USIAS Public Lecture: The Man Who Had an Upside-Down Circadian Clock
The Man Who Had an Upside-Down Circadian Clock
By William Schwartz
Professor of Neurology and Integrative Biology
University of Texas at Austin
A patient was suffering from a debilitating sleep disorder and wanted to know if it was a problem with an “upside-down circadian clock.” How can we answer this question, and how can we help this person?
The circadian clock is an internal timekeeping mechanism that governs daily rhythms ranging from enzymatic activity to sleep-wake behaviour. The hypothalamus is the site of the "master" circadian pacemaker of mammals, orchestrating the clocks of individual cells, tissues, and organs throughout the body. At the core of this system is a set of “clock genes” coding for proteins that rhythmically inhibit their own expression.
In this lecture, Professor Schwartz will show how our knowledge of circadian timekeeping at the molecular and cellular levels can be used to arrive at a diagnosis and treatment plan for an “upside-down” circadian clock. Translating our knowledge of basic circadian biology from “bench to bedside” as will be discussed using this case, will have profound benefits for individuals and society.
