. We examined the role of neuropeptide Y (NPY) receptor-expressing neurons in the mediobasal hypothalamus (MBH) in this process by injecting the targeted toxin, NPY-saporin (NPY-SAP), into the arcuate nucleus (Arc). NPY-SAP-lesioned rats were initially hyperphagic, became obese, exhibited sustained disruption of circadian feeding patterns, and had abnormal circadian distribution of sleep-wake patterns. Total amounts of rapid eye movement sleep (REMS) and non-REMS (NREMS) were not altered by NPY-SAP lesions, but a peak amount of REMS was permanently displaced to the dark period, and circadian variation in NREMS was eliminated. The phase reversal of REMS to the dark period by the lesion suggests that REMS timing is independently linked to the function of MBH NPY receptor-expressing neurons and is not dependent on NREMS pattern, which was altered but not phase reversed by the lesion. Sleep-wake patterns were altered in controls by restricting feeding to the light period, but were not altered in NPY-SAP rats by restricting feeding to either the light or dark period, indicating that disturbed sleep-wake patterns in lesioned rats were not secondary to changes in food intake. Sleep abnormalities persisted even after hyperphagia abated during the static phase of the lesion. Results suggest that the MBH is required for the essential task of integrating sleep-wake and feeding rhythms, a function that allows animals to accommodate changeable patterns of food availability. NPY receptor-expressing neurons are key components of this integrative function.
Molecular bases of circadian rhythmicity in renal physiology and pathology.
Bonny, Olivier; Vinciguerra, Manlio; Gumz, Michelle L; Mazzoccoli, Gianluigi
The physiological processes that maintain body homeostasis oscillate during the day. Diurnal changes characterize kidney functions, comprising regulation of hydro-electrolytic and acid-base balance, reabsorption of small solutes and hormone production. Renal physiology is characterized by 24-h periodicity and contributes to circadian variability of blood pressure levels, related as well to nychthemeral changes of sodium sensitivity, physical activity, vascular tone, autonomic function and neurotransmitter release from sympathetic innervations. The circadian rhythmicity of body physiology is driven by central and peripheral biological clockworks and entrained by the geophysical light/dark cycle. Chronodisruption, defined as the mismatch between environmental-social cues and physiological-behavioral patterns, causes internal desynchronization of periodic functions, leading to pathophysiological mechanisms underlying degenerative, immune related, metabolic and neoplastic diseases. In this review we will address the genetic, molecular and anatomical elements that hardwire circadian rhythmicity in renal physiology and subtend disarray of time-dependent changes in renal pathology. PMID:23901050
Inositols affect the mating circadian rhythm of Drosophila melanogaster
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Kazuki eSakata
Full Text Available Accumulating evidence indicates that the molecular circadian clock underlies the mating behavior of D. melanogaster. However, information about which food components affect circadian mating behavior is scant. The ice plant, Mesembryanthemum crystallinum has recently become a popular functional food. Here, we showed that the close-proximity (CP rhythm of Drosophila melanogaster courtship behavior was damped under low-nutrient conditions, but significantly enhanced by feeding the flies with powdered ice plant. Among various components of ice plants, we found that myo-inositol increased the amplitude and slightly shortened the period of the CP rhythm. Real-time reporter assays showed that myo-inositol and D-pinitol shortened the period of the circadian reporter gene Per2-luc in NIH 3T3 cells. These data suggest that the ice plant is a useful functional food and that the ability of inositols to shorten rhythms is a general phenomenon in insects as well as mammals.
Relationship between Human Pupillary Light Reflex and Circadian System Status.
Bonmati-Carrion, Maria Angeles; Hild, Konstanze; Isherwood, Cheryl; Sweeney, Stephen J; Revell, Victoria L; Skene, Debra J; Rol, Maria Angeles; Madrid, Juan Antonio
Intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs), whose photopigment melanopsin has a peak of sensitivity in the short wavelength range of the spectrum, constitute a common light input pathway to the olivary pretectal nucleus (OPN), the pupillary light reflex (PLR) regulatory centre, and to the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN), the major pacemaker of the circadian system. Thus, evaluating PLR under short wavelength light (λmax ≤ 500 nm) and creating an integrated PLR parameter, as a possible tool to indirectly assess the status of the circadian system, becomes of interest. Nine monochromatic, photon-matched light stimuli (300 s), in 10 nm increments from λmax 420 to 500 nm were administered to 15 healthy young participants (8 females), analyzing: i) the PLR; ii) wrist temperature (WT) and motor activity rhythms (WA), iii) light exposure (L) pattern and iv) diurnal preference (Horne-Östberg), sleep quality (Pittsburgh) and daytime sleepiness (Epworth). Linear correlations between the different PLR parameters and circadian status index obtained from WT, WA and L recordings and scores from questionnaires were calculated. In summary, we found markers of robust circadian rhythms, namely high stability, reduced fragmentation, high amplitude, phase advance and low internal desynchronization, were correlated with a reduced PLR to 460-490 nm wavelengths. Integrated circadian (CSI) and PLR (cp-PLR) parameters are proposed, that also showed an inverse correlation. These results demonstrate, for the first time, the existence of a close relationship between the circadian system robustness and the pupillary reflex response, two non-visual functions primarily under melanopsin-ipRGC input. PMID:27636197
Racial differences in the human endogenous circadian period.
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Mark R Smith
Full Text Available The length of the endogenous period of the human circadian clock (tau is slightly greater than 24 hours. There are individual differences in tau, which influence the phase angle of entrainment to the light/dark (LD cycle, and in doing so contribute to morningness-eveningness. We have recently reported that tau measured in subjects living on an ultradian LD cycle averaged 24.2 hours, and is similar to tau measured using different experimental methods. Here we report racial differences in tau. Subjects lived on an ultradian LD cycle (1.5 hours sleep, 2.5 hours wake for 3 days. Circadian phase assessments were conducted before and after the ultradian days to determine the change in circadian phase, which was attributed to tau. African American subjects had a significantly shorter tau than subjects of other races. We also tested for racial differences in our previous circadian phase advancing and phase delaying studies. In the phase advancing study, subjects underwent 4 days of a gradually advancing sleep schedule combined with a bright light pulse upon awakening each morning. In the phase delaying study, subjects underwent 4 days of a gradually delaying sleep schedule combined with evening light pulses before bedtime. African American subjects had larger phase advances and smaller phase delays, relative to Caucasian subjects. The racial differences in tau and circadian phase shifting have important implications for understanding normal phase differences between individuals, for developing solutions to the problems of jet lag and shift work, and for the diagnosis and treatment of circadian rhythm based sleep disorders such as advanced and delayed sleep phase disorder.
Circadian rhythms of photorefractory siberian hamsters remain responsive to melatonin.
Butler, Matthew P; Paul, Matthew J; Turner, Kevin W; Park, Jin Ho; Driscoll, Joseph R; Kriegsfeld, Lance J; Zucker, Irving
Short day lengths increase the duration of nocturnal melatonin (Mel) secretion, which induces the winter phenotype in Siberian hamsters. After several months of continued exposure to short days, hamsters spontaneously revert to the spring-summer phenotype. This transition has been attributed to the development of refractoriness of Mel-binding tissues, including the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), to long-duration Mel signals. The SCN of Siberian hamsters is required for the seasonal response to winter-like Mel signals, and becomes refractory to previously effective long-duration Mel signals restricted to this area. Acute Mel treatment phase shifts circadian locomotor rhythms of photosensitive Siberian hamsters, presumably by affecting circadian oscillators in the SCN. We tested whether seasonal refractoriness of the SCN to long-duration Mel signals also renders the circadian system of Siberian hamsters unresponsive to Mel. Males manifesting free-running circadian rhythms in constant dim red light were injected with Mel or vehicle for 5 days on a 23.5-h T-cycle beginning at circadian time 10. Mel injections caused significantly larger phase advances in activity onset than did the saline vehicle, but the magnitude of phase shifts to Mel did not differ between photorefractory and photosensitive hamsters. Similarly, when entrained to a 16-h light/8-h dark photocycle, photorefractory and photosensitive hamsters did not differ in their response to Mel injected 4 h before the onset of the dark phase. Activity onset in Mel-injected hamsters was masked by light but was revealed to be significantly earlier than in vehicle-injected hamsters upon transfer to constant dim red light. The acute effects of melatonin on circadian behavioral rhythms are preserved in photorefractory hamsters.
Relationship between Human Pupillary Light Reflex and Circadian System Status
Bonmati-Carrion, Maria Angeles; Hild, Konstanze; Isherwood, Cheryl; Sweeney, Stephen J.; Revell, Victoria L.; Skene, Debra J.; Rol, Maria Angeles; Madrid, Juan Antonio
Intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs), whose photopigment melanopsin has a peak of sensitivity in the short wavelength range of the spectrum, constitute a common light input pathway to the olivary pretectal nucleus (OPN), the pupillary light reflex (PLR) regulatory centre, and to the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN), the major pacemaker of the circadian system. Thus, evaluating PLR under short wavelength light (λmax ≤ 500 nm) and creating an integrated PLR parameter, as a possible tool to indirectly assess the status of the circadian system, becomes of interest. Nine monochromatic, photon-matched light stimuli (300 s), in 10 nm increments from λmax 420 to 500 nm were administered to 15 healthy young participants (8 females), analyzing: i) the PLR; ii) wrist temperature (WT) and motor activity rhythms (WA), iii) light exposure (L) pattern and iv) diurnal preference (Horne-Östberg), sleep quality (Pittsburgh) and daytime sleepiness (Epworth). Linear correlations between the different PLR parameters and circadian status index obtained from WT, WA and L recordings and scores from questionnaires were calculated. In summary, we found markers of robust circadian rhythms, namely high stability, reduced fragmentation, high amplitude, phase advance and low internal desynchronization, were correlated with a reduced PLR to 460–490 nm wavelengths. Integrated circadian (CSI) and PLR (cp-PLR) parameters are proposed, that also showed an inverse correlation. These results demonstrate, for the first time, the existence of a close relationship between the circadian system robustness and the pupillary reflex response, two non-visual functions primarily under melanopsin-ipRGC input. PMID:27636197
Sleep, Circadian Rhythms, and Performance During Space Shuttle Missions
Neri, David F.; Czeisler, Charles A.; Dijk, Derk-Jan; Wyatt, James K.; Ronda, Joseph M.; Hughes, Rod J.
Sleep and circadian rhythms may be disturbed during spaceflight, and these disturbances can affect crewmembers' performance during waking hours. The mechanisms underlying sleep and circadian rhythm disturbances in space are not well understood, and effective countermeasures are not yet available. We investigated sleep, circadian rhythms, cognitive performance, and light-dark cycles in five astronauts prior to, during, and after the 16-day STS-90 mission and the IO-day STS-95 mission. The efficacy of low-dose, alternative-night, oral melatonin administration as a countermeasure for sleep disturbances was evaluated. During these missions, scheduled rest activity cycles were 20-35 minutes shorter than 24 hours. Light levels on the middeck and in the Spacelab were very low; whereas on the flight deck (which has several windows), they were highly variable. Circadian rhythm abnormalities were observed. During the second half of the missions, the rhythm of urinary cortisol appeared to be delayed relative to the sleep-wake schedule. Performance during wakefulness was impaired. Astronauts slept only about 6.5 hours per day, and subjective sleep quality was lower in space. No beneficial effects of melatonin (0.3 mg administered prior to sleep episodes on alternate nights) were observed. A surprising finding was a marked increase in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep upon return to Earth. We conclude that these Space Shuttle missions were associated with circadian rhythm disturbances, sleep loss, decrements in neurobehavioral performance, and alterations in REM sleep homeostasis. Shorter than 24-hour rest-activity schedules and exposure to light-dark cycles inadequate for optimal circadian synchronization may have contributed to these disturbances.
Dysregulation of circadian rhythms following prolactin-secreting pituitary microadenoma.
Borodkin, Katy; Ayalon, Liat; Kanety, Hanna; Dagan, Yaron
A patient who developed an irregular sleep-wake pattern following prolactin-secreting pituitary microadenoma is described. The patient reported difficulties in sleep onset and awakening at the desired time, which caused major dysfunction in his daily life activities. Despite these difficulties, the sleep-related complaints of the patient remained unrecognized for as long as three yrs. Statistical analyses of the patient's rest-activity patterns revealed that the disruption of the sleep-wake circadian rhythm originated from a disharmony between ultradian (semicircadian) and circadian components. The circadian component displayed shorter than 24 h periodicity most of the time, but the semicircadian component fluctuated between longer and shorter than 12 h periods. Additionally, desynchrony in terms of period length was found in the tentative analyses of the rest-activity pattern, salivary melatonin, and oral temperature. While the salivary melatonin time series data could be characterized by a best-fit cosine curve of 24 h, the time series data of oral temperature was more compatible with 28 h best-fit curve. The rest-activity cycle during the simultaneous measurements, however, was best approximated by a best-fit curve of 21 h. The dysregulation of circadian rhythms occurred concomitantly, but not beforehand, with the onset of pituitary disease, thus suggesting an association between the two phenomena. This association may have interesting implications to the modeling of the circadian time-keeping system. This case also highlights the need to raise the awareness to circadian rhythm sleep disorders and to consider disruptions of sleep-wake cycle in patients with pituitary adenoma. PMID:15865328
The effects of chronic marijuana use on circadian entrainment.
Whitehurst, Lauren N; Fogler, Kethera; Hall, Kate; Hartmann, Matthew; Dyche, Jeff
Animal literature suggests a connection between marijuana use and altered circadian rhythms. However, the effect has not yet been demonstrated in humans. The present study examined the effect of chronic marijuana use on human circadian function. Participants consisted of current users who reported smoking marijuana daily for at least a year and non-marijuana user controls. Participants took a neurocognitive assessment, wore actigraphs and maintained sleep diaries for three weeks. While no significant cognitive changes were found between groups, data revealed that chronic marijuana use may act as an additional zeitgeber and lead to increased entrainment in human users.
Torpor shortens the period of Siberian hamster circadian rhythms.
Thomas, E M; Jewett, M E; Zucker, I
We investigated the influence of ambient and body temperature (Ta and Tb) on circadian rhythms of gonadectomized male Siberian hamsters. Animals that entered torpor (Tb circadian periods (tau s) than did nontorpid hamsters at a Ta of 13 degrees C (24.17 +/- 0.05 vs. 24.33 +/- 0.04 h). The tau s of homeothermic hamsters were not affected by Ta change. Short-term decreases in Tb, rather than changes in Ta, appear to affect tau. Access to activity wheels inhibited expression of torpor in short daylengths and was associated with significant increases in body mass. Running wheel activity can mask or block specific short-day responses.
Methods to study the mechanism of the Neurospora Circadian Clock
Cha, Joonseok; Zhou, Mian; Liu, Yi
Eukaryotic circadian clocks are comprised of interlocked auto-regulatory feedback loops that control gene expression at the levels of transcription and translation. The filamentous fungus Neurospora crassa is an excellent model for the complex molecular network of regulatory mechanisms that are common to all eukaryotes. In the heart of the network, post-translational regulations and functions of the core clock elements are of major interest. This chapter will discuss the methods that were recently used to study the Neurospora circadian oscillator mechanisms at the molecular level. PMID:25662455
Best practices for fluorescence microscopy of the cyanobacterial circadian clock
Cohen, Susan E.; Erb, Marcella L.; Pogliano, Joe; Golden, Susan S.
Summary This chapter deals with methods of monitoring the subcellular localization of proteins in single cells in the circadian model system Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942. While genetic, biochemical and structural insights into the cyanobacterial circadian oscillator have flourished, difficulties in achieving informative subcellular imaging in cyanobacterial cells have delayed progress of the cell biology aspects of the clock. Here, we describe best practices for using fluorescent protein tags to monitor localization. Specifically we address how to vet fusion proteins and overcome challenges in microscopic imaging of very small autofluorescent cells. PMID:25662459
Illuminating the circadian clock in monarch butterfly migration.
Froy, Oren; Gotter, Anthony L; Casselman, Amy L; Reppert, Steven M
Migratory monarch butterflies use a time-compensated Sun compass to navigate to their overwintering grounds in Mexico. Here, we report that constant light, which disrupts circadian clock function at both the behavioral and molecular levels in monarchs, also disrupts the time-compensated component of flight navigation. We further show that ultraviolet light is important for flight navigation but is not required for photic entrainment of circadian rhythms. Tracing these distinct light-input pathways into the brain should aid our understanding of the clock-compass mechanisms necessary for successful migration. PMID:12764200
Machine learning helps identify CHRONO as a circadian clock component
Anafi, Ron C.; Yool Lee; Sato, Trey K.; Anand Venkataraman; Chidambaram Ramanathan; Ibrahim H Kavakli; Hughes, Michael E.; Baggs, Julie E.; Jacqueline Growe; Liu, Andrew C.; Junhyong Kim; Hogenesch, John B.
Machine Learning Helps Identify CHRONO as a Circadian Clock Component Ron C. Anafi1,2.*, Yool Lee3., Trey K. Sato3., Anand Venkataraman3, Chidambaram Ramanathan4, Ibrahim H. Kavakli5, Michael E. Hughes6, Julie E. Baggs7, Jacqueline Growe1,2, Andrew C. Liu4, Junhyong Kim8, John B. Hogenesch2,3* 1 Division of Sleep Medicine, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America, 2 Center for Sleep and Circadian Neurobiology, Univer...
The molecular clock regulates circadian transcription of tissue factor gene.
Oishi, Katsutaka; Koyanagi, Satoru; Ohkura, Naoki
Tissue factor (TF) is involved in endotoxin-induced inflammation and mortality. We found that the circadian expression of TF mRNA, which peaked at the day to night transition (activity onset), was damped in the liver of Clock mutant mice. Luciferase reporter and chromatin immunoprecipitation analyses using embryonic fibroblasts derived from wild-type or Clock mutant mice showed that CLOCK is involved in transcription of the TF gene. Furthermore, the results of real-time luciferase reporter experiments revealed that the circadian expression of TF mRNA is regulated by clock molecules through a cell-autonomous mechanism via an E-box element located in the promoter region.
Circadian profile of cardiac autonomic nervous modulation in healthy subjects
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Bonnemeier, Hendrik; Richardt, Gert; Potratz, Jürgen;
UNLABELLED: Circadian Profile of Heart Rate Variability. INTRODUCTION: Although heart rate variability (HRV) has been established as a tool to study cardiac autonomic activity, almost no data are available on the circadian patterns of HRV in healthy subjects aged 20 to 70 years. METHODS AND RESULTS......: We investigated 166 healthy volunteers (81 women and 85 men; age 42 +/- 15 years, range 20-70) without evidence of cardiac disease. Time-domain HRV parameters were determined from 24-hour Holter monitoring and calculated as hourly mean values and mean 24-hour values. All volunteers were fully mobile...
Timing Matters: Circadian Rhythm in Sepsis, Obstructive Lung Disease, Obstructive Sleep Apnea, and Cancer.
Truong, Kimberly K; Lam, Michael T; Grandner, Michael A; Sassoon, Catherine S; Malhotra, Atul
Physiological and cellular functions operate in a 24-hour cyclical pattern orchestrated by an endogenous process known as the circadian rhythm. Circadian rhythms represent intrinsic oscillations of biological functions that allow for adaptation to cyclic environmental changes. Key clock genes that affect the persistence and periodicity of circadian rhythms include BMAL1/CLOCK, Period 1, Period 2, and Cryptochrome. Remarkable progress has been made in our understanding of circadian rhythms and their role in common medical conditions. A critical review of the literature supports the association between circadian misalignment and adverse health consequences in sepsis, obstructive lung disease, obstructive sleep apnea, and malignancy. Circadian misalignment plays an important role in these disease processes and can affect disease severity, treatment response, and survivorship. Normal inflammatory response to acute infections, airway resistance, upper airway collapsibility, and mitosis regulation follows a robust circadian pattern. Disruption of normal circadian rhythm at the molecular level affects severity of inflammation in sepsis, contributes to inflammatory responses in obstructive lung diseases, affects apnea length in obstructive sleep apnea, and increases risk for cancer. Chronotherapy is an underused practice of delivering therapy at optimal times to maximize efficacy and minimize toxicity. This approach has been shown to be advantageous in asthma and cancer management. In asthma, appropriate timing of medication administration improves treatment effectiveness. Properly timed chemotherapy may reduce treatment toxicities and maximize efficacy. Future research should focus on circadian rhythm disorders, role of circadian rhythm in other diseases, and modalities to restore and prevent circadian disruption. PMID:27104378
Circadian Rhythms and Mood Disorders: Are The Phenomena and Mechanisms Causally Related?
Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)
William eBechtel
Full Text Available This paper reviews some of the compelling evidence of disrupted circadian rhythms in individuals with mood disorders (major depressive disorder, seasonal affective disorder, and bipolar disorder and that treatments such as bright light, designed to alter circadian rhythms, are effective in treating these disorders. Neurotransmitters in brain regions implicated in mood regulation exhibit circadian rhythms. A mouse model originally employed to identify a circadian gene has proven a potent model for mania. While this evidence is suggestive of an etiological role for altered circadian rhythms in mood disorders, it is compatible with other explanations, including that disrupted circadian rhythms and mood disorders are effects of a common cause and that genes and proteins implicated in both simply have pleiotropic effects. In light of this, the paper advances a proposal as to what evidence would be needed to establish a direct causal link between disruption of circadian rhythms and mood disorders.
Circadian Rhythms and Mood Disorders: Are the Phenomena and Mechanisms Causally Related?
Bechtel, William
This paper reviews some of the compelling evidence of disrupted circadian rhythms in individuals with mood disorders (major depressive disorder, seasonal affective disorder, and bipolar disorder) and that treatments such as bright light, designed to alter circadian rhythms, are effective in treating these disorders. Neurotransmitters in brain regions implicated in mood regulation exhibit circadian rhythms. A mouse model originally employed to identify a circadian gene has proven a potent model for mania. While this evidence is suggestive of an etiological role for altered circadian rhythms in mood disorders, it is compatible with other explanations, including that disrupted circadian rhythms and mood disorders are effects of a common cause and that genes and proteins implicated in both simply have pleiotropic effects. In light of this, the paper advances a proposal as to what evidence would be needed to establish a direct causal link between disruption of circadian rhythms and mood disorders. PMID:26379559
Chemical composition, circadian rhythm and antibacterial activity of essential oils of piper divaricatum: a new source of safrole
Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)
Queila P. S. Barbosa
Full Text Available The essential oils from leaves, stems and fruits of Piper divaricatum were analyzed by GC-MS. The tissues showed high safrole content: leaves (98%, fruits (87% and stems (83%, with yields of 2.0, 4.8 and 1.7%, respectively. This is a new alternative source of safrole, a compound widely used as a flavoring agent and insecticide. The leaf's oil showed antibacterial activity against gram-negative bacteria while safrole was active against Salmonella Typhimurium and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In addition, the study of circadian rhythm of the safrole concentration in the essential oils of leaves showed a negligible variation of 92 to 98%.
The Circadian Timing System and Environmental Circadian Disruption: From Follicles to Fertility.
Sen, Aritro; Sellix, Michael T
The internal or circadian timing system is deeply integrated in female reproductive physiology. Considerable details of rheostatic timing function in the neuroendocrine control of pituitary hormone secretion, adenohypophyseal hormone gene expression and secretion, gonadal steroid hormone biosynthesis and secretion, ovulation, implantation, and parturition have been reported. The molecular clock, an autonomous feedback loop oscillator of interacting transcriptional regulators, dictates the timing and amplitude of gene expression in each tissue of the female hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis. Although multiple targets of the molecular clock have been identified, many associated with critical physiological functions in the HPG axis, the full extent of clock-driven gene expression and physiology in this critical system remains unknown. Environmental circadian disruption (ECD), the disturbance of temporal relationships within and between internal clocks (brain and periphery), and external timing cues (eg, light, nutrients, social cues) due to rotating/night shift work or transmeridian travel have been linked to reproductive dysfunction and subfertility. Moreover, ECD resulting from exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals, environmental toxins, and/or irregular hormone levels during sexual development can also reduce fertility. Thus, perturbations that disturb clock function at the molecular, cellular or systemic level correlate with significant declines in female reproductive function. Here we briefly review the evidence for molecular clock function in each tissue of the female HPG axis (GnRH neuron, pituitary, uterus, oviduct, and ovary), describe the human epidemiological and animal data supporting the negative effects of ECD on fertility, and explore the potential for novel chronotherapeutics in women's health and fertility. PMID:27501186
Regularity of daily life in relation to personality, age, gender, sleep quality and circadian rhythms
Monk, T. H.; Petrie, S. R.; Hayes, A. J.; Kupfer, D. J.
A diary-like instrument to measure lifestyle regularity (the 'Social Rhythm Metric'-SRM) was given to 96 subjects (48 women, 48 men), 39 of whom repeated the study after at least one year, with additional objective measures of rest/activity. Lifestyle regularity as measured by the SRM related to age, morningness, subjective sleep quality and time-of-day variations in alertness, but not to gender, extroversion or neuroticism. Statistically significant test-retest correlations of about 0.4 emerged for SRM scores over the 12-30 month delay. Diary-based estimates of bedtime and waketime appeared fairly reliable. In a further study of healthy young men, 4 high SRM scorers ('regular') had a deeper nocturnal body temperature trough than 5 low SRM scorers ('irregular'), suggesting a better functioning circadian system in the 'regular' group.
The electroretinogram as a method for studying circadian rhythms in the mammalian retina
Indian Academy of Sciences (India)
Morven A. Cameron; Alun R. Barnard; Robert J. Lucas
Circadian clocks are thought to regulate retinal physiology in anticipation of the large variation in environmental irradiance associated with the earth's rotation upon its axis. In this review we discuss some of the rhythmic events that occur in the mammalian retina, and their consequences for retinal physiology. We also review methods of tracing retinal rhythmicity in vivo and highlight the electroretinogram (ERG) as a useful technique in this field. Principally, we discuss how this technique can be used as a quick and noninvasive way of assessing physiological changes that occur in the retina over the course of the day. We highlight some important recent findings facilitated by this approach and discuss its strengths and limitations.
Statistical inference of regulatory networks for circadian regulation.
Aderhold, Andrej; Husmeier, Dirk; Grzegorczyk, Marco
We assess the accuracy of various state-of-the-art statistics and machine learning methods for reconstructing gene and protein regulatory networks in the context of circadian regulation. Our study draws on the increasing availability of gene expression and protein concentration time series for key circadian clock components in Arabidopsis thaliana. In addition, gene expression and protein concentration time series are simulated from a recently published regulatory network of the circadian clock in A. thaliana, in which protein and gene interactions are described by a Markov jump process based on Michaelis-Menten kinetics. We closely follow recent experimental protocols, including the entrainment of seedlings to different light-dark cycles and the knock-out of various key regulatory genes. Our study provides relative network reconstruction accuracy scores for a critical comparative performance evaluation, and sheds light on a series of highly relevant questions: it quantifies the influence of systematically missing values related to unknown protein concentrations and mRNA transcription rates, it investigates the dependence of the performance on the network topology and the degree of recurrency, it provides deeper insight into when and why non-linear methods fail to outperform linear ones, it offers improved guidelines on parameter settings in different inference procedures, and it suggests new hypotheses about the structure of the central circadian gene regulatory network in A. thaliana. PMID:24864301
Circadian remodeling of neuronal circuits involved in rhythmic behavior.
Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)
María Paz Fernández
Full Text Available Clock output pathways are central to convey timing information from the circadian clock to a diversity of physiological systems, ranging from cell-autonomous processes to behavior. While the molecular mechanisms that generate and sustain rhythmicity at the cellular level are well understood, it is unclear how this information is further structured to control specific behavioral outputs. Rhythmic release of pigment dispersing factor (PDF has been proposed to propagate the time of day information from core pacemaker cells to downstream targets underlying rhythmic locomotor activity. Indeed, such circadian changes in PDF intensity represent the only known mechanism through which the PDF circuit could communicate with its output. Here we describe a novel circadian phenomenon involving extensive remodeling in the axonal terminals of the PDF circuit, which display higher complexity during the day and significantly lower complexity at nighttime, both under daily cycles and constant conditions. In support to its circadian nature, cycling is lost in bona fide clockless mutants. We propose this clock-controlled structural plasticity as a candidate mechanism contributing to the transmission of the information downstream of pacemaker cells.
Paternal irradiation perturbs the expression of circadian genes in offspring
Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)
Gomes, Andre M.G.F.; Barber, Ruth C.; Dubrova, Yuri E., E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
Highlights: • We have analysed gene expression in the offspring of irradiated male mice. • CBA/Ca and BALB/c male mice were used in our study. • The pattern of gene expression was established in four tissues. • Expression of genes in involved in rhythmic process/circadian rhythm is compromised. • Our data may explain the phenomenon of transgenerational genomic instability. - Abstract: The circadian system represents a complex network which influences the timing of many biological processes. Recent studies have established that circadian alterations play an important role in the susceptibility to many human diseases, including cancer. Here we report that paternal irradiation in mice significantly affects the expression of genes involved in rhythmic processes in their first-generation offspring. Using microarrays, the patterns of gene expression were established for brain, kidney, liver and spleen samples from the non-exposed offspring of irradiated CBA/Ca and BALB/c male mice. The most over-represented categories among the genes differentially expressed in the offspring of control and irradiated males were those involved in rhythmic process, circadian rhythm and DNA-dependent regulation of transcription. The results of our study therefore provide a plausible explanation for the transgenerational effects of paternal irradiation, including increased transgenerational carcinogenesis described in other studies.
Transcripts from the Circadian Clock: Telling Time and Season
K. Brand (Karl)
textabstractWe all know it when we wake mere moments before an alarm clock is scheduled to wake us: our body clock made the alarm clock redundant. This phenomenon is driven by an endogenous timer known as the biological, or circadian clock. Each revolution of the Earth about its own axis produces pe
Acute light exposure suppresses circadian rhythms in clock gene expression.
Grone, Brian P; Chang, Doris; Bourgin, Patrice; Cao, Vinh; Fernald, Russell D; Heller, H Craig; Ruby, Norman F
Light can induce arrhythmia in circadian systems by several weeks of constant light or by a brief light stimulus given at the transition point of the phase response curve. In the present study, a novel light treatment consisting of phase advance and phase delay photic stimuli given on 2 successive nights was used to induce circadian arrhythmia in the Siberian hamster ( Phodopus sungorus). We therefore investigated whether loss of rhythms in behavior was due to arrhythmia within the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). SCN tissue samples were obtained at 6 time points across 24 h in constant darkness from entrained and arrhythmic hamsters, and per1, per2 , bmal1, and cry1 mRNA were measured by quantitative RT-PCR. The light treatment eliminated circadian expression of clock genes within the SCN, and the overall expression of these genes was reduced by 18% to 40% of entrained values. Arrhythmia in per1, per2, and bmal1 was due to reductions in the amplitudes of their oscillations. We suggest that these data are compatible with an amplitude suppression model in which light induces singularity in the molecular circadian pacemaker.
My Path from Chemistry to Phytochrome and Circadian Rhythms
Tobin, Elaine M.
I summarize my scientific journey from my first interest in science to my career investigating how plants use the phytochrome photoreceptor to regulate what genes they express. I then describe how this work led to an understanding of how circadian rhythms function in plants and to the discovery of CCA1, a component of the plant central oscillator. PMID:27014288
Enhanced Phenotyping of Complex Traits with a Circadian Clock Model
Merrow, Martha; Roenneberg, Till
Models of biological systems are increasingly used to generate and test predictions in silico. This article explores the basic workings of a multifeedback network model of a circadian clock. In a series of in silico experiments, we investigated the influence of the number of feedbacks by adding and
Disrupting circadian rhythms in rats induces retrograde amnesia
Fekete, Mátyás; Ree, J.M. van; Niesink, Raymond J.M.; Wied, D. de
Disrupting circadian organization in rats by phase-shifting the illumination cycle or by exposure to a reversed day/night cycle or to continuous light, resulted in retrograde amnesia for passive avoidance behavior. This retrograde amnesia induced by phase-shifting lasted at least 2 days, and gradual
My Path from Chemistry to Phytochrome and Circadian Rhythms
Tobin, EM
I summarize my scientific journey from my first interest in science to my career investigating how plants use the phytochrome photoreceptor to regulate what genes they express. I then describe how this work led to an understanding of how circadian rhythms function in plants and to the discovery of CCA1, a component of the plant central oscillator.
Experience-independent development of the hamster circadian visual system.
Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)
August Kampf-Lassin
Full Text Available Experience-dependent functional plasticity is a hallmark of the primary visual system, but it is not known if analogous mechanisms govern development of the circadian visual system. Here we investigated molecular, anatomical, and behavioral consequences of complete monocular light deprivation during extended intervals of postnatal development in Syrian hamsters. Hamsters were raised in constant darkness and opaque contact lenses were applied shortly after eye opening and prior to the introduction of a light-dark cycle. In adulthood, previously-occluded eyes were challenged with visual stimuli. Whereas image-formation and motion-detection were markedly impaired by monocular occlusion, neither entrainment to a light-dark cycle, nor phase-resetting responses to shifts in the light-dark cycle were affected by prior monocular deprivation. Cholera toxin-b subunit fluorescent tract-tracing revealed that in monocularly-deprived hamsters the density of fibers projecting from the retina to the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN was comparable regardless of whether such fibers originated from occluded or exposed eyes. In addition, long-term monocular deprivation did not attenuate light-induced c-Fos expression in the SCN. Thus, in contrast to the thalamocortical projections of the primary visual system, retinohypothalamic projections terminating in the SCN develop into normal adult patterns and mediate circadian responses to light largely independent of light experience during development. The data identify a categorical difference in the requirement for light input during postnatal development between circadian and non-circadian visual systems.
The Effect of Cataract Surgery on Circadian Photoentrainment
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Brøndsted, Adam Elias; Sander, Birgit; Haargaard, Birgitte;
of cataract surgery on circadian photoentrainment and to determine any difference between blue-blocking and neutral intraocular lenses (IOLs). DESIGN: The study was a single-center, investigator-driven, double-masked, block-randomized clinical trial. PARTICIPANTS: One eye in 76 patients with bilateral age...
Circadian changes in long noncoding RNAs in the pineal gland
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Coon, Steven L; Munson, Peter J; Cherukuri, Praveen F;
Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play a broad range of biological roles, including regulation of expression of genes and chromosomes. Here, we present evidence that lncRNAs are involved in vertebrate circadian biology. Differential night/day expression of 112 lncRNAs (0.3 to >50 kb) occurs in the ra...
The Cell Cycle & Circadian Clock: a tale of two cycles
E. Destici (Eugin)
textabstractMost organisms have evolved an internal timekeeper to anticipate and coordinate internal processes with the external 24-h environment imposed upon all living creatures due to rotation of the Earth around its axis. At the cellular level, the circadian clock is generated by a genetic progr
Circadian regulation of metabolic homeostasis: causes and consequences
Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)
McGinnis GR
Full Text Available Graham R McGinnis, Martin E Young Division of Cardiovascular Disease, Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA Abstract: Robust circadian rhythms in metabolic processes have been described in both humans and animal models, at the whole body, individual organ, and even cellular level. Classically, these time-of-day-dependent rhythms have been considered secondary to fluctuations in energy/nutrient supply/demand associated with feeding/fasting and wake/sleep cycles. Renewed interest in this field has been fueled by studies revealing that these rhythms are driven, at least in part, by intrinsic mechanisms and that disruption of metabolic synchrony invariably increases the risk of cardiometabolic disease. The objectives of this paper are to provide a comprehensive review regarding rhythms in glucose, lipid, and protein/amino acid metabolism, the relative influence of extrinsic (eg, neurohumoral factors versus intrinsic (eg, cell autonomous circadian clocks mediators, the physiologic roles of these rhythms in terms of daily fluctuations in nutrient availability and activity status, as well as the pathologic consequences of dyssynchrony. Keywords: circadian rhythm, circadian clocks, metabolic homeostasis, neurohumoral factors, dyssynchrony, time-of-day-dependent rhythms
Proteomics of the photoneuroendocrine circadian system of the brain
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Møller, Morten; Lund-Andersen, Casper; Rovsing, Louise;
controls circadian activity of the brain and peripheral tissues. The endogenous oscillator of the SCN is each day entrained to the length of the daily photoperiod by light that reach the retina, and specialized photoreceptors transmit impulses to the SCN via the optic nerves. Mass screening for day...
Studies on circadian rhythm disturbances and melatonin in delirium
A.-M. de Jonghe
The circadian sleep/wake rhythm disturbances that are seen in delirium and the role of melatonin supplementation provide a new angle in delirium research. More research is needed to determine the role of melatonin in the pathophysiological mechanisms of delirium and to determine whether the restorat
Circadian secretion patterns of ß-endorphin and leucine enkephalin
Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)
E. H. de Wet
Full Text Available ß-endorphin and leucine enkephalin are neuropeptides with potent opioid activity. In a study to investigate the circadian secretion patterns of the above-mentioned, blood samples were collected hourly from 12 healthy males who were subjected to the experiment for 24 hours. Radioimmunoassays were used in the analysis of plasma samples for ß-endorphin and leucine enkephalin. Peak concentrations of ß-endorphin were demonstrated from 08:00-09:00, while peak concentrations of leucine enkephalin occured from 23:00-07:00. Trough concentrations of ß-endorphin occurred from 24:00-05:00, while trough concentrations of leucine enkephalin were demonstrated from 09:00-12:00. The illustrated circadian secretion pattern for ß-endorphin simulates the well-known circadian rhythm of cortisol. The answer to this may be in the fact that ß-endorphin and corticotropin stem from the same precursor. The illustrated circadian secretion pattern for leucine enkephalin simulates that of melatonin. The reason for this is unclear.
Paternal irradiation perturbs the expression of circadian genes in offspring
International Nuclear Information System (INIS)
Highlights: • We have analysed gene expression in the offspring of irradiated male mice. • CBA/Ca and BALB/c male mice were used in our study. • The pattern of gene expression was established in four tissues. • Expression of genes in involved in rhythmic process/circadian rhythm is compromised. • Our data may explain the phenomenon of transgenerational genomic instability. - Abstract: The circadian system represents a complex network which influences the timing of many biological processes. Recent studies have established that circadian alterations play an important role in the susceptibility to many human diseases, including cancer. Here we report that paternal irradiation in mice significantly affects the expression of genes involved in rhythmic processes in their first-generation offspring. Using microarrays, the patterns of gene expression were established for brain, kidney, liver and spleen samples from the non-exposed offspring of irradiated CBA/Ca and BALB/c male mice. The most over-represented categories among the genes differentially expressed in the offspring of control and irradiated males were those involved in rhythmic process, circadian rhythm and DNA-dependent regulation of transcription. The results of our study therefore provide a plausible explanation for the transgenerational effects of paternal irradiation, including increased transgenerational carcinogenesis described in other studies
The role of the circadian system in fractal neurophysiological control.
Pittman-Polletta, Benjamin R; Scheer, Frank A J L; Butler, Matthew P; Shea, Steven A; Hu, Kun
Many neurophysiological variables such as heart rate, motor activity, and neural activity are known to exhibit intrinsic fractal fluctuations - similar temporal fluctuation patterns at different time scales. These fractal patterns contain information about health, as many pathological conditions are accompanied by their alteration or absence. In physical systems, such fluctuations are characteristic of critical states on the border between randomness and order, frequently arising from nonlinear feedback interactions between mechanisms operating on multiple scales. Thus, the existence of fractal fluctuations in physiology challenges traditional conceptions of health and disease, suggesting that high levels of integrity and adaptability are marked by complex variability, not constancy, and are properties of a neurophysiological network, not individual components. Despite the subject's theoretical and clinical interest, the neurophysiological mechanisms underlying fractal regulation remain largely unknown. The recent discovery that the circadian pacemaker (suprachiasmatic nucleus) plays a crucial role in generating fractal patterns in motor activity and heart rate sheds an entirely new light on both fractal control networks and the function of this master circadian clock, and builds a bridge between the fields of circadian biology and fractal physiology. In this review, we sketch the emerging picture of the developing interdisciplinary field of fractal neurophysiology by examining the circadian system's role in fractal regulation.
Circadian malfunctions in depression - neurobiological and psychosocial approaches.
Nechita, Florina; Pîrlog, Mihail Cristian; ChiriŢă, Anca Livia
Depression leads to disturbances in physiological rhythms, which result in disturbances in circadian sleep-wake cycles, hormonal secretion patterns and fluctuations in mood, all of which can be objectively measured. These disturbances, which are associated with depression, can be also used to define depression. Beyond these "transversal" time-related symptoms, there are the "longitudinal" time-related symptoms, since depression evolves over a long period of time, with a profound impact on a person's life and is often associated with long-term psychosocial consequences (Mendlewicz, 2010). The circadian rhythm reflects an approximate 24-hour cycle in the biochemical, physiological and behavioral processes of living entities, which crucially influences human well-being and health. Increasing evidence from clinical and neurobiological research suggests that disrupted temporal organization impairs behavior, cognition, mood, sleep and social activity and may be implicated in mental disorders. It has been proposed that circadian malfunction is a major core feature of mood disorders, depression in particular. In depressed patients, circadian rhythms and homeostatic processes are disrupted, thereby affecting mood, sleep, activity and a variety of biological functions such as hormone secretion and body temperature (Hajak & Landgrebe, 2010). Sleep difficulties are among the most current symptoms in depressed patients. Insomnia is often the reason why depressed patients seek help and relief of sleep disturbance may encourage compliance with antidepressant treatment. Apart from the discomfort that sleep problems produce, they may lead to exhaustion, poor functioning and they are associated with an increase in suicide risk (Wilson et al., 2013). PMID:26662127
Development of the circadian clockwork in the kidney
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Mészáros, Krisztina; Pruess, Linda; Szabó, Attila J.;
The circadian molecular clock is an internal time-keeping system composed of centrally synchronized tissue-level pacemakers. Here, we explored the ontogeny of the clock machinery in the developing kidney. Pregnant rats were housed at 12-12 h light-dark cycles. Offsprings were killed at 4-h...
The circadian modulation of leptin-controlled bone formation
Mice with circadian gene Period and Cryptochrome mutations develop high bone mass early in life. Such a phenotype is accompanied by an increase in osteoblast numbers in mutant bone and cannot be corrected by leptin intracerebroventricular infusion. Thus, the molecular clock plays a key role in lepti...
Heterogeneity induces rhythms of weakly coupled circadian neurons.
Gu, Changgui; Liang, Xiaoming; Yang, Huijie; Rohling, Jos H T
The main clock located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) regulates circadian rhythms in mammals. The SCN is composed of approximately twenty thousand heterogeneous self-oscillating neurons, that have intrinsic periods varying from 22 h to 28 h. They are coupled through neurotransmitters and neuropeptides to form a network and output a uniform periodic rhythm. Previous studies found that the heterogeneity of the neurons leads to attenuation of the circadian rhythm with strong cellular coupling. In the present study, we investigate the heterogeneity of the neurons and of the network in the condition of constant darkness. Interestingly, we found that the heterogeneity of weakly coupled neurons enables them to oscillate and strengthen the circadian rhythm. In addition, we found that the period of the SCN network increases with the increase of the degree of heterogeneity. As the network heterogeneity does not change the dynamics of the rhythm, our study shows that the heterogeneity of the neurons is vitally important for rhythm generation in weakly coupled systems, such as the SCN, and it provides a new method to strengthen the circadian rhythm, as well as an alternative explanation for differences in free running periods between species in the absence of the daily cycle. PMID:26898574
The circadian clock regulates auxin signaling and responses in Arabidopsis.
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Michael F Covington
Full Text Available The circadian clock plays a pervasive role in the temporal regulation of plant physiology, environmental responsiveness, and development. In contrast, the phytohormone auxin plays a similarly far-reaching role in the spatial regulation of plant growth and development. Went and Thimann noted 70 years ago that plant sensitivity to auxin varied according to the time of day, an observation that they could not explain. Here we present work that explains this puzzle, demonstrating that the circadian clock regulates auxin signal transduction. Using genome-wide transcriptional profiling, we found many auxin-induced genes are under clock regulation. We verified that endogenous auxin signaling is clock regulated with a luciferase-based assay. Exogenous auxin has only modest effects on the plant clock, but the clock controls plant sensitivity to applied auxin. Notably, we found both transcriptional and growth responses to exogenous auxin are gated by the clock. Thus the circadian clock regulates some, and perhaps all, auxin responses. Consequently, many aspects of plant physiology not previously thought to be under circadian control may show time-of-day-specific sensitivity, with likely important consequences for plant growth and environmental responses.
Phase analysis of circadian-related genes in two tissues
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Li Leping
Full Text Available Abstract Background Recent circadian clock studies using gene expression microarray in two different tissues of mouse have revealed not all circadian-related genes are synchronized in phase or peak expression times across tissues in vivo. Instead, some circadian-related genes may be delayed by 4–8 hrs in peak expression in one tissue relative to the other. These interesting biological observations prompt a statistical question regarding how to distinguish the synchronized genes from genes that are systematically lagged in phase/peak expression time across two tissues. Results We propose a set of techniques from circular statistics to analyze phase angles of circadian-related genes in two tissues. We first estimate the phases of a cycling gene separately in each tissue, which are then used to estimate the paired angular difference of the phase angles of the gene in the two tissues. These differences are modeled as a mixture of two von Mises distributions which enables us to cluster genes into two groups; one group having synchronized transcripts with the same phase in the two tissues, the other containing transcripts with a discrepancy in phase between the two tissues. For each cluster of genes we assess the association of phases across the tissue types using circular-circular regression. We also develop a bootstrap methodology based on a circular-circular regression model to evaluate the improvement in fit provided by allowing two components versus a one-component von-Mises model. Conclusion We applied our proposed methodologies to the circadian-related genes common to heart and liver tissues in Storch et al. 2, and found that an estimated 80% of circadian-related transcripts common to heart and liver tissues were synchronized in phase, and the other 20% of transcripts were lagged about 8 hours in liver relative to heart. The bootstrap p-value for being one cluster is 0.063, which suggests the possibility of two clusters. Our methodologies can
Circadian transcription contributes to core period determination in Drosophila.
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Sebastian Kadener
Full Text Available The Clock-Cycle (CLK-CYC heterodimer constitutes a key circadian transcription complex in Drosophila. CYC has a DNA-binding domain but lacks an activation domain. Previous experiments also indicate that most of the transcriptional activity of CLK-CYC derives from the glutamine-rich region of its partner CLK. To address the role of transcription in core circadian timekeeping, we have analyzed the effects of a CYC-viral protein 16 (VP16 fusion protein in the Drosophila system. The addition of this potent and well-studied viral transcriptional activator (VP16 to CYC imparts to the CLK-CYC-VP16 complex strongly enhanced transcriptional activity relative to that of CLK-CYC. This increase is manifested in flies expressing CYC-VP16 as well as in S2 cells. These flies also have increased levels of CLK-CYC direct target gene mRNAs as well as a short period, implicating circadian transcription in period determination. A more detailed examination of reporter gene expression in CYC-VP16-expressing flies suggests that the short period is due at least in part to a more rapid transcriptional phase. Importantly, the behavioral effects require a period (per promoter and are therefore unlikely to be merely a consequence of generally higher PER levels. This indicates that the CLK-CYC-VP16 behavioral effects are a consequence of increased per transcription. All of this also suggests that the timing of transcriptional activation and not the activation itself is the key event responsible for the behavioral effects observed in CYC-VP16-expressing flies. The results taken together indicate that circadian transcription contributes to core circadian function in Drosophila.
Circadian rhythms, the molecular clock, and skeletal muscle.
Lefta, Mellani; Wolff, Gretchen; Esser, Karyn A
Almost all organisms ranging from single cell bacteria to humans exhibit a variety of behavioral, physiological, and biochemical rhythms. In mammals, circadian rhythms control the timing of many physiological processes over a 24-h period, including sleep-wake cycles, body temperature, feeding, and hormone production. This body of research has led to defined characteristics of circadian rhythms based on period length, phase, and amplitude. Underlying circadian behaviors is a molecular clock mechanism found in most, if not all, cell types including skeletal muscle. The mammalian molecular clock is a complex of multiple oscillating networks that are regulated through transcriptional mechanisms, timed protein turnover, and input from small molecules. At this time, very little is known about circadian aspects of skeletal muscle function/metabolism but some progress has been made on understanding the molecular clock in skeletal muscle. The goal of this chapter is to provide the basic terminology and concepts of circadian rhythms with a more detailed review of the current state of knowledge of the molecular clock, with reference to what is known in skeletal muscle. Research has demonstrated that the molecular clock is active in skeletal muscles and that the muscle-specific transcription factor, MyoD, is a direct target of the molecular clock. Skeletal muscle of clock-compromised mice, Bmal1(-/-) and Clock(Δ19) mice, are weak and exhibit significant disruptions in expression of many genes required for adult muscle structure and metabolism. We suggest that the interaction between the molecular clock, MyoD, and metabolic factors, such as PGC-1, provide a potential system of feedback loops that may be critical for both maintenance and adaptation of skeletal muscle.
Chronotype influences activity circadian rhythm and sleep: differences in sleep quality between weekdays and weekend.
Vitale, Jacopo A; Roveda, Eliana; Montaruli, Angela; Galasso, Letizia; Weydahl, Andi; Caumo, Andrea; Carandente, Franca
Several studies have shown the differences among chronotypes in the circadian rhythm of different physiological variables. Individuals show variation in their preference for the daily timing of activity; additionally, there is an association between chronotype and sleep duration/sleep complaints. Few studies have investigated sleep quality during the week days and weekends in relation to the circadian typology using self-assessment questionnaires or actigraphy. The purpose of this study was to use actigraphy to assess the relationship between the three chronotypes and the circadian rhythm of activity levels and to determine whether sleep parameters respond differently with respect to time (weekdays versus the weekend) in Morning-types (M-types), Neither-types (N-types) and Evening-types (E-types). The morningness-eveningness questionnaire (MEQ) was administered to 502 college students to determine their chronotypes. Fifty subjects (16 M-types, 15 N-types and 19 E-types) were recruited to undergo a 7-days monitoring period with an actigraph (Actiwacth® actometers, CNT, Cambridge, UK) to evaluate their sleep parameters and the circadian rhythm of their activity levels. To compare the amplitude and the acrophase among the three chronotypes, we used a one-way ANOVA followed by the Tukey-Kramer post-hoc test. To compare the Midline Estimating Statistic of Rhythm (MESOR) among the three chronotypes, we used a Kruskal-Wallis non-parametric test followed by pairwise comparisons that were performed using Dunn's procedure with a Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons. The analysis of each sleep parameter was conducted using the mixed ANOVA procedure. The results showed that the chronotype was influenced by sex (χ(2) with p = 0.011) and the photoperiod at birth (χ(2) with p sleep parameters: Sleep end, Assumed Sleep, Immobility Time and Sleep Efficiency. Sleep Efficiency showed the same patterns as did Assumed Sleep and Immobility Time: the Sleep
Facilitated physiological adaptation to prolonged circadian disruption through dietary supplementation with essence of chicken.
Wu, Tao; Yao, Cencen; Tsang, Fai; Huang, Liangfeng; Zhang, Wanjing; Jiang, Jianguo; Mao, Youxiang; Shao, Yujian; Kong, Boda; Singh, Paramjeet; Fu, Zhengwei
Synchrony between circadian and metabolic processes is critical to the maintenance of energy homeostasis. Studies on essence of chicken (EC), a chicken meat extract rich in proteins, amino acids and peptides, showed its effectiveness in alleviating fatigue and promoting metabolism. A recent study revealed that it facilitated the re-entrainment of clock genes (Bmal1, Cry1, Dec1, Per1 and Per2) in the pineal gland and liver in a rat model of circadian disruption. Here, we investigated the role of EC-facilitated circadian synchrony in the maintenance of the energy homeostasis using a mouse model of prolonged circadian disruption. Prolonged circadian disruption (12 weeks) resulted in hepatic maladaptation, manifested by a mild but significant (p maladaptation. When supplemented with EC, the functional impairment and inflammation were abolished. The protective effects could be linked to its effectiveness in maintaining the synchrony between the master and hepatic clocks, and the resultant improved coupling of the circadian oscillators (Per1, Cry1, Dec1, Bmal1) and metabolic regulators (mTOR, AMPK). Overall, EC supplementation promoted the physiological adaptation to the prolonged circadian disruption through facilitation of endogenous circadian synchrony and the coupling of circadian oscillators and metabolic regulators. This forms an important basis for further elucidation of the physiological benefits of EC-facilitated circadian synchrony. PMID:26595385
The effect of lens aging and cataract surgery on circadian rhythm.
Yan, Shen-Shen; Wang, Wei
Many organisms have evolved an approximately 24-hour circadian rhythm that allows them to achieve internal physiological homeostasis with external environment. Suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) is the central pacemaker of circadian rhythm, and its activity is entrained to the external light-dark cycle. The SCN controls circadian rhythm through regulating the synthesis of melatonin by pineal gland via a multisynaptic pathway. Light, especially short-wavelength blue light, is the most potent environmental time cue in circadian photoentrainment. Recently, the discovery of a novel type of retinal photoreceptors, intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells, sheds light on the mechanism of circadian photoentrainment and raises concerns about the effect of ocular diseases on circadian system. With age, light transmittance is significantly decreased due to the aging of crystalline lens, thus possibly resulting in progressive loss of circadian photoreception. In the current review, we summarize the circadian physiology, highlight the important role of light in circadian rhythm regulation, discuss about the correlation between age-related cataract and sleep disorders, and compare the effect of blue light- filtering intraocular lenses (IOLs) and ultraviolet only filtering IOLs on circadian rhythm. PMID:27500118
The mood stabilizer valproic acid opposes the effects of dopamine on circadian rhythms.
Landgraf, Dominic; Joiner, William J; McCarthy, Michael J; Kiessling, Silke; Barandas, Rita; Young, Jared W; Cermakian, Nicolas; Welsh, David K
Endogenous circadian (∼24 h) clocks regulate key physiological and cognitive processes via rhythmic expression of clock genes. The main circadian pacemaker is the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). Mood disorders, including bipolar disorder (BD), are commonly associated with disturbed circadian rhythms. Dopamine (DA) contributes to mania in BD and has direct impact on clock gene expression. Therefore, we hypothesized that high levels of DA during episodes of mania contribute to disturbed circadian rhythms in BD. The mood stabilizer valproic acid (VPA) also affects circadian rhythms. Thus, we further hypothesized that VPA normalizes circadian disturbances caused by elevated levels of DA. To test these hypotheses, we examined locomotor rhythms and circadian gene cycling in mice with reduced expression of the dopamine transporter (DAT-KD mice), which results in elevated DA levels and mania-like behavior. We found that elevated DA signaling lengthened the circadian period of behavioral rhythms in DAT-KD mice and clock gene expression rhythms in SCN explants. In contrast, we found that VPA shortened circadian period of behavioral rhythms in DAT-KD mice and clock gene expression rhythms in SCN explants, hippocampal cell lines, and human fibroblasts from BD patients. Thus, DA and VPA have opposing effects on circadian period. To test whether the impact of VPA on circadian rhythms contributes to its behavioral effects, we fed VPA to DAT-deficient Drosophila with and without functioning circadian clocks. Consistent with our hypothesis, we found that VPA had potent activity-suppressing effects in hyperactive DAT-deficient flies with intact circadian clocks. However, these effects were attenuated in DAT-deficient flies in which circadian clocks were disrupted, suggesting that VPA functions partly through the circadian clock to suppress activity. Here, we provide in vivo and in vitro evidence across species that elevated DA signaling lengthens the circadian
A circadian biosignature in the labeled release data from Mars?
Van Dongen, Hans P. A.; Miller, Joseph D.; Levin, Gilbert V.; Straat, Patricia A.
Organisms on Earth commonly exhibit a circadian rhythm, which is synchronized to the 24-hour day-night (diurnal) cycle of the planet. However, if isolated from strong environmental time cues (e.g., light-dark, temperature, etc.), many organisms revert to a "free-running" rhythm that is close to, but significantly different from, the diurnal cycle. Such a free-running rhythm is a distinct biological feature, as it requires an endogenous pacemaker that is not just passively driven by rhythms in the environment. On Mars, a free-running rhythm (i.e., significantly different from the Martian diurnal cycle of 24.66 hours) would constitute independent proof of the presence of living organisms. Evidence for such a circadian biosignature from Mars has been sought in the data sent by the 1976 Viking Labeled Release (LR) life detection experiment . In the search for circadian rhythmicity, oscillatory fluctuations in the amount of radiolabeled gas in the headspace of the LR test cell of Viking Lander 2, test cycle 3, were studied. The cycle duration of the LR oscillations examined did not differ significantly from that of the daily cell temperature oscillations controlled ultimately by the Martian diurnal cycle. Thus, these specific LR oscillations produced no independent evidence for an endogenous biological origin. However, it was found that the amplitudes of the oscillations in the gas (presumably CO2) were greater than could be accounted for by the most likely non-biological mechanism (i.e., temperature-induced changes in soil solubility of CO2). The possibility thus remained that biological activity, synchronized to the Martian diurnal cycle, could be responsible for at least part of the oscillatory activity in the LR signals. We now propose to consider all data from the nine active and control cycles of the Martian LR experiment. A comprehensive set of null and alternative hypotheses is proposed for statistical testing using the digitized data. Advanced, statistically
Cryptochrome mediates light-dependent magnetosensitivity of Drosophila's circadian clock.
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Taishi Yoshii
Full Text Available Since 1960, magnetic fields have been discussed as Zeitgebers for circadian clocks, but the mechanism by which clocks perceive and process magnetic information has remained unknown. Recently, the radical-pair model involving light-activated photoreceptors as magnetic field sensors has gained considerable support, and the blue-light photoreceptor cryptochrome (CRY has been proposed as a suitable molecule to mediate such magnetosensitivity. Since CRY is expressed in the circadian clock neurons and acts as a critical photoreceptor of Drosophila's clock, we aimed to test the role of CRY in magnetosensitivity of the circadian clock. In response to light, CRY causes slowing of the clock, ultimately leading to arrhythmic behavior. We expected that in the presence of applied magnetic fields, the impact of CRY on clock rhythmicity should be altered. Furthermore, according to the radical-pair hypothesis this response should be dependent on wavelength and on the field strength applied. We tested the effect of applied static magnetic fields on the circadian clock and found that flies exposed to these fields indeed showed enhanced slowing of clock rhythms. This effect was maximal at 300 muT, and reduced at both higher and lower field strengths. Clock response to magnetic fields was present in blue light, but absent under red-light illumination, which does not activate CRY. Furthermore, cry(b and cry(OUT mutants did not show any response, and flies overexpressing CRY in the clock neurons exhibited an enhanced response to the field. We conclude that Drosophila's circadian clock is sensitive to magnetic fields and that this sensitivity depends on light activation of CRY and on the applied field strength, consistent with the radical pair mechanism. CRY is widespread throughout biological systems and has been suggested as receptor for magnetic compass orientation in migratory birds. The present data establish the circadian clock of Drosophila as a model system
Disruption of Circadian Rhythms: A Crucial Factor in the Etiology of Depression
Roberto Salgado-Delgado; Araceli Tapia Osorio; Nadia Saderi; Carolina Escobar
Circadian factors might play a crucial role in the etiology of depression. It has been demonstrated that the disruption of circadian rhythms by lighting conditions and lifestyle predisposes individuals to a wide range of mood disorders, including impulsivity, mania and depression. Also, associated with depression, there is the impairment of circadian rhythmicity of behavioral, endocrine, and metabolic functions. Inspite of this close relationship between both processes, the complex relationsh...
Effects of chronic administration and withdrawal of antidepressant agents on circadian activity rhythms in rats
Wollnik, Franziska
Experimental and clinical studies indicate that clinical depression may be associated with disturbances of circadian rhythms. To explore the interaction between circadian rhythmicity, behavioral state, and monoaminergic systems, the present study investigated the effects of chronic administration and withdrawal of the following antidepressant agents on circadian wheel-running rhythms of laboratory rats: a) moclobemide, a reversible and selective monoamine oxidase (MAO) type A inhibitor; b) Ro...
Examining the Acute and Chronic Effects of Sepsis on the Circadian Clock in the Mouse
O'Callaghan, Emma
Circadian rhythms are recurring patterns (~24hrs) in behaviour and physiology that are driven primarily by an endogenous biological timekeeping system, with the master pacemaker located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus. Studies have indicated bidirectional relationships between the circadian and the immune systems, however while there is much evidence regarding the regulation of immune function by the circadian system, information regarding the impact of immune processes on the timekeeping syst...
The hormonal Zeitgeber melatonin: role as a circadian modulator in memory processing
Oliver eRawashdeh; Erik eMaronde
The neuroendocrine substance melatonin is a hormone synthesized rhythmically by the pineal gland under the influence of the circadian system and alternating light/dark cycles. Melatonin has been shown to have broad applications, and consequently becoming a molecule of great controversy. Undoubtedly, however, melatonin plays an important role as a time cue for the endogenous circadian system. This review focuses on melatonin as a regulator in the circadian modulation of memory processing. Memo...
The effects of the noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor atomoxetine on circadian rhythms in mice.
O'Keeffe, Saileog
Circadian rhythms are patterns in behavioural, physiological and many others parameters that recur approximately every twenty four hours. Dysfunction of the circadian system is being linked to a number of common illnesses. The psychiatric condition Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) can be characterised by an early onset of sleep problems and breakdown of stable circadian rhythms which recent studies have shown. The drug atomoxetine used in this research project is used in the...
Peripheral Skin Temperature and Circadian Biological Clock in Shift Nurses after a Day off
Massimo Bracci; Veronica Ciarapica; Alfredo Copertaro; Mariella Barbaresi; Nicola Manzella; Marco Tomasetti; Simona Gaetani; Federica Monaco; Monica Amati; Matteo Valentino; Venerando Rapisarda; Lory Santarelli
The circadian biological clock is essentially based on the light/dark cycle. Some people working with shift schedules cannot adjust their sleep/wake cycle to the light/dark cycle, and this may result in alterations of the circadian biological clock. This study explored the circadian biological clock of shift and daytime nurses using non-invasive methods. Peripheral skin temperature, cortisol and melatonin levels in saliva, and Per2 expression in pubic hair follicle cells were investigated for...
Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring and Circadian Rhythm of Blood Pressure in Diabetes Mellitus
Elena Matteucci; Ottavio Giampietro
Systolic and diastolic blood pressures display a circadian rhythmicity that can be assessed by 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring and analysed using the cosinor procedure. Altered characteristics to the circadian rhythm of blood pressure, which may result in adverse health outcomes, have been observed in both prediabetes and diabetes. We have investigated the circadian variability of blood pressure in patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Chronobiologically interpreted ambulator...
Functional Development of the Circadian Clock in the Zebrafish Pineal Gland
Zohar Ben-Moshe; Foulkes, Nicholas S.; Yoav Gothilf
The zebrafish constitutes a powerful model organism with unique advantages for investigating the vertebrate circadian timing system and its regulation by light. In particular, the remarkably early and rapid development of the zebrafish circadian system has facilitated exploring the factors that control the onset of circadian clock function during embryogenesis. Here, we review our understanding of the molecular basis underlying functional development of the central clock in the zebrafish pine...
The mood stabilizer valproic acid opposes the effects of dopamine on circadian rhythms.
Landgraf, D; Joiner, WJ; McCarthy, MJ; Kiessling, S.; Barandas, R; Young, JW; Cermakian, N; Welsh, DK
Endogenous circadian (∼24 h) clocks regulate key physiological and cognitive processes via rhythmic expression of clock genes. The main circadian pacemaker is the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). Mood disorders, including bipolar disorder (BD), are commonly associated with disturbed circadian rhythms. Dopamine (DA) contributes to mania in BD and has direct impact on clock gene expression. Therefore, we hypothesized that high levels of DA during episodes of mania contribute to distu...
AMPK regulates circadian rhythms in a tissue- and isoform-specific manner.
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Jee-Hyun Um
Full Text Available BACKGROUND: AMP protein kinase (AMPK plays an important role in food intake and energy metabolism, which are synchronized to the light-dark cycle. In vitro, AMPK affects the circadian rhythm by regulating at least two clock components, CKIα and CRY1, via direct phosphorylation. However, it is not known whether the catalytic activity of AMPK actually regulates circadian rhythm in vivo. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDING: THE CATALYTIC SUBUNIT OF AMPK HAS TWO ISOFORMS: α1 and α2. We investigate the circadian rhythm of behavior, physiology and gene expression in AMPKα1-/- and AMPKα2-/- mice. We found that both α1-/- and α2-/- mice are able to maintain a circadian rhythm of activity in dark-dark (DD cycle, but α1-/- mice have a shorter circadian period whereas α2-/- mice showed a tendency toward a slightly longer circadian period. Furthermore, the circadian rhythm of body temperature was dampened in α1-/- mice, but not in α2-/- mice. The circadian pattern of core clock gene expression was severely disrupted in fat in α1-/- mice, but it was severely disrupted in the heart and skeletal muscle of α2-/- mice. Interestingly, other genes that showed circadian pattern of expression were dysreguated in both α1-/- and α2-/- mice. The circadian rhythm of nicotinamide phosphoryl-transferase (NAMPT activity, which converts nicotinamide (NAM to NAD+, is an important regulator of the circadian clock. We found that the NAMPT rhythm was absent in AMPK-deficient tissues and cells. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: This study demonstrates that the catalytic activity of AMPK regulates circadian rhythm of behavior, energy metabolism and gene expression in isoform- and tissue-specific manners.
Circadian abnormalities in a mouse model of high trait anxiety and depression
Griesauer, Irene; Diao, Weifei; Ronovsky, Marianne; Elbau, Immanuel; Sartori, Simone; Singewald, Nicolas; Pollak, Daniela D.
Introduction Dysregulation of circadian rhythms is a key symptom of mood disorders, including anxiety disorders and depression. Whether the circadian abnormalities observed in depressed patients are cause or consequence of the disease remains elusive. Here we aimed to explore potential disturbances of circadian rhythms in a validated genetic animal model of high trait anxiety and co-morbid depression and examine its molecular correlates. Materials and methods Mice selectively bred for high (H...
A circadian rhythm orchestrated by histone deacetylase 3 controls hepatic lipid metabolism
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Feng, Dan; Liu, Tao; Sun, Zheng;
Disruption of the circadian clock exacerbates metabolic diseases, including obesity and diabetes. We show that histone deacetylase 3 (HDAC3) recruitment to the genome displays a circadian rhythm in mouse liver. Histone acetylation is inversely related to HDAC3 binding, and this rhythm is lost when...... hepatic steatosis. Thus, genomic recruitment of HDAC3 by Rev-erbα directs a circadian rhythm of histone acetylation and gene expression required for normal hepatic lipid homeostasis....
Expressions of tight junction proteins Occludin and Claudin-1 are under the circadian control in the mouse large intestine: implications in intestinal permeability and susceptibility to colitis.
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Oh-oka Kyoko
Full Text Available BACKGROUND & AIMS: The circadian clock drives daily rhythms in behavior and physiology. A recent study suggests that intestinal permeability is also under control of the circadian clock. However, the precise mechanisms remain largely unknown. Because intestinal permeability depends on tight junction (TJ that regulates the epithelial paracellular pathway, this study investigated whether the circadian clock regulates the expression levels of TJ proteins in the intestine. METHODS: The expression levels of TJ proteins in the large intestinal epithelium and colonic permeability were analyzed every 4, 6, or 12 hours between wild-type mice and mice with a mutation of a key clock gene Period2 (Per2; mPer2(m/m. In addition, the susceptibility to dextran sodium sulfate (DSS-induced colitis was compared between wild-type mice and mPer2(m/m mice. RESULTS: The mRNA and protein expression levels of Occludin and Claudin-1 exhibited daily variations in the colonic epithelium in wild-type mice, whereas they were constitutively high in mPer2(m/m mice. Colonic permeability in wild-type mice exhibited daily variations, which was inversely associated with the expression levels of Occludin and Claudin-1 proteins, whereas it was constitutively low in mPer2(m/m mice. mPer2(m/m mice were more resistant to the colonic injury induced by DSS than wild-type mice. CONCLUSIONS: Occludin and Claudin-1 expressions in the large intestine are under the circadian control, which is associated with temporal regulation of colonic permeability and also susceptibility to colitis.
Circadian rhythms in blood pressure in free-ranging three-toed sloths (Bradypus variegatus
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Duarte D.P.F.
Full Text Available Blood pressure (BP profiles were monitored in nine free-ranging sloths (Bradypus variegatus by coupling one common carotid artery to a BP telemetry transmitter. Animals moved freely in an isolated and temperature-controlled room (24ºC with 12/12-h artificial light-dark cycles and behaviors were observed during resting, eating and moving. Systolic (SBP and diastolic (DBP blood pressures were sampled for 1 min every 15 min for 24 h. BP rhythm over 24 h was analyzed by the cosinor method and the mesor, amplitude, acrophase and percent rhythm were calculated. A total of 764 measurements were made in the light cycle and 721 in the dark cycle. Twenty-four-hour values (mean ± SD were obtained for SBP (121 ± 22 mmHg, DBP (86 ± 17 mmHg, mean BP (MBP, 98 ± 18 mmHg and heart rate (73 ± 16 bpm. The SBP, DBP and MBP were significantly higher (unpaired Student t-test during the light period (125 ± 21, 88 ± 15 and 100 ± 17 mmHg, respectively than during the dark period (120 ± 21, 85 ± 17 and 97 ± 17 mmHg, respectively and the acrophase occurred between 16:00 and 17:45 h. This circadian variation is similar to that observed in cats, dogs and marmosets. The BP decreased during "behavioral sleep" (MBP down from 110 ± 19 to 90 ± 19 mmHg at 21:00 to 8:00 h. Both feeding and moving induced an increase in MBP (96 ± 17 to 119 ± 17 mmHg at 17:00 h and 97 ± 19 to 105 ± 12 mmHg at 15:00 h, respectively. The results show that conscious sloths present biphasic circadian fluctuations in BP levels, which are higher during the light period and are mainly synchronized with feeding.
Circadian regulation of abiotic stress tolerance in plants.
Grundy, Jack; Stoker, Claire; Carré, Isabelle A
Extremes of temperatures, drought and salinity cause widespread crop losses throughout the world and impose severe limitations on the amount of land that can be used for agricultural purposes. Hence, there is an urgent need to develop crops that perform better under such abiotic stress conditions. Here, we discuss intriguing, recent evidence that circadian clock contributes to plants' ability to tolerate different types of environmental stress, and to acclimate to them. The clock controls expression of a large fraction of abiotic stress-responsive genes, as well as biosynthesis and signaling downstream of stress response hormones. Conversely, abiotic stress results in altered expression and differential splicing of the clock genes, leading to altered oscillations of downstream stress-response pathways. We propose a range of mechanisms by which this intimate coupling between the circadian clock and environmental stress-response pathways may contribute to plant growth and survival under abiotic stress.
Circadian regulation of sunflower heliotropism, floral orientation, and pollinator visits.
Atamian, Hagop S; Creux, Nicky M; Brown, Evan A; Garner, Austin G; Blackman, Benjamin K; Harmer, Stacey L
Young sunflower plants track the Sun from east to west during the day and then reorient during the night to face east in anticipation of dawn. In contrast, mature plants cease movement with their flower heads facing east. We show that circadian regulation of directional growth pathways accounts for both phenomena and leads to increased vegetative biomass and enhanced pollinator visits to flowers. Solar tracking movements are driven by antiphasic patterns of elongation on the east and west sides of the stem. Genes implicated in control of phototropic growth, but not clock genes, are differentially expressed on the opposite sides of solar tracking stems. Thus, interactions between environmental response pathways and the internal circadian oscillator coordinate physiological processes with predictable changes in the environment to influence growth and reproduction. PMID:27493185
Circadian regulation of sunflower heliotropism, floral orientation, and pollinator visits.
Atamian, Hagop S; Creux, Nicky M; Brown, Evan A; Garner, Austin G; Blackman, Benjamin K; Harmer, Stacey L
Young sunflower plants track the Sun from east to west during the day and then reorient during the night to face east in anticipation of dawn. In contrast, mature plants cease movement with their flower heads facing east. We show that circadian regulation of directional growth pathways accounts for both phenomena and leads to increased vegetative biomass and enhanced pollinator visits to flowers. Solar tracking movements are driven by antiphasic patterns of elongation on the east and west sides of the stem. Genes implicated in control of phototropic growth, but not clock genes, are differentially expressed on the opposite sides of solar tracking stems. Thus, interactions between environmental response pathways and the internal circadian oscillator coordinate physiological processes with predictable changes in the environment to influence growth and reproduction.
Timing of Photoperiodic Flowering:Light Perception and Circadian Clock
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)
Yun Zhou; Xiao-Dong Sun; Min Ni
Flowering symbolizes the transition of a plant from vegetative phase to reproductive phase and is controlled by fairly complex and highly coordinated regulatory pathways. Over the last decade, genetic studies in Arabidopsis have aided the discovery of many signaling components involved in these pathways. In this review, we discuss how the timing of flowering is regulated by photoperiod and the involvement of light perception and the circadian clock in this process. The specific regulatory mechanisms on CONSTANS expression and CONSTANS stability by the circadian clock and photoreceptors are described in detail. In addition, the roles of CONSTANS, FLOWERING LOCUS T, and several other light signaling and circadiandependent components in photoperiodic flowering are also highlighted.
Circadian neuroendocrine physiology and electromagnetic field studies: Precautions and complexities
Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)
Warman, G.R.; Tripp, H.M.; Harman, V.L.; Arendt, J
The suppression of melatonin by exposure to low frequency electromagnetic fields (EMFs) 'the melatonin hypothesis' has been invoked as a possible mechanism through which exposure to these fields may result in an increased incidence of cancer. While the effect of light on melatonin is well established, data showing a similar effect due to EMF exposure are sparse and, where present, are often poorly controlled. The current review focuses on the complexities associated with using melatonin as a marker and the dynamic nature of normal melatonin regulation by the circadian neuroendocrine axis. These are issues which the authors believe contribute significantly to the lack of consistency of results in the current literature. Recommendations on protocol design are also made which, if followed, should enable researchers to eliminate or control for many of the confounding factors associated with melatonin being an output from the circadian clock. (author)
Circadian pattern and burstiness in human communication activity
Jo, Hang-Hyun; Kertész, János; Kaski, Kimmo
The temporal pattern of human communication is inhomogeneous and bursty, as reflected by the heavy tail distribution of the inter-event times. For the origin of this behavior two main mechanisms have been suggested: a) Externally driven inhomogeneities due to the circadian and weekly activity patterns and b) intrinsic correlation based inhomogeneity rooted deeply in the task handling strategies of humans. Here we address this question by providing systematic de-seasoning methods to remove the circadian and weekly patterns from the time series of communication events. We find that the heavy tails of the inter-event time distributions are robust with respect to this procedure indicating that burstiness is mostly caused by the latter mechanism b). Moreover, we find that our de-seasoning procedure improves the scaling behavior of the distribution.
Serotoninergic and Circadian Systems: Driving Mammary Gland Development and Function.
Suárez-Trujillo, Aridany; Casey, Theresa M
Since lactation is one of the most metabolically demanding states in adult female mammals, beautifully complex regulatory mechanisms are in place to time lactation to begin after birth and cease when the neonate is weaned. Lactation is regulated by numerous different homeorhetic factors, all of them tightly coordinated with the demands of milk production. Emerging evidence support that among these factors are the serotonergic and circadian clock systems. Here we review the serotoninergic and circadian clock systems and their roles in the regulation of mammary gland development and lactation physiology. We conclude by presenting our hypothesis that these two systems interact to accommodate the metabolic demands of lactation and thus adaptive changes in these systems occur to maintain mammary and systemic homeostasis through the reproductive cycles of female mammals. PMID:27471474
Dissociation of ultradian and circadian phenotypes in female and male Siberian hamsters.
Prendergast, Brian J; Cisse, Yasmine M; Cable, Erin J; Zucker, Irving
Three experiments addressed whether pronounced alterations in the circadian system yielded concomitant changes in ultradian timing. Female Siberian hamsters were housed in a 16L:8D photoperiod after being subjected to a disruptive phase-shifting protocol that produced 3 distinct permanent circadian phenotypes: some hamsters entrained their circadian rhythms (CRs) with predominantly nocturnal locomotor activity (ENTR), others displayed free-running CRs (FR), and a third cohort was circadian arrhythmic (ARR). The period of the ultradian locomotor rhythm (UR) did not differ among the 3 circadian phenotypes; neuroendocrine generation of URs remains viable in the absence of coherent circadian organization and appears to be mediated by substrates functionally and anatomically distinct from those that generate CRs. Pronounced light-dark differences in several UR characteristics in ENTR hamsters were completely absent in circadian arrhythmic hamsters. The disruptive phase-shifting protocol may compromise direct visual input to ultradian oscillators but more likely indirectly affects URs by interrupting visual afference to the circadian system. Additional experiments documented that deuterium oxide and constant light, each of which substantially lengthened the period of free-running CRs, failed to change the period of concurrently monitored URs. The resistance of URs to deuteration contrasts with the slowing of virtually all other biological timing processes, including CRs. Considered together, the present results point to the existence of separable control mechanisms for generation of circadian and ultradian rhythms.
The period length of fibroblast circadian gene expression varies widely among human individuals.
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Steven A Brown
Full Text Available Mammalian circadian behavior is governed by a central clock in the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the brain hypothalamus, and its intrinsic period length is believed to affect the phase of daily activities. Measurement of this period length, normally accomplished by prolonged subject observation, is difficult and costly in humans. Because a circadian clock similar to that of the suprachiasmatic nucleus is present in most cell types, we were able to engineer a lentiviral circadian reporter that permits characterization of circadian rhythms in single skin biopsies. Using it, we have determined the period lengths of 19 human individuals. The average value from all subjects, 24.5 h, closely matches average values for human circadian physiology obtained in studies in which circadian period was assessed in the absence of the confounding effects of light input and sleep-wake cycle feedback. Nevertheless, the distribution of period lengths measured from biopsies from different individuals was wider than those reported for circadian physiology. A similar trend was observed when comparing wheel-running behavior with fibroblast period length in mouse strains containing circadian gene disruptions. In mice, inter-individual differences in fibroblast period length correlated with the period of running-wheel activity; in humans, fibroblasts from different individuals showed widely variant circadian periods. Given its robustness, the presented procedure should permit quantitative trait mapping of human period length.
Interaction of MAGED1 with nuclear receptors affects circadian clock function
Wang, Xiaohan; Tang, Jing; Xing, Lijuan; Shi, Guangsen; Ruan, Haibin; Gu, Xiwen; Liu, Zhiwei; Wu, Xi; Gao, Xiang; Xu, Ying
The circadian clock has a central role in physiological adaption and anticipation of day/night changes. In a genetic screen for novel regulators of circadian rhythms, we found that mice lacking MAGED1 (Melanoma Antigen Family D1) exhibit a shortened period and altered rest–activity bouts. These circadian phenotypes are proposed to be caused by a direct effect on the core molecular clock network that reduces the robustness of the circadian clock. We provide in vitro and in vivo evidence indica...
Sleep disturbances and circadian CLOCK genes in borderline personality disorder
Fleischer, Monika; Schafer, Michael; Coogan, Andrew; Hassler, Frank; Thome, Johannes
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is characterised by a deep-reaching pattern of affective instability, incoherent identity, self-injury, suicide attempts, and disturbed interpersonal relations and lifestyle. The daily activities of BPD patients are often chaotic and disorganized, with patients often staying up late while sleeping during the day. These behavioural patterns suggest that altered circadian rhythms may be associated with BPD. Furthermore, BPD patients ...
Circadian regulation of hormone signaling and plant physiology.
Atamian, HS; Harmer, SL
The survival and reproduction of plants depend on their ability to cope with a wide range of daily and seasonal environmental fluctuations during their life cycle. Phytohormones are plant growth regulators that are involved in almost every aspect of growth and development as well as plant adaptation to myriad abiotic and biotic conditions. The circadian clock, an endogenous and cell-autonomous biological timekeeper that produces rhythmic outputs with close to 24-h rhythms, provides an adaptiv...
What time is it? Deep learning approaches for circadian rhythms
Agostinelli, Forest; Ceglia, Nicholas; Shahbaba, Babak; Sassone-Corsi, Paolo; Baldi, Pierre
Motivation: Circadian rhythms date back to the origins of life, are found in virtually every species and every cell, and play fundamental roles in functions ranging from metabolism to cognition. Modern high-throughput technologies allow the measurement of concentrations of transcripts, metabolites and other species along the circadian cycle creating novel computational challenges and opportunities, including the problems of inferring whether a given species oscillate in circadian fashion or not, and inferring the time at which a set of measurements was taken. Results: We first curate several large synthetic and biological time series datasets containing labels for both periodic and aperiodic signals. We then use deep learning methods to develop and train BIO_CYCLE, a system to robustly estimate which signals are periodic in high-throughput circadian experiments, producing estimates of amplitudes, periods, phases, as well as several statistical significance measures. Using the curated data, BIO_CYCLE is compared to other approaches and shown to achieve state-of-the-art performance across multiple metrics. We then use deep learning methods to develop and train BIO_CLOCK to robustly estimate the time at which a particular single-time-point transcriptomic experiment was carried. In most cases, BIO_CLOCK can reliably predict time, within approximately 1 h, using the expression levels of only a small number of core clock genes. BIO_CLOCK is shown to work reasonably well across tissue types, and often with only small degradation across conditions. BIO_CLOCK is used to annotate most mouse experiments found in the GEO database with an inferred time stamp. Availability and Implementation: All data and software are publicly available on the CircadiOmics web portal: circadiomics.igb.uci.edu/. Contacts: firstname.lastname@example.com or email@example.com Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. PMID:27307647
Molecular bases of circadian rhythmicity in renal physiology and pathology
Bonny, Olivier; Vinciguerra, Manlio; Gumz, Michelle L.; Mazzoccoli, Gianluigi
The physiological processes that maintain body homeostasis oscillate during the day. Diurnal changes characterize kidney functions, comprising regulation of hydro-electrolytic and acid-base balance, reabsorption of small solutes and hormone production. Renal physiology is characterized by 24-h periodicity and contributes to circadian variability of blood pressure levels, related as well to nychthemeral changes of sodium sensitivity, physical activity, vascular tone, autonomic function and neu...
Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder. Prevalence, sleep, circadian rhythm and treatment
Saxvig, Ingvild West
Adolescence is often characterized by delayed and irregular sleep patterns, with potential negative consequences in terms of school performance and daytime functioning. At the most extreme, a stably delayed sleep phase may reflect a circadian rhythm sleep disorder of the delayed sleep phase type (delayed sleep phase disorder, DSPD). DSPD is assumed to be common amongst adolescents and young adults, but little is known about its prevalence and aetiology, and no guidelines exist ...
Physiological analysis of central and peripheral insect circadian pacemaker neurons
Funk, Nico Werner
Alle bisher untersuchten Lebewesen besitzen (circadiane) innere Uhren, die eine endogene Perioden-länge von ungefähr 24 Stunden generieren. Eine innere Uhr kann über Zeitgeber mit der Umwelt synchronisiert werden und ermöglicht dem Organismus, rhythmische Umweltveränderungen vorweg zu nehmen. Neben einem zentralen Schrittmacher, der Physiologie und Verhalten des Organismus steuert, gibt es in unterschiedlichen Organen auch periphere Uhren, die die zeitlichen Abläufe in der spezifischen Funkti...
When the circadian clock meets the melanin pigmentary system.
Slominski, Andrzej T; Hardeland, Rüdiger; Reiter, Russel J
Silencing of BMAL1 and PER1 stimulates melanogenic activity of follicular and epidermal melanocytes, indicating a novel role for peripheral circadian clock processes in the regulation of melanin pigmentation. Linking the expression levels of BMAL1/PER1 with changes in melanogenesis opens exciting opportunities to study the role of the local molecular clock in modulation of melanocyte functions in the hair follicle and the epidermis with attendant effects on epidermal barrier functions in general. PMID:25785947
Aging, circadian rhythms and depressive disorders: a review
Campos Costa, Inês; Nogueira Carvalho, Hugo; Fernandes, Lia
Introduction: Aging is typically associated with impairing behavioral patterns that are frequently and inappropriately seen as normal. Circadian rhythm changes and depressive disorders have been increasingly proposed as the two main overlapping and interpenetrating changes that take place in older age. This study aims to review the state of the art on the subject concerning epidemiology, pathophysiological mechanism, clinical findings and relevance, as well as available treatment options. Mat...
Working around the clock: circadian rhythms and skeletal muscle
ZHANG, XIPING; Dube, Thomas J.; Esser, Karyn A.
The study of the circadian molecular clock in skeletal muscle is in the very early stages. Initial research has demonstrated the presence of the molecular clock in skeletal muscle and that skeletal muscle of a clock-compromised mouse, Clock mutant, exhibits significant disruption in normal expression of many genes required for adult muscle structure and metabolism. In light of the growing association between the molecular clock, metabolism, and metabolic disease, it will also be important to ...
Chronobesity: role of the circadian system in the obesity epidemic.
Laermans, J; Depoortere, I
Although obesity is considered to result from an imbalance between energy uptake and energy expenditure, the strategy of dietary changes and physical exercise has failed to tackle the global obesity epidemic. In search of alternative and more adequate treatment options, research has aimed at further unravelling the mechanisms underlying this excessive weight gain. While numerous studies are focusing on the neuroendocrine alterations that occur after bariatric Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery, an increasing amount of chronobiological studies have started to raise awareness concerning the pivotal role of the circadian system in the development and exacerbation of obesity. This internal timekeeping mechanism rhythmically regulates metabolic and physiological processes in order to meet the fluctuating demands in energy use and supply throughout the 24-h day. This review elaborates on the extensive bidirectional interaction between the circadian system and metabolism and explains how disruption of body clocks by means of shift work, frequent time zone travelling or non-stop consumption of calorie-dense foods can evoke detrimental metabolic alterations that contribute to obesity. Altering the body's circadian rhythms by means of time-related dietary approaches (chrononutrition) or pharmacological substances (chronobiotics) may therefore represent a novel and interesting way to prevent or treat obesity and associated comorbidities.
Toward a detailed computational model for the mammalian circadian clock
Leloup, Jean-Christophe; Goldbeter, Albert
We present a computational model for the mammalian circadian clock based on the intertwined positive and negative regulatory loops involving the Per, Cry, Bmal1, Clock, and Rev-Erb genes. In agreement with experimental observations, the model can give rise to sustained circadian oscillations in continuous darkness, characterized by an antiphase relationship between Per/Cry/Rev-Erb and Bmal1 mRNAs. Sustained oscillations correspond to the rhythms autonomously generated by suprachiasmatic nuclei. For other parameter values, damped oscillations can also be obtained in the model. These oscillations, which transform into sustained oscillations when coupled to a periodic signal, correspond to rhythms produced by peripheral tissues. When incorporating the light-induced expression of the Per gene, the model accounts for entrainment of the oscillations by light-dark cycles. Simulations show that the phase of the oscillations can then vary by several hours with relatively minor changes in parameter values. Such a lability of the phase could account for physiological disorders related to circadian rhythms in humans, such as advanced or delayed sleep phase syndrome, whereas the lack of entrainment by light-dark cycles can be related to the non-24h sleep-wake syndrome. The model uncovers the possible existence of multiple sources of oscillatory behavior. Thus, in conditions where the indirect negative autoregulation of Per and Cry expression is inoperative, the model indicates the possibility that sustained oscillations might still arise from the negative autoregulation of Bmal1 expression.
Circadian control of antigen-specific T cell responses
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Nobis CC
Full Text Available Chloé C Nobis,1–3 Nathalie Labrecque,2–4 Nicolas Cermakian1,5–8 1Douglas Mental Health University Institute, 2Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital Research Centre, 3Department of Microbiology, Infectious Diseases and Immunology, 4Department of Medicine, University of Montreal, 5Department of Psychiatry, 6Department of Microbiology and Immunology, 7Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, 8Department of Physiology, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada Abstract: The immune system is composed of two arms, the innate and the adaptive immunity. While the innate response constitutes the first line of defense and is not specific for a particular pathogen, the adaptive response is highly specific and allows for long-term memory of the pathogen encounter. T lymphocytes (or T cells are central players in the adaptive immune response. Various aspects of T cell functions vary according to the time of day. Circadian clocks located in most tissues and cell types generate 24-hour rhythms of various physiological processes. These clocks are based on a set of clock genes, and this timing mechanism controls rhythmically the expression of numerous other genes. Clock genes are expressed in cells of the immune system, including T cells. In this review, we provide an overview of the circadian control of the adaptive immune response, with emphasis on T cells, including their development, trafficking, response to antigen, and effector functions. Keywords: circadian clock, adaptive immune response, T lymphocyte, antigen, cytokine, proliferation
A multi-oscillatory circadian system times female reproduction
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Valerie eSimonneaux
Full Text Available Rhythms in female reproduction are critical to insure that timing of ovulation coincides with oocyte maturation and optimal sexual arousal. This fine tuning of female reproduction involves both the estradiol feedback as an indicator of oocyte maturation, and the master circadian clock of the suprachiasmatic nuclei as an indicator of the time of the day. Herein we are providing an overview of the state of knowledge regarding the differential inhibitory and stimulatory effects of estradiol at different stages of the reproductive axis, and the mechanisms through which the two main neurotransmitters of the suprachiasmatic nucleus, arginine vasopressin and vasoactive intestinal peptide, convey daily time cues to the reproductive axis. In addition we will report the most recent findings on the putative functions of peripheral clocks located throughout the reproductive axis (kisspeptin neurons, GnRH neurons, gonadotropic cells, the ovary and the uterus. This review will point to the critical position of the kisspeptin neurons of the anteroventral periventricular nucleus, which integrate both the stimulatory estradiol signal, and the daily arginine vasopressinergic signal, while displaying a circadian clock. Finally, given the critical role of the light/dark cycle in the synchronization of female reproduction, we will discuss the impact of circadian disruptions observed during shift work conditions on female reproductive performance and fertility in both animal model and humans.
Biomarkers for Circadian Rhythm Disruption Independent of Time of Day
Van Dycke, Kirsten C. G.; Pennings, Jeroen L. A.; van Oostrom, Conny T. M.; van Kerkhof, Linda W. M.; van Steeg, Harry; van der Horst, Gijsbertus T. J.; Rodenburg, Wendy
Frequent shift work causes disruption of the circadian rhythm and might on the long-term result in increased health risk. Current biomarkers evaluating the presence of circadian rhythm disturbance (CRD), including melatonin, cortisol and body temperature, require 24-hr ("around the clock") measurements, which is tedious. Therefore, these markers are not eligible to be used in large-scale (human) studies. The aim of the present study was to identify universal biomarkers for CRD independent of time of day using a transcriptomics approach. Female FVB mice were exposed to six shifts in a clockwise (CW) and counterclockwise (CCW) CRD protocol and sacrificed at baseline and after 1 shift, 6 shifts, 5 days recovery and 14 days recovery, respectively. At six time-points during the day, livers were collected for mRNA microarray analysis. Using a classification approach, we identified a set of biomarkers able to classify samples into either CRD or non-disrupted based on the hepatic gene expression. Furthermore, we identified differentially expressed genes 14 days after the last shift compared to baseline for both CRD protocols. Non-circadian genes differentially expressed upon both CW and CCW protocol were considered useful, universal markers for CRD. One candidate marker i.e. CD36 was evaluated in serum samples of the CRD animals versus controls. These biomarkers might be useful to measure CRD and can be used later on for monitoring the effectiveness of intervention strategies aiming to prevent or minimize chronic adverse health effects. PMID:25984797
Circadian rhythm of body temperature during prolonged undersea voyages.
Colquhoun, W P; Paine, M W; Fort, A
Circadian rhythms of oral temperature were assessed in 12 watchkeepers during a prolonged submarine voyage and compared with a "standard" rhythm obtained from nonwatchkeepers ashore. Initially, the parameters of the rhythms were similar to those of the standard; however, among eight ratings working 4-h watches in a rapidly rotating cycle, considerable changes in the rhythms occurred as the voyage progressed, and concurrent alterations in sleep patterning were observed. The most characteristic change in the rhythm was a marked decline in its amplitude. In most subjects, the rhythm also tended to depart from its original circadian pattern; in at least one case, it effectively disintegrated. One subject's rhythm appeared to "free-run" with a period greater than 24 h. A strong circadian rhythm was maintained in only one of these eight subjects. In four officers whose watch times were at fixed hours, adaptation of the rhythm to unusual times of sleep occurred in 2 of 3 cases where the schedule demanded it. The results are discussed in relation to the design of optimal watchkeeping systems for submariners. PMID:655989
Sleep Deprivation Influences Circadian Gene Expression in the Lateral Habenula
Gao, Yanxia
Sleep is governed by homeostasis and the circadian clock. Clock genes play an important role in the generation and maintenance of circadian rhythms but are also involved in regulating sleep homeostasis. The lateral habenular nucleus (LHb) has been implicated in sleep-wake regulation, since LHb gene expression demonstrates circadian oscillation characteristics. This study focuses on the participation of LHb clock genes in regulating sleep homeostasis, as the nature of their involvement is unclear. In this study, we observed changes in sleep pattern following sleep deprivation in LHb-lesioned rats using EEG recording techniques. And then the changes of clock gene expression (Per1, Per2, and Bmal1) in the LHb after 6 hours of sleep deprivation were detected by using real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR). We found that sleep deprivation increased the length of Non-Rapid Eye Movement Sleep (NREMS) and decreased wakefulness. LHb-lesioning decreased the amplitude of reduced wake time and increased NREMS following sleep deprivation in rats. qPCR results demonstrated that Per2 expression was elevated after sleep deprivation, while the other two genes were unaffected. Following sleep recovery, Per2 expression was comparable to the control group. This study provides the basis for further research on the role of LHb Per2 gene in the regulation of sleep homeostasis. PMID:27413249
Influence of gravity on the circadian timing system.
Fuller, C A; Hoban-Higgins, T M; Griffin, D W; Murakami, D M
The circadian timing system (CTS) is responsible for daily temporal coordination of physiological and behavioral functions both internally and with the external environment. Experiments in altered gravitational environments have revealed changes in circadian rhythms of species ranging from fungi to primates. The altered gravitational environments examined included both the microgravity environment of spaceflight and hyperdynamic environments produced by centrifugation. Acute exposure to altered gravitational environments changed homeostatic parameters such as body temperature. These changes were time of day dependent. Exposure to gravitational alterations of relatively short duration produced changes in both the homeostatic level and the amplitude of circadian rhythms. Chronic exposure to a non-earth level of gravity resulted in changes in the period of the expressed rhythms as well as in the phase relationships between the rhythms and between the rhythms and the external environment. In addition, alterations in gravity appeared to act as a time cue for the CTS. Altered gravity also affected the sensitivity of the pacemaker to other aspects of the environment (i.e., light) and to shifts of time cues. Taken together, these studies lead to the conclusion that the CTS is indeed sensitive to gravity and its alterations. This finding has implications for both basic biology and space medicine. PMID:11537948
An allele of the crm gene blocks cyanobacterial circadian rhythms.
Boyd, Joseph S; Bordowitz, Juliana R; Bree, Anna C; Golden, Susan S
The SasA-RpaA two-component system constitutes a key output pathway of the cyanobacterial Kai circadian oscillator. To date, rhythm of phycobilisome associated (rpaA) is the only gene other than kaiA, kaiB, and kaiC, which encode the oscillator itself, whose mutation causes completely arrhythmic gene expression. Here we report a unique transposon insertion allele in a small ORF located immediately upstream of rpaA in Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942 termed crm (for circadian rhythmicity modulator), which results in arrhythmic promoter activity but does not affect steady-state levels of RpaA. The crm ORF complements the defect when expressed in trans, but only if it can be translated, suggesting that crm encodes a small protein. The crm1 insertion allele phenotypes are distinct from those of an rpaA null; crm1 mutants are able to grow in a light:dark cycle and have no detectable oscillations of KaiC phosphorylation, whereas low-amplitude KaiC phosphorylation rhythms persist in the absence of RpaA. Levels of phosphorylated RpaA in vivo measured over time are significantly altered compared with WT in the crm1 mutant as well as in the absence of KaiC. Taken together, these results are consistent with the hypothesis that the Crm polypeptide modulates a circadian-specific activity of RpaA.
Circadian rhythms and memory formation: regulation by chromatin remodeling.
Sahar, Saurabh; Sassone-Corsi, Paolo
Epigenetic changes, such as DNA methylation or histone modification, can remodel the chromatin and regulate gene expression. Remodeling of chromatin provides an efficient mechanism of transducing signals, such as light or nutrient availability, to regulate gene expression. CLOCK:BMAL1 mediated activation of clock-controlled genes (CCGs) is coupled to circadian changes in histone modification at their promoters. Several chromatin modifiers, such as the deacetylases SIRT1 and HDAC3 or methyltransferase MLL1, have been shown to be recruited to the promoters of the CCGs in a circadian manner. Interestingly, the central element of the core clock machinery, the transcription factor CLOCK, also possesses histone acetyltransferase activity. Rhythmic expression of the CCGs is abolished in the absence of these chromatin modifiers. Recent research has demonstrated that chromatin remodeling is at the cross-roads of circadian rhythms and regulation of metabolism and aging. It would be of interest to identify if similar pathways exist in the epigenetic regulation of memory formation. PMID:22470318
Circadian Rhythms and Memory Formation: Regulation by Chromatin Remodeling
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Saurabh eSahar
Full Text Available Epigenetic changes, such as DNA methylation or histone modification, can remodel the chromatin and regulate gene expression. Remodeling of chromatin provides an efficient mechanism of transducing signals, such as light or nutrient availability, to regulate gene expression. CLOCK:BMAL1 mediated activation of clock-controlled genes (CCGs is coupled to circadian changes in histone modification at their promoters. Several chromatin modifiers, such as the deacetylases SIRT1 and HDAC3 or methyltransferase MLL1, have been shown to be recruited to the promoters of the CCGs in a circadian manner. Interestingly, the central element of the core clock machinery, the transcription factor CLOCK, also possesses histone acetyltransferase activity. Rhythmic expression of the CCGs is abolished in the absence of these chromatin modifiers. Recent research has demonstrated that chromatin remodeling is at the cross-roads of circadian rhythms and regulation of metabolism and aging. It would be of interest to identify if similar pathways exist in the epigenetic regulation of memory formation.
Chronic electromyographic analysis of circadian locomotor activity in crayfish.
Tomina, Yusuke; Kibayashi, Akihiro; Yoshii, Taishi; Takahata, Masakazu
Animals generally exhibit circadian rhythms of locomotor activity. They initiate locomotor behavior not only reflexively in response to external stimuli but also spontaneously in the absence of any specific stimulus. The neuronal mechanisms underlying circadian locomotor activity can, therefore, be based on the rhythmic changes in either reflexive efficacy or endogenous activity. In crayfish Procambarus clarkii, it can be determined by analyzing electromyographic (EMG) patterns of walking legs whether the walking behavior is initiated reflexively or spontaneously. In this study, we examined quantitatively the leg muscle activity that underlies the locomotor behavior showing circadian rhythms in crayfish. We newly developed a chronic EMG recording system that allowed the animal to freely behave under a tethered condition for more than 10 days. In the LD condition in which the animals exhibited LD entrainment, the rhythmic burst activity of leg muscles for stepping behavior was preceded by non-rhythmic tonic activation that lasted for 1323±488ms when the animal initiated walking. In DD and LL free-running conditions, the pre-burst activation lasted for 1779±31 and 1517±39ms respectively. In the mechanical stimulus-evoked walking, the pre-burst activation ended within 79±6ms. These data suggest that periodic changes in the crayfish locomotor activity under the condition of LD entrainment or free-running are based on activity changes in the spontaneous initiation mechanism of walking behavior rather than those in the sensori-motor pathway connecting mechanoreceptors with leg movements.
Regulated DNA Methylation and the Circadian Clock: Implications in Cancer
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Tammy M. Joska
Full Text Available Since the cloning and discovery of DNA methyltransferases (DNMT, there has been a growing interest in DNA methylation, its role as an epigenetic modification, how it is established and removed, along with the implications in development and disease. In recent years, it has become evident that dynamic DNA methylation accompanies the circadian clock and is found at clock genes in Neurospora, mice and cancer cells. The relationship among the circadian clock, cancer and DNA methylation at clock genes suggests a correlative indication that improper DNA methylation may influence clock gene expression, contributing to the etiology of cancer. The molecular mechanism underlying DNA methylation at clock loci is best studied in the filamentous fungi, Neurospora crassa, and recent data indicate a mechanism analogous to the RNA-dependent DNA methylation (RdDM or RNAi-mediated facultative heterochromatin. Although it is still unclear, DNA methylation at clock genes may function as a terminal modification that serves to prevent the regulated removal of histone modifications. In this capacity, aberrant DNA methylation may serve as a readout of misregulated clock genes and not as the causative agent. This review explores the implications of DNA methylation at clock loci and describes what is currently known regarding the molecular mechanism underlying DNA methylation at circadian clock genes.
Carbon partitioning in Arabidopsis thaliana is a dynamic process controlled by the plants metabolic status and its circadian clock
Kölling, Katharina; Thalmann, Matthias; Müller, Antonia; Jenny, Camilla; Zeeman, Samuel C
Abstract Plant growth involves the coordinated distribution of carbon resources both towards structural components and towards storage compounds that assure a steady carbon supply over the complete diurnal cycle. We used 14CO2 labelling to track assimilated carbon in both source and sink tissues. Source tissues exhibit large variations in carbon allocation throughout the light period. The most prominent change was detected in partitioning towards starch, being low in the morning and more than double later in the day. Export into sink tissues showed reciprocal changes. Fewer and smaller changes in carbon allocation occurred in sink tissues where, in most respects, carbon was partitioned similarly, whether the sink leaf assimilated it through photosynthesis or imported it from source leaves. Mutants deficient in the production or remobilization of leaf starch exhibited major alterations in carbon allocation. Low-starch mutants that suffer from carbon starvation at night allocated much more carbon into neutral sugars and had higher rates of export than the wild type, partly because of the reduced allocation into starch, but also because of reduced allocation into structural components. Moreover, mutants deficient in the plant's circadian system showed considerable changes in their carbon partitioning pattern suggesting control by the circadian clock. This work focusses on the temporal changes in the allocation and transport of photoassimilates within Arabidopsis rosettes, helping to fill a gap in our understanding of plant growth. Using short pulses of 14C-labelled carbon dioxide, we quantified how much carbon is used for growth and how much is stored as starch for use at night. In source leaves, partitioning is surprisingly dynamic during the day, even though photosynthesis is relatively constant, while in sink leaves, utilisation is more constant. Furthermore, by analysing metabolic mutants and clock mutants, and by manipulating the growth conditions, we show that
Neuropeptide Y and α-MSH circadian levels in two populations with low body weight: anorexia nervosa and constitutional thinness.
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Bogdan Galusca
Full Text Available Anorexia nervosa (AN presents an adaptive appetite regulating profile including high levels of ghrelin and 26RFa (orexigenic and low levels of leptin and PYY (anorexigenic. However, this adaptive mechanism is not effective in promoting food intake. The NPY/proopiomelanocortin (POMC system plays a crucial role in the regulation of feeding behavior as NPY is the most potent orexigenic neuropeptide identified so far and as the POMC-derived peptide α-MSH drastically reduces food intake, and this peptidergic system has not been thoroughly studied in AN.The aim of the present study was thus to investigate whether a dysfunction of the NPY/POMC occurs in two populations with low body weight, AN and constitutional thinness (CT.This was a cross-sectional study performed in an endocrinological unit and in an academic laboratory.Three groups of age-matched young women were studied: 23 with AN (AN, 22 CT and 14 normal weight controls.Twelve-point circadian profiles of plasma NPY and α-MSH levels were measured in the three groups of investigated subjects.No significant circadian variation of NPY was detected between the three groups. Plasma α-MSH levels were significantly lower in AN (vs controls all over the day. The CT group, compared to controls, presented lower levels of α-MSH in the morning and the evening, and an important rise during lunchtime.In AN patients, the NPY system is not up-regulated under chronic undernutrition suggesting that this may play a role in the inability of anorectic women to adapt food intake to their energy demand. In contrast, low circadian α-MSH levels integrate the adaptive profile of appetite regulation of this disease. Finally, in CT women, the important α-MSH peak detected during lunchtime could explain why these patients are rapidly food satisfied.
Circadian- and Light-Dependent Regulation of Resting Membrane Potential and Spontaneous Action Potential Firing of Drosophila Circadian Pacemaker Neurons
Sheeba, Vasu; Gu, Huaiyu; Sharma, Vijay K.; O'Dowd, Diane K.; Holmes, Todd C.
The ventral lateral neurons (LNvs) of adult Drosophila brain express oscillating clock proteins and regulate circadian behavior. Whole cell current-clamp recordings of large LNvs in freshly dissected Drosophila whole brain preparations reveal two spontaneous activity patterns that correlate with two underlying patterns of oscillating membrane potential: tonic and burst firing of sodium-dependent action potentials. Resting membrane potential and spontaneous action potential firing are rapidly ...
Temporal shift of circadian-mediated gene expression and carbon fixation contributes to biomass heterosis in maize hybrids
Heterosis has been widely used in agriculture, but the molecular mechanism for this remains largely elusive. In Arabidopsis hybrids and allopolyploids, increased photosynthetic and metabolic activities are linked to altered expression of circadian clock regulators, including CIRCADIAN CLOCK ASSOCIAT...
Plasticity of the intrinsic period of the human circadian timing system.
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Frank A J L Scheer
Full Text Available Human expeditions to Mars will require adaptation to the 24.65-h Martian solar day-night cycle (sol, which is outside the range of entrainment of the human circadian pacemaker under lighting intensities to which astronauts are typically exposed. Failure to entrain the circadian time-keeping system to the desired rest-activity cycle disturbs sleep and impairs cognitive function. Furthermore, differences between the intrinsic circadian period and Earth's 24-h light-dark cycle underlie human circadian rhythm sleep disorders, such as advanced sleep phase disorder and non-24-hour sleep-wake disorders. Therefore, first, we tested whether exposure to a model-based lighting regimen would entrain the human circadian pacemaker at a normal phase angle to the 24.65-h Martian sol and to the 23.5-h day length often required of astronauts during short duration space exploration. Second, we tested here whether such prior entrainment to non-24-h light-dark cycles would lead to subsequent modification of the intrinsic period of the human circadian timing system. Here we show that exposure to moderately bright light ( approximately 450 lux; approximately 1.2 W/m(2 for the second or first half of the scheduled wake episode is effective for entraining individuals to the 24.65-h Martian sol and a 23.5-h day length, respectively. Estimations of the circadian periods of plasma melatonin, plasma cortisol, and core body temperature rhythms collected under forced desynchrony protocols revealed that the intrinsic circadian period of the human circadian pacemaker was significantly longer following entrainment to the Martian sol as compared to following entrainment to the 23.5-h day. The latter finding of after-effects of entrainment reveals for the first time plasticity of the period of the human circadian timing system. Both findings have important implications for the treatment of circadian rhythm sleep disorders and human space exploration.
Circadian Modulation of Alcohol-Induced Sedation and Recovery in Male and Female Drosophila.
De Nobrega, Aliza K; Lyons, Lisa C
Delineating the factors that affect behavioral and neurological responses to alcohol is critical to facilitate measures for preventing or treating alcohol abuse. The high degree of conserved molecular and physiological processes makes Drosophila melanogaster a valuable model for investigating circadian interactions with alcohol-induced behaviors and examining sex-specific differences in alcohol sensitivity. We found that wild-type Drosophila exhibited rhythms in alcohol-induced sedation under light-dark and constant dark conditions with considerably greater alcohol exposure necessary to induce sedation during the late (subjective) day and peak sensitivity to alcohol occurring during the late (subjective) night. The circadian clock also modulated the recovery from alcohol-induced sedation with flies regaining motor control significantly faster during the late (subjective) day. As predicted, the circadian rhythms in sedation and recovery were absent in flies with a mutation in the circadian gene period or arrhythmic flies housed in constant light conditions. Flies lacking a functional circadian clock were more sensitive to the effects of alcohol with significantly longer recovery times. Similar to other animals and humans, Drosophila exhibit sex-specific differences in alcohol sensitivity. We investigated whether the circadian clock modulated the rhythms in the loss-of-righting reflex, alcohol-induced sedation, and recovery differently in males and females. We found that both sexes demonstrated circadian rhythms in the loss-of-righting reflex and sedation with the differences in alcohol sensitivity between males and females most pronounced during the late subjective day. Recovery of motor reflexes following alcohol sedation also exhibited circadian modulation in male and female flies, although the circadian clock did not modulate the difference in recovery times between the sexes. These studies provide a framework outlining how the circadian clock modulates alcohol
Food and the circadian activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis
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A.M.O. Leal
Full Text Available Temporal organization is an important feature of biological systems and its main function is to facilitate adaptation of the organism to the environment. The daily variation of biological variables arises from an internal time-keeping system. The major action of the environment is to synchronize the internal clock to a period of exactly 24 h. The light-dark cycle, food ingestion, barometric pressure, acoustic stimuli, scents and social cues have been mentioned as synchronizers or" zeitgebers". The circadian rhythmicity of plasma corticosteroids has been well characterized in man and in rats and evidence has been accumulated showing daily rhythmicity at every level of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA axis. Studies of restricted feeding in rats are of considerable importance because they reveal feeding as a major synchronizer of rhythms in HPA axis activity. The daily variation of the HPA axis stress response appears to be closely related to food intake as well as to basal activity. In humans, the association of feeding and HPA axis activity has been studied under physiological and pathological conditions such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia, malnutrition, obesity, diabetes mellitus and Cushing's syndrome. Complex neuroanatomical pathways and neurochemical circuitry are involved in feeding-associated HPA axis modulation. In the present review we focus on the interaction among HPA axis rhythmicity, food ingestion, and different nutritional and endocrine states
Absence of diurnal variation in visceromotor response to colorectal distention in normal Long Evans rats
Botschuijver, Sara; Yu, Zhumei; Welting, Olaf; Cailotto, Cathy; Kalsbeek, A.; van den Wijngaard, Rene
BACKGROUND: Enhanced colorectal sensitivity (i.e. visceral hypersensitivity) is thought to be a pathophysiological mechanism in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). In healthy men a circadian variation in rectal perception to colonic distention was described. Disturbed day and night rhythms, which occur
Assessment of the biological variation of plasma tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-1
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
[R] 1), then repeated in May 2005 (R2) and May 2006 (R3) in the same group of individuals. TIMP-1 levels were determined by the MAC15 ELISA assay and with the Abbott ARCHITECT i2000 Immunoanalyzer. 2: Circadian variation was evaluated in plasma collected 7 times within a 24-hour period (n=16). 3...
Seasonal and biological variation of urinary epinephrine, norepinephrine, and cortisol in healthy women
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Hansen, Åse Marie; Garde, A H; Skovgaard, L T;
There is a significant circadian and seasonal periodicity in various endocrine functions. The present study describes the within-day and seasonal fluctuation for urinary catecholamines and cortisol and estimates the within- (CV(i)) and between-subject (CV(g)) coefficients of variation for healthy...
Circadian-Rhythm Sleep Disorders in Persons Who Are Totally Blind.
Sack, R. L.; Blood, M. L.; Hughes, R. J.; Lewy, A. J.
Discusses the diagnosis and management of "non-24-hour sleep-wake syndrome," a form of cyclic insomnia to which people who are totally blind are prone. Covered are incidence and clinical features, formal diagnostic criteria, the biological basis of circadian sleep disorders, circadian rhythms in blind people, pharmacological entrainment, and the…
Sleep and circadian rhythms: do sleep centers talk back to the clock?
Colwell, Christopher S.; Michel, Stephan
A homeostatic control mechanism that monitors and reacts to the need for sleep has been thought to function independently of the brain's circadian clock in previous studies. Now simultaneous recordings of sleep stages and electrical activity in the suprachiasmatic nucleus in behaving animals reveal feedback from sleep centers to the circadian pacemaker.
An observational study on disturbed peripheral circadian rhythms in hemodialysis patients
Russcher, Marije; Chaves, Ines; Lech, Karolina; Koch, Birgit C. P.; Nagtegaal, J. Elsbeth; Dorsman, Kira F.; Jong, Anke't; Kayser, Manfred; van Faassen, H. (Martijn) J. R.; Kema, Ido P.; van der Horst, Gijsbertus T. J.; Gaillard, Carlo A. J. M.
The quality of life of hemodialysis (HD) patients is hampered by reduced nocturnal sleep quality and excessive daytime sleepiness. In addition to the sleep/wake cycle, levels of circadian biomarkers (e.g. melatonin) are disturbed in end-stage renal disease (ESRD). This suggests impaired circadian cl
Accuracy of human circadian entrainment under natural light conditions : Model Simulations
Beersma, Domien G.M.; Spoelstra, Kamiel; Daan, Serge
The patterns of light intensity to which humans expose their circadian pacemakers in daily life are very irregular and vary greatly from day to day. The circadian pacemaker can adjust to such irregular exposure patterns by daily phase shifts, such as summarized in a phase response curve. It is demon
Circadian expression of adiponectin and its receptors in human adipose tissue
Adiponectin is one of the most clinically relevant cytokines associated with obesity. However, circadian rhythmicity of adiponectin in human adipose tissue (AT) has not been analyzed. To assess whether the mRNA levels of adiponectin and its receptors (ADIPOR1 and ADIPOR2) might show daily circadian ...
Circadian rhythms of temperature and activity in obese and lean Zucker rats
Murakami, D. M.; Horwitz, B. A.; Fuller, C. A.
The circadian timing system is important in the regulation of feeding and metabolism, both of which are aberrant in the obese Zucker rat. This study tested the hypothesis that these abnormalities involve a deficit in circadian regulation by examining the circadian rhythms of body temperature and activity in lean and obese Zucker rats exposed to normal light-dark cycles, constant light, and constant dark. Significant deficits in both daily mean and circadian amplitude of temperature and activity were found in obese Zucker female rats relative to lean controls in all lighting conditions. However, the circadian period of obese Zucker rats did not exhibit differences relative to lean controls in either of the constant lighting conditions. These results indicate that although the circadian regulation of temperature and activity in obese Zucker female rats is in fact depressed, obese rats do exhibit normal entrainment and pacemaker functions in the circadian timing system. The results suggest a deficit in the process that generates the amplitude of the circadian rhythm.
Interaction of MAGED1 with nuclear receptors affects circadian clock function
Wang, Xiaohan; Tang, Jing; Xing, Lijuan; Shi, Guangsen; Ruan, Haibin; Gu, Xiwen; Liu, Zhiwei; Wu, Xi; Gao, Xiang; Xu, Ying
The circadian clock has a central role in physiological adaption and anticipation of day/night changes. In a genetic screen for novel regulators of circadian rhythms, we found that mice lacking MAGED1 (Melanoma Antigen Family D1) exhibit a shortened period and altered rest–activity bouts. These circadian phenotypes are proposed to be caused by a direct effect on the core molecular clock network that reduces the robustness of the circadian clock. We provide in vitro and in vivo evidence indicating that MAGED1 binds to RORα to bring about positive and negative effects on core clock genes of Bmal1, Rev-erbα and E4bp4 expression through the Rev-Erbα/ROR responsive elements (RORE). Maged1 is a non-rhythmic gene that, by binding RORα in non-circadian way, enhances rhythmic input and buffers the circadian system from irrelevant, perturbing stimuli or noise. We have thus identified and defined a novel circadian regulator, Maged1, which is indispensable for the robustness of the circadian clock to better serve the organism. PMID:20300063
Molecular mechanism of temperature sensing by the circadian clock of Neurospora crassa
Diernfellner, ACR; Schafmeier, T; Merrow, MW; Brunner, M; Diernfellner, Axel C.R.
Expression levels and ratios of the long (1) and short (s) isoforms of the Neurospora circadian clock protein FREQUENCY (FRQ) are crucial for temperature compensation of circadian rhythms. We show that the ratio of 1-FRQ versus s-FRQ is regulated by thermosensitive splicing of intron 6 of frq, a pro
Estimation methods for human circadian phase by use of peripheral tissues.
Matsumura, Ritsuko; Node, Koichi; Akashi, Makoto
Almost all living organisms, including humans, exhibit diurnal rhythms of physiology and behavior, which are driven by the circadian clock. Many studies have found that chronic misalignment between circadian and environmental/social rhythms carries a significant risk of various disorders, including sleep disorders, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular diseases and cancer. However, irregular sleep-wake cycles and circadian maladjustment often cause 'social jet lag', which is minor but chronic jet-lag in our daily lives. Establishment of objective and convenient circadian-phase estimation methods in the clinical setting would therefore greatly contribute not only to resolving this global health problem but also to developing chronomedicine, a clinical approach for optimizing the time of day of treatments. Traditional melatonin-based methods have limitations with respect to circadian-phase evaluation; however, estimation methods based on clock gene expression may be able to compensate for these limitations. As a representative application of circadian-phase estimation based on clock gene expression, our method of using hair follicle cells may aid in the rapid clinical detection of circadian-related sleep problems, especially circadian rhythm sleep disorders that are masked because of forced adaptation to social time schedules. PMID:27334057
Circadian Gene Variants and Susceptibility to Type 2 Diabetes : A Pilot Study
Kelly, M. Ann; Rees, Simon D.; Hydrie, M. Zafar I.; Shera, A. Samad; Bellary, Srikanth; O'Hare, J. Paul; Kumar, Sudhesh; Taheri, Shahrad; Basit, Abdul; Barnett, Anthony H.
Background: Disruption of endogenous circadian rhythms has been shown to increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, suggesting that circadian genes might play a role in determining disease susceptibility. We present the results of a pilot study investigating the association between type 2 diab
Vasoactive intestinal polypeptide mediates circadian rhythms in mammalian olfactory bulb and olfaction.
Miller, Jae-Eun Kang; Granados-Fuentes, Daniel; Wang, Thomas; Marpegan, Luciano; Holy, Timothy E; Herzog, Erik D
Accumulating evidence suggests that the olfactory bulbs (OBs) function as an independent circadian system regulating daily rhythms in olfactory performance. However, the cells and signals in the olfactory system that generate and coordinate these circadian rhythms are unknown. Using real-time imaging of gene expression, we found that the isolated olfactory epithelium and OB, but not the piriform cortex, express similar, sustained circadian rhythms in PERIOD2 (PER2). In vivo, PER2 expression in the OB of mice is circadian, approximately doubling with a peak around subjective dusk. Furthermore, mice exhibit circadian rhythms in odor detection performance with a peak at approximately subjective dusk. We also found that circadian rhythms in gene expression and odor detection performance require vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) or its receptor VPAC2R. VIP is expressed, in a circadian manner, in interneurons in the external plexiform and periglomerular layers, whereas VPAC2R is expressed in mitral and external tufted cells in the OB. Together, these results indicate that VIP signaling modulates the output from the OB to maintain circadian rhythms in the mammalian olfactory system.
Genetic Disruption of the Core Circadian Clock Impairs Hippocampus-Dependent Memory
Wardlaw, Sarah M.; Phan, Trongha X.; Saraf, Amit; Chen, Xuanmao; Storm, Daniel R.
Perturbing the circadian system by electrolytically lesioning the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) or varying the environmental light:dark schedule impairs memory, suggesting that memory depends on the circadian system. We used a genetic approach to evaluate the role of the molecular clock in memory. Bmal1[superscript -/-] mice, which are arrhythmic…
Disruption of Circadian Rhythms: A Crucial Factor in the Etiology of Depression
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Roberto Salgado-Delgado
Full Text Available Circadian factors might play a crucial role in the etiology of depression. It has been demonstrated that the disruption of circadian rhythms by lighting conditions and lifestyle predisposes individuals to a wide range of mood disorders, including impulsivity, mania and depression. Also, associated with depression, there is the impairment of circadian rhythmicity of behavioral, endocrine, and metabolic functions. Inspite of this close relationship between both processes, the complex relationship between the biological clock and the incidence of depressive symptoms is far from being understood. The efficiency and the timing of treatments based on chronotherapy (e.g., light treatment, sleep deprivation, and scheduled medication indicate that the circadian system is an essential target in the therapy of depression. The aim of the present review is to analyze the biological and clinical data that link depression with the disruption of circadian rhythms, emphasizing the contribution of circadian desynchrony. Therefore, we examine the conditions that may lead to circadian disruption of physiology and behavior as described in depressive states, and, according to this approach, we discuss therapeutic strategies aimed at treating the circadian system and depression.
Nursing frequency alters circadian patterns of mammary gene expression in lactating mice
Milking frequency impacts lactation in dairy cattle and in rodent models of lactation. The role of circadian gene expression in this process is unknown. The hypothesis tested was that changing nursing frequency alters the circadian patterns of mammary gene expression. Mid-lactation CD1 mice were stu...
Circadian timed wakefulness at dawn opposes compensatory sleep responses after sleep deprivation in Octodon degus
Kas, M J; Edgar, D M
The circadian timing system in mammals is thought to promote wakefulness and oppose sleep drive that accumulates across the activity phase in diurnal and nocturnal species. Whether the circadian system actively opposes compensatory sleep responses in mammals with episodes of alertness consolidated a
Local modulation of human brain responses by circadian rhythmicity and sleep debt.
Muto, Vincenzo; Jaspar, Mathieu; Meyer, Christelle; Kussé, Caroline; Chellappa, Sarah L; Degueldre, Christian; Balteau, Evelyne; Shaffii-Le Bourdiec, Anahita; Luxen, André; Middleton, Benita; Archer, Simon N; Phillips, Christophe; Collette, Fabienne; Vandewalle, Gilles; Dijk, Derk-Jan; Maquet, Pierre
Human performance is modulated by circadian rhythmicity and homeostatic sleep pressure. Whether and how this interaction is represented at the regional brain level has not been established. We quantified changes in brain responses to a sustained-attention task during 13 functional magnetic resonance imaging sessions scheduled across the circadian cycle, during 42 hours of wakefulness and after recovery sleep, in 33 healthy participants. Cortical responses showed significant circadian rhythmicity, the phase of which varied across brain regions. Cortical responses also significantly decreased with accrued sleep debt. Subcortical areas exhibited primarily a circadian modulation that closely followed the melatonin profile. These findings expand our understanding of the mechanisms involved in maintaining cognition during the day and its deterioration during sleep deprivation and circadian misalignment. PMID:27516598
Time for a Nuclear Meeting: Protein Trafficking and Chromatin Dynamics Intersect in the Plant Circadian System
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)
Eva Herrero; Seth J. Davis
Circadian clocks mediate adaptation to the 24-h world.In Arabidopsis,most circadian-clock components act in the nucleus as transcriptional regulators and generate rhythmic oscillations of transcript accumulation.In this review,we focus on post-transcriptional events that modulate the activity of circadian-clock components,such as phosphorylation,ubiquitination and proteasome-mediated degradation,changes in cellular localization,and protein-protein interactions.These processes have been found to be essential for circadian function,not only in plants,but also in other circadian systems.Moreover,light and clock signaling networks are highly interconnected.In the nucleus,light and clock components work together to generate transcriptional rhythms,leading to a general control of the timing of plant physiological processes.
The hormonal Zeitgeber melatonin: Role as a circadian modulator in memory processing
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Oliver eRawashdeh
Full Text Available The neuroendocrine substance melatonin is a hormone synthesized rhythmically by the pineal gland under the influence of the circadian system and alternating light/dark cycles. Melatonin has been shown to have broad applications, and consequently becoming a molecule of great controversy. Undoubtedly, however, melatonin plays an important role as a time cue for the endogenous circadian system. This review focuses on melatonin as a regulator in the circadian modulation of memory processing. Memory processes (acquisition, consolidation and retrieval are modulated by the circadian system. However, the mechanism by which the biological clock is rhythmically influencing cognitive processes remains unknown. We also discuss, how the circadian system by generating cycling melatonin levels can implant information about daytime into memory processing, depicted as day and nighttime differences in acquisition, memory consolidation and/or retrieval.
Entrainment of the mouse circadian clock by sub-acute physical and psychological stress.
Tahara, Yu; Shiraishi, Takuya; Kikuchi, Yosuke; Haraguchi, Atsushi; Kuriki, Daisuke; Sasaki, Hiroyuki; Motohashi, Hiroaki; Sakai, Tomoko; Shibata, Shigenobu
The effects of acute stress on the peripheral circadian system are not well understood in vivo. Here, we show that sub-acute stress caused by restraint or social defeat potently altered clock gene expression in the peripheral tissues of mice. In these peripheral tissues, as well as the hippocampus and cortex, stressful stimuli induced time-of-day-dependent phase-advances or -delays in rhythmic clock gene expression patterns; however, such changes were not observed in the suprachiasmatic nucleus, i.e. the central circadian clock. Moreover, several days of stress exposure at the beginning of the light period abolished circadian oscillations and caused internal desynchronisation of peripheral clocks. Stress-induced changes in circadian rhythmicity showed habituation and disappeared with long-term exposure to repeated stress. These findings suggest that sub-acute physical/psychological stress potently entrains peripheral clocks and causes transient dysregulation of circadian clocks in vivo.
Mathematical modeling of the circadian dynamics of the neuroendocrine-immune network in experimentally induced arthritis.
Rao, R; DuBois, D; Almon, R; Jusko, W J; Androulakis, I P
The circadian dynamics of important neuroendocrine-immune mediators have been implicated in progression of rheumatoid arthritis pathophysiology, both clinically as well as in animal models. We present a mathematical model that describes the circadian interactions between mediators of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the proinflammatory cytokines. Model predictions demonstrate that chronically elevated cytokine expression results in the development of adrenal insufficiency and circadian variability in paw edema. Notably, our model also predicts that an increase in mean secretion of corticosterone (CST) after the induction of the disease is accompanied by a decrease in the amplitude of the CST oscillation. Furthermore, alterations in the phase of circadian oscillation of both cytokines and HPA axis mediators are observed. Therefore, by incorporating the circadian interactions between the neuroendocrine-immune mediators, our model is able to simulate important features of rheumatoid arthritis pathophysiology. PMID:27221115
Circadian period integrates network information through activation of the BMP signaling pathway.
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Esteban J Beckwith
Full Text Available Living organisms use biological clocks to maintain their internal temporal order and anticipate daily environmental changes. In Drosophila, circadian regulation of locomotor behavior is controlled by ∼150 neurons; among them, neurons expressing the PIGMENT DISPERSING FACTOR (PDF set the period of locomotor behavior under free-running conditions. To date, it remains unclear how individual circadian clusters integrate their activity to assemble a distinctive behavioral output. Here we show that the BONE MORPHOGENETIC PROTEIN (BMP signaling pathway plays a crucial role in setting the circadian period in PDF neurons in the adult brain. Acute deregulation of BMP signaling causes period lengthening through regulation of dClock transcription, providing evidence for a novel function of this pathway in the adult brain. We propose that coherence in the circadian network arises from integration in PDF neurons of both the pace of the cell-autonomous molecular clock and information derived from circadian-relevant neurons through release of BMP ligands.
The Importance of Stochastic Effects for Explaining Entrainment in the Zebrafish Circadian Clock
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Raphaela Heussen
Full Text Available The circadian clock plays a pivotal role in modulating physiological processes and has been implicated, either directly or indirectly, in a range of pathological states including cancer. Here we investigate how the circadian clock is entrained by external cues such as light. Working with zebrafish cell lines and combining light pulse experiments with simulation efforts focused on the role of synchronization effects, we find that even very modest doses of light exposure are sufficient to trigger some entrainment, whereby a higher light intensity or duration correlates with strength of the circadian signal. Moreover, we observe in the simulations that stochastic effects may be considered an essential feature of the circadian clock in order to explain the circadian signal decay in prolonged darkness, as well as light initiated resynchronization as a strong component of entrainment.
Sex differences in the circadian regulation of sleep and waking cognition in humans.
Santhi, Nayantara; Lazar, Alpar S; McCabe, Patrick J; Lo, June C; Groeger, John A; Dijk, Derk-Jan
The sleep-wake cycle and circadian rhythmicity both contribute to brain function, but whether this contribution differs between men and women and how it varies across cognitive domains and subjective dimensions has not been established. We examined the circadian and sleep-wake-dependent regulation of cognition in 16 men and 18 women in a forced desynchrony protocol and quantified the separate contributions of circadian phase, prior sleep, and elapsed time awake on cognition and sleep. The largest circadian effects were observed for reported sleepiness, mood, and reported effort; the effects on working memory and temporal processing were smaller. Although these effects were seen in both men and women, there were quantitative differences. The amplitude of the circadian modulation was larger in women in 11 of 39 performance measures so that their performance was more impaired in the early morning hours. Principal components analysis of the performance measures yielded three factors, accuracy, effort, and speed, which reflect core performance characteristics in a range of cognitive tasks and therefore are likely to be important for everyday performance. The largest circadian modulation was observed for effort, whereas accuracy exhibited the largest sex difference in circadian modulation. The sex differences in the circadian modulation of cognition could not be explained by sex differences in the circadian amplitude of plasma melatonin and electroencephalographic slow-wave activity. These data establish the impact of circadian rhythmicity and sex on waking cognition and have implications for understanding the regulation of brain function, cognition, and affect in shift-work, jetlag, and aging. PMID:27091961
A Long Noncoding RNA Perturbs the Circadian Rhythm of Hepatoma Cells to Facilitate Hepatocarcinogenesis
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Ming Cui
Full Text Available Clock circadian regulator (CLOCK/brain and muscle arnt-like protein-1 (BMAL1 complex governs the regulation of circadian rhythm through triggering periodic alterations of gene expression. However, the underlying mechanism of circadian clock disruption in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC remains unclear. Here, we report that a long noncoding RNA (lncRNA, highly upregulated in liver cancer (HULC, contributes to the perturbations in circadian rhythm of hepatoma cells. Our observations showed that HULC was able to heighten the expression levels of CLOCK and its downstream circadian oscillators, such as period circadian clock 1 and cryptochrome circadian clock 1, in hepatoma cells. Strikingly, HULC altered the expression pattern and prolonged the periodic expression of CLOCK in hepatoma cells. Mechanistically, the complementary base pairing between HULC and the 5' untranslated region of CLOCK mRNA underlay the HULC-modulated expression of CLOCK, and the mutants in the complementary region failed to achieve the event. Moreover, immunohistochemistry staining and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction validated that the levels of CLOCK were elevated in HCC tissues, and the expression levels of HULC were positively associated with those of CLOCK in clinical HCC samples. In functional experiments, our data exhibited that CLOCK was implicated in the HULC-accelerated proliferation of hepatoma cells in vitro and in vivo. Taken together, our data show that an lncRNA, HULC, is responsible for the perturbations in circadian rhythm through upregulating circadian oscillator CLOCK in hepatoma cells, resulting in the promotion of hepatocarcinogenesis. Thus, our finding provides new insights into the mechanism by which lncRNA accelerates hepatocarcinogenesis through disturbing circadian rhythm of HCC.
Integration of light and temperature in the regulation of circadian gene expression in Drosophila.
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Catharine E Boothroyd
Full Text Available Circadian clocks are aligned to the environment via synchronizing signals, or Zeitgebers, such as daily light and temperature cycles, food availability, and social behavior. In this study, we found that genome-wide expression profiles from temperature-entrained flies show a dramatic difference in the presence or absence of a thermocycle. Whereas transcript levels appear to be modified broadly by changes in temperature, there is a specific set of temperature-entrained circadian mRNA profiles that continue to oscillate in constant conditions. There are marked differences in the biological functions represented by temperature-driven or circadian regulation. The set of temperature-entrained circadian transcripts overlaps significantly with a previously defined set of transcripts oscillating in response to a photocycle. In follow-up studies, all thermocycle-entrained circadian transcript rhythms also responded to light/dark entrainment, whereas some photocycle-entrained rhythms did not respond to temperature entrainment. Transcripts encoding the clock components Period, Timeless, Clock, Vrille, PAR-domain protein 1, and Cryptochrome were all confirmed to be rhythmic after entrainment to a daily thermocycle, although the presence of a thermocycle resulted in an unexpected phase difference between period and timeless expression rhythms at the transcript but not the protein level. Generally, transcripts that exhibit circadian rhythms both in response to thermocycles and photocycles maintained the same mutual phase relationships after entrainment by temperature or light. Comparison of the collective temperature- and light-entrained circadian phases of these transcripts indicates that natural environmental light and temperature cycles cooperatively entrain the circadian clock. This interpretation is further supported by comparative analysis of the circadian phases observed for temperature-entrained and light-entrained circadian locomotor behavior. Taken
Minimum criteria for DNA damage-induced phase advances in circadian rhythms.
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Christian I Hong
Full Text Available Robust oscillatory behaviors are common features of circadian and cell cycle rhythms. These cyclic processes, however, behave distinctively in terms of their periods and phases in response to external influences such as light, temperature, nutrients, etc. Nevertheless, several links have been found between these two oscillators. Cell division cycles gated by the circadian clock have been observed since the late 1950s. On the other hand, ionizing radiation (IR treatments cause cells to undergo a DNA damage response, which leads to phase shifts (mostly advances in circadian rhythms. Circadian gating of the cell cycle can be attributed to the cell cycle inhibitor kinase Wee1 (which is regulated by the heterodimeric circadian clock transcription factor, BMAL1/CLK, and possibly in conjunction with other cell cycle components that are known to be regulated by the circadian clock (i.e., c-Myc and cyclin D1. It has also been shown that DNA damage-induced activation of the cell cycle regulator, Chk2, leads to phosphorylation and destruction of a circadian clock component (i.e., PER1 in Mus or FRQ in Neurospora crassa. However, the molecular mechanism underlying how DNA damage causes predominantly phase advances in the circadian clock remains unknown. In order to address this question, we employ mathematical modeling to simulate different phase response curves (PRCs from either dexamethasone (Dex or IR treatment experiments. Dex is known to synchronize circadian rhythms in cell culture and may generate both phase advances and delays. We observe unique phase responses with minimum delays of the circadian clock upon DNA damage when two criteria are met: (1 existence of an autocatalytic positive feedback mechanism in addition to the time-delayed negative feedback loop in the clock system and (2 Chk2-dependent phosphorylation and degradation of PERs that are not bound to BMAL1/CLK.
Later endogenous circadian temperature nadir relative to an earlier wake time in older people
Duffy, J. F.; Dijk, D. J.; Klerman, E. B.; Czeisler, C. A.
The contribution of the circadian timing system to the age-related advance of sleep-wake timing was investigated in two experiments. In a constant routine protocol, we found that the average wake time and endogenous circadian phase of 44 older subjects were earlier than that of 101 young men. However, the earlier circadian phase of the older subjects actually occurred later relative to their habitual wake time than it did in young men. These results indicate that an age-related advance of circadian phase cannot fully account for the high prevalence of early morning awakening in healthy older people. In a second study, 13 older subjects and 10 young men were scheduled to a 28-h day, such that they were scheduled to sleep at many circadian phases. Self-reported awakening from scheduled sleep episodes and cognitive throughput during the second half of the wake episode varied markedly as a function of circadian phase in both groups. The rising phase of both rhythms was advanced in the older subjects, suggesting an age-related change in the circadian regulation of sleep-wake propensity. We hypothesize that under entrained conditions, these age-related changes in the relationship between circadian phase and wake time are likely associated with self-selected light exposure at an earlier circadian phase. This earlier exposure to light could account for the earlier clock hour to which the endogenous circadian pacemaker is entrained in older people and thereby further increase their propensity to awaken at an even earlier time.
Circadian regulation of food-anticipatory activity in molecular clock-deficient mice.
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Nana N Takasu
Full Text Available In the mammalian brain, the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN of the anterior hypothalamus is considered to be the principal circadian pacemaker, keeping the rhythm of most physiological and behavioral processes on the basis of light/dark cycles. Because restriction of food availability to a certain time of day elicits anticipatory behavior even after ablation of the SCN, such behavior has been assumed to be under the control of another circadian oscillator. According to recent studies, however, mutant mice lacking circadian clock function exhibit normal food-anticipatory activity (FAA, a daily increase in locomotor activity preceding periodic feeding, suggesting that FAA is independent of the known circadian oscillator. To investigate the molecular basis of FAA, we examined oscillatory properties in mice lacking molecular clock components. Mice with SCN lesions or with mutant circadian periods were exposed to restricted feeding schedules at periods within and outside circadian range. Periodic feeding led to the entrainment of FAA rhythms only within a limited circadian range. Cry1(-/- mice, which are known to be a "short-period mutant," entrained to a shorter period of feeding cycles than did Cry2(-/- mice. This result indicated that the intrinsic periods of FAA rhythms are also affected by Cry deficiency. Bmal1(-/- mice, deficient in another essential element of the molecular clock machinery, exhibited a pre-feeding increase of activity far from circadian range, indicating a deficit in circadian oscillation. We propose that mice possess a food-entrainable pacemaker outside the SCN in which canonical clock genes such as Cry1, Cry2 and Bmal1 play essential roles in regulating FAA in a circadian oscillatory manner.
Disrupting circadian homeostasis of sympathetic signaling promotes tumor development in mice.
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Susie Lee
Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Cell proliferation in all rapidly renewing mammalian tissues follows a circadian rhythm that is often disrupted in advanced-stage tumors. Epidemiologic studies have revealed a clear link between disruption of circadian rhythms and cancer development in humans. Mice lacking the circadian genes Period1 and 2 (Per or Cryptochrome1 and 2 (Cry are deficient in cell cycle regulation and Per2 mutant mice are cancer-prone. However, it remains unclear how circadian rhythm in cell proliferation is generated in vivo and why disruption of circadian rhythm may lead to tumorigenesis. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Mice lacking Per1 and 2, Cry1 and 2, or one copy of Bmal1, all show increased spontaneous and radiation-induced tumor development. The neoplastic growth of Per-mutant somatic cells is not controlled cell-autonomously but is dependent upon extracellular mitogenic signals. Among the circadian output pathways, the rhythmic sympathetic signaling plays a key role in the central-peripheral timing mechanism that simultaneously activates the cell cycle clock via AP1-controlled Myc induction and p53 via peripheral clock-controlled ATM activation. Jet-lag promptly desynchronizes the central clock-SNS-peripheral clock axis, abolishes the peripheral clock-dependent ATM activation, and activates myc oncogenic potential, leading to tumor development in the same organ systems in wild-type and circadian gene-mutant mice. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Tumor suppression in vivo is a clock-controlled physiological function. The central circadian clock paces extracellular mitogenic signals that drive peripheral clock-controlled expression of key cell cycle and tumor suppressor genes to generate a circadian rhythm in cell proliferation. Frequent disruption of circadian rhythm is an important tumor promoting factor.
Circadian regulation of food-anticipatory activity in molecular clock-deficient mice.
Takasu, Nana N; Kurosawa, Gen; Tokuda, Isao T; Mochizuki, Atsushi; Todo, Takeshi; Nakamura, Wataru
In the mammalian brain, the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the anterior hypothalamus is considered to be the principal circadian pacemaker, keeping the rhythm of most physiological and behavioral processes on the basis of light/dark cycles. Because restriction of food availability to a certain time of day elicits anticipatory behavior even after ablation of the SCN, such behavior has been assumed to be under the control of another circadian oscillator. According to recent studies, however, mutant mice lacking circadian clock function exhibit normal food-anticipatory activity (FAA), a daily increase in locomotor activity preceding periodic feeding, suggesting that FAA is independent of the known circadian oscillator. To investigate the molecular basis of FAA, we examined oscillatory properties in mice lacking molecular clock components. Mice with SCN lesions or with mutant circadian periods were exposed to restricted feeding schedules at periods within and outside circadian range. Periodic feeding led to the entrainment of FAA rhythms only within a limited circadian range. Cry1(-/-) mice, which are known to be a "short-period mutant," entrained to a shorter period of feeding cycles than did Cry2(-/-) mice. This result indicated that the intrinsic periods of FAA rhythms are also affected by Cry deficiency. Bmal1(-/-) mice, deficient in another essential element of the molecular clock machinery, exhibited a pre-feeding increase of activity far from circadian range, indicating a deficit in circadian oscillation. We propose that mice possess a food-entrainable pacemaker outside the SCN in which canonical clock genes such as Cry1, Cry2 and Bmal1 play essential roles in regulating FAA in a circadian oscillatory manner.
Circadian rhythmicity of synapses in mouse somatosensory cortex.
Jasinska, Malgorzata; Grzegorczyk, Anna; Woznicka, Olga; Jasek, Ewa; Kossut, Malgorzata; Barbacka-Surowiak, Grazyna; Litwin, Jan A; Pyza, Elzbieta
The circadian rhythmicity displayed by motor behavior of mice: activity at night and rest during the day; and the associated changes in the sensory input are reflected by cyclic synaptic plasticity in the whisker representations located in the somatosensory (barrel) cortex. It was not clear whether diurnal rhythmic changes in synapse density previously observed in the barrel cortex resulted from changes in the activity of the animals, from daily light/dark (LD) rhythm or are driven by an endogenous clock. These changes were investigated in the barrel cortex of C57BL/6 mouse strain kept under LD 12 : 12 h conditions and in constant darkness (DD). Stereological analysis of serial electron microscopic sections was used to assess numerical density of synapses. In mice kept under LD conditions, the total density of synapses and the density of excitatory synapses located on dendritic spines was higher during the light period (rest phase). In contrast, the density of inhibitory synapses located on dendritic spines increased during the dark period (activity phase). Under DD conditions, the upregulation of the inhibitory synapses during the activity phase was retained, but the cyclic changes in the density of excitatory synapses were not observed. The results show that the circadian plasticity concerns only synapses located on spines (and not those on dendritic shafts), and that excitatory and inhibitory synapses are differently regulated during the 24 h cycle: the excitatory synapses are influenced by light, whilst the inhibitory synapses are driven by the endogenous circadian clock. PMID:26274013
Rethinking transcriptional activation in the Arabidopsis circadian clock.
Fogelmark, Karl; Troein, Carl
Circadian clocks are biological timekeepers that allow living cells to time their activity in anticipation of predictable daily changes in light and other environmental factors. The complexity of the circadian clock in higher plants makes it difficult to understand the role of individual genes or molecular interactions, and mathematical modelling has been useful in guiding clock research in model organisms such as Arabidopsis thaliana. We present a model of the circadian clock in Arabidopsis, based on a large corpus of published time course data. It appears from experimental evidence in the literature that most interactions in the clock are repressive. Hence, we remove all transcriptional activation found in previous models of this system, and instead extend the system by including two new components, the morning-expressed activator RVE8 and the nightly repressor/activator NOX. Our modelling results demonstrate that the clock does not need a large number of activators in order to reproduce the observed gene expression patterns. For example, the sequential expression of the PRR genes does not require the genes to be connected as a series of activators. In the presented model, transcriptional activation is exclusively the task of RVE8. Predictions of how strongly RVE8 affects its targets are found to agree with earlier interpretations of the experimental data, but generally we find that the many negative feedbacks in the system should discourage intuitive interpretations of mutant phenotypes. The dynamics of the clock are difficult to predict without mathematical modelling, and the clock is better viewed as a tangled web than as a series of loops.
CULLIN-3 controls TIMELESS oscillations in the Drosophila circadian clock.
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Brigitte Grima
Full Text Available Eukaryotic circadian clocks rely on transcriptional feedback loops. In Drosophila, the PERIOD (PER and TIMELESS (TIM proteins accumulate during the night, inhibit the activity of the CLOCK (CLK/CYCLE (CYC transcriptional complex, and are degraded in the early morning. The control of PER and TIM oscillations largely depends on post-translational mechanisms. They involve both light-dependent and light-independent pathways that rely on the phosphorylation, ubiquitination, and proteasomal degradation of the clock proteins. SLMB, which is part of a CULLIN-1-based E3 ubiquitin ligase complex, is required for the circadian degradation of phosphorylated PER. We show here that CULLIN-3 (CUL-3 is required for the circadian control of PER and TIM oscillations. Expression of either Cul-3 RNAi or dominant negative forms of CUL-3 in the clock neurons alters locomotor behavior and dampens PER and TIM oscillations in light-dark cycles. In constant conditions, CUL-3 deregulation induces behavioral arrhythmicity and rapidly abolishes TIM cycling, with slower effects on PER. CUL-3 affects TIM accumulation more strongly in the absence of PER and forms protein complexes with hypo-phosphorylated TIM. In contrast, SLMB affects TIM more strongly in the presence of PER and preferentially associates with phosphorylated TIM. CUL-3 and SLMB show additive effects on TIM and PER, suggesting different roles for the two ubiquitination complexes on PER and TIM cycling. This work thus shows that CUL-3 is a new component of the Drosophila clock, which plays an important role in the control of TIM oscillations.
Modeling an evolutionary conserved circadian cis-element.
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Eric R Paquet
Full Text Available Circadian oscillator networks rely on a transcriptional activator called CLOCK/CYCLE (CLK/CYC in insects and CLOCK/BMAL1 or NPAS2/BMAL1 in mammals. Identifying the targets of this heterodimeric basic-helix-loop-helix (bHLH transcription factor poses challenges and it has been difficult to decipher its specific sequence affinity beyond a canonical E-box motif, except perhaps for some flanking bases contributing weakly to the binding energy. Thus, no good computational model presently exists for predicting CLK/CYC, CLOCK/BMAL1, or NPAS2/BMAL1 targets. Here, we use a comparative genomics approach and first study the conservation properties of the best-known circadian enhancer: a 69-bp element upstream of the Drosophila melanogaster period gene. This fragment shows a signal involving the presence of two closely spaced E-box-like motifs, a configuration that we can also detect in the other four prominent CLK/CYC target genes in flies: timeless, vrille, Pdp1, and cwo. This allows for the training of a probabilistic sequence model that we test using functional genomics datasets. We find that the predicted sequences are overrepresented in promoters of genes induced in a recent study by a glucocorticoid receptor-CLK fusion protein. We then scanned the mouse genome with the fly model and found that many known CLOCK/BMAL1 targets harbor sequences matching our consensus. Moreover, the phase of predicted cyclers in liver agreed with known CLOCK/BMAL1 regulation. Taken together, we built a predictive model for CLK/CYC or CLOCK/BMAL1-bound cis-enhancers through the integration of comparative and functional genomics data. Finally, a deeper phylogenetic analysis reveals that the link between the CLOCK/BMAL1 complex and the circadian cis-element dates back to before insects and vertebrates diverged.
Circadian glomerular function: from physiology to molecular and therapeutical aspects.
Wuerzner, Grégoire; Firsov, Dmitri; Bonny, Olivier
Life on earth is rhythmic by essence due to day/night alternation, and many biological processes are also cyclic. The kidney has a special role in the organism, controlling electrolytes and water balance, blood pressure, elimination of metabolic waste and xenobiotics and the production of several hormones. The kidney is submitted to changes throughout 24 h with periods of intense activity followed by calmer periods. Filtration, reabsorption and secretion are the three components determining renal function. Here, we review circadian changes related to glomerular function and proteinuria and emphasize the role of the clock in these processes. PMID:24516223
On the Effect of Lengthening Circadian Rhythm by Heavy Water
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Akhmedov T. R.
Full Text Available The problem of time sensor of biological clock (BC attracts interest of many scientists, and a great number of experiments are being conducted to stud y the influence of vari- ous physical and chemical factors on functioning of BC. Special attention is drawn to studying the influence of heavy water (D 2 O on functioning of BC that always leads to lengthening of circadian rhythms (CR. This work presents theoretical consideration of lengthening of CR, when hydrogen (H 2 in water is replaced by deuterium (D 2 , that is based on spacial difference of energy levels with similar principle quantum numbers.
Keeping the right time in space:importance of circadian clock and sleep for physiology and performance of astronauts
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)
Jin-Hu Guo; Wei-Min Qu; Shan-Guang Chen; Xiao-Ping Chen; Ke Lv; Zhi-Li Huang; Yi-Lan Wu
The circadian clock and sleep are essential for human physiology and behavior; deregulation of circadian rhythms impairs health and performance. Circadian clocks and sleep evolved to adapt to Earth's environment, which is characterized by a 24-hour light–dark cycle. Changes in gravity load, lighting and work schedules during spaceflight missions can impact circadian clocks and disrupt sleep, in turn jeopardizing the mood, cognition and performance of orbiting astronauts. In this review, we summarize our understanding of both the influence of the space environment on the circadian timing system and sleep and the impact of these changes on astronaut physiology and performance.
The human endogenous circadian system causes greatest platelet activation during the biological morning independent of behaviors.
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Frank A J L Scheer
Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Platelets are involved in the thromboses that are central to myocardial infarctions and ischemic strokes. Such adverse cardiovascular events have day/night patterns with peaks in the morning (~9 AM, potentially related to endogenous circadian clock control of platelet activation. The objective was to test if the human endogenous circadian system influences (1 platelet function and (2 platelet response to standardized behavioral stressors. We also aimed to compare the magnitude of any effects on platelet function caused by the circadian system with that caused by varied standardized behavioral stressors, including mental arithmetic, passive postural tilt and mild cycling exercise. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We studied 12 healthy adults (6 female who lived in individual laboratory suites in dim light for 240 h, with all behaviors scheduled on a 20-h recurring cycle to permit assessment of endogenous circadian function independent from environmental and behavioral effects including the sleep/wake cycle. Circadian phase was assessed from core body temperature. There were highly significant endogenous circadian rhythms in platelet surface activated glycoprotein (GP IIb-IIIa, GPIb and P-selectin (6-17% peak-trough amplitudes; p ≤ 0.01. These circadian peaks occurred at a circadian phase corresponding to 8-9 AM. Platelet count, ATP release, aggregability, and plasma epinephrine also had significant circadian rhythms but with later peaks (corresponding to 3-8 PM. The circadian effects on the platelet activation markers were always larger than that of any of the three behavioral stressors. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: These data demonstrate robust effects of the endogenous circadian system on platelet activation in humans--independent of the sleep/wake cycle, other behavioral influences and the environment. The 9 AM timing of the circadian peaks of the three platelet surface markers, including platelet surface activated GPIIb-IIIa, the
Altered circadian clock gene expression in patients with schizophrenia.
Johansson, Anne-Sofie; Owe-Larsson, Björn; Hetta, Jerker; Lundkvist, Gabriella B
Impaired circadian rhythmicity has been reported in several psychiatric disorders. Schizophrenia is commonly associated with aberrant sleep-wake cycles and insomnia. It is not known if schizophrenia is associated with disturbances in molecular rhythmicity. We cultured fibroblasts from skin samples obtained from patients with chronic schizophrenia and from healthy controls, respectively, and analyzed the circadian expression during 48h of the clock genes CLOCK, BMAL1, PER1, PER2, CRY1, CRY2, REV-ERBα and DBP. In fibroblasts obtained from patients with chronic schizophrenia, we found a loss of rhythmic expression of CRY1 and PER2 compared to cells from healthy controls. We also estimated the sleep quality in these patients and found that most of them suffered from poor sleep in comparison with the healthy controls. In another patient sample, we analyzed mononuclear blood cells from patients with schizophrenia experiencing their first episode of psychosis, and found decreased expression of CLOCK, PER2 and CRY1 compared to blood cells from healthy controls. These novel findings show disturbances in the molecular clock in schizophrenia and have important implications in our understanding of the aberrant rhythms reported in this disease. PMID:27132483
Circadian rhythms and post-transcriptional regulation in higher plants
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Andres eRomanowski
Full Text Available The circadian clock of plants allows them to cope with daily changes in their environment. This is accomplished by the rhythmic regulation of gene expression, in a process that involves many regulatory steps. One of the key steps involved at the RNA level is post-transcriptional regulation, which ensures a correct control on the different amounts and types of mRNA that will ultimately define the current physiological state of the plant cell. Recent advances in the study of the processes of regulation of pre-mRNA processing, RNA turn-over and surveillance, regulation of translation, function of lncRNAs, biogenesis and function of small RNAs and the development of bioinformatics tools have helped to vastly expand our understanding of how this regulatory step performs its role. In this work we review the current progress in circadian regulation at the post-transcriptional level research in plants. It is the continuous interaction of all the information flow control post-transcriptional processes that allow a plant to precisely time and predict daily environmental changes.
Integration of light signaling with photoperiodic flowering and circadian rhythm
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)
Min NI
Plants become photosynthetic through de-etiolation, a developmental process regulated by red/far-red light-absorbing phytochromes and blue/ultraviolet A light-absorbing cryptochromes. Genetic screens have identified in the last decade many far-red light signaling mutants and several red and blue light signaling mutants, suggesting the existence of distinct red, far-red, or blue light signaling pathways downstream of phytochromes and cryptochromes. However, genetic screens have also identified mutants with defective de-etiolation responses under multiple wavelengths. Thus, the optimal de-etiolation responses of a plant depend on coordination among the different light signaling pathways. This review intends to discuss several recently identified signaling components that have a potential role to integrate red, far-red, and blue light signalings. This review also highlights the recent discoveries on proteolytic degradation in the desensitization of light signal transmission, and the tight connection of light signaling with photoperiodic flowering and circadian rhythm. Studies on the controlling mechanisms of de-etiolation, photoperiodic flowering, and circadian rhythm have been the fascinating topics in Arabidopsis research. The knowledge obtained from Arabidopsis can be readily applied to food crops and ornamental species, and can be contributed to our general understanding of signal perception and transduction in all organisms.
The circadian molecular clock creates epidermal stem cell heterogeneity.
Janich, Peggy; Pascual, Gloria; Merlos-Suárez, Anna; Batlle, Eduard; Ripperger, Jürgen; Albrecht, Urs; Cheng, Hai-Ying M; Obrietan, Karl; Di Croce, Luciano; Benitah, Salvador Aznar
Murine epidermal stem cells undergo alternate cycles of dormancy and activation, fuelling tissue renewal. However, only a subset of stem cells becomes active during each round of morphogenesis, indicating that stem cells coexist in heterogeneous responsive states. Using a circadian-clock reporter-mouse model, here we show that the dormant hair-follicle stem cell niche contains coexisting populations of cells at opposite phases of the clock, which are differentially predisposed to respond to homeostatic cues. The core clock protein Bmal1 modulates the expression of stem cell regulatory genes in an oscillatory manner, to create populations that are either predisposed, or less prone, to activation. Disrupting this clock equilibrium, through deletion of Bmal1 (also known as Arntl) or Per1/2, resulted in a progressive accumulation or depletion of dormant stem cells, respectively. Stem cell arrhythmia also led to premature epidermal ageing, and a reduction in the development of squamous tumours. Our results indicate that the circadian clock fine-tunes the temporal behaviour of epidermal stem cells, and that its perturbation affects homeostasis and the predisposition to tumorigenesis.
Hippocampal activity mediates the relationship between circadian activity rhythms and memory in older adults.
Sherman, Stephanie M; Mumford, Jeanette A; Schnyer, David M
Older adults experience parallel changes in sleep, circadian rhythms, and episodic memory. These processes appear to be linked such that disruptions in sleep contribute to deficits in memory. Although more variability in circadian patterns is a common feature of aging and predicts pathology, little is known about how alterations in circadian activity rhythms within older adults influence new episodic learning. Following 10 days of recording sleep-wake patterns using actigraphy, healthy older adults underwent fMRI while performing an associative memory task. The results revealed better associative memory was related to more consistent circadian activity rhythms, independent of total sleep time, sleep efficiency, and level of physical activity. Moreover, hippocampal activity during successful memory retrieval events was positively correlated with associative memory accuracy and circadian activity rhythm (CAR) consistency. We demonstrated that the link between consistent rhythms and associative memory performance was mediated by hippocampal activity. These findings provide novel insight into how the circadian rhythm of sleep-wake cycles are associated with memory in older adults and encourage further examination of circadian activity rhythms as a biomarker of cognitive functioning. PMID:26205911
Research on sleep, circadian rhythms and aging - Applications to manned spaceflight
Czeisler, Charles A.; Chiasera, August J.; Duffy, Jeanne F.
Disorders of sleep and circadian rhythmicity are characteristic of both advancing age and manned spaceflight. Sleep fragmentation, reduced nocturnal sleep tendency and sleep efficiency, reduced daytime alertness, and increased daytime napping are common to both of these conditions. Recent research on the pathophysiology and treatment of disrupted sleep in older people has led to a better understanding of how the human circadian pacemaker regulates the timing of the daily sleep-wake cycle and how it responds to the periodic changes in the light-dark cycle to which we are ordinarily exposed. These findings have led to new treatments for some of the sleep disorders common to older individuals, using carefully timed exposure to bright light and darkness to manipulate the phase and/or amplitude of the circadian timing system. These insights and treatment approaches have direct applications in the design of countermeasures allowing astronauts to overcome some of the challenges which manned spaceflight poses for the human circadian timing system. We have conducted an operational feasibility study on the use of scheduled exposure to bright light and darkness prior to launch in order to facilitate adaptation of the circadian system of a NASA Space Shuttle crew to the altered sleep-wake schedule required for their mission. The results of this study illustrate how an understanding of the properties of the human circadian timing system and the consequences of circadian disruption can be applied to manned spaceflight.
Morning and Evening Oscillators Cooperate to Reset Circadian Behavior in Response to Light Input
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Pallavi Lamba
Full Text Available Light is a crucial input for circadian clocks. In Drosophila, short light exposure can robustly shift the phase of circadian behavior. The model for this resetting posits that circadian photoreception is cell autonomous: CRYPTOCHROME senses light, binds to TIMELESS (TIM, and promotes its degradation, which is mediated by JETLAG (JET. However, it was recently proposed that interactions between circadian neurons are also required for phase resetting. We identify two groups of neurons critical for circadian photoreception: the morning (M and the evening (E oscillators. These neurons work synergistically to reset rhythmic behavior. JET promotes acute TIM degradation cell autonomously in M and E oscillators but also nonautonomously in E oscillators when expressed in M oscillators. Thus, upon light exposure, the M oscillators communicate with the E oscillators. Because the M oscillators drive circadian behavior, they must also receive inputs from the E oscillators. Hence, although photic TIM degradation is largely cell autonomous, neural cooperation between M and E oscillators is critical for circadian behavioral photoresponses.
NPAS2 Compensates for Loss of CLOCK in Peripheral Circadian Oscillators.
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Dominic Landgraf
Full Text Available Heterodimers of CLOCK and BMAL1 are the major transcriptional activators of the mammalian circadian clock. Because the paralog NPAS2 can substitute for CLOCK in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN, the master circadian pacemaker, CLOCK-deficient mice maintain circadian rhythms in behavior and in tissues in vivo. However, when isolated from the SCN, CLOCK-deficient peripheral tissues are reportedly arrhythmic, suggesting a fundamental difference in circadian clock function between SCN and peripheral tissues. Surprisingly, however, using luminometry and single-cell bioluminescence imaging of PER2 expression, we now find that CLOCK-deficient dispersed SCN neurons and peripheral cells exhibit similarly stable, autonomous circadian rhythms in vitro. In CLOCK-deficient fibroblasts, knockdown of Npas2 leads to arrhythmicity, suggesting that NPAS2 can compensate for loss of CLOCK in peripheral cells as well as in SCN. Our data overturn the notion of an SCN-specific role for NPAS2 in the molecular circadian clock, and instead indicate that, at the cellular level, the core loops of SCN neuron and peripheral cell circadian clocks are fundamentally similar.
Emergence of noise-induced oscillations in the central circadian pacemaker.
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Caroline H Ko
Full Text Available Bmal1 is an essential transcriptional activator within the mammalian circadian clock. We report here that the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN of Bmal1-null mutant mice, unexpectedly, generates stochastic oscillations with periods that overlap the circadian range. Dissociated SCN neurons expressed fluctuating levels of PER2 detected by bioluminescence imaging but could not generate circadian oscillations intrinsically. Inhibition of intercellular communication or cyclic-AMP signaling in SCN slices, which provide a positive feed-forward signal to drive the intracellular negative feedback loop, abolished the stochastic oscillations. Propagation of this feed-forward signal between SCN neurons then promotes quasi-circadian oscillations that arise as an emergent property of the SCN network. Experimental analysis and mathematical modeling argue that both intercellular coupling and molecular noise are required for the stochastic rhythms, providing a novel biological example of noise-induced oscillations. The emergence of stochastic circadian oscillations from the SCN network in the absence of cell-autonomous circadian oscillatory function highlights a previously unrecognized level of circadian organization.
The ancestral circadian clock of monarch butterflies: role in time-compensated sun compass orientation.
Reppert, S M
The circadian clock has a vital role in monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) migration by providing the timing component of time-compensated sun compass orientation, which contributes to navigation to the overwintering grounds. The location of circadian clock cells in monarch brain has been identified in the dorsolateral protocerebrum (pars lateralis); these cells express PERIOD, TIMELESS, and a Drosophila-like cryptochrome designated CRY1. Monarch butterflies, like all other nondrosophilid insects examined so far, express a second cry gene (designated insect CRY2) that encodes a vertebrate-like CRY that is also expressed in pars lateralis. An ancestral circadian clock mechanism has been defined in monarchs, in which CRY1 functions as a blue light photoreceptor for photic entrainment, whereas CRY2 functionswithin the clockwork as themajor transcriptional repressor of an intracellular negative transcriptional feedback loop. A CRY1-staining neural pathway has been identified that may connect the circadian (navigational) clock to polarized light input important for sun compass navigation, and a CRY2-positive neural pathway has been discovered that may communicate circadian information directly from the circadian clock to the central complex, the likely site of the sun compass. The monarch butterfly may thus use the CRY proteins as components of the circadian mechanism and also as output molecules that connect the clock to various aspects of the sun compass apparatus. PMID:18419268
Protein phosphatase-dependent circadian regulation of intermediate-term associative memory.
Michel, Maximilian; Gardner, Jacob S; Green, Charity L; Organ, Chelsea L; Lyons, Lisa C
The endogenous circadian clock is a principal factor modulating memory across species. Determining the processes through which the circadian clock modulates memory formation is a key issue in understanding and identifying mechanisms to improve memory. We used the marine mollusk Aplysia californica to investigate circadian modulation of intermediate-term memory (ITM) and the mechanisms through which the circadian clock phase specifically suppresses memory using the operant learning paradigm, learning that food is inedible. We found that ITM, a temporally and mechanistically distinct form of memory, is rhythmically expressed under light-dark and constant conditions when induced by either massed or spaced training. Strong circadian regulation of ITM occurs with memory exhibited only by animals trained during the early subjective day; no apparent memory is expressed when training occurs during the late subjective day or night. Given the necessity of multiple persistent kinase cascades for ITM, we investigated whether protein phosphatase activity affected circadian modulation. Inhibition of protein phosphatases 1 and 2A blocked ITM when animals were trained during the early (subjective) day while resulting in phase-specific memory rescue when animals were trained late in the subjective day and early night. In contrast, inhibition of calcineurin did not block ITM when animals were trained during the early day and permitted ITM when animals were trained during the late subjective day, early evening, and throughout the night. These results demonstrate that levels of protein phosphatase activity are critical regulators of ITM and one mechanism through which the circadian clock regulates memory formation.
Drosophila spaghetti and doubletime link the circadian clock and light to caspases, apoptosis and tauopathy.
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John C Means
Full Text Available While circadian dysfunction and neurodegeneration are correlated, the mechanism for this is not understood. It is not known if age-dependent circadian dysfunction leads to neurodegeneration or vice-versa, and the proteins that mediate the effect remain unidentified. Here, we show that the knock-down of a regulator (spag of the circadian kinase Dbt in circadian cells lowers Dbt levels abnormally, lengthens circadian rhythms and causes expression of activated initiator caspase (Dronc in the optic lobes during the middle of the day or after light pulses at night. Likewise, reduced Dbt activity lengthens circadian period and causes expression of activated Dronc, and a loss-of-function mutation in Clk also leads to expression of activated Dronc in a light-dependent manner. Genetic epistasis experiments place Dbt downstream of Spag in the pathway, and Spag-dependent reductions of Dbt are shown to require the proteasome. Importantly, activated Dronc expression due to reduced Spag or Dbt activity occurs in cells that do not express the spag RNAi or dominant negative Dbt and requires PDF neuropeptide signaling from the same neurons that support behavioral rhythms. Furthermore, reduction of Dbt or Spag activity leads to Dronc-dependent Drosophila Tau cleavage and enhanced neurodegeneration produced by human Tau in a fly eye model for tauopathy. Aging flies with lowered Dbt or Spag function show markers of cell death as well as behavioral deficits and shortened lifespans, and even old wild type flies exhibit Dbt modification and activated caspase at particular times of day. These results suggest that Dbt suppresses expression of activated Dronc to prevent Tau cleavage, and that the circadian clock defects confer sensitivity to expression of activated Dronc in response to prolonged light. They establish a link between the circadian clock factors, light, cell death pathways and Tau toxicity, potentially via dysregulation of circadian neuronal remodeling in
Environmental perturbation of the circadian clock disrupts pregnancy in the mouse.
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Keith C Summa
Full Text Available BACKGROUND: The circadian clock has been linked to reproduction at many levels in mammals. Epidemiological studies of female shift workers have reported increased rates of reproductive abnormalities and adverse pregnancy outcomes, although whether the cause is circadian disruption or another factor associated with shift work is unknown. Here we test whether environmental disruption of circadian rhythms, using repeated shifts of the light:dark (LD cycle, adversely affects reproductive success in mice. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Young adult female C57BL/6J (B6 mice were paired with B6 males until copulation was verified by visual identification of vaginal plug formation. Females were then randomly assigned to one of three groups: control, phase-delay or phase-advance. Controls remained on a constant 12-hr light:12-hr dark cycle, whereas phase-delayed and phase-advanced mice were subjected to 6-hr delays or advances in the LD cycle every 5-6 days, respectively. The number of copulations resulting in term pregnancies was determined. Control females had a full-term pregnancy success rate of 90% (11/12, which fell to 50% (9/18; p<0.1 in the phase-delay group and 22% (4/18; p<0.01 in the phase-advance group. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Repeated shifting of the LD cycle, which disrupts endogenous circadian timekeeping, dramatically reduces pregnancy success in mice. Advances of the LD cycle have a greater negative impact on pregnancy outcomes and, in non-pregnant female mice, require longer for circadian re-entrainment, suggesting that the magnitude or duration of circadian misalignment may be related to the severity of the adverse impact on pregnancy. These results explicitly link disruptions of circadian entrainment to adverse pregnancy outcomes in mammals, which may have important implications for the reproductive health of female shift workers, women with circadian rhythm sleep disorders and/or women with disturbed circadian rhythms for other
The relationship between circadian disruption and the development of metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes
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Karatsoreos IN
Full Text Available Ilia N Karatsoreos Department of Integrative Physiology and Neuroscience, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, USA Abstract: Circadian (daily rhythms are pervasive in nature, and expressed in nearly every behavioral and physiological process. In mammals, circadian rhythms are regulated by the master brain clock in the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the hypothalamus that coordinates the activity of "peripheral" oscillators throughout the brain and body. While much progress has been made in understanding the basic functioning of the circadian clock at the level of genes, molecules, and cells, our understanding of how these clocks interact with complex systems is still in its infancy. Much recent work has focused on the role of circadian clocks in the etiology of disorders as diverse as cancer, diabetes, and obesity. Given the rapid rise in obesity, and the economic costs involved in treating its associated cardiometabolic disorders such as heart disease and diabetes mellitus, understanding the development of obesity and metabolic dysregulation is crucial. Significant epidemiological data indicate a role for circadian rhythms in metabolic disorders. Shift workers have a higher incidence of obesity and diabetes, and laboratory studies in humans show misaligning sleep and the circadian clock leads to hyperinsulinemia. In animal models, body-wide "clock gene" knockout mice are prone to obesity. Further, disrupting the circadian clock by manipulating the light–dark cycle can result in metabolic dysregulation and development of obesity. At the molecular level, elegant studies have shown that targeted disruption of the genetic circadian clock in the pancreas leads to diabetes, highlighting the fact that the circadian clock is directly coupled to metabolism at the cellular level. Keywords: glucose, metabolism, sleep, rhythms, obesity
Maternal and infant activity: Analytic approaches for the study of circadian rhythm.
Thomas, Karen A; Burr, Robert L; Spieker, Susan
The study of infant and mother circadian rhythm entails choice of instruments appropriate for use in the home environment as well as selection of analytic approach that characterizes circadian rhythm. While actigraphy monitoring suits the needs of home study, limited studies have examined mother and infant rhythm derived from actigraphy. Among this existing research a variety of analyses have been employed to characterize 24-h rhythm, reducing ability to evaluate and synthesize findings. Few studies have examined the correspondence of mother and infant circadian parameters for the most frequently cited approaches: cosinor, non-parametric circadian rhythm analysis (NPCRA), and autocorrelation function (ACF). The purpose of this research was to examine analytic approaches in the study of mother and infant circadian activity rhythm. Forty-three healthy mother and infant pairs were studied in the home environment over a 72h period at infant age 4, 8, and 12 weeks. Activity was recorded continuously using actigraphy monitors and mothers completed a diary. Parameters of circadian rhythm were generated from cosinor analysis, NPCRA, and ACF. The correlation among measures of rhythm center (cosinor mesor, NPCRA mid level), strength or fit of 24-h period (cosinor magnitude and R(2), NPCRA amplitude and relative amplitude (RA)), phase (cosinor acrophase, NPCRA M10 and L5 midpoint), and rhythm stability and variability (NPCRA interdaily stability (IS) and intradaily variability (IV), ACF) was assessed, and additionally the effect size (eta(2)) for change over time evaluated. Results suggest that cosinor analysis, NPCRA, and autocorrelation provide several comparable parameters of infant and maternal circadian rhythm center, fit, and phase. IS and IV were strongly correlated with the 24-h cycle fit. The circadian parameters analyzed offer separate insight into rhythm and differing effect size for the detection of change over time. Findings inform selection of analysis and
Visualizing and Quantifying Intracellular Behavior and Abundance of the Core Circadian Clock Protein PERIOD2.
Smyllie, Nicola J; Pilorz, Violetta; Boyd, James; Meng, Qing-Jun; Saer, Ben; Chesham, Johanna E; Maywood, Elizabeth S; Krogager, Toke P; Spiller, David G; Boot-Handford, Raymond; White, Michael R H; Hastings, Michael H; Loudon, Andrew S I
Transcriptional-translational feedback loops (TTFLs) are a conserved molecular motif of circadian clocks. The principal clock in mammals is the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus. In SCN neurons, auto-regulatory feedback on core clock genes Period (Per) and Cryptochrome (Cry) following nuclear entry of their protein products is the basis of circadian oscillation [1, 2]. In Drosophila clock neurons, the movement of dPer into the nucleus is subject to a circadian gate that generates a delay in the TTFL, and this delay is thought to be critical for oscillation [3, 4]. Analysis of the Drosophila clock has strongly influenced models of the mammalian clock, and such models typically infer complex spatiotemporal, intracellular behaviors of mammalian clock proteins. There are, however, no direct measures of the intracellular behavior of endogenous circadian proteins to support this: dynamic analyses have been limited and often have no circadian dimension [5-7]. We therefore generated a knockin mouse expressing a fluorescent fusion of native PER2 protein (PER2::VENUS) for live imaging. PER2::VENUS recapitulates the circadian functions of wild-type PER2 and, importantly, the behavior of PER2::VENUS runs counter to the Drosophila model: it does not exhibit circadian gating of nuclear entry. Using fluorescent imaging of PER2::VENUS, we acquired the first measures of mobility, molecular concentration, and localization of an endogenous circadian protein in individual mammalian cells, and we showed how the mobility and nuclear translocation of PER2 are regulated by casein kinase. These results provide new qualitative and quantitative insights into the cellular mechanism of the mammalian circadian clock. PMID:27374340
Assembly of a comprehensive regulatory network for the mammalian circadian clock: a bioinformatics approach.
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Robert Lehmann
Full Text Available By regulating the timing of cellular processes, the circadian clock provides a way to adapt physiology and behaviour to the geophysical time. In mammals, a light-entrainable master clock located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN controls peripheral clocks that are present in virtually every body cell. Defective circadian timing is associated with several pathologies such as cancer and metabolic and sleep disorders. To better understand the circadian regulation of cellular processes, we developed a bioinformatics pipeline encompassing the analysis of high-throughput data sets and the exploitation of published knowledge by text-mining. We identified 118 novel potential clock-regulated genes and integrated them into an existing high-quality circadian network, generating the to-date most comprehensive network of circadian regulated genes (NCRG. To validate particular elements in our network, we assessed publicly available ChIP-seq data for BMAL1, REV-ERBα/β and RORα/γ proteins and found strong evidence for circadian regulation of Elavl1, Nme1, Dhx6, Med1 and Rbbp7 all of which are involved in the regulation of tumourigenesis. Furthermore, we identified Ncl and Ddx6, as targets of RORγ and REV-ERBα, β, respectively. Most interestingly, these genes were also reported to be involved in miRNA regulation; in particular, NCL regulates several miRNAs, all involved in cancer aggressiveness. Thus, NCL represents a novel potential link via which the circadian clock, and specifically RORγ, regulates the expression of miRNAs, with particular consequences in breast cancer progression. Our findings bring us one step forward towards a mechanistic understanding of mammalian circadian regulation, and provide further evidence of the influence of circadian deregulation in cancer.
Assembly of a comprehensive regulatory network for the mammalian circadian clock: a bioinformatics approach.
Lehmann, Robert; Childs, Liam; Thomas, Philippe; Abreu, Monica; Fuhr, Luise; Herzel, Hanspeter; Leser, Ulf; Relógio, Angela
By regulating the timing of cellular processes, the circadian clock provides a way to adapt physiology and behaviour to the geophysical time. In mammals, a light-entrainable master clock located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) controls peripheral clocks that are present in virtually every body cell. Defective circadian timing is associated with several pathologies such as cancer and metabolic and sleep disorders. To better understand the circadian regulation of cellular processes, we developed a bioinformatics pipeline encompassing the analysis of high-throughput data sets and the exploitation of published knowledge by text-mining. We identified 118 novel potential clock-regulated genes and integrated them into an existing high-quality circadian network, generating the to-date most comprehensive network of circadian regulated genes (NCRG). To validate particular elements in our network, we assessed publicly available ChIP-seq data for BMAL1, REV-ERBα/β and RORα/γ proteins and found strong evidence for circadian regulation of Elavl1, Nme1, Dhx6, Med1 and Rbbp7 all of which are involved in the regulation of tumourigenesis. Furthermore, we identified Ncl and Ddx6, as targets of RORγ and REV-ERBα, β, respectively. Most interestingly, these genes were also reported to be involved in miRNA regulation; in particular, NCL regulates several miRNAs, all involved in cancer aggressiveness. Thus, NCL represents a novel potential link via which the circadian clock, and specifically RORγ, regulates the expression of miRNAs, with particular consequences in breast cancer progression. Our findings bring us one step forward towards a mechanistic understanding of mammalian circadian regulation, and provide further evidence of the influence of circadian deregulation in cancer. PMID:25945798
Circadian clock dysfunction and psychiatric disease: could fruit flies have a say?
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Mauro Agostino Zordan
Full Text Available There is evidence of a link between the circadian system and psychiatric diseases. Studies in humans and mammals suggest that environmental and/or genetic disruption of the circadian system lead to an increased liability to psychiatric disease. Disruption of clock genes and/or the clock network might be related to the etiology of these pathologies; also, some genes, known for their circadian clock functions, might be associated to mental illnesses through clock-independent pleiotropy. Here we examine the features which we believe make Drosophila melanogaster a model apt to study the role of the circadian clock in psychiatric disease. Despite differences in the organization of the clock system, the molecular architecture of the Drosophila and mammalian circadian oscillators are comparable and many components are evolutionarily related. In addition, Drosophila has a rather complex nervous system, which shares much at the cell and neurobiological level with humans, i.e. a tripartite brain, the main neurotransmitter systems, and behavioral traits: circadian behavior, learning and memory, motivation, addiction, social behavior. There is evidence that the Drosophila brain shares some homologies with the vertebrate cerebellum, basal ganglia and hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis, the dysfunctions of which have been tied to mental illness. We discuss Drosophila in comparison to mammals with reference to the: organization of the brain and neurotransmitter systems; architecture of the circadian clock; clock-controlled behaviors. We sum up current knowledge on behavioral endophenotypes which are amenable to modeling in flies, such as defects involving sleep, cognition, or social interactions and discuss the relationship of the circadian system to these traits. Finally, we consider if Drosophila could be a valuable asset to understand the relationship between circadian clock malfunction and psychiatric disease.
Pinealectomy abolishes circadian behavior and interferes with circadian clock gene oscillations in brain and liver but not retina in a migratory songbird.
Trivedi, Amit Kumar; Malik, Shalie; Rani, Sangeeta; Kumar, Vinod
In songbirds, the pineal gland is part of the multi-oscillatory circadian timing system, with participating component oscillators in the eyes and hypothalamus. This study investigated the role of the pineal gland in development of the nighttime migratory restlessness (Zugunruhe) and generation of circadian gene oscillations in the retina, brain and liver tissues in migratory redheaded buntings (Emberiza bruniceps). Pinealectomized (pinx) and sham-operated buntings entrained to short days (8h light: 16h darkness, 8L:16D) were sequentially exposed for 10days each to stimulatory long days (13L: 11D) and constant dim light (LLdim; a condition that tested circadian rhythm persistence). Whereas activity-rest pattern was monitored continuously, the mRNA expressions of clock genes (bmal1, clock, npas2, per2, cry1, rorα, reverα) were measured in the retina, hypothalamus, telencephalon, optic tectum and liver tissues at circadian times, CT, 1, 6, 13, 17 and 21 (CT 0, activity onset) on day 11 of the LLdim. The absence of the pineal gland did not affect the development of long-day induced Zugunruhe but caused decay of the circadian rhythm in Zugunruhe as well as the clock gene oscillations in the hypothalamus, but not in the retina. Further, there were variable effects of pinealectomy in the peripheral brain and liver tissue circadian gene oscillations, notably the persistence of per 2 and cry1 (optic tectum), rorα (telencephalon) and npas2 (liver) mRNA oscillations in pinx birds. We suggest the pineal gland dependence of the generation of circadian gene oscillations in the hypothalamus, not retina, and peripheral brain and liver tissues in migratory redheaded buntings. PMID:26801391
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Weipeng Teo
Full Text Available Almost all physiological and biochemical processes within the human body follow a circadian rhythm (CR. In humans, the suprachiasmatic nucleus regulates sleep- wake cycle and other daily biorhythms in line with solar time. Due to such daily physiological fluctuations, several investigations on neuromuscular performance have reported a distinct CR during exercise. Generally, peak performances have been found to occur in the early evening, at approximately the peak of core body temperature. The increase in core body temperature has been found to increase energy metabolism, improve muscle compliance and facilitate actin-myosin crossbridging. In addition, steroidal hormones such as testosterone (T and cortisol (C also display a clear CR. The role of T within the body is to maintain anabolism through the process of protein synthesis. By contrast, C plays a catabolic function and is involved in the response of stress. Due to the anabolic and catabolic nature of both T and C, it has been postulated that a causal relationship may exist between the CR of T and C and muscular performance. This review will therefore discuss the effects of CR on physical performance and its implications for training. Furthermore, this review will examine the impact of muscular performance on CR in hormonal responses and whether could variations in T and C be potentially beneficial for muscular adaptation
The intrinsic microglial molecular clock controls synaptic strength via the circadian expression of cathepsin S.
Hayashi, Yoshinori; Koyanagi, Satoru; Kusunose, Naoki; Okada, Ryo; Wu, Zhou; Tozaki-Saitoh, Hidetoshi; Ukai, Kiyoharu; Kohsaka, Shinichi; Inoue, Kazuhide; Ohdo, Shigehiro; Nakanishi, Hiroshi
Microglia are thought to play important roles in the maintenance of neuronal circuitry and the regulation of behavior. We found that the cortical microglia contain an intrinsic molecular clock and exhibit a circadian expression of cathepsin S (CatS), a microglia-specific lysosomal cysteine protease in the brain. The genetic deletion of CatS causes mice to exhibit hyperlocomotor activity and removes diurnal variations in the synaptic activity and spine density of the cortical neurons, which are significantly higher during the dark (waking) phase than the light (sleeping) phase. Furthermore, incubation with recombinant CatS significantly reduced the synaptic activity of the cortical neurons. These results suggest that CatS secreted by microglia during the dark-phase decreases the spine density of the cortical neurons by modifying the perisynaptic environment, leading to downscaling of the synaptic strength during the subsequent light-phase. Disruption of CatS therefore induces hyperlocomotor activity due to failure to downscale the synaptic strength.
Seasonal variations in daily rhythms of activity in athletic horses.
Bertolucci, C; Giannetto, C; Fazio, F; Piccione, G
Circadian rhythms reflect extensive programming of biological activity that meets and exploits the challenges and opportunities offered by the periodic nature of the environment. In the present investigation, we recorded the total activity of athletic horses kept at four different times of the year (vernal equinox, summer solstice, autumn equinox and winter solstice), to evaluate the presence of seasonal variations of daily activity rhythms. Athletic Thoroughbred horses were kept in individual boxes with paddock. Digitally integrated measure of total activity of each mare was continuously recorded by actigraphy-based data loggers. Horse total activities were not evenly distributed over the day, but they were mainly diurnal during the year. Daily activity rhythms showed clear seasonal variations, with the highest daily amount of activity during the vernal equinox and the lowest during the winter solstice. Interestingly, the amount of activity during either photophase or scotophase changed significantly throughout the year. Circadian analysis of horse activities showed that the acrophase, the estimated time at which the peak of the rhythm occurs, did not change during the year, it always occurred in the middle of the photoperiod. Analysing the time structure of long-term and continuously measured activity and feeding could be a useful method to critically evaluate athletic horse management systems in which spontaneous locomotor activity and feeding are severely limited. Circadian rhythms are present in several elements of sensory motor and psychomotor functions and these would be taken into consideration to plan the training schedules and competitions in athletic horses. PMID:22443706
Entrainment of the circadian clock in humans: mechanism and implications for sleep disorders.
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David Metcalfe
Full Text Available Humans exhibit behaviour and physiology controlled by a circadian clock. The circadian period is genetically determined and administered by a series of interlocked autoregulatory feedback loops largely in the suprachiasmatic nuclei of the hypothalamus. The phase of the clock is, however, synchronised by a number of external environmental cues such as light. A failure or change in any one of the requisite clock components may result in the onset of a long-term sleep disorder. This review discusses the mechanism regulating circadian physiology in humans and explores how disturbances of this mechanism may result in sleep pathologies.
Circadian clocks and life-history related traits: is pupation height affected by circadian organization in Drosophila melanogaster?
Indian Academy of Sciences (India)
Dhanashree A. Paranjpe; D. Anitha; Vijay Kumar Sharma; Amitabh Joshi
In D. melanogaster, the observation of greater pupation height under constant darkness than under constant light has been explained by the hypothesis that light has an inhibitory effect on larval wandering behaviour, preventing larvae from crawling higher up the walls of culture vials prior to pupation. If this is the only role of light in affecting pupation height, then various light : dark regimes would be predicted to yield pupation heights intermediate between those seen in constant light and constant darkness. We tested this hypothesis by measuring pupation height under various light : dark regimes in four laboratory populations of Drosophila melanogaster. Pupation height was the greatest in constant darkness, intermediate in constant light, and the least in a light / dark regime of LD 14:14 h. The results clearly suggest that there is more to light regime effects on pupation height than mere behavioural inhibition of wandering larvae, and that circadian organization may play some role in determining pupation height, although the details of this role are not yet clear. We briefly discuss these results in the context of the possible involvement of circadian clocks in life-history evolution.
Longitudinal observations on circadian blood pressure variation in chronic kidney disease stages 3-5
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Elung-Jensen, T.; Strandgaard, S.; Kamper, Anne-Lise
/non-dipper status prospectively in a study on dosage of enalapril in progressive chronic kidney disease (CKD) stages 3-5. METHODS: In 34 patients, 24-h ambulatory BP (A&D TM2421) was measured at baseline and every 4 months for 1 year or until the need for renal replacement therapy. For each BP recording patients...
Value of variation in circadian rhythm of blood pressure for early diagnosis of diabetic nephropathy
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)
Objective To investigate the change of 24 h ambulatory blood pressure in patients with subclinical diabetic nephropathy.Methods A total of 190 type 2 diabetic patients were divided into 2 groups according to estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) :glomerular
Circadian variation of plasma arginine vasopressin concentration, or arginine vasopressin in enuresis.
Aikawa, T; Kasahara, T; Uchiyama, M
The objective of these studies was to determine a relationship between primary nocturnal enuresis and arginine vasopressin (AVP) secretion. The first study compared 24-h AVP secretion profiles of enuretic (n = 9) and non-enuretic children (n = 8). Blood samples were collected at 1-h intervals for 24 h. In the second study, nocturnal AVP secretion in group A (n = 40)--with low urinary osmotic pressure (UOP) and large nocturnal urine output (NUO)--was compared with that in group D (n = 11) with normal UOP and small NUO. Plasma AVP levels were measured at 30-min intervals, immediately after falling asleep until 06.00 the following morning. The results of the first study showed that the plasma AVP level was significantly lower (p < 0.05-0.001) in the enuretic group between 23.00 and 04.00. The second study showed that group A had significantly lower AVP levels (p < 0.05-0.001) than group D throughout the night. The mean AVP level during night sleep was 0.64 +/- 0.23 pg/ml in group A and 1.43 +/- 0.66 pg/ml in group D. The results of the first study suggest that decreased nocturnal AVP secretion is a cause of bedwetting. However, the results of the second study suggest that nocturnal enuresis cannot be explained by a decrease in nocturnal AVP secretion alone.
Endogenous and exogenous components in the circadian variation of core body temperature in humans
Hiddinga, AE; Beersma, DGM; VandenHoofdakker, RH
Core body temperature is predominantly modulated by endogenous and exogenous components. In the present study we tested whether these two components can be reliably assessed in a protocol which lasts for only 120 h. In this so-called forced desynchrony protocol, 12 healthy male subjects (age 23.7 +/
Circadian variations in blood pressure in health and disease: implications for patient management
Slaughter, Mark; Chugh,; Loughran,
Atul R Chugh1, John H Loughran1, Mark S Slaughter21Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, 2Division of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY, USAAbstract: Traditionally, blood pressure measurements have been performed in office settings and have provided the basis for all diagnostic and therapeutic decisions. However, the development of a clinically relevant 24-hour blood pressure monitoring system has added greatly to the ability of blood pressure values...
Longitudinal observations on circadian blood pressure variation in chronic kidney disease stages 3-5
DEFF Research Database (Denmark)
Elung-Jensen, Thomas; Strandgaard, Svend; Kamper, Anne-Lise
BACKGROUND: It has been suggested that status as a 'non-dipper' determined from 24-h blood pressure (BP) recordings is associated with increased risk of end-organ damage but little is known about the consistency of dipper status in renal patients. The present post hoc analysis evaluated dipper...
Circadian regulation of human sleep and age-related changes in its timing, consolidation and EEG characteristics
Dijk, D. J.; Duffy, J. F.
The light-entrainable circadian pacemaker located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the hypothalamus regulates the timing and consolidation of sleep by generating a paradoxical rhythm of sleep propensity; the circadian drive for wakefulness peaks at the end of the day spent awake, ie close to the onset of melatonin secretion at 21.00-22.00 h and the circadian drive for sleep crests shortly before habitual waking-up time. With advancing age, ie after early adulthood, sleep consolidation declines, and time of awakening and the rhythms of body temperature, plasma melatonin and cortisol shift to an earlier clock hour. The variability of the phase relationship between the sleep-wake cycle and circadian rhythms increases, and in old age sleep is more susceptible to internal arousing stimuli associated with circadian misalignment. The propensity to awaken from sleep advances relative to the body temperature nadir in older people, a change that is opposite to the phase delay of awakening relative to internal circadian rhythms associated with morningness in young people. Age-related changes do not appear to be associated with a shortening of the circadian period or a reduction of the circadian drive for wake maintenance. These changes may be related to changes in the sleep process itself, such as reductions in slow-wave sleep and sleep spindles as well as a reduced strength of the circadian signal promoting sleep in the early morning hours. Putative mediators and modulators of circadian sleep regulation are discussed.
Circadian Disruption Alters the Effects of Lipopolysaccharide Treatment on Circadian and Ultradian Locomotor Activity and Body Temperature Rhythms of Female Siberian Hamsters.
Prendergast, Brian J; Cable, Erin J; Stevenson, Tyler J; Onishi, Kenneth G; Zucker, Irving; Kay, Leslie M
The effect of circadian rhythm (CR) disruption on immune function depends on the method by which CRs are disrupted. Behavioral and thermoregulatory responses induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) treatment were assessed in female Siberian hamsters in which circadian locomotor activity (LMA) rhythms were eliminated by exposure to a disruptive phase-shifting protocol (DPS) that sustains arrhythmicity even when hamsters are housed in a light-dark cycle. This noninvasive treatment avoids genome manipulations and neurological damage associated with other models of CR disruption. Circadian rhythmic (RHYTH) and arrhythmic (ARR) hamsters housed in a 16L:8D photocycle were injected with bacterial LPS near the onset of the light (zeitgeber time 1; ZT1) or dark (ZT16) phase. LPS injections at ZT16 and ZT1 elicited febrile responses in both RHYTH and ARR hamsters, but the effect was attenuated in the arrhythmic females. In ZT16, LPS inhibited LMA in the dark phase immediately after injection but not on subsequent nights in both chronotypes; in contrast, LPS at ZT1 elicited more enduring (~4 day) locomotor hypoactivity in ARR than in RHYTH hamsters. Power and period of dark-phase ultradian rhythms (URs) in LMA and Tb were markedly altered by LPS treatment, as was the power in the circadian waveform. Disrupted circadian rhythms in this model system attenuated responses to LPS in a trait- and ZT-specific manner; changes in UR period and power are novel components of the acute-phase response to infection that may affect energy conservation.
A time to remember: Consequences of ageing on the circadian memory modulation in rodents
Biemans, Barbara Agatha Maria
Dít proefschrift bevatstudies die zijn uitgevoerd in het kader van de NWO prioriteitenprogramma "Geheugenproces en dementie", en die tot doel hadden te onderzoeken hoe circadiane processen geheugenfunctie beinvloeden, en of veroudering deze interacties verandert. dissertaties ... Zie: Samenvatting
Modelling and analysis of the feeding regimen induced entrainment of hepatocyte circadian oscillators using petri nets.
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Samar Hayat Khan Tareen
Full Text Available Circadian rhythms are certain periodic behaviours exhibited by living organism at different levels, including cellular and system-wide scales. Recent studies have found that the circadian rhythms of several peripheral organs in mammals, such as the liver, are able to entrain their clocks to received signals independent of other system level clocks, in particular when responding to signals generated during feeding. These studies have found SIRT1, PARP1, and HSF1 proteins to be the major influencers of the core CLOCKBMAL1:PER-CRY circadian clock. These entities, along with abstracted feeding induced signals were modelled collectively in this study using Petri Nets. The properties of the model show that the circadian system itself is strongly robust, and is able to continually evolve. The modelled feeding regimens suggest that the usual 3 meals/day and 2 meals/day feeding regimens are beneficial with any more or less meals/day negatively affecting the system.
Modeling the role of mid-wavelength cones in circadian responses to light.
Dkhissi-Benyahya, Ouria; Gronfier, Claude; De Vanssay, Wena; Flamant, Frederic; Cooper, Howard M
Nonvisual responses to light, such as photic entrainment of the circadian clock, involve intrinsically light-sensitive melanopsin-expressing ganglion cells as well as rod and cone photoreceptors. However, previous studies have been unable to demonstrate a specific contribution of cones in the photic control of circadian responses to light. Using a mouse model that specifically lacks mid-wavelength (MW) cones we show that these photoreceptors play a significant role in light entrainment and in phase shifting of the circadian oscillator. The contribution of MW cones is mainly observed for light exposures of short duration and toward the longer wavelength region of the spectrum, consistent with the known properties of this opsin. Modeling the contributions of the various photoreceptors stresses the importance of considering the particular spectral, temporal, and irradiance response domains of the photopigments when assessing their role and contribution in circadian responses to light.
Circadian and pharmacological regulation of casein kinase I in the hamster suprachiasmatic nucleus
Indian Academy of Sciences (India)
Patricia V. Agostino; Santiago A. Plano; Diego A. Golombek
In mammals, the mechanism for the generation of circadian rhythms and entrainment by light–dark (LD) cycles resides in the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN), and the principal signal that adjusts this biological clock with environmental timing is the light:dark cycle. Within the SCN, rhythms are generated by a complex of molecular feedback loops that regulate the transcription of clock genes, including per and cry. Posttranslational modification plays an essential role in the regulation of biological rhythms; in particular, clock gene phosphorylation by casein kinase I, both epsilon (CKI) and delta (CKI), regulates key molecular mechanisms in the circadian clock. In this paper, we report for the first time that CKI activity undergoes a significant circadian rhythm in the SCN (peaking at circadian time 12, the start of the subjective night), and its pharmacological inhibition alters photic entrainment of the clock, indicating that CKI may be a key element in this pathway.
Running a little late: chloroplast Fe status and the circadian clock
Wilson, Grandon T; Erin L Connolly
Iron homeostasis is essential for plant growth and survival. Two papers now report that chloroplast Iron levels also regulate the period of the circadian clock, which might confer fitness advantage by linking iron status to daily changes in environmental conditions.
The Impact of Sleep and Circadian Disturbance on Hormones and Metabolism
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Tae Won Kim
Full Text Available The levels of several hormones fluctuate according to the light and dark cycle and are also affected by sleep, feeding, and general behavior. The regulation and metabolism of several hormones are influenced by interactions between the effects of sleep and the intrinsic circadian system; growth hormone, melatonin, cortisol, leptin, and ghrelin levels are highly correlated with sleep and circadian rhythmicity. There are also endogenous circadian mechanisms that serve to regulate glucose metabolism and similar rhythms pertaining to lipid metabolism, regulated through the actions of various clock genes. Sleep disturbance, which negatively impacts hormonal rhythms and metabolism, is also associated with obesity, insulin insensitivity, diabetes, hormonal imbalance, and appetite dysregulation. Circadian disruption, typically induced by shift work, may negatively impact health due to impaired glucose and lipid homeostasis, reversed melatonin and cortisol rhythms, and loss of clock gene rhythmicity.
Circadian rhythm: a new clue for neuropsychological dysfunction after cardiac surgery
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)
LUO Ai-lun
@@ In the recent editorial comment, Duboule1 emphasized that "animal development is, in fact, nothing but time".That a circadian timing system is apparently universal in biology is the evidence for the important physiological role that rhythmicity plays.
Circadian pancreatic enzyme pattern and relationship between secretory and motor activity in fasting humans.
Keller, Jutta; Layer, Peter
It is unknown whether nonparallel pancreatic enzyme output occurs under basal conditions in humans. We aimed to determine whether the circadian or wake-sleep cycle influences the relationship among pancreatic enzymes or between pancreatic secretory and jejunal motor activity. Using orojejunal multilumen intubation, we measured enzyme outputs and proximal jejunal motility index during consecutive daytime and nighttime periods in each of seven fasting, healthy volunteers. Enzyme outputs were correlated tightly during daytime phases of wakefulness and nighttime phases of sleep (r > 0.72, P activity was directly correlated with jejunal motility index (r > 0.50, P enzymes dominates throughout the circadian cycle. Nonparallel secretion during nocturnal phases of wakefulness may be due to merely circadian effects or to the coupling of the wake-sleep and the circadian cycle. The association between fluctuations of secretory and motor activity appears to be particularly tight during the night.
Peripheral Circadian Clocks Mediate Dietary Restriction-Dependent Changes in Lifespan and Fat Metabolism in Drosophila.
Katewa, Subhash D; Akagi, Kazutaka; Bose, Neelanjan; Rakshit, Kuntol; Camarella, Timothy; Zheng, Xiangzhong; Hall, David; Davis, Sonnet; Nelson, Christopher S; Brem, Rachel B; Ramanathan, Arvind; Sehgal, Amita; Giebultowicz, Jadwiga M; Kapahi, Pankaj
Endogenous circadian clocks orchestrate several metabolic and signaling pathways that are known to modulate lifespan, suggesting clocks as potential targets for manipulation of metabolism and lifespan. We report here that the core circadian clock genes, timeless (tim) and period (per), are required for the metabolic and lifespan responses to DR in Drosophila. Consistent with the involvement of a circadian mechanism, DR enhances the amplitude of cycling of most circadian clock genes, including tim, in peripheral tissues. Mass-spectrometry-based lipidomic analysis suggests a role of tim in cycling of specific medium chain triglycerides under DR. Furthermore, overexpression of tim in peripheral tissues improves its oscillatory amplitude and extends lifespan under ad libitum conditions. Importantly, effects of tim on lifespan appear to be mediated through enhanced fat turnover. These findings identify a critical role for specific clock genes in modulating the effects of nutrient manipulation on fat metabolism and aging. PMID:26626459
A baculovirus photolyase with DNA repair activity and circadian clock regulatory function
Biernat, M.A.; Eker, A.P.M.; Oers, van M.M.; Vlak, J.M.; Horst, van der G.T.J.; Chaves, I.
Cryptochromes and photolyases belong to the same family of flavoproteins but, despite being structurally conserved, display distinct functions. Photolyases use visible light to repair ultraviolet-induced DNA damage. Cryptochromes, however, function as blue-light receptors, circadian photoreceptors,
Circadian rhythm. Dysrhythmia in the suprachiasmatic nucleus inhibits memory processing.
Fernandez, Fabian; Lu, Derek; Ha, Phong; Costacurta, Patricia; Chavez, Renee; Heller, H Craig; Ruby, Norman F
Chronic circadian dysfunction impairs declarative memory in humans but has little effect in common rodent models of arrhythmia caused by clock gene knockouts or surgical ablation of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). An important problem overlooked in these translational models is that human dysrhythmia occurs while SCN circuitry is genetically and neurologically intact. Siberian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus) are particularly well suited for translational studies because they can be made arrhythmic by a one-time photic treatment that severely impairs spatial and recognition memory. We found that once animals are made arrhythmic, subsequent SCN ablation completely rescues memory processing. These data suggest that the inhibitory effects of a malfunctioning SCN on cognition require preservation of circuitry between the SCN and downstream targets that are lost when these connections are severed.
A Simple Complex Case: Restoration of Circadian Cortisol Activity
Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)
Ragini C Bhake
Full Text Available A 38-year-old librarian with confirmed Carney complex (PRKAR1a mutation was referred for further evaluation of ACTH-independent Cushing's syndrome. Previously, she was known to have schwannoma (excised, adenomyoepithelioma and normal annual echocardiograms. Over three years prior to current presentation, she had become aware of coarse hair on her chin and abdomen, as well as centripetal weight gain. She had noticed subtle but definite reduction in her girdle muscle strength. She had acquired some mood changes atypical of her personality, and had developed an interrupted sleep pattern. To our knowledge, this is the first published report of circadian RU486 therapy for PPNAD in a patient with Carney complex. It may have been possible to restore low levels surrounding the midnight hours using other agents, but the side-effect profile and lack of significantly elevated levels of cortisol made them less favorable options.
Complementary approaches to understanding the plant circadian clock
Akman, Ozgur E; Loewe, Laurence; Troein, Carl; 10.4204/EPTCS.19.1
Circadian clocks are oscillatory genetic networks that help organisms adapt to the 24-hour day/night cycle. The clock of the green alga Ostreococcus tauri is the simplest plant clock discovered so far. Its many advantages as an experimental system facilitate the testing of computational predictions. We present a model of the Ostreococcus clock in the stochastic process algebra Bio-PEPA and exploit its mapping to different analysis techniques, such as ordinary differential equations, stochastic simulation algorithms and model-checking. The small number of molecules reported for this system tests the limits of the continuous approximation underlying differential equations. We investigate the difference between continuous-deterministic and discrete-stochastic approaches. Stochastic simulation and model-checking allow us to formulate new hypotheses on the system behaviour, such as the presence of self-sustained oscillations in single cells under constant light conditions. We investigate how to model the timing of...
Using the principles of circadian physiology enhances shift schedule design
Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)
Connolly, J.J.; Moore-Ede, M.C.
Nuclear power plants must operate 24 h, 7 days a week. For the most part, shift schedules currently in use at nuclear power plants have been designed to meet operational needs without considering the biological clocks of the human operators. The development of schedules that also take circadian principles into account is a positive step that can be taken to improve plant safety by optimizing operator alertness. These schedules reduce the probability of human errors especially during backshifts. In addition, training programs that teach round-the-clock workers how to deal with the problems of shiftwork can help to optimize performance and alertness. These programs teach shiftworkers the underlying causes of the sleep problems associated with shiftwork and also provide coping strategies for improving sleep and dealing with the transition between shifts. When these training programs are coupled with an improved schedule, the problems associated with working round-the-clock can be significantly reduced.
Monitoring cell-autonomous circadian clock rhythms of gene expression using luciferase bioluminescence reporters.
Ramanathan, Chidambaram; Khan, Sanjoy K; Kathale, Nimish D; Xu, Haiyan; Liu, Andrew C
In mammals, many aspects of behavior and physiology such as sleep-wake cycles and liver metabolism are regulated by endogenous circadian clocks (reviewed). The circadian time-keeping system is a hierarchical multi-oscillator network, with the central clock located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) synchronizing and coordinating extra-SCN and peripheral clocks elsewhere. Individual cells are the functional units for generation and maintenance of circadian rhythms, and these oscillators of different tissue types in the organism share a remarkably similar biochemical negative feedback mechanism. However, due to interactions at the neuronal network level in the SCN and through rhythmic, systemic cues at the organismal level, circadian rhythms at the organismal level are not necessarily cell-autonomous. Compared to traditional studies of locomotor activity in vivo and SCN explants ex vivo, cell-based in vitro assays allow for discovery of cell-autonomous circadian defects. Strategically, cell-based models are more experimentally tractable for phenotypic characterization and rapid discovery of basic clock mechanisms. Because circadian rhythms are dynamic, longitudinal measurements with high temporal resolution are needed to assess clock function. In recent years, real-time bioluminescence recording using firefly luciferase as a reporter has become a common technique for studying circadian rhythms in mammals, as it allows for examination of the persistence and dynamics of molecular rhythms. To monitor cell-autonomous circadian rhythms of gene expression, luciferase reporters can be introduced into cells via transient transfection or stable transduction. Here we describe a stable transduction protocol using lentivirus-mediated gene delivery. The lentiviral vector system is superior to traditional methods such as transient transfection and germline transmission because of its efficiency and versatility: it permits efficient delivery and stable integration into the host
Circadian Clock Genes Are Essential for Normal Adult Neurogenesis, Differentiation, and Fate Determination.
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Astha Malik
Full Text Available Adult neurogenesis creates new neurons and glia from stem cells in the human brain throughout life. It is best understood in the dentate gyrus (DG of the hippocampus and the subventricular zone (SVZ. Circadian rhythms have been identified in the hippocampus, but the role of any endogenous circadian oscillator cells in hippocampal neurogenesis and their importance in learning or memory remains unclear. Any study of stem cell regulation by intrinsic circadian timing within the DG is complicated by modulation from circadian clocks elsewhere in the brain. To examine circadian oscillators in greater isolation, neurosphere cultures were prepared from the DG of two knockout mouse lines that lack a functional circadian clock and from mPer1::luc mice to identify circadian oscillations in gene expression. Circadian mPer1 gene activity rhythms were recorded in neurospheres maintained in a culture medium that induces neurogenesis but not in one that maintains the stem cell state. Although the differentiating neural stem progenitor cells of spheres were rhythmic, evidence of any mature neurons was extremely sparse. The circadian timing signal originated in undifferentiated cells within the neurosphere. This conclusion was supported by immunocytochemistry for mPER1 protein that was localized to the inner, more stem cell-like neurosphere core. To test for effects of the circadian clock on neurogenesis, media conditions were altered to induce neurospheres from BMAL1 knockout mice to differentiate. These cultures displayed unusually high differentiation into glia rather than neurons according to GFAP and NeuN expression, respectively, and very few BetaIII tubulin-positive, immature neurons were observed. The knockout neurospheres also displayed areas visibly devoid of cells and had overall higher cell death. Neurospheres from arrhythmic mice lacking two other core clock genes, Cry1 and Cry2, showed significantly reduced growth and increased astrocyte
Circadian response of annual weeds to glyphosate and glufosinate.
Martinson, Krishona B; Sothern, Robert B; Koukkari, Willard L; Durgan, Beverly R; Gunsolus, Jeffrey L
Five field experiments were conducted in 1998 and 1999 in Minnesota to examine the influence of time of day efficacy of glyphosate [N-(phosphonomethyl)glycine] and glufosinate [2-amino-4-(hydroxymethyl-phosphinyl)butanoic acid] applications on the control of annual weeds. Each experiment was designed to be a randomized complete block with four replications using plot sizes of 3 x 9 m. Glyphosate and glufosinate were applied at rates of 0.421 kg ae/ha and 0.292 kg ai/ha, respectively, with and without an additional adjuvant that consisted of 20% nonionic surfactant and 80% ammonium sulfate. All treatments were applied with water at 94 L/ha. Times of day for the application of herbicide were 06:00h, 09:00h, 12:00h, 15:00h, 18:00h, 21:00h, and 24:00h. Efficacy was evaluated 14 d after application by visual ratings. At 14 d, a circadian response to each herbicide was found, with greatest annual weed control observed with an application occurring between 09:00h and 18:00h and significantly less weed control observed with an application at 06:00h, 21:00h, or 24:00h. The addition of an adjuvant to both herbicides increased overall efficacy, but did not overcome the rhythmic time of day effect. Results of the multiple regression analysis showed that after environmental temperature, time of day was the second most important predictor of percent weed kill. Thus, circadian timing of herbicide application significantly influenced weed control with both glyphosate and glufosinate.
Melatonin attenuates photic disruption of circadian rhythms in Siberian hamsters.
Ruby, N F; Kang, T; Heller, H C
Body temperature (Tb) was recorded via a biotelemetry system from 28 adult male Siberian hamsters maintained in a light-dark (LD) cycle of 16 h light/day for several months. After Tb was recorded for 3 wk, the LD cycle was phase delayed by extending the light phase by 5 h for 1 day; animals remained on a 16:8 LD cycle for the remainder of the experiment. Hamsters were injected daily with melatonin or vehicle solution for several weeks, beginning either 2 mo after (experiment 1) or on the day of (experiment 2) the phase shift; injections occurred within 30 min of dark onset. In experiment 1, 75% of animals free ran with circadian periods >24 h, beginning on the day of the phase shift, and never reentrained to the LD cycle; no hamsters unambiguously entrained to daily injections. In contrast, 78% of animals in experiment 2 entrained to melatonin injections, and 71% of those animals subsequently reentrained to the photocycle when the injection regimen ended. No vehicle-treated animals entrained to the injection schedule. Melatonin had no effect on daily mean Tb and Tb rhythm amplitude in either experiment; however, melatonin doubled the duration of a hyperthermic response that occurred after each injection. Thus melatonin can prevent loss of entrainment induced by a phase shift of the LD cycle but cannot restore entrainment to free-running animals. Failure to reentrain in the presence of two appropriately coordinated entraining agents also suggests that a phase shift of the photocycle can diminish the sensitivity of the circadian system to both photic and nonphotic input.
Ultrasonic vocalizations in rats anticipating circadian feeding schedules.
Opiol, Hanna; Pavlovski, Ilya; Michalik, Mateusz; Mistlberger, Ralph E
Rats readily learn to anticipate a reward signaled by an external stimulus. Anticipatory behaviors evoked by conditioned stimuli include 50 kHz ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs), a proposed behavioral correlate of positive affect and activation of midbrain dopamine pathways. Rats can also anticipate a reward, such as food, provided once daily, without external cueing. Anticipation of a daily reward exhibits formal properties of a circadian rhythm. The neural circuits that regulate the timing and amplitude of these rhythms remain an open question, but evidence suggests a role for dopamine. To gain further insight into the neural and affective correlates of circadian food anticipatory rhythms, we made 2h and 24h USV recordings in rats fed 2h/day in the light period, a procedure that induces robust anticipation 2-3h before mealtime. Potential interactions between internal and external time cues in USV production were evaluated by inclusion of a 3 kHz tone 15 min before mealtime. Prior to scheduled feeding, spontaneous 50 kHz USVs were rare during the light period. During scheduled feeding, flat and frequency modulated (FM) 50kHz USVs occurred prior to and during mealtime. FM USVs were more closely related to anticipation, while flat USVs were more dependent on food access. USVs also occurred during spontaneous waking at other times of day. The tone did not evoke USVs but did modulate activity. Behavioral anticipation of a daily meal is accompanied by USVs consistent with a positive affective state and elevated dopamine transmission. PMID:25677650
Does the core circadian clock in the moss Physcomitrella patens (Bryophyta comprise a single loop?
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Hedman Harald
Full Text Available Abstract Background The endogenous circadian clock allows the organism to synchronize processes both to daily and seasonal changes. In plants, many metabolic processes such as photosynthesis, as well as photoperiodic responses, are under the control of a circadian clock. Comparative studies with the moss Physcomitrella patens provide the opportunity to study many aspects of land plant evolution. Here we present a comparative overview of clock-associated components and the circadian network in the moss P. patens. Results The moss P. patens has a set of conserved circadian core components that share genetic relationship and gene expression patterns with clock genes of vascular plants. These genes include Myb-like transcription factors PpCCA1a and PpCCA1b, pseudo-response regulators PpPRR1-4, and regulatory elements PpELF3, PpLUX and possibly PpELF4. However, the moss lacks homologs of AtTOC1, AtGI and the AtZTL-family of genes, which can be found in all vascular plants studied here. These three genes constitute essential components of two of the three integrated feed-back loops in the current model of the Arabidopsis circadian clock mechanism. Consequently, our results suggest instead a single loop circadian clock in the moss. Possibly as a result of this, temperature compensation of core clock gene expression appears to be decreased in P. patens. Conclusions This study is the first comparative overview of the circadian clock mechanism in a basal land plant, the moss P. patens. Our results indicate that the moss clock mechanism may represent an ancestral state in contrast to the more complex and partly duplicated structure of subsequent land plants. These findings may provide insights into the understanding of the evolution of circadian network topology.
Millisecond flashes of light phase delay the human circadian clock during sleep
Zeitzer, Jamie M.; Fisicaro, Ryan A.; Ruby, Norman F.; Heller, H. Craig
The human circadian timing system is most sensitive to the phase shifting effects of light during the biological nighttime, a time at which humans are most typically asleep. The overlap of sleep with peak sensitivity to the phase shifting effects of light minimizes the effectiveness of using light as a countermeasure to circadian misalignment in humans. Most current light exposure treatments for such misalignment are mostly ineffective due to poor compliance and secondary changes that cause sleep deprivation. Using a 16-day, parallel group design, we examined whether a novel sequence of light flashes delivered during sleep could evoke phase changes in the circadian system without disrupting sleep. Healthy volunteers participated in a two-week circadian stabilization protocol followed by a two-night laboratory stay. During the laboratory session, they were exposed during sleep to either darkness (n=7) or a sequence of 2-msec light flashes given every 30 seconds (n=6) from hours 2–3 after habitual bed time. Changes in circadian timing (phase), micro- and macroarchitecture of sleep were all assessed. Subjects exposed to the flash sequence during sleep exhibited a delay in the timing of their circadian salivary melatonin rhythm as compared to the control dark condition (P0.30) during the flash stimulus. Exposing sleeping individuals to 0.24 seconds of light spread over an hour shifted the timing of the circadian clock and did so without major alterations to sleep itself. While a greater number of matched subjects and more research will be necessary to ascertain whether there is an effect of these light flashes on sleep, our data suggest that this type of passive phototherapy might be developed as a useful treatment for circadian misalignment in humans. PMID:25227334
Analysis and Simulation of Circadian Multi-Oscillator Systems in a Crassulacean Acid Metabolism Plant
Bohn, Andreas
Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) is an adaptation of photosynthetic organisms to drought stress: improved water-use efficiency is achieved by an optimized temporal arrangement of photosynthetic subprocesses, which are driven by an endogenous pacemaker, i.e. a circadian clock. The present work deals with the hypothesis that the circadian rhythm of gas-exchange of entire leaves of the CAM plant Kalanchoë daigremontiana has to be understood as the collective signal of the population of cells i...
Assessment of regression methods for inference of regulatory networks involved in circadian regulation
Aderhold, A.; Husmeier, D.; Smith, V A; Millar, A. J.; Grzegorczyk, M.
We assess the accuracy of three established regression methods for reconstructing gene and protein regulatory networks in the context of circadian regulation. Data are simulated from a recently published regulatory network of the circadian clock in Arabidopsis thaliana, in which protein and gene interactions are described by a Markov jump process based on Michaelis-Menten kinetics. We closely follow recent experimental protocols, including the entrainment of seedlings to dif...
Effects of chronic administration and withdrawal of antidepressant agents on circadian activity rhythms in rats.
Wollnik, F
Experimental and clinical studies indicate that clinical depression may be associated with disturbances of circadian rhythms. To explore the interaction between circadian rhythmicity, behavioral state, and monoaminergic systems, the present study investigated the effects of chronic administration and withdrawal of the following antidepressant agents on circadian wheel-running rhythms of laboratory rats: a) moclobemide, a reversible and selective monoamine oxidase (MAO) type A inhibitor; b) Ro 19-6327, a selective MAO type B inhibitor; c) desipramine, a preferential norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor; d) clomipramine and e) fluoxetine, both serotonin reuptake inhibitors; and f) levoprotiline, an atypical antidepressant whose biochemical mechanism is still unknown. Wheel-running activity rhythms were studied in three inbred strains of laboratory rats (ACI, BH, LEW) under constant darkness (DD). Two of these inbred strains (BH and LEW) show profound abnormalities in their circadian activity rhythms, namely, a reduced overall level of activity and bimodal or multimodal activity patterns. Chronic treatment with moclobemide and desipramine consistently increased the overall level, as well as the circadian amplitude, of the activity rhythm. Furthermore, the abnormal activity pattern of the LEW strain was changed into a unimodal activity pattern like that of other laboratory rats. The free-running period tau was slightly shortened by moclobemide and dramatically shortened by desipramine. Effects of moclobemide and desipramine treatment on overall activity level and duration were reversed shortly after termination of treatment, whereas long aftereffects were observed for the free-running period. All other substances tested had no systematic effects on the activity rhythms of any of the strains. The fact that moclobemide and desipramine altered the period, amplitude, and pattern of circadian activity rhythms is consistent with the hypothesis that monoaminergic transmitters
Use of melatonin in circadian rhythm disorders and following phase shifts
Skene, DJ; Deacon, S; Arendt, J
Following abrupt phase shifts (real or simulated time zone changes, night shift work) there is desynchronisation between the internal circadian rhythms (including melatonin) and the external environment with consequent disturbances in sleep, mood and performance. In humans the pineal hormone melatonin has phase-shifting and resynchronising properties with regard to a number of circadian rhythms. Suitably timed melatonin adrninstration hastened adaptation to phase shift and significantly impro...
Oscillating perceptions: the ups and downs of the CLOCK protein in the mouse circadian system
Indian Academy of Sciences (India)
Jason P. Debruyne
A functional mouse CLOCK protein has long been thought to be essential for mammalian circadian clockwork function, based mainly on studies of mice bearing a dominant negative, antimorphic mutation in the Clock gene. However, new discoveries using recently developed Clock-null mutant mice have shaken up this view. In this review, I discuss how this recent work impacts and alters the previous view of the role of CLOCK in the mouse circadian clockwork.
Millisecond flashes of light phase delay the human circadian clock during sleep.
Zeitzer, Jamie M; Fisicaro, Ryan A; Ruby, Norman F; Heller, H Craig
The human circadian timing system is most sensitive to the phase-shifting effects of light during the biological nighttime, a time at which humans are most typically asleep. The overlap of sleep with peak sensitivity to the phase-shifting effects of light minimizes the effectiveness of using light as a countermeasure to circadian misalignment in humans. Most current light exposure treatments for such misalignment are mostly ineffective due to poor compliance and secondary changes that cause sleep deprivation. Using a 16-day, parallel group design, we examined whether a novel sequence of light flashes delivered during sleep could evoke phase changes in the circadian system without disrupting sleep. Healthy volunteers participated in a 2-week circadian stabilization protocol followed by a 2-night laboratory stay. During the laboratory session, they were exposed during sleep to either darkness (n = 7) or a sequence of 2-msec light flashes given every 30 sec (n = 6) from hours 2 to 3 after habitual bedtime. Changes in circadian timing (phase) and micro- and macroarchitecture of sleep were assessed. Subjects exposed to the flash sequence during sleep exhibited a delay in the timing of their circadian salivary melatonin rhythm compared with the control dark condition (p 0.30) during the flash stimulus. Exposing sleeping individuals to 0.24 sec of light spread over an hour shifted the timing of the circadian clock and did so without major alterations to sleep itself. While a greater number of matched subjects and more research will be necessary to ascertain whether these light flashes affect sleep, our data suggest that this type of passive phototherapy might be developed as a useful treatment for circadian misalignment in humans. PMID:25227334
A wheel of time: the circadian clock, nuclear receptors, and physiology
Yang, Xiaoyong
It is a long-standing view that the circadian clock functions to proactively align internal physiology with the 24-h rotation of the earth. Recent studies, including one by Schmutz and colleagues (pp. 345–357) in the February 15, 2010, issue of Genes & Development, delineate strikingly complex connections between molecular clocks and nuclear receptor signaling pathways, implying the existence of a large-scale circadian regulatory network coordinating a diverse array of physiological processes...
Prospective evaluation of the Circadian Efficacy of (Day)Light in Rooms
Pechacek, C.; Andersen, Marilyne; Lockley, S. W.
Recent studies have attempted to link environmental cues, such as lighting, with human performance and health, and initial findings seem to indicate a positive correlation between the two. Light is the major environmental time cue that resets the human circadian pacemaker, an endogenous clock in the hypothalamus that controls the timing of many 24-hour rhythms in physiology and behavior. Insufficient or inappropriate light exposure can disrupt normal circadian rhythms which may result in adve...
Interaction of circadian clock proteins PER2 and CRY with BMAL1 and CLOCK
Bordon Alain; Tallone Tiziano; Langmesser Sonja; Rusconi Sandro; Albrecht Urs
Abstract Background Circadian oscillation of clock-controlled gene expression is mainly regulated at the transcriptional level. Heterodimers of CLOCK and BMAL1 act as activators of target gene transcription; however, interactions of PER and CRY proteins with the heterodimer abolish its transcriptional activation capacity. PER and CRY are therefore referred to as negative regulators of the circadian clock. To further elucidate the mechanism how positive and negative components of the clock int...
Disruption of circadian rhythm increases the risk of cancer, metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease
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Vignesh Shanmugam
Full Text Available Incidents of non-communicable diseases (NCD like cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes, and chronic respiratory disease have increased dramatically and are currently the leading causes of death worldwide. Their rising incidents coincide with the dramatic changes in industrialization and development of societies over the past few hundred years. Therefore, current lifestyle practices should be further explored to uncover novel risk factors for certain cancers (i.e. colon, prostate, and breast cancer, metabolic syndrome (i.e. diabetes and obesity, and cardiovascular disease (i.e. coronary artery disease. This review discusses how a disruption of the "biological clock" or circadian rhythms could be involved in the development of these diseases as circadian rhythms control multiple physiological processes such as wake/sleep cycles, hormonal levels, body temperature, metabolism, and immune system.Several environmental factors that disrupt circadian rhythms can be identified including exposure to artificial light and electromagnetic (EM waves, unbalanced diet and night shift work. The mechanisms of how these "chronodisruptors" are associated with NCDs will be discussed. Furthermore, the involvement of genetic factors in the disturbance of circadian rhythms and predisposition to NCDs will be highlighted.Overall there is strong evidence from animal models and epidemiological studies underlining that circadian disruption is a significant player in several diseases particularly the multifactorial diseases that pose a significant public health challenge in contemporary society. A circadian disruption-based model of cancer, metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease etiology can be proposed. But, to fully understand the complex interactions of the different components in the network of disease development due to disruption of circadian rhythms, more investigations are needed to unravel the causal relationship between modern lifestyle
Efficacy of a single sequence of intermittent bright light pulses for delaying circadian phase in humans
Gronfier, Claude; Wright, Kenneth P.; Kronauer, Richard E.; Jewett, Megan E.; Czeisler, Charles A.
It has been shown in animal studies that exposure to brief pulses of bright light can phase shift the circadian pacemaker, and that the resetting action of light is most efficient during the first minutes of light exposure. In humans, multiple consecutive days of exposure to brief bright light pulses have been shown to phase shift the circadian pacemaker. The aim of the present study was to determine if a single sequence of brief bright light pulses administered during the early biological ni...
Circadian rhythms of cyanobacteria: monitoring the biological clocks of individual colonies by bioluminescence.
Kondo, T.; Ishiura, M
Reproducible circadian rhythms of bioluminescence from individual colonies of cyanobacteria (Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7942) has been observed. Phenotypic monitoring of colonies on agar plates will enable us to genetically analyze the molecular mechanism of the circadian clock of cyanobacteria by screening for clock mutants. By the introduction of a bacterial luciferase gene, we previously developed a transformed cyanobacterial strain (AMC149) that expresses luciferase as a bioluminescent ...
Sex difference in the near-24-hour intrinsic period of the human circadian timing system
Duffy, Jeanne F.; Cain, Sean W.; Chang, Anne-Marie; Phillips, Andrew J. K.; Münch, Mirjam Y.; Gronfier, Claude; Wyatt, James K.; Dijk, Derk-Jan; Wright, Kenneth P.; Czeisler, Charles A.
The circadian rhythms of melatonin and body temperature are set to an earlier hour in women than in men, even when the women and men maintain nearly identical and consistent bedtimes and wake times. Moreover, women tend to wake up earlier than men and exhibit a greater preference for morning activities than men. Although the neurobiological mechanism underlying this sex difference in circadian alignment is unknown, multiple studies in nonhuman animals have demonstrated a sex difference in cir...
Evidences of Polymorphism Associated with Circadian System and Risk of Pathologies: A Review of the Literature
Valenzuela, F. J.; Vera, J.; Venegas, C.; S Muñoz; Oyarce, S.; K. Muñoz; Lagunas, C.
The circadian system is a supraphysiological system that modulates different biological functions such as metabolism, sleep-wake, cellular proliferation, and body temperature. Different chronodisruptors have been identified, such as shift work, feeding time, long days, and stress. The environmental changes and our modern lifestyle can alter the circadian system and increase the risk of developing pathologies such as cancer, preeclampsia, diabetes, and mood disorder. This system is organized b...
The Circadian Clock Is a Key Driver of Steroid Hormone Production in Drosophila.
Di Cara, Francesca; King-Jones, Kirst
Biological clocks allow organisms to anticipate daily environmental changes such as temperature fluctuations, abundance of daylight, and nutrient availability. Many circadian-controlled physiological states are coordinated by the release of systemically acting hormones, including steroids and insulin [1-7]. Thus, hormones relay circadian outputs to target tissues, and disrupting these endocrine rhythms impairs human health by affecting sleep patterns, energy homeostasis, and immune functions [8-10]. It is largely unclear, however, whether circadian circuits control hormone levels indirectly via central timekeeping neurons or whether peripheral endocrine clocks can modulate hormone synthesis directly. We show here that perturbing the circadian clock, specifically in the major steroid hormone-producing gland of Drosophila, the prothoracic gland (PG), unexpectedly blocks larval development due to an inability to produce sufficient steroids. This is surprising, because classic circadian null mutants are viable and result in arrhythmic adults [4, 11-14]. We found that Timeless and Period, both core components of the insect clock [15], are required for transcriptional upregulation of steroid hormone-producing enzymes. Timeless couples the circadian machinery directly to the two canonical pathways that regulate steroid synthesis in insects, insulin and PTTH signaling [16], respectively. Activating insulin signaling directly modulates Timeless function, suggesting that the local clock in the PG is normally synced with systemic insulin cues. Because both PTTH and systemic insulin signaling are themselves under circadian control, we conclude that de-synchronization of a local endocrine clock with external circadian cues is the primary cause for steroid production to fail. PMID:27546572
Pregnancy-induced changes in ultradian rhythms persist in circadian arrhythmic Siberian hamsters
Wang, Z. Yan; Cable, Erin J.; Zucker, Irving; Prendergast, Brian J.
The impact of pregnancy and lactation on ultradian rhythms (URs) and circadian rhythms (CRs) of locomotor activity was assessed in circadian rhythmic and arrhythmic Siberian hamsters maintained in a long-day photoperiod (16 h light/day). Progressive decrements in CR robustness and amplitude over the course of gestation were accompanied by enhanced URs. Dark-phase UR period and amplitude increased during early gestation and complexity and robustness increased during late gestation. The persist...

subset: commoncrawl