A daily palatable meal without food deprivation entrains the suprachiasmatic nucleus of rats

Dec 6, 2005The European journal of neuroscience

A tasty daily meal sets the brain’s main body clock in rats without needing hunger

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Abstract

A daily palatable meal can entrain the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) in rats over 6 weeks.

  • Rats showed altered locomotor activity patterns that aligned with the timing of the palatable meal.
  • The peak expression of c-Fos in the SCN occurred at the time of the palatable meal.
  • PER-1 protein expression peaked during the onset of subjective night, correlating with behavioral changes.
  • Increased expression of c-Fos and PER-1 was also observed in the paraventricular thalamic nucleus (PVT) at meal time.
  • The intergeniculate leaflet did not show increased expression, indicating it may not be involved in the meal-related entrainment to the SCN.

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