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Middleton, B., Arendt, J., & Stone, B. M. (1996). Human circadian rhythms in constant dim light (8 lux) with knowledge of clock time. J. Sleep Res., 5(2), 69–76.
Abstract: The light/dark (L/D) cycle is a major synchronizer of human circadian rhythms. In the absence of a strong L/D cycle, synchrony with 24 hours can nevertheless be maintained in a socially structured environment, as shown in Polar regions (Broadway et al. 1987) and by some blind subjects (Czeisler et al. 1995a). The relative contribution of other time cues to entrainment in dim light has not been fully explored. The present study investigated the behaviour of melatonin (assessed as 6-sulphatoxymelatonin); rectal temperature; activity and sleep (actigraphy and logs) in constant dim light (L/ L) with access to a digital clock. 6 normal healthy males were maintained as a group in partial temporal isolation with attenuated sound and ambient temperature for 21 days. All 6 subjects showed free-running periodicity for 6-sulphatoxymelatonin and 5/6 subjects for temperature, activity and sleep offset. The average period (tau) was 24.26 +/- 0.049, substantially shorter than in previous experiments with a self selected L/D cycle but similar to a recent study conducted in very dim light. One subject maintained a rigid sleep/wake cycle throughout whilst his 6-sulphatoxymelatonin rhythm free-ran. Total sleep time, from actigraph data, did not change but sleep efficiency decreased during the experiment. The subjects did not show group synchronization. These results confirm previous data indicating the importance of the L/D cycle in human entrainment and underline the lesser role of social cues and knowledge of clock time. This particular approach will permit the administration of timed medication to sighted humans under free-running conditions.
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van Diepen, H. C., Foster, R. G., & Meijer, J. H. (2015). A colourful clock. PLoS Biol, 13(5), e1002160.
Abstract: Circadian rhythms are an essential property of life on Earth. In mammals, these rhythms are coordinated by a small set of neurons, located in the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN). The environmental light/dark cycle synchronizes (entrains) the SCN via a distinct pathway, originating in a subset of photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (pRGCs) that utilize the photopigment melanopsin (OPN4). The pRGCs are also innervated by rods and cones and, so, are both endogenously and exogenously light sensitive. Accumulating evidence has shown that the circadian system is sensitive to ultraviolet (UV), blue, and green wavelengths of light. However, it was unclear whether colour perception itself can help entrain the SCN. By utilizing both behavioural and electrophysiological recording techniques, Walmsley and colleagues show that multiple photic channels interact and enhance the capacity of the SCN to synchronize to the environmental cycle. Thus, entrainment of the circadian system combines both environmental irradiance and colour information to ensure that internal and external time are appropriately aligned.
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