Circadian rhythms, metabolism, and chrononutrition in rodents and humans

Authors: JOHNSTON, JONATHAN - UNIVERSITY OF SURREY; ORDOVAS, JOSE - JEAN MAYER HUMAN NUTRITION RESEARCH CENTER ON AGING AT TUFTS UNIVERSITY; SCHEER, FRANK - HARVARD UNIVERSITY; TUREK, FRED - NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY

Submitted to: Advances in Nutrition
Publication Type: Review Article
Publication Acceptance Date: 1/1/2016
Publication Date: 3/15/2016
Citation: Johnston, J.D., Ordovas, J.M., Scheer, F.A., Turek, F.W. 2016. Circadian rhythms, metabolism, and chrononutrition in rodents and humans. Advances in Nutrition. doi: 10.3945/an.115.010777.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Chrononutrition is an emerging discipline that builds on the intimate relation between endogenous circadian (24-h) rhythms and metabolism. Circadian regulation of metabolic function can be observed from the level of intracellular biochemistry to whole-organism physiology and even postprandial responses. Recent work has elucidated the metabolic roles of circadian clocks in key metabolic tissues, including liver, pancreas, white adipose, and skeletal muscle. For example, tissue-specific clock disruption in a single peripheral organ can cause obesity or disruption of whole-organism glucose homeostasis. This review explains mechanistic insights gained from transgenic animal studies and how these data are being translated into the study of human genetics and physiology. The principles of chrononutrition have already been demonstrated to improve human weight loss and are likely to benefit the health of individuals with metabolic disease, as well as of the general population.