Two oscillators are better than one: a circadian pacemaker escapes from the light.
Continuous light exposure can suppress circadian rhythms. In this issue of Neuron, Murad et al. demonstrate that, under certain genetic conditions, a novel cluster of pacemaker neurons can drive rhythmic behavior in constant light. Surprisingly, these neurons are distinct from those thought to drive rhythms in constant darkness.
Allada
Ravi
R
Department of Neurobiology and Physiology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA.
D000818:Animals; D001683:Biological Clocks / Q000235:genetics* / Q000528:radiation effects; D004330:Drosophila / Q000502:physiology*; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D008027:Light; D017956:Photoreceptor Cells, Invertebrate / Q000502:physiology*
D029721:Drosophila Proteins