Related topics: sleep disorders

How did evolution optimize circadian clocks?

(Phys.org) —From cyanobacteria to humans, many terrestrial species have acquired circadian rhythms that adapt to sunlight in order to increase survival rates. Studies have shown that the circadian clocks in some organisms ...

Determining the timing of methanogen evolution

Early forms of life very likely had metabolisms that transformed the primordial Earth, such as initiating the carbon cycle and producing most of the planet's oxygen through photosynthesis. About 3.5 billion years ago, the ...

Siberian hamsters show what helps make seasonal clocks tick

Many animals, including humans, have internal clocks and calendars to help them regulate behavior, physiological functions and biological processes. Although scientists have extensively studied the timekeeping mechanisms ...

Researchers synchronize blinking 'genetic clocks' (w/ Video)

Researchers at UC San Diego who last year genetically engineered bacteria to keep track of time by turning on and off fluorescent proteins within their cells have taken another step toward the construction of a programmable ...

Neanderthals may have been morning people, says new study

A new research paper finds that genetic material from Neanderthal ancestors may have contributed to the propensity of some people today to be "early risers," the sort of people who are more comfortable getting up and going ...

New research shows the complexity of bacterial circadian clocks

Bacteria make up more than 10% of all living things but until recently we had little realization that, as in humans, soil bacteria have internal clocks that synchronize their activities with the 24-hour cycles of day and ...

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