Artificial light at night accelerates aging processes in pre-pubertal female rats

Area of Science:

• Chronobiology
• Physiology
• Aging Research

Background:

• Urbanization introduces factors like artificial light at night (ALAN) that disrupt circadian rhythms, potentially leading to obesity, metabolic disorders, and physiological changes.
• ALAN exposure impacts the circadian clock, stress, and free radical physiology, prompting investigation into its effects on aging rates.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the hypothesis that night exposure to artificial light accelerates aging.
• To examine the physiological and molecular effects of ALAN exposure on pre-pubertal female rats.

Main Methods:

• Exposed pre-pubertal female rats to 15 days of artificial light at night (ALAN).
• Measured body weight, plasma biomarkers of aging (nitric oxide, malondialdehyde, protein carbonyls, plasma membrane redox system), and tissue-specific gene expression (TNFα, LC3β, NSE, SIRT1).

Main Results:

• ALAN exposure significantly increased body weight in rats.
• Biomarkers of aging, including nitric oxide, malondialdehyde, and protein carbonyls, were significantly elevated in ALAN-exposed rats.
• Tissue-specific gene expression related to aging, metabolism, and autophagy showed alterations following ALAN exposure.

Conclusions:

• Nighttime artificial light exposure can induce accelerated aging in young animals by affecting redox biology.
• Altered circadian rhythms due to ALAN negatively impact young rats' physiology and molecular pathways.
• Findings suggest potential relevance for human adolescents exposed to ALAN due to modern lifestyles.