Summary
This thesis investigated whether shared SCN histopathology underlies circadian dysfunction in mouse models of Rett syndrome, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and Huntington's disease, finding no common anatomical phenotype. This suggests that lighting and circadian interventions for these conditions may need to target disease-specific mechanisms rather than a shared SCN pathway.
Key Findings
- No common histoanatomical phenotype was observed in the SCN across mouse models of Rett syndrome, ASD, and Huntington's disease.
- Nissl staining revealed no gross morphological changes in SCN structure across the three models.
- Immunohistochemistry found no consistent loss of SCN neuropeptide-expressing neuron subpopulations, suggesting distinct underlying circadian disruption mechanisms per disease.
Categories
The Science of Light: Examines the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), the central circadian clock, for histopathological changes that could explain circadian dysfunction across neurological diseases.
Dementia & Elder Care: Investigates circadian disturbances in Huntington's disease, a neurodegenerative condition, at the level of SCN neuropeptide-expressing neuron populations.
Author(s)
ZA MacDowell Kaswan
Publication Year
2016
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
Dementia & Elder Care
- Light therapy and Alzheimer's disease and related dementia: past, present, and future
- New strategies for neuroprotection in glaucoma, a disease that affects the central nervous system
- Sleep and circadian rhythms in Parkinson's disease and preclinical models
- Chronobioengineering indoor lighting to enhance facilities for ageing and Alzheimer's disorder
- The clock is ticking. Ageing of the circadian system: from physiology to cell cycle