Circadian Rhythms

In Our Time: Science

BBC

History

4.5 • 1.4K Ratings

🗓️ 17 December 2015

⏱️ 48 minutes

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Summary

Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the evolution and role of Circadian Rhythms, the so-called body clock that influences an organism's daily cycle of physical, behavioural and mental changes. The rhythms are generated within organisms and also in response to external stimuli, mainly light and darkness. They are found throughout the living world, from bacteria to plants, fungi to animals and, in humans, are noticed most clearly in sleep patterns. With Russell Foster Professor of Circadian Neuroscience at the University of Oxford Debra Skene Professor of Neuroendocrinology at the University of Surrey And Steve Jones Emeritus Professor of Genetics at University College London.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Thank you for downloading this episode of In Our Time, for more details about in our time, and for our terms of use please go to BBC.co.uk.
0:08.0	UK.
0:09.0	I hope you enjoy the program.
0:11.0	Hello, Sir Cajun Rhythms are a biological version of a clock inside humans and all other animals
0:16.4	and they're in plants and quite possibly in almost every living cell and their origin
0:21.2	come afresh back to the beginning of life itself three and a half
0:24.4	billion years ago. These rhythms are a response to the most
0:27.7	predictable condition of life on earth that is dark at night and bright during
0:32.0	the day. For billions of years life has depended
0:34.7	on circadian rhythms to ensure the best use of daylight hours and to promote rest in
0:39.5	the darkness when cell repairs and memory adjustments can be carried out for the next day.
0:44.0	Daylight regulates the clock.
0:46.0	In modern times has been increased interest in the effect of artificial light on humans
0:50.0	and whether that can disrupt our circadian rhythms and disrupt our sleep with
0:54.0	grim consequences for health. With me to discuss circadian rhythms are
0:57.8	Russell Foster, the professor of circadian neuroscience at the University of Oxford, Deborah Skeen, Professor of Neure endocrinology at the
1:05.6	University of Surrey, and Steve Jones, a Marietus Professor of Genetics at University of
1:10.4	College London. Steve, Circadian Rhythms first. Well it's it's all in the name
1:16.3	Circadian almost a day and a circadian rhythm is any biological process on any level
1:22.4	from biochemistry to human behavior which has an approximately
1:26.3	24-hour timing mechanism and that's driven by what biologists call an internal oscillator
1:32.3	or clock for short, which can persist even in
	...

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