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Updated: Jul 13, 2026

Parallel Measurement of Circadian Clock Gene Expression and Hormone Secretion in Human Primary Cell Cultures
Published on: November 11, 2016
Orchestration of gene expression and physiology by the circadian clock
1Department of Medicine, Division of Biochemistry, University of Fribourg, 1700 Fribourg, Switzerland. urs.albrecht@unifr.ch
Abstract:
In mammals, the master circadian clock that drives many biochemical, physiological and behavioral rhythms is located in the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN) of the hypothalamus. Generation and maintenance of circadian rhythms rely on complex interlaced feedback loops based on transcriptional and posttranscriptional events involving clock genes and kinases. This clock serves the purpose to organize an organism's biochemistry on a 24 h time scale thereby avoiding interference between biochemical pathways and optimizing performance. Synchronization to environmental 24 h oscillations tunes physiological processes optimally with nature. In this review, I briefly describe the principle of the clock mechanism, its synchronization to the environment and consequences on health when the circadian clock is disrupted.
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