Light can reset body clocks outside the brain's main clock to better align the body's daily rhythms with the environment

New experiments indicate that resetting of the circadian system may occur in a more federated and tissue-specific manner.

• Cellular circadian clocks regulate 24-hour rhythms in behavior and physiology in mammals.
• Complex environments present multiple conflicting time signals that require flexible adaptation mechanisms for endogenous rhythms.
• Traditionally, circadian entrainment has been viewed as a hierarchical process centered on a master pacemaker in the hypothalamus.
• Findings suggest that circadian timekeeping may be more resilient to disruptions and adaptable to changes in the environment.

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