Identification of Brain Regions Activated with Arousal-Induced Clock Resetting in Female Mice

Abstract

The circadian clock in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the brain modulates many important biological functions on a 24 hour basis. These functions include sleeping and waking, alertness, hormone secretion, and many others. Together with a number of input and output pathways, the circadian clock assures that these body functions are properly phased with each other and with the external environment. Among the stimuli that can alter the phase of the clock relative to the external environment are light and the arousal state of the animal. We have chosen to look for neural pathways by which information associated with arousal might reach the SCN.