Measuring and using light in the melanopsin age

Lucas, Robert J.; Peirson, Stuart N.; Berson, David M.; Brown, T. M.; Cooper, Howard M.; Czeisler, Charles A.; Figueiro, Mariana G.; Gamlin, Paul D.; Lockley, Steven W.; O’Hagan, John; Price, Luke; Provencio, Ignacio; Skene, Debra J.; Brainard, George C.

doi:10.1016/j.tins.2013.10.004

Cited by 997 publications

(1,099 citation statements)

References 74 publications

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“…Table 1. These computations were determined using the calculation toolbox of α-opic illuminance values for corneal spectral irradiance developed by Lucas et al [45]. These values are based on healthy human eyes (32 years old, dilated pupils, 7 mm).…”

Section: Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Non-image forming effects of illuminance level: Exploring parallel effects on physiological arousal and task performance

Huiberts

Smolders

Kort

2016

Physiology & Behavior

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This study investigated diurnal non-image forming (NIF) effects of illuminance level on physiological arousal in parallel to NIF effects on vigilance and working memory performance. We employed a counterbalanced within-subjects design in which thirty-nine participants (mean age = 21.2; SD = 2.1; 11 male) completed three 90-minute sessions (165 vs. 600 lux vs. 1700 lux at eye level) either in the morning (N=18) or afternoon (N=21).During each session, participants completed four measurement blocks (incl. one baseline block) each consisting of a 10-minute Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT) and a Backwards Digit-Span Task (BDST) including easy trials (4-6 digits) and difficult trials (7-8 digits).Heart rate (HR), skin conductance level (SCL) and systolic blood pressure (SBP) were measured continuously.The results revealed a significant improvement on the BDST difficult trials under 1700 lux vs. 165 lux (p = 0.01), while illuminance level did not affect performance on the PVT and BDST easy trials. Illuminance level impacted HR and SCL, but not SBP. In the afternoon sessions, HR was significantly higher under 1700 lux vs. 165 lux during PVT performance (p = 0.05), while during BDST performance, HR was only slightly higher under 600 vs. 165 lux (p = 0.06). SCL was significantly higher under 1700 lux vs. 165 lux during performance on BDST easy trials (p = 0.02) and showed similar, but nonsignificant trends during the PVT and BDST difficult trials. Although both physiology and performance were affected by illuminance level, no consistent pattern emerged with respect to parallel changes in physiology and performance. Rather, physiology and performance seem to be affected independently, via unique pathways.

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Section: Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Non-image forming effects of illuminance level: Exploring parallel effects on physiological arousal and task performance

Huiberts

Smolders

Kort

2016

Physiology & Behavior

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“…ipRGCs project to all major parts of the brain and are especially important for non visual responses, such as the expression of circadian rhythms, although rods and cones can also contribute to such responses. This specific set of ganglion cells decode light through the action of a particular opsin, melanopsin, termed Opn4 (Peirson et al 2009; Lucas et al 2014. In contrast to mammals, birds possess two different subclasses of melanopsins, Opn4x and Opn4m (Bellingham et al 2006 ).…”

Section: Avian Photoreceptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effects of light pollution on biological rhythms of birds: an integrated, mechanistic perspective

Dominoni

2015

J Ornithol

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Light pollution is considered a threat for biodiversity given the extent to which it can affect a vast number of behavioral and physiological processes in several species. This comes as no surprise as light is a fundamental, environmental cue through which organisms time their daily and seasonal activities, and alterations in the light environment have been found to affect profoundly the synchronization of the circadian clock, the endogenous mechanism that tracks and predicts variation in the external light/dark cycles. In this context, birds have been one of the most studied animal taxa, but our understanding of the effects of light pollution on the biological rhythms of avian species is mostly limited to behavioral responses. In order to understand which proximate mechanisms may be affected by artificial lights, we need an integrated perspective that focuses on light as a physiological signal, and especially on how photic information is perceived, decoded, and transmitted through the whole body. The aim of this review is to summarize the effects of light pollution on physiological and biochemical mechanisms that underlie changes in birds' behavior, highlighting the current gaps in our knowledge and proposing future research avenues.

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“…They also play a significant role in body homeostasis and in the temporal organization of biological responses with the changing environmental conditions [8,9]. Photoentrainment is a nonvisual photo-response mediated by intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) that contain the photopigment melanopsin [10]. The photoperiod signal is detected by ipRGCs and is propagated to the circadian clock in the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) through the retino hypothalamic tract.…”

Section: Circadian Regulationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Artificial light-at-night – a novel lifestyle risk factor for metabolic disorder and cancer morbidity

Zubidat

Haim

2017

Journal of Basic and Clinical Physiology and Pharmacology

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Both obesity and breast cancer are already recognized worldwide as the most common syndromes in our modern society. Currently, there is accumulating evidence from epidemiological and experimental studies suggesting that these syndromes are closely associated with circadian disruption. It has been suggested that melatonin (MLT) and the circadian clock genes both play an important role in the development of these syndromes. However, we still poorly understand the molecular mechanism underlying the association between circadian disruption and the modern health syndromes. One promising candidate is epigenetic modifications of various genes, including clock genes, circadian-related genes, oncogenes, and metabolic genes. DNA methylation is the most prominent epigenetic signaling tool for gene expression regulation induced by environmental exposures, such as artificial light-at-night (ALAN). In this review, we first provide an overview on the molecular feedback loops that generate the circadian regulation and how circadian disruption by ALAN can impose adverse impacts on public health, particularly metabolic disorders and breast cancer development. We then focus on the relation between ALAN-induced circadian disruption and both global DNA methylation and specific loci methylation in relation to obesity and breast cancer morbidities. DNA hypo-methylation and DNA hyper-methylation, are suggested as the most studied epigenetic tools for the activation and silencing of genes that regulate metabolic and monostatic responses. Finally, we discuss the potential clinical and therapeutic roles of MLT suppression and DNA methylation patterns as novel biomarkers for the early detection of metabolic disorders and breast cancer development.

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Measuring and using light in the melanopsin age

Cited by 997 publications

References 74 publications

Non-image forming effects of illuminance level: Exploring parallel effects on physiological arousal and task performance

Non-image forming effects of illuminance level: Exploring parallel effects on physiological arousal and task performance

The effects of light pollution on biological rhythms of birds: an integrated, mechanistic perspective

Artificial light-at-night – a novel lifestyle risk factor for metabolic disorder and cancer morbidity

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