Mice Genetically Deficient in Vasopressin V1a and V1b Receptors Are Resistant to Jet Lag

Abstract

Jet-lag symptoms arise from temporal misalignment between the internal circadian clock and external solar time. We found that circadian rhythms of behavior (locomotor activity), clock gene expression, and body temperature immediately reentrained to phase-shifted light-dark cycles in mice lacking vasopressin receptors V1a and V1b (V1a(-/-)V1b(-/-)). Nevertheless, the behavior of V1a(-/-)V1b(-/-) mice was still coupled to the internal clock, which oscillated normally under standard conditions. Experiments with suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) slices in culture suggested that interneuronal communication mediated by V1a and V1b confers on the SCN an intrinsic resistance to external perturbation. Pharmacological blockade of V1a and V1b in the SCN of wild-type mice resulted in accelerated recovery from jet lag, which highlights the potential of vasopressin signaling as a therapeutic target for management of circadian rhythm misalignment, such as jet lag and shift work.

Spatiotemporal Analysis of Localized Circadian Arrhythmias in Plant Roots

“…The most common conventional example of singularity can be found in "jet lag," which can pose a significant problem for human health (Yamaguchi et al, 2013). Some studies have revealed that desynchronization of the cellular circadian clocks in the mammalian brain lead to disruption of normal organ function (Ukai et al, 2007).…”

Optogenetic perturbation and bioluminescence imaging to analyze cell-to-cell transfer of oscillatory information

“…The frequency sensing of external inputs was also observed in circadian clocks; the phase model has been tested extensively at the single-cell resolution to the in vivo levels (Winfree 2001;Ukai et al 2007;Yamaguchi et al 2013). Because we were able to recapitulate the dynamic responses of Hes1 oscillations by the phase model with stochasticity, circadian rhythms and Hes1 oscillation are likely to share a common mathematical basis for the clock-tuning dynamics despite the highly different complexity of the circuit structures and the characteristic time scales (2-3 h vs. 24 h).…”

Synchronization of coupled Stirling engines

“…This leads us to the phase reduction theory of weakly coupled nonlinear oscillators [6], which states that a weak interaction is sufficient to synchronize the limit cycle oscillators if their natural frequencies are close enough to each other. Because of its simplicity, the theory of phase oscillators has been applied to a wide variety of systems such as electrochemical oscillators [13], neurons [14], brain activity [15,16], genetic networks [17], and circadian oscillations [18,19]. This type of synchronization, however, has not yet been extensively investigated in the field of mechanical engines.…”