Nature neuroscience

Light-sensitive pigment in the cells that send signals from the eye to the brain's timing center

Circadian Biology Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗

Updated

Abstract

Most retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) that project to the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) express the photopigment melanopsin.

  • Circadian rhythms in eukaryotic organisms operate on a near-24-hour cycle, influenced primarily by light.
  • The retinohypothalamic tract (RHT) transmits light information to the SCN, which is critical for generating these rhythms.
  • Identifying the specific retinal photopigment responsible for circadian entrainment has been a challenge.
  • Melanopsin expression in RGCs may play a key role in mediating the effects of light on circadian rhythms.

Simplified

Full Text

Full text is available at the source.
View Full Text ↗

Related papers

Aug '06
Roles of light-sensitive nerve cells carrying PACAP in body clock timing
cited by 86 papers
research support, non-u.s. gov't
Mar '08
Two types of light-sensitive eye cells connect differently to the brain's internal clock and pupil control centers
cited by 251 papers
comparative study
Dec '02
Melanopsin is needed for normal changes in the body’s daily clock in response to light
cited by 723 papers
research support, u.s. gov't, p.h.s.
Sep '03
The role of melanopsin in the body’s internal clock
cited by 16 papers
research support, non-u.s. gov't
Mar '04
Levels of the circadian light-sensing pigment melanopsin in mouse eye support cells
cited by 46 papers
research support, non-u.s. gov't
Feb '02
How light-sensing eye cells control the body’s internal clock
cited by 2,905 papers
research support, u.s. gov't, p.h.s.
Aug '04
Melanopsin: Understanding the light-sensitive pigment that controls our body clock
top 30% journal
cited by 39 papers
research support, u.s. gov't, p.h.s.
Jun '09
Cell types in the pregeniculate area and eye and neuropeptide Y inputs to the body clock region in Cebus monkeys
top 30% journal
cited by 11 papers
comparative study

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

Recent issues from the circadian biology brief

issue #50
Afternoon workouts beat morning sessions for fat loss — and your genes may explain why
6 days ago7 studies
issue #49
Your body clock controls which drugs work — and a protein called gp78 is why
1 week ago7 studies
issue #48
A blood test can now estimate your internal clock time using just 60 proteins
2 weeks ago7 studies
issue #47
Your body clock controls liver fibrosis — and scientists just found the on/off switch
3 weeks ago7 studies
issue #46
Night shift workers' metabolomes fall out of sync — and glucose pays the price
4 weeks ago7 studies
issue #45
80% of FDA-approved drug targets show clock-dependent activity — timing may be everything
5 weeks ago7 studies
issue #44
Sleeping late on weekends is independently linked to higher cardiovascular disease risk
6 weeks ago7 studies
issue #43
A smartphone app cut mood episode recurrence 3.4x in people with depression and bipolar disorder
7 weeks ago7 studies
issue #42
Morning cancer immunotherapy linked to 49% vs 40% disease control rate in 969 patients
8 weeks ago7 studies
issue #41
Timing cancer treatment before 3pm nearly doubled survival in lung cancer patients
9 weeks ago7 studies
explore the archive
See more issues from the circadian biology brief