Summary
This study identifies teneurin-3 (Tenm3) as a key adhesion molecule regulating the connectivity between intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) and the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), the master circadian clock. Disruption of this molecule paradoxically increases light sensitivity and accelerates phase-advance re-entrainment, suggesting that SCN circuit architecture — specifically VIP-AVP neuron interactions — is a tunable parameter for circadian responsiveness with potential implications for jet lag and shift work interventions.
Key Findings
- Tenm3-/- mice show reduced ventro-medial M1 ipRGC axon innervation to the SCN compared to wild-type mice.
- Despite reduced ipRGC innervation, Tenm3-/- mice display higher sensitivity to light stimuli.
- Tenm3-/- mice re-entrain faster to phase-advancing light schedules, attributed to increased association between VIP and AVP neurons in the SCN.
- Tenm3 is highly expressed in VIP neurons in the SCN core and negatively regulates VIP-AVP neuron association.
Categories
The Science of Light: Investigates molecular mechanisms regulating ipRGC axon targeting to the SCN and how SCN circuit architecture affects light sensitivity and circadian entrainment.
Sleep & Circadian Health: Demonstrates that Tenm3 knockout mice show faster re-entrainment to phase advances and increased light sensitivity, directly relevant to circadian rhythm regulation.
Author(s)
JL Hunyara, KM Daly, K Torres, ME Yurgel
Publication Year
2023
Related Publications
The Science of Light
- Phototransduction by retinal ganglion cells that set the circadian clock
- Color appearance models
- The mammalian circadian timing system: organization and coordination of central and peripheral clocks
- Diminished pupillary light reflex at high irradiances in melanopsin-knockout mice
- Melanopsin is required for non-image-forming photic responses in blind mice
Sleep & Circadian Health
- Phototransduction by retinal ganglion cells that set the circadian clock
- The mammalian circadian timing system: organization and coordination of central and peripheral clocks
- The two‐process model of sleep regulation: a reappraisal
- Melanopsin is required for non-image-forming photic responses in blind mice
- Strange vision: ganglion cells as circadian photoreceptors