Morning and evening circadian oscillations in the suprachiasmatic nucleus in vitro

Daily biological rhythms are governed by an innate timekeeping mechanism, or 'circadian clock'. In mammals, a clock in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) comprises multiple autonomous single-cell oscillators, but it is unclear how SCN cells interact to form a tissue with coherent metabolic...

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Published inNature neuroscience Vol. 3; no. 4; pp. 372 - 376
Main Authors Schwartz, William J, Jagota, Anita, de la Iglesia, Horacio O
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States Nature Publishing Group 01.04.2000
Subjects
Animals
Circadian rhythm
Circadian Rhythm - physiology
Circadian rhythms
Cricetinae
Electrophysiology
Gene expression
Lighting
Male
Mesocricetus
Mesocricetus auratus
Organ Culture Techniques
Physiological aspects
Suprachiasmatic nucleus
Suprachiasmatic Nucleus - physiology
United States
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Summary:Daily biological rhythms are governed by an innate timekeeping mechanism, or 'circadian clock'. In mammals, a clock in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) comprises multiple autonomous single-cell oscillators, but it is unclear how SCN cells interact to form a tissue with coherent metabolic and electrical rhythms that might account for circadian animal behaviors. Here we demonstrate that the circadian rhythm of SCN electrophysiological activity, recorded as a single daytime peak in hamster hypothalamic coronal slices, shows two distinct peaks when slices are cut in the horizontal plane. Substantiating an idea initially derived from behavioral observations, the properties of these two peaks indicate functional organization of SCN tissue as a clock with two oscillating components.
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ISSN:1097-6256
1546-1726
DOI:10.1038/73943