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Updated: Jul 25, 2026

Parallel Measurement of Circadian Clock Gene Expression and Hormone Secretion in Human Primary Cell Cultures
Published on: November 11, 2016
Role of the M1 receptor in regulating circadian rhythms
M U Gillette1, G F Buchanan, L Artinian
1Department of Cell & Structural Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 61801, USA. mgillett@uiuc.edu
Abstract:
Cholinergic stimuli are potent regulators of the circadian clock in the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). Using a brain slice model, we have found that the SCN clock is subject to muscarinic regulation, a sensitivity expressed only during the night of the clock's 24-h cycle. Pharmacological and signal transduction characteristics are compatible with a response mediated by an M1-like receptor. Molecular manipulation of muscarinic receptors will provide important insights as to the receptor subtype(s) regulating circadian rhythms.
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