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Circadian Rhythm Write Up Practical 2025

The document discusses biological rhythms, particularly circadian rhythms, which are regulated by the suprachiasmatic nucleus and the pineal gland's secretion of melatonin. It outlines the properties, components, and types of biological rhythms, including circadian rhythms that repeat approximately every 24 hours. The study focuses on human circadian rhythms related to sleep/wake cycles, eating times, and core temperature over a 7-day period in April 2025.

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shubhamnayek0
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9 views4 pages

Circadian Rhythm Write Up Practical 2025

The document discusses biological rhythms, particularly circadian rhythms, which are regulated by the suprachiasmatic nucleus and the pineal gland's secretion of melatonin. It outlines the properties, components, and types of biological rhythms, including circadian rhythms that repeat approximately every 24 hours. The study focuses on human circadian rhythms related to sleep/wake cycles, eating times, and core temperature over a 7-day period in April 2025.

Uploaded by

shubhamnayek0
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Study of Circadian Functions in Humans:

▪ INTRODUCTION
Biological Rhythms:
Biological rhythm is one or more biological events or functions that reoccur in
time in a repeated order and with a repeated interval between occurrences. These
are the ways that organisms adopt and live with the environmental rhythms
around them such as the spin of the earth, the movement of the earth and
movement of the moon around earth

Pineal gland is thought to be the key regulator, situated in brain

Properties:

1. A master clock (biological Clock) controls biological rhythms, by the


suprachiasmatic nucleus, or SCN, by controls secretion of melatonin by Pineal
Gland
2. They are genetic in origin, inherited and unaffected in rearing conditions.
3. They are ENTRAINED, by environmental cues, that is, the self-sustained internal
pacemaker mechanisms may be set, calibrated and adjusted initially according
the periodic inputs from external environmental signals or Zeitgebers, principal
cue is photoperiod
4. There are often cycles within cycles, their intensity and frequency varying in
different parts of activity period.
5. After entrainment, under any constant environmental cues, many animals will
show periodicity without much variations, this is called free Running Rhythm, this,
an indirect evidence of existence of an endogenous pacemaker

Components of biological rhythm:


1. Each biological rhythm is composed of repeating units called cycles.
2. The length of time required to complete an entire cycle is the rhythm’s period.
3. Any specified recognizable part of a cycle is called phase.
4. The difference between peak and trough of the cycle is called amplitude.
Ref: Animal Behaviour : Mechanisms, Ecology and Evolution by Lee C. Drickamer,
Stephen H. Vessey, Elizabeth Jakob

Types of Biological rhythms:

1. Epicycles and Ultradian Rhythms: short burst of activity with intermittent rate
that differ from short to long duration (from minutes to few hours)
2. Tidal Rhythms: based on 29.4 day cycle
3. Circannual Rhythms: occur with one year period
4. Circadian Rhythms: repeated after 24 hours

Neural pathways to regulate Biological Rhythms from Lateral eyes to Plineal gland in
Mammals

Light information
first perceived by Retino-olpthalmic Preganglionic
photoreceptor of pathway Spinal
SCN neurone
lateral eyes cord
(Thorac
Binds beta
PRODUCTION adrenergic Transmitter Postanglionic Superior
OF MELATONIN receptor in Epinephrine neurone cervical
PINEAL CELLS ganglion
Pineal Gland is the most important gland that is intermediary between the external
photoperiod and internal milieu to control Biological Rhythms

• Melatonin is a hormone released from the pineal gland during darkness,


“chemical expression of darkness”

• It is suppressed by exposure to light. In some blind individuals it continues to


be entrained to the external light/dark cycle
• In animals who breeds seasonally, melatonin can regulate their reproduction

Circadian Rhythms:
Biological rhythms that repeat approximately every 24 hours are called circadian
rhythms, that is rhythm of one day. In their daily cycle some animals exhibit peak
activity during the daylight hours, some are active at night, some exhibit peak
activity around dusk and dawn.

Circadian Rhythm of Humans: Controls Wake /Sleep/Temparature/Renal functions:

In human and other animals, the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) controls most
circadian rhythm such as rest activity and drinking rhythm.

• Provide a mechanism for measurement of duration of light and dark cues from
lateral eyes

• In humans the rhythms are:

• Sleep/Wake

• Eating time

• Body core temperature

• Surface temperature

• Blood pressure

• Circulatory pulse

• Chemical variables - blood, urine

In this study, thus, we have studied some parameters of ours, like:

• Sleep/Wake
• Eating Time
• Core Temperature (as per our syllabus)
for a period of 7 days on the month of April, 2025

Results will be followed

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