AJP - Regu Fuel your research with LabChart
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol (October 3, 2002). doi:10.1152/ajpregu.00447.2002
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow All Versions of this Article:
284/1/R208    most recent
00447.2002v1
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Steele, C. T
Right arrow Articles by Underwood, H.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Steele, C. T
Right arrow Articles by Underwood, H.

Articles in PresS, published online ahead of print October 3, 2002
Am J Physiol Regu Physiol, 10.1152/ajpregu.00447.2002
Submitted on July 24, 2002
Accepted on September 16, 2002

Ocular Clocks Are Tightly Coupled And Act As Pacemakers In The Circadian System Of Japanese Quail

Christopher T Steele1*, Bora D Zivkovic1, Thomas Siopes2, and Herbert Underwood3

1 Department of Zoology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA; W.M. Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA
2 Poultry Science, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA
3 Department of Zoology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: ctsteele{at}unity.ncsu.edu.

Our previous studies showed that the eyes of Japanese quail contain a biological clock that drives a daily rhythm of melatonin synthesis. Furthermore, we hypothesized that these ocular clocks are pacemakers because eye removal abolishes freerunning rhythms in constant darkness (DD). If the eyes are indeed acting as pacemakers, we predicted that the two ocular pacemakers in an individual bird must remain in phase in DD and, furthermore, the two ocular pacemakers would rapidly regain coupling after being forced out-of-phase. These predictions were confirmed by demonstrating that (1) the ocular melatonin rhythms of the two eyes maintained phase for at least 57 days in DD and (2) after ocular pacemakers were forced out of phase by alternately patching the eyes in LL, two components of body temperature were observed that fused into a consolidated rhythm after 5-6 days in DD, showing pacemaker re-coupling. The ability to maintain phase in DD and rapidly re-couple after out-of-phase entrainment demonstrates that the eyes are strongly coupled pacemakers that work in synchrony to drive circadian rhythmicity in Japanese quail.




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 J Biol RhythmsHome page
M. R. Gorman and N. A. Steele
Phase Angle Difference Alters Coupling Relations of Functionally Distinct Circadian Oscillators Revealed by Rhythm Splitting.
J Biol Rhythms, June 1, 2006; 21(3): 195 - 205.
[Abstract] [PDF]

Home page
 J Biol RhythmsHome page
P. A. Bartell and E. Gwinner
A Separate Circadian Oscillator Controls Nocturnal Migratory Restlessness in the Songbird Sylvia borin
J Biol Rhythms, December 1, 2005; 20(6): 538 - 549.
[Abstract] [PDF]

Home page
 IOVSHome page
T. Li and H. C. Howland
The Effects of Constant and Diurnal Illumination of the Pineal Gland and the Eyes on Ocular Growth in Chicks
Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci., August 1, 2003; 44(8): 3692 - 3697.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH
Visit Other APS Journals Online
Copyright © 2002 by the American Physiological Society.