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Updated: May 24, 2026

Circadian Entrainment of Drosophila Melanogaster
Published on: June 3, 2020
Circadian desynchronization
Adrián E Granada1, Trinitat Cambras, Antoni Díez-Noguera
1Institute for Theoretical Biology, Humboldt University Berlin, Invalidenstraße 43, 10115 Berlin, Germany.
Abstract:
The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) coordinates via multiple outputs physiological and behavioural circadian rhythms. The SCN is composed of a heterogeneous network of coupled oscillators that entrain to the daily light-dark cycles. Outside the physiological entrainment range, rich locomotor patterns of desynchronized rhythms are observed. Previous studies interpreted these results as the output of different SCN neural subpopulations. We find, however, that even a single periodically driven oscillator can induce such complex desynchronized locomotor patterns. Using signal analysis, we show how the observed patterns can be consistently clustered into two generic oscillatory interaction groups: modulation and superposition. In seven of 17 rats undergoing forced desynchronization, we find a theoretically predicted third spectral component. Combining signal analysis with the theory of coupled oscillators, we provide a framework for the study of circadian desynchronization.
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