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The internal body clock drives many cellular processes. Most of us notice our body clock only when dragging ourselves out of bed after a late night or when making an international flight. Now new research is showing that our internal body clock determines more than just when we go to bed and wake up. “Researchers investigated the impact of the time of day on the way DNA functions in experiments on mice. Every two hours they looked at samples from the kidney, liver, lung, adrenal gland, aorta, brainstem, cerebellum, brown fat, white fat, heart, hypothalamus, lung and skeletal muscle. They showed that 43% of genes, sections of DNA, involved in protein manufacture altered their activity throughout the day. Two major windows of activity were observed in the study – dawn and dusk.” The research builds on observations that certain drugs work better at certain times of the day. “Heart disease, for example, is driven by artery-clogging cholesterol, which is mostly made in the liver at night. Taking statins in the evening makes them more effective.” The findings of the research could help doctors better understand when certain medications may be most effective as treatment for certain conditions.
