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Clocks & Sleep
Special Issues
Role of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms in Health
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Role of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms in Health

A special issue of Clocks & Sleep (ISSN 2624-5175). This special issue belongs to the section "Human Basic Research & Neuroimaging".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (25 May 2021) | Viewed by 28790

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Hiroshi Kadotani

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Psychiatry, Shiga University of Medical Science, Seta-Tsukinowa-Cho, Otsu 520-2192, Japan
Interests: sleep apnea; sleep disordered breathing; sleep medicine; mental health; epidemiology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Masahiro Suzuki

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Psychiatry, Nihon University School of Medicine, 30-1 Oyaguchi Kamicho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8610, Japan
Interests: chronobiology; psychiatric disorders; sleep medicine; light theapy; wake therapy; sleep EEG; epidemiology; clock genes
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Sleep and circadian rhythms are fundamental requirements for maintaining biological homeostasis. There is a growing body of evidence showing that lack of sleep and the disruption of circadian rhythms are associated with various health problems, such as metabolic disorders, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and mood disorders.

In modern society, we live surrounded by various factors that disrupt our sleep and circadian rhythms, such as the widespread use of artificial lighting and electronic devices, the increasing 24-hour shift work, and the internationalization of business. Moreover, the recent outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has changed our lives in many ways. Alterations of our daily routines, combined with reduced daylight exposure, are likely to disrupt our sleep and circadian rhythms.

The aim of this Special issue is to promote awareness in the scientific community about the role of sleep and circadian rhythms in health. We invite submissions of original articles and reviews addressing how sleep and circadian rhythms impact our physical and mental health. We also encourage submissions aimed at developing treatments and diagnostics for somatic and mental disorders from the perspective of sleep and circadian rhythms.

Topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • The role of sleep and circadian rhythms in mental and physical health;
  • Health implications of disturbed sleep and circadian rhythms;
  • Chronobiological treatments for sleep disorders and mental disorders.

Dr. Hiroshi Kadotani
Prof. Dr. Masahiro Suzuki
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Clocks & Sleep is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • chronobiology
  • circadian rhythms
  • sleep
  • sleep disturbance
  • mental health
  • epidemiology
  • light therapy
  • wake therapy
  • sleep EEG

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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15 pages, 2662 KiB  
Article
Clock-Modulating Activities of the Anti-Arrhythmic Drug Moricizine
by Chorong Han, Marvin Wirianto, Eunju Kim, Mark J. Burish, Seung-Hee Yoo and Zheng Chen
Clocks & Sleep 2021, 3(3), 351-365; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/clockssleep3030022 - 22 Jun 2021
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2963
Abstract
Dysregulated circadian functions contribute to various diseases, including cardiovascular disease. Much progress has been made on chronotherapeutic applications of drugs against cardiovascular disease (CVD); however, the direct effects of various medications on the circadian system are not well characterized. We previously conducted high-throughput [...] Read more.
Dysregulated circadian functions contribute to various diseases, including cardiovascular disease. Much progress has been made on chronotherapeutic applications of drugs against cardiovascular disease (CVD); however, the direct effects of various medications on the circadian system are not well characterized. We previously conducted high-throughput chemical screening for clock modulators and identified an off-patent anti-arrhythmic drug, moricizine, as a clock-period lengthening compound. In Per2:LucSV reporter fibroblast cells, we showed that under both dexamethasone and forskolin synchronization, moricizine was able to increase the circadian period length, with greater effects seen with the former. Titration studies revealed a dose-dependent effect of moricizine to lengthen the period. In contrast, flecainide, another Class I anti-arrhythmic, showed no effects on circadian reporter rhythms. Real-time qPCR analysis in fibroblast cells treated with moricizine revealed significant circadian time- and/or treatment-dependent expression changes in core clock genes, consistent with the above period-lengthening effects. Several clock-controlled cardiac channel genes also displayed altered expression patterns. Using tissue explant culture, we showed that moricizine was able to significantly prolong the period length of circadian reporter rhythms in atrial ex vivo cultures. Using wild-type C57BL/6J mice, moricizine treatment was found to promote sleep, alter circadian gene expression in the heart, and show a slight trend of increasing free-running periods. Together, these observations demonstrate novel clock-modulating activities of moricizine, particularly the period-lengthening effects on cellular oscillators, which may have clinical relevance against heart diseases. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Role of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms in Health)
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19 pages, 361 KiB  
Article
Health Behaviors of Higher Education Students from 7 Countries: Poorer Sleep Quality during the COVID-19 Pandemic Predicts Higher Dietary Risk
by Chen Du, Megan Chong Hueh Zan, Min Jung Cho, Jenifer I. Fenton, Pao Ying Hsiao, Richard Hsiao, Laura Keaver, Chang-Chi Lai, HeeSoon Lee, Mary-Jon Ludy, Wan Shen, Winnie Chee Siew Swee, Jyothi Thrivikraman, Kuo-Wei Tseng, Wei-Chin Tseng, Juman Almotwa, Clare E. Feldpausch, Sara Yi Ling Folk, Suzannah Gadd, Linyutong Wang, Wenyan Wang, Xinyi Zhang and Robin M. Tuckeradd Show full author list remove Hide full author list
Clocks & Sleep 2021, 3(1), 12-30; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/clockssleep3010002 - 15 Jan 2021
Cited by 26 | Viewed by 9299
Abstract
Health behaviors of higher education students can be negatively influenced by stressful events. The global COVID-19 pandemic presents a unique opportunity to characterize and compare health behaviors across multiple countries and to examine how these behaviors are shaped by the pandemic experience. Undergraduate [...] Read more.
Health behaviors of higher education students can be negatively influenced by stressful events. The global COVID-19 pandemic presents a unique opportunity to characterize and compare health behaviors across multiple countries and to examine how these behaviors are shaped by the pandemic experience. Undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in universities in China, Ireland, Malaysia, South Korea, Taiwan, the Netherlands and the United States (USA) were recruited into this cross-sectional study. Eligible students filled out an online survey comprised of validated tools for assessing sleep quality and duration, dietary risk, alcohol misuse and physical activity between late April and the end of May 2020. Health behaviors were fairly consistent across countries, and all countries reported poor sleep quality. However, during the survey period, the COVID-19 pandemic influenced the health behaviors of students in European countries and the USA more negatively than Asian countries, which could be attributed to the differences in pandemic time course and caseloads. Students who experienced a decline in sleep quality during the COVID-19 pandemic had higher dietary risk scores than students who did not experience a change in sleep quality (p = 0.001). Improved sleep quality was associated with less sitting time (p = 0.010). Addressing sleep issues among higher education students is a pressing concern, especially during stressful events. These results support the importance of making education and behavior-based sleep programming available for higher education students in order to benefit students’ overall health. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Role of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms in Health)

Review

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38 pages, 2325 KiB  
Review
Circadian Rhythms of the Hypothalamus: From Function to Physiology
by Rachel Van Drunen and Kristin Eckel-Mahan
Clocks & Sleep 2021, 3(1), 189-226; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/clockssleep3010012 - 25 Feb 2021
Cited by 36 | Viewed by 11668
Abstract
The nearly ubiquitous expression of endogenous 24 h oscillations known as circadian rhythms regulate the timing of physiological functions in the body. These intrinsic rhythms are sensitive to external cues, known as zeitgebers, which entrain the internal biological processes to the daily [...] Read more.
The nearly ubiquitous expression of endogenous 24 h oscillations known as circadian rhythms regulate the timing of physiological functions in the body. These intrinsic rhythms are sensitive to external cues, known as zeitgebers, which entrain the internal biological processes to the daily environmental changes in light, temperature, and food availability. Light directly entrains the master clock, the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) which lies in the hypothalamus of the brain and is responsible for synchronizing internal rhythms. However, recent evidence underscores the importance of other hypothalamic nuclei in regulating several essential rhythmic biological functions. These extra-SCN hypothalamic nuclei also express circadian rhythms, suggesting distinct regions that oscillate either semi-autonomously or independent of SCN innervation. Concurrently, the extra-SCN hypothalamic nuclei are also sensitized to fluctuations in nutrient and hormonal signals. Thus, food intake acts as another powerful entrainer for the hypothalamic oscillators’ mediation of energy homeostasis. Ablation studies and genetic mouse models with perturbed extra-SCN hypothalamic nuclei function reveal their critical downstream involvement in an array of functions including metabolism, thermogenesis, food consumption, thirst, mood and sleep. Large epidemiological studies of individuals whose internal circadian cycle is chronically disrupted reveal that disruption of our internal clock is associated with an increased risk of obesity and several neurological diseases and disorders. In this review, we discuss the profound role of the extra-SCN hypothalamic nuclei in rhythmically regulating and coordinating body wide functions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Role of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms in Health)
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13 pages, 806 KiB  
Review
Disorders of Arousal: A Chronobiological Perspective
by Greta Mainieri, Giuseppe Loddo and Federica Provini
Clocks & Sleep 2021, 3(1), 53-65; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/clockssleep3010004 - 21 Jan 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4010
Abstract
Non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep parasomnias are characterized by motor and emotional behaviors emerging from incomplete arousals from NREM sleep and they are currently referred to as disorders of arousal (DoA). Three main clinical entities are recognized, namely confusional arousal, sleep terror and [...] Read more.
Non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep parasomnias are characterized by motor and emotional behaviors emerging from incomplete arousals from NREM sleep and they are currently referred to as disorders of arousal (DoA). Three main clinical entities are recognized, namely confusional arousal, sleep terror and sleepwalking. DoA are largely present in pediatric populations, an age in which they are considered as transitory, unhabitual physiological events. The literature background in the last twenty years has extensively shown that DoA can persist in adulthood in predisposed individuals or even appear de novo in some cases. Even though some episodes may arise from stage 2 of sleep, most DoA occur during slow wave sleep (SWS), and particularly during the first two sleep cycles. The reasons for this timing are linked to the intrinsic structure of SWS and with the possible influence on this sleep phase of predisposing, priming and precipitating factors for DoA episodes. The objective of this paper is to review the intrinsic sleep-related features and chronobiological aspects affecting SWS, responsible for the occurrence of the majority of DoA episodes during the first part of the night. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Role of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms in Health)
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