Liver Cells Found to Influence Circadian Rhythm

In a recent study published in Science Advances, researchers from the University of Queensland, led by Associate Professor Frédéric Gachon, uncovered surprising findings about the body’s internal circadian clock. Circadian clocks regulate various biological functions, including sleep, hormone secretion, body temperature, and metabolism. Contrary to popular belief that the brain solely controls this clock, these findings reveal that liver cells also play a crucial role in regulating circadian rhythms.

Dr. Gachon and his team worked with Dr. Serge Luquet from Université Paris Cité/CNRS to study mice with human liver cells transplanted into them. They observed that these liver cells caused the mice’s circadian clock to advance by two hours, resulting in changes to their eating and sleeping habits.

According to Dr. Gachon, this finding has significant implications for understanding and potentially treating diseases associated with disrupted sleep, irregular eating patterns, and disturbances in the circadian rhythm, such as liver disease and diabetes.

“Our study deepens our understanding of the hormonal and neuronal mechanisms involved in the role of the liver in controlling circadian rhythms,” explains Dr. Gachon. “It suggests that restoring liver physiology could benefit the health and well-being of patients. It also shows that the regulation of circadian rhythms is more complex than we suspected and presents avenues for investigating potential new treatments for metabolic diseases.”