Photoentrainment, pharmacology, and phase shifts of the circadian rhythm in the rat pineal.
Photoentrainment of circadian rhythms in mammals is mediated by the retinohypothalamic projection to the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the hypothalamus. It should therefore be possible to mimic or block the effects of light on the circadian pacemaker with appropriate pharmacological agents. Such agents and their effects should be useful in identifying the neurotransmitters involved in photoentrainment and their mechanisms of action on the circadian pacemaker. The effects of light on the circadian rhythm in rat pineal serotonin N-acetyltransferase activity are described. Carbachol, a cholinergic agonist, was found to mimic the effects of light on this rhythm, including the acute reduction of nocturnal activity and phase-shifting of the free-running rhythm. These results raise the possibility that acetylcholine is involved in the photoentrainment of mammalian circadian rhythms.
D000109:Acetylcholine / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D001191:Arylamine N-Acetyltransferase / Q000378:metabolism; D001683:Biological Clocks; D002217:Carbachol / Q000494:pharmacology; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000187:drug effects; D008027:Light; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000187:drug effects; D010870:Pineal Gland / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D051381:Rats; D013495:Supraoptic Nucleus / Q000502:physiology; D014795:Visual Pathways / Q000502:physiology
D002217:Carbachol; D001191:Arylamine N-Acetyltransferase; D000109:Acetylcholine