J Appl Biomed 7:15-33, 2009 | DOI: 10.32725/jab.2009.002

Clock genes in health and diseases

Valérie Mongrain^1,2,3, Nicolas Cermakian^1,2,*

¹ Laboratory of Molecular Chronobiology, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Montréal, Canada

² Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montréal, Canada

³ Present address: Center for Integrative Genomics, University of Lausanne, Switzerland

Circadian rhythms, rhythms of about 24 h in various physiological functions, are getting extensively characterized at the molecular level. The generation of circadian rhythms is acknowledged to originate from oscillations in the expression of several clock genes as well as in the regulation of their protein products. While the general entrainment of organisms to the light-dark cycle of the environment is mainly achieved through the master clock of the suprachiasmatic nucleus in mammals, the molecular clockwork is functional in various organs and tissues. The molecular components of the circadian system have been found to be essential for a diversity of basic and homeostatic systems ranging from the control of cell cycle, the regulation of cardiac and metabolic function, to the fine-tuning of sleep and mental health. The present review will focus on the involvement of clock genes in human health and diseases.

Keywords: clock genes; peripheral clocks; circadian rhythms; human; sleep disorders; psychiatric disorders; cancer; metabolism

Received: January 29, 2009; Published: March 31, 2009  Show citation