Biological Rhythms Flashcards
What is a period?
The time interval between one occurrence and the next of a specific point in the cycle
The length of time required to complete one cycle
What is a phase?
A defined point in a cycle
What is a diurnal rhythm?
What is a circadian rhythm?
An exogenous 24hr rhythm that responds to changes in in the environment. Is a passive response.
An endogenous 24hr rhythm generated by an internal mechanism
What are the properties of circadian rhythms?
They are driven by an internal mechanism and persist in constant conditions due to being caused by self sustaining oscillations
The endogenous period of a biological clock (τ) does not exactly equal the environmental cycle to which it is tuned
Can be synchronised to the environmental cycle upon exposure to specific environmental time cues
What is a Tau (τ)?
A free running period
Where is the SCN found?
Is part of the hypothalamus located just above where the optic chiasm crosses
What is a phase delay?
Shift later in time
What is a phase advance?
Shift earlier in time
What effect would light administered in the evening have on a circadian rhythm?
It would cause a phase delay
What effect would a lot of light in late night/early have on a circadian rhythm?
It would cause a phase advance
When do you need to take melatonin to get a phase advance?
Before the natural rise of melatonin
When do you need to take melatonin to get a phase delay?
When natural melatonin goes down
What neurotransmitter does the retinohypothalamic tract use to transfer light timing?
Glutamate
Is SCN activity the same between nocturnal and diurnal animals?
Yes, day and night activity is different in other regions of the brain but not in the SCN
How many period genes are there in mammals?
3, Per1, Per2 and Per3
What happens if you knock out period1?
What happens if you knock out period2?
What happens if you knock out both?
Mice with Targeted Disruption of mPer1 or mPer2 circadian behaviour is disrupted but not removed
mPer1/mPer2 double-mutant mice were immediately arrhythmic
Who did the Per gene KO study?
Bae et al. 2001
What are the regulators that make up the negative limb of the clock genes?
Cry and Per
What are the regulators involved in the positive limb of the clock genes?
Clock and Bmal1
Which is the most critical clock gene?
Bmal1, if this is knocked out then you loose all circadian rhythmicity
What is the main entrainment signal for mammals?
Light
Is slow wave activity higher at the beginning or end of sleep?
Is spindle activity higher at the beginning or end of sleep?
Is REM sleep higher at the beginning or end of sleep?
Beginning
End
End
What symptoms often manifest as a result of damage to the basal ganglia?
Movement problems/ disorders
What is the purpose of the blood brain barrier
Protects the CNS from potentially toxic chemicals, derived from e.g. diet, infection trauma
Maintains a highly controlled extracellular environment for neuronal function e.g. ion concentration
How do you calculate daily phase shift (Deltaφ)?
Deltaφ = τ - T
Where T = entraining cycle e.g. 24 hour L/D cycle, and τ = free running period
Briefly describe three studies that provide evidence for the SCN
Steven and Zucher (1972) - ablation of the SCN, found it abolishes circadian timing of behaviour showing SCN is related to circadian rhythms
Ralph et al. (1991) - transplantation studies, lesion the SCN in host, transplanted foetal SCN tissue into 3rd ventricle of host and assessed period, found this worked to restore rhythmicity
Welsh et al. 1995, rhythmicity in SCN slice in vitro, TTX inhibits sodium channels, even when SCN is prevented from outputting signal it continued to ‘tick’ and rhythm returns once inhibitor is removed
What is the name of the pathway that directly connects the eye to the SCN?
Retinohypothalamic tract
What is the effect of glutamate on the SCN?
Ding et al. 1994
Glutamate early in the day = phase delay
Late in the day = advance
What pathway relays non-photic info to the SCN?
The GHT (geniculohypothalamic tract) that from the IGN (intergenticulate nucleus) and RN (raphe nuclei) utilises NPY and GABA as mediators
Who isolated the mammalian homologue of period?
Tei et al. (1997)
Who performed period gene KO studies?
Bae et al. 2001
What is the suspected role of Per3?
Linking circadian rhythmicity to sleep homeostasis
Who discovered the function of the cryptochrome genes?
What did they do?
What did they find?
Van der Horst et al. (1999)
Knocked out the cryptochrome genes
Found knocking out one affects the period similar to knocking out Per. KO of both Cry1 and Cry2 loses circadian rhythmicity
Who performed experiments to identify the positive regulators of the circadian clock?
How did they do this?
What did they find?
Takahashi et al.
Mutagenesis experiments in mice
Found one with a long period