Long flights, night shifts, insomnia caused by stress, as a rule, these events are the main culprits of sleep disorders, however, thanks to a new study (McGillUniversity, ConcordiaUniversity), it became possible to deal with these most common problems.
Earth’s rotation forms the basis of the circadian rhythms of all living organisms, which are known among mammals as the circadian clock, which determine the time of sleep and wakefulness, food intake and metabolism, and also affect many other equally important biological processes. However, the internal work of such a biological brain clock is rather complicated, and the hidden molecular mechanisms have remained a mystery to scientists so far.
In a new study, scientists have identified how the fundamental biological process of protein synthesis is controlled by the body’s internal biological clock. Researchers believe that their findings can shed light on further developments in the field of potential treatments for circadian rhythm disturbances, which include the so-called jet lag after long flights, shift work, chronic depression and Parkinson’s disease.
As Dr. Shimon Amir, DepartmentofPsychology, co-author of the study, notes, to understand and treat the causes and symptoms of circadian rhythm pathologies, you need to look at the fundamental biological mechanisms that control the internal clock.
For their experiment, Dr. Amir and his colleague, Dr. Nahum Sonenberg, Departmentof Biochemistry, studied the control of protein synthesis relative to the body’s biological clock. They identified the repressor protein in the circadian rhythm and found that the exclusion of this protein significantly improves the functions of such a brain biological clock.