Identification of Novel Circadian Biomarkers

Study Summary

Circadian clocks are not only found in discrete areas of the brain, but are found in virtually every organ in our bodies, including the heart, lungs and immune system. Disruptions in circadian clocks, or chronopathology, may underlie various forms of cardiovascular, pulmonary, and metabolic disorders. Over the past two decades, molecular geneticists have "cracked" the clock to reveal its core biochemical mechanisms evident in organisms from fruit flies to humans. These mechanistic insights have led to the discovery of links between clock function and an ever-expanding array of prevalent diseases, including heart, lung, metabolic and sleep disorders. Yet the prevalence of circadian disruption in these patient populations is unclear because current tests are not easily applied in clinical settings or have yet to be developed. Here the investigators exploit our newfound understanding of clock mechanisms and the development of new genomic technologies to identify novel complements of clock-regulated genes ("signatures") that will reveal the state of the internal biological clock. This approach will allow us to take a genomic snapshot of clock status from a single blood draw, substantially easing the diagnosis of these individuals with evidence of circadian disruption or misalignment, i.e., chronopathology.