The circadian clock in adult neural stem cell maintenance

Neural stem cells persist in the adult central nervous system as a continuing source of astrocytes, oligodendrocytes and neurons. Various signalling pathways and transcription factors actively maintain this population by regulating cell cycle entry and exit. Similarly, the circadian clock is interconnected with the cell cycle and actively maintains stem cell populations in various tissues. Here, we discuss emerging evidence for an important role of the circadian clock in neural stem cell maintenance. We propose that the NAD⁺-dependent deacetylase SIRT1 exerts control over the circadian clock in adult neural stem cell function to limit exhaustion of their population. Conversely, disruption of the circadian clock may compromise neural stem cell quiescence resulting in a premature decline of the neural stem cell population. As such, energy metabolism and the circadian clock converge in adult neural stem cell maintenance.