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Related Experiment Videos

Circadian clock resetting in the mouse changes with age.

Stephany M Biello1

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland. sbiello@psy.gla.ac.uk

Age (Dordrecht, Netherlands)
|June 27, 2009
PubMed
Summary

Aging disrupts sleep patterns due to changes in the brain

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Circadian Rhythms and Gene Regulation02:19

Circadian 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,...

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Aging clocks: disrupted circadian rhythms.

Aging·2018

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Chronobiology
  • Gerontology

Background:

  • Sleep disruption is a common consequence of aging, diminishing quality of life.
  • Age-related sleep disorders involve increased wakefulness and reduced deep sleep, linked to weakened circadian regulation.
  • The suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN), responsible for circadian rhythms, show age-related alterations in structure and function.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate age-related changes in the responsiveness of the circadian clock within the SCN.
  • To determine how specific neurochemicals, mimicking light and non-photic stimuli, affect the SCN clock in aged mice.
  • To identify potential targets for interventions to improve sleep and circadian timing in older individuals.

Main Methods:

  • Tested the in vitro response of the SCN circadian clock to various neurochemicals in young and aged mice.
  • Administered stimuli including glutamate, NMDA, GRP, histamine, NPY, serotonin, and GABA.
  • Compared the resetting capacity of the SCN clock between young (4 months) and old (15 months) mice.

Main Results:

  • Older mice exhibited deficits in the SCN clock's response to certain neurochemicals but not others.
  • The responsiveness of the circadian clock to specific stimuli was attenuated with age.
  • These findings suggest that age-related changes in circadian regulation are partly mediated at the SCN level.

Conclusions:

  • Age-related sleep and circadian timing disruptions may stem from altered SCN responsiveness to specific stimuli.
  • Not all pathways regulating the circadian clock lose effectiveness with age.
  • Targeting intact stimulus pathways could potentially compensate for age-related deficits in clock function and improve sleep quality in aging populations.

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