title: Adrenal clocks and the role of adrenal hormones in the regulation of circadian physiology.
abstract: The mammalian circadian timing system consists of a master pacemaker in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) and subordinate clocks that disseminate time information to various central and peripheral tissues. While the function of the SCN in circadian rhythm regulation has been extensively studied, we still have limited understanding of how peripheral tissue clock function contributes to the regulation of physiological processes. The adrenal gland plays a special role in this context as adrenal hormones show strong circadian secretion rhythms affecting downstream physiological processes. At the same time, they have been shown to affect clock gene expression in various other tissues, thus mediating systemic entrainment to external zeitgebers and promoting internal circadian alignment. In this review, we discuss the function of circadian clocks in the adrenal gland, how they are reset by the SCN and may further relay time-of-day information to other tissues. Focusing on glucocorticoids, we conclude by outlining the impact of adrenal rhythm disruption on neuropsychiatric, metabolic, immune, and malignant disorders.
authors.affiliation: Chronophysiology Group, Medical Department, University of Lübeck, Germany.
authors.forename: Alexei
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Leliavski
authors.affiliation: Chronophysiology Group, Medical Department, University of Lübeck, Germany.
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dumbell
authors.affiliation: Institute of Neuroendocrinology, University of Lübeck, Germany.
authors.forename: Volker
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Ott
authors.affiliation: Chronophysiology Group, Medical Department, University of Lübeck, Germany henrik.oster@uksh.de.
authors.forename: Henrik
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Oster
mesh_terms: D000311:Adrenal Glands / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D057906:Circadian Clocks / Q000502:physiology*; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000502:physiology*; D015870:Gene Expression; D005938:Glucocorticoids / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D019964:Mood Disorders / Q000209:etiology; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology; D013493:Suprachiasmatic Nucleus / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D005938:Glucocorticoids
keywords: adrenal clock; aldosterone; circadian rhythms; clock genes; glucocorticoids