Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 26, 2026
22:27
Hi-C: A Method to Study the Three-dimensional Architecture of Genomes.
Published on: May 7, 2010
Keeping time with the human genome
J D Clayton1, C P Kyriacou, S M Reppert
1Department of Genetics, University of Leicester, UK.
Nature
|March 10, 2001
Summary
Researchers identified new candidate genes within the human genome that regulate the mammalian circadian clock. This discovery advances understanding of sleep and neuropsychiatric disorders and may lead to new therapies.
Area of Science:
- Genetics
- Molecular Biology
- Chronobiology
Background:
- The molecular control of the mammalian circadian clock is understood through 'clock gene' families.
- Further research is needed to identify additional genes involved in circadian rhythm regulation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the human genome for novel candidate genes related to the circadian clock.
- To expand the understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying circadian rhythms.
- To explore the genetic basis of sleep and neuropsychiatric disorders.
Main Methods:
- Human genome analysis to identify potential circadian clock-related genes.
- Characterization of newly identified candidate genes.
Main Results:
- Identification of new candidate genes that may expand the known 'clock gene' families.
- These genes are potential regulators of the molecular workings of the circadian clock.
Conclusions:
- The identified genes contribute to our understanding of circadian clock mechanisms.
- This knowledge may facilitate the development of therapies for jet lag, sleep disorders, and neuropsychiatric conditions.
- Further research will aid in identifying output genes controlling circadian behaviors.
Related Concept Videos
00:58Genomic DNA in Eukaryotes
Eukaryotes have large genomes compared to prokaryotes. To fit their genomes into a cell, eukaryotic DNA is packaged extraordinarily tightly inside the nucleus. To achieve this, DNA is tightly wound around proteins called histones, which are packaged into nucleosomes that are joined by linker DNA and coil into chromatin fibers. Additional fibrous proteins further compact the chromatin, which is recognizable as chromosomes during certain phases of cell division.
02:02Genomics
Genomics is the science of genomes: it is the study of all the genetic material of an organism. In humans, the genome consists of information carried in 23 pairs of chromosomes in the nucleus, as well as mitochondrial DNA. In genomics, both coding and non-coding DNA is sequenced and analyzed. Genomics allows a better understanding of all living things, their evolution, and their diversity. It has a myriad of uses: for example, to build phylogenetic trees, to improve productivity and...
02:19Circadian Rhythms and Gene Regulation
The biological clock is involved in many aspects of regulating complex physiology in all animals. It was in 1935 when German zoologists, Hans Kalmus and Erwin Bünning, discovered the existence of circadian rhythm in Drosophila melanogaster. However, the internal molecular mechanisms behind the circadian clock remained a mystery until 1984, when Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash, and Michael W. Young discovered the expression of the Per gene oscillating over a 24-hour cycle. In subsequent years,...
03:00Next-generation Sequencing
The first human genome sequencing project cost $2.7 billion and was declared complete in 2003, after 15 years of international cooperation and collaboration between several research teams and funding agencies. Today, with the advent of next-generation sequencing technologies, the cost and time of sequencing a human genome have dropped over 100 fold.
Next-Generation Sequencing Methods
Although all next-generation methods use different technologies, they all share a set of standard features.
Next-Generation Sequencing Methods
Although all next-generation methods use different technologies, they all share a set of standard features.
01:29Replication in Eukaryotes
In eukaryotic cells, DNA replication is highly conserved and tightly regulated. Multiple linear chromosomes must be duplicated with high fidelity before cell division, so there are many proteins that fulfill specialized roles in the replication process. Replication occurs in three phases: initiation, elongation, and termination, and ends with two complete sets of chromosomes in the nucleus.
Many Proteins Orchestrate Replication at the Origin
Eukaryotic replication follows many of the same...
Many Proteins Orchestrate Replication at the Origin
Eukaryotic replication follows many of the same...
02:19Circadian Rhythms and Gene Regulation
The biological clock is involved in many aspects of regulating complex physiology in all animals. It was in 1935 when German zoologists, Hans Kalmus and Erwin Bünning, discovered the existence of circadian rhythm in Drosophila melanogaster. However, the internal molecular mechanisms behind the circadian clock remained a mystery until 1984, when Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash, and Michael W. Young discovered the expression of the Per gene oscillating over a 24-hour cycle. In subsequent years,...