Circadian Biology The Complexities Of Keeping Time

The seminar that I attended was hosted by the biology department, with was Jennifer Hurley presenting from the Renesslaer Polytechnic Institute. The topic of the seminar was Circadian Biology: The complexities of keeping time. In this seminar, she went into depth about circadian rhythms and why they are important. Jennifer has done many experiments in regards circadian rhythms to learn more about them. One experiment she conducted consisted of the plant Daphnia. Jennifer and her research team discovered that the Daphnia has a molecular circadian rhythm. This illustrated that humans are not the only one with a molecular clock, but humans have the most advanced circadian clock currently known. Circadian rhythms are only one biological rhythm that the body undergoes. Some examples consist of ultradian rhythms which take less than 24 hours to complete, infrardian rhythms that take more than 24 hours to complete and then there’s circadian rhythms which is done at an estimation of 2 4 hours. Circadian rhythms are our biological way of keeping track of time. It was defined in the presentation as a daily repeating process with a period of 24 hours. There are certain criteria that are needed to establish what a rhythm is. Rhythms persist in the absence of external cues. In essence, this means that because of these rhythms, people are able to anticipate certain events that can occur. Rhythms must be trainable and resettable by exposure to external stimuli which comprises of light,Show MoreRelatedBipolar Disorder : A Concise Review3296 Words   |  14 PagesDisorder, epinephrine, serotonin, dopamine, circadian system, BDNF. Bipolar disorder is a serious and devastating mental disorder. Suicidal ideation and comorbid conditions further worsen the outcome and prognosis. Abnormalities in monoaminergic pathways and signaling networks have been shown to be involved in the pathogenesis of disorder. Circadian system has been extensively studied and the results implicate significant contribution of the disrupted circadian rhythms in the underlying pathophysiology