Perturbation of the molecular clockwork in the SCN of non-obese diabetic mice prior to diabetes onset

ABSTRACT

Circadian disruption is associated with the development of diabetes. Non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice show abnormal diurnal profiles in energy balance and locomotor activity suggesting circadian misalignment. Therefore, we analyzed cFos and mPER1 as markers for rhythmic neuronal activity within the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of wildtype (WT) and non-diabetic (nNOD) as well as acutely diabetic NOD (dNOD) mice. cFos levels show a day/night difference in both WT and nNOD but not in dNOD. mPER1 levels did not show a day/night difference in both nNOD and dNOD. This suggests that disruption of SCN rhythmicity in NOD mice precedes the actual onset of diabetes.

KEYWORDS:

• Clock genes
• diabetes
• master clock molecular clockwork
• NOD
• photoentrainment

Acknowledgments

We thank David R. Weaver for providing the mPER1 antibody. We thank U. Mockenhaupt-Möller for technical support.

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of this article. The research of A.L.R., H.J.P, M.R. and V.B. is supported by the Ministry of Science and Research of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia (MIWF NRW), the German Federal Ministry of Health (BMG) and in part by a grant of the Federal Ministry for Research (BMBF) to the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD e.V.) and by a grant to M.R. by the Helmholtz Alliance with Universities (Imaging and Curing Environmental Metabolic Diseases, ICEMED).

Supplemental data

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