title: Coupling-induced synchronization in multicellular circadian oscillators of mammals.
abstract: In mammals, circadian rhythms are controlled by the neurons located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus. Each neuron in the SCN contains an autonomous molecular clock. The fundamental question is how the individual cellular oscillators, expressing a wide range of periods, interact and assemble to achieve phase synchronization. Most of the studies carried out so far emphasize the crucial role of the periodicity imposed by the light-dark cycle in neuronal synchronization. However, in natural conditions, the interaction between the SCN neurons is non-negligible and coupling between cells in the SCN is achieved partly by neurotransmitters. In this paper, we use a model of nonidentical, globally coupled cellular clocks considered as Goodwin oscillators. We mainly study the synchronization induced by coupling from an analytical way. Our results show that the role of the coupling is to enhance the synchronization to the external forcing. The conclusion of this paper can help us better understand the mechanism of circadian rhythm.
authors.affiliation: College of Information Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, 201306 China.
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Institute of Systems Biology, Shanghai University, Shanghai, 200444 China.
authors.forename: Zengrong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: College of Information Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, 201306 China.
authors.forename: Jinhuo
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.affiliation: College of Science and Information, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, 266109 Shandong China.
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wu
keywords: Circadian rhythm; Clock; Self-sustained oscillator; Synchronization