BIOLOGICAL RHYTHMS
Lecturer: FAJEMIDAGBA G. A.
Course code: PIO 201
Course Title: INTRODUCTION TO PHYSIOLOGY
Introduction
Biological rhythms are series of bodily function regulated by body
internal clock
Physiological clock are innate mechanisms that governs the rhythmic
and periodic i.e. cyclic occurrences in living organism.
It ensure that the behavioural, physiological and biochemical changes
that occur in living organisms do so in the right sequence, at the right
time of day, month and even year.
All biological organisms from the simplest one-cell organisms to
plants, animals, including humans, have, use and depend upon this
internal physiological clocks to function normally.
It is an internal mechanisms by which biological rhythms occurs and
are maintained even in the absence of apparent environmental
stimulus.
Biological rhythms
Biological rhythms are periodic biological fluctuations in an organism
independent of the environment but can also be controlled by
environmental conditions such as light, food etc.
It helps to control body normal functions including regulation of sleep,
appetite, behaviour , body temperature and other body functions.
Disrupted biological rhythms can increase the risk of disorders such
as depression , bipolar disorder (manic depressive illness), seasonal
affective disorder (SAD) etc.
The study of these periodic phenomenon (biological rhythms) in living
organism such as daily, weekly, seasonal and annual rhythms is called
chronobiology (Kraft and Martin, 1995).
Types of biological rhythms
1) Internal (endogenous rhythms) - control comes from within and are
regulated by organism itself independent of the environment e.g. body
temperature cycle
2) External (exogenous rhythms) – biological rhythms are controlled
by external stimuli e.g. sleep/wakefulness, transition from night to day.
Classification of biological rhythms
1) Circadian rhythm: continuous endogenously generated rhythms that
follow a 24 hours cycle. It is controlled by the circadian clock. E.g.
sleep and wake cycle, hormone release etc.
2) Infradian rhythm: biological rhythms with a cycle of more than 24
hours . Due to the longer time frame for each cycle, frequency of
occurrence is lower than circadian cycle e.g. menstrual cycle.
Classification of biological rhythms (continued)
3)Ultradian rhythm: it is an endogenous biological rhythms
with a period much shorter but frequency much higher
than that of a circadian rhythm e.g. feeding cycles, release
of hormones from the pituitary gland
4) Diurnal rhythm: is a biological rhythm that is
synchronized with the day and night cycle. It may or
maynot be a circadian rhythym but are generally periodic
natural process that respond mainly to daylight and night
time
Difference between Circadian rhythm and Diurnal
rhythm
Circadian rhythm is continuous, endogeneous and persist
even when there are no external cue
while
Diurnal rhythm are entrainable to external factor such as
light and dark cycle ie the rythm can be reset due to
exposure to external stimuli (called entrainment)
Note: Diurnal rhythm cannot be called circadian rhythm
except they are confirm to be endogeneous and not as a
result of environmental cue
Circadian Rhythm
. Is any biological process that display an endogeneous
timing of about 24 hours. The term "circadian" was coined
by Franz Halberg in the late 1950s (Halberg et al., 2003).
These 24 hours rhythms are controlled by a circadian clock.
Although circadian rhythms are endogenous ("built-in",
self-sustained), they are adjusted (entrained) to the local
environment by external cues called zeitgebers (time givers),
commonly the most important of which is daylight (Diego
et al., 2010).
Circadian clock
Components of circadian clock
The circadian clock can be divided into two major components:
the central (master) clock, residing in the suprachiasmatic
nucleus (SCN) of the brain, and
the peripheral clocks that are present in nearly every tissue and
organ system (Albrecht and Eichele, 2003; Albrecht 2004).
• Light signals and other external factors such as feeding cues
entrain the central circadian clock, which in turn synchronize the
peripheral clocks ( Richards and Gumz,2012).
Circadian clock continued
• The peripheral clocks can be entrained independently of the
central clock by food cues; however, the nature of the
relationship between the central and peripheral clocks is still
being investigated (Richards and Gumz, 2012).
Figure 1: Components of circadian clock
Source: [Link]: Nature reviews of molecular cell biology
Role of physiological clock
The circadian clock plays an integral role in the regulation
of nearly all physiological processes.
These include:
– sleep/wake cycle
– body temperature
– patterns of hormone secretion
– blood pressure
– digestive secretions
– levels of alertness
– Behavioral activity.
– Drug metabolism
FIGURE 2: DIAGRAM SHOWING THE CONTROL OF PHYSIOLOGICAL
ACTIVITIES BY THE PHYSIOLOGICAL CLOCK
SOURCE: [Link].
Physiological clock control of sleep
There is direct neural connections between the
suprachiasmatic nucleus and the pineal gland.
The Pineal gland then secretes the hormone melatonin
which promotes sleep (produced more at night than during
the day).
The SCN clock ensures that melatonin is secreted only at
night to stimulate sleep.
Physiology clock control of endocrine system
The circadian clock plays a key role in the regulation of the
endocrine system,
Peak production of hormones usually occur during the hours
when we are asleep e.g
GH is at its highest between midnight and 2am
Physiology clock control of endocrine system
Other hormones (prolactin, glucose, melatonin,
adrenocorticotrophic hormone, follicle stimulating hormone,
luteinizing hormone, thyroid stimulating hormone) show
peak release between 2 and 6 am.
Cortisol, testosterone, plasma adrenaline and noradrenaline,
blood platelet viscosity, fibrinolytic and natural killer cell
activity reach their peak levels between 6 and 8am.
An exception to this is insulin which peaks between 2 and
4pm in the afternoon
Physiology clock control of body
temperature
Thermoregulation maintains the core temperature at a
constant set point ( 37 C) despite fluctuations in heat
absorption, production, and loss.
The core temperature exhibits circadian variation.
It fluctuates by about 0.6 C and is lowest around 3 a.m.,
and highest around 6 p.m. The set point changes are
controlled by an intrinsic physiological clock ( Colour atlas
of physiology).
Physiology clock control of digestive system
Indigestible substances (bone, fiber, foreign bodies) do not
leave the stomach during the digestive phase.
Special contraction waves called migrating motor
complexes (MMC) pass through the stomach and small
intestine roughly every 1.5 hours during the ensuing
interdigestive phase, as determined by an intrinsic
physiological clock ( colour atlas of physiology).
Physiological clock control of other physiological
processes
Production of lymphocytes and eosinophils peaks between
2 and 4 am .
It has been established since the 20th century that blood
pressure decreases at night by around 10% and rises during
the day (Agarwal , 2010).
Physiological clock control of other physiological processes
It has been shown during the mid-1900s that blood flow in
humans decreases during the night and increases during the
day (Kaneko et al., 1968).
Vascular functions such as sympathetic and vascular tones,
adrenergic receptor agonist response, forearm vascular
resistance, and flow-mediated dilation exhibit circadian
variations as well (Panza et al., 1991).
Pathophysiology of physiological clock
Disruption of circadian rhythms not only affects sleep
patterns but also has been found to precipitate mania in
people with bipolar disorder (manic depressive illness
(Leibenluft et al., 1996).
Other types of illnesses also are affected by circadian
rhythms; for example, heart attacks occur more frequently in
the morning while asthma attacks occur more often at night
(Cannon et al., 1997; Jarjour ,1999)
Pathophysiology of physiological clock (continued)
Diseases and even death are time-dependent.
Gout and cerebral infarction peak between midnight and
2am.
Gastric ulcer, gall bladder and asthma problems between 2
and 6am.
Rheumatoid arthritis, hay fever, migraine and angina peak
between 6 and 8 am.
Heart attacks, strokes occur most likely between 6 and 12
am .
Osteoarthritis attacks peak between 4 and 6pm in the
afternoon.
Pathophysiology of physiological clock
(continued)
Jet lag disorder: disruption in biological clock that occurs
as a result of an individual travelling across several time
zone such as flying between two distant countries. the
rapid changes in timezone confuse the internal clock
resulting in symptoms such as insonmia, fatigue, lack of
focus, irritability, indigestion etc.
Pathophysiology of physiological clock
(continued)
Shift work disorder : nighttime shift worker
tend to suffer from this form of biological
rythm disruption cud result in disorder such
as:
Delayed sleep phase disorder: whereby the
person sleep later than normal and due to
this might not be able to wake up normally
early in the morning like normal average
individual
Uses and clinical significance of physiological Clock
Drug Metabolism: The efficacy of drugs could be improved
by achieving greater harmony with the body’s timekeeping
It’s been known for decades that time of day can
substantially influence the kinetics of how drugs are broken
down and eliminated.
If the same drug is given at a different time of day, it may
result in very different drug levels and therefore different
responses.
Uses and clinical significance of physiological Clock
• Post-lunch Dip Effect: The "post-lunch dip" is a period of
decreased alertness that strikes between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m.
Between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m:
- work performance suffers
- people in dimly lit meeting rooms are apt to nod off
- the likelihood of getting into a car accident increases.
• Daily body temperature, hormone levels and other
physiological cycles place us at a low ebb in the early
afternoon,
• in contrast to periods of peak alertness we experience in the
morning and early evening.
Uses and clinical significance of physiological Clock
Early school start times for adolescents are frequently
associated with significant sleep deprivation, which can lead
to academic, behavioral and psychological problems, as well
as increased risk for accidents and injuries, especially for
teenage drivers.
Completing our understanding of physiological clock
works, will lead to better treatments for diseases affected by
circadian rhythm, as well as coping strategies.
References
• Stefan silbernagl and Agamemnon despopoulos Colour atlas of physiolgy, 7th
edition
Agarwal R. Regulation of circadian blood pressure: from mice to astronauts.
Curr Opin Nephrol Hypertens 19: 51–58, 2010.
• Cannon CP, McCabe CH, Stone PH. Circadian variation in the onset of
unstable angina and non-Q-wave acute myocardial infarction (the TIMI III
Registry and TIMI IIIB).
• Darlington TK, Wager-Smith K, Ceriani MF, et al. Closing the circadian loop:
CLOCK-induced transcription of its own inhibitors per and tim. Science,1998;
280(5369): 1599-603.
References
• Diego A. Golombek, Ruth E. Rosenstein Physiology of Circadian
Entrainment Physiological Reviews Published 1 July 2010 Vol. 90 no. 3,
1063-1102 DOI: 10.1152/physrev.00009.2009
• Halberg F, Cornélissen G, Katinas G et al. (October
2003)."Transdisciplinary unifying implications of circadian findings in
the 1950s". J Circadian Rhythms 1 (1):[Link].1186/1740-3391-1-2.
• Jarjour NN. Circadian variation in allergen and non-specific bronchial
responsiveness in asthma. Chronobiology International, 1999; 16(5): 631-
9.
• Kaneko M, Zechman FW, Smith RE. Circadian variation in human
peripheral blood flow levels and exercise responses. J Appl
References
• Katzenberg D, Young T, Finn L, et al.A CLOCK
polymorphism associated with human diurnal preference.
Sleep, 1998; 21(6): 569-76.
• Konopka RJ, Benzer S. Clock mutantsof Drosophila
melanogaster. Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences USA, 1971; 68(9): 2112-6. ; 89(4): 655-67.
• Kraft M, Martin RJ. Chronobiology and chronotherapy in
medicine. Dis Mon 41: 506–575, 1995.
References
• Loudon AS. Circadian biology: a 2.5 billion year old clock.
Curr Biol 22: R570–R571, 2012.
Panza JA, Epstein SE, Quyyumi AA. Circadian variation in
vascular tone and its relation to alpha-sympathetic
vasoconstrictor activity. N Engl J Med 325: 986–990, 1991.
• Richards J, Gumz ML. Advances in understanding the
peripheral circadian clocks. FASEB J 26: 3602–3613,
2012.117).
• Virshup DM, Eide EJ, Forger DB, Gallego M, Harnish EV.
Reversible protein phosphorylation regulates circadian rhythms.