Not all gut cellular circadian oscillators are food entrainable

May 26, 2026Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

Some gut cells' daily rhythms are not controlled by food timing

AI simplified

Abstract

Intestinal cell types exhibit unique circadian rhythms, with all major cell types showing self-sustained oscillators.

  • Five major cell types in the intestine were examined for their circadian oscillators: enteric neurons, enteric glial cells, interstitial cells of Cajal, smooth muscle cells, and muscularis macrophages.
  • All tested cell types displayed robust, self-sustained circadian bioluminescence rhythms, indicating they each contain cell-autonomous circadian oscillators.
  • Circadian oscillators in enteric neurons, enteric glial cells, smooth muscle cells, and muscularis macrophages synchronized with feeding-fasting cycles.
  • Interstitial cells of Cajal did not align their circadian rhythms with food intake, suggesting they have distinct entrainment properties.
  • Feeding during inactive periods led to varied phase shifts in circadian rhythms among different intestinal cell types, potentially causing misalignment in gut circadian regulation.

AI simplified

Full Text

Full text is available at the source.

what lands in your inbox each week:

  • 📚7 fresh studies
  • 📝plain-language summaries
  • direct links to original studies
  • 🏅top journal indicators
  • 📅weekly delivery
  • 🧘‍♂️always free