Dissociating the Effects of Light at Night from Circadian Misalignment in a Neurodevelopmental Disorder Mouse Model Using Ultradian Light-Dark Cycles.

Exposure to an ultradian lighting cycle (T7) did not lead to increased grooming behavior or reduced social interaction in mice with neurodevelopmental disorders.

• Nighttime light exposure is associated with increased grooming and reduced social interactions in a knockout mouse model of neurodevelopmental disorders.
• Circadian rhythms in activity and hormone levels are maintained under the T7 lighting cycle despite exposure to light during the usual night phase.
• Mice under the T7 cycle displayed increased depressive-like behaviors and reduced performance on a cognitive task.
• The T7 cycle lengthened the circadian period and weakened rhythm amplitude without abolishing rhythmicity in either wild-type or knockout mice.
• Unlike dim light at night, neither the T7 cycle nor constant darkness increased cFos expression in the basolateral amygdala of either genotype.

AI simplified