Exploring the Impact of the Biological Clock on Health and Disease
A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Biology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 April 2026 | Viewed by 902
Special Issue Editor
2. School of Health, Social Work and Sport, University of Central Lancashire, Preston, UK
Interests: metabolic syndrome; insulin resistance; obesity; tyep-2 diabetes; metabolic inflammation; chrononutrition; molecular nutrition
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The biological clock coordinates biochemical, physiological, and behavioural processes in every living organism. As Albert Einstein said, “The only reason for time is so that everything does not happen at once”. Internal timekeeping mechanisms both ensure the temporal separation of molecular events and respond accurately to environmental cues (zeitgebers).
The mammalian circadian clock has three distinct hierarchical levels: the central clock in the suprachiasmatic centre, the peripheral clocks of organs/tissues, and the clock gene system at the cellular level. While the role of photic zeitgebers in setting the biological rhythm has been widely investigated, non-photic zeitgebers, particularly dietary ingredients (nutrients and non-nutrients), have only begun to be researched.
Achieving a synchronized response is a crucial outcome of the circadian regulatory process. In a population of synchronized cells, the cellular response to different stimuli is more efficient than in asynchronized cells. The primary features of numerous non-communicable diseases involve the metabolic disarray resulting from cellular oxidative stresses, inflammatory responses, and metabolite handling. Consequently, understanding the role of circadian regulatory mechanisms in intracellular signalling is crucial for grasping how organisms interact with environmental cues in both health and disease.
This Special Issue of the International Journal of Molecular Sciences will showcase original research on the regulation of the mammalian circadian clock at various levels and its interaction with different zeitgebers, including endogenous and exogenous metabolites, with the potential application of chronobiology in medicine and human nutrition.
Topics of interest in this Special Issue include, but are not limited to, the following:
- The interaction of the master clock, peripheral clock, and clock genes with the endogenous and exogenous metabolites;
- The regulation of the circadian clock system, cellular synchrony, and molecular entrainment;
- The regulation of cell synchrony in different biological models by various stimuli including hormonal stimuli (melatonin, cortisol), nutritional stimuli, xenobiotics, drugs, toxins, etc.;
- The molecular pathways of clock genes in energy homeostasis, satiety and hunger–energy mechanisms, insulin resistance and diabetes, neurodegenerative diseases, ageing, and cancers;
- Biomarkers for the assessment of the state of the circadian rhythm at the three hierarchical levels.
In addition, review articles on the exploration of pharmacological and nutritional approaches targeting the circadian clock for the prevention and treatment of non-communicable diseases are also welcomed.
Dr. Bojlul Bahar
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- circadian rhythm
- inflammation
- oxidative stress
- energy balance
- metabolic syndrome
- ageing
- cancer
- diabetes
- obesity
- entrainment
- synchrony
- melatonin
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