Clock Cycle
Clock Cycle - Related Videos
07:19
Clock Scan Protocol for Image Analysis: ImageJ Plugins
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Cited by 16 •
2017
This paper describes two novel ImageJ plugins for 'Clock Scan' image analysis. These plugins expand the functionality of the original visual basic 6 program and, most importantly, make the program available to a large research community by bundling it with the ImageJ free image analysis software package.
03:08
Embedding Drosophila Brain in a Matrix for Time-Lapse Imaging of the Circadian Clock Neurons
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2025
Source: Sabado, V., et al., Nagoshi, E. Single-cell Resolution Fluorescence Live Imaging of Drosophila Circadian Clocks in Larval Brain Culture. J. Vis. Exp. (2018). This video demonstrates the procedure to embed the Drosophila brain in a fibrin matrix, followed by time-lapse fluorescence imaging of circadian clock neurons to analyze rhythmic activity synchronized with light/dark cycles.
10:38
Monitoring Cell-autonomous Circadian Clock Rhythms of Gene Expression Using Luciferase Bioluminescence Reporters
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Cited by 78 •
2012
Circadian clocks function within individual cells, i.e., they are cell-autonomous. Here, we describe methods for generating cell-autonomous clock models using non-invasive, luciferase-based real-time bioluminescence technology. Reporter cells provide tractable, functional model systems for studying circadian biology.
10:06
Slice Preparation, Organotypic Tissue Culturing and Luciferase Recording of Clock Gene Activity in the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus
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Cited by 32 •
2011
The procedure of preparing slices containing the adult mouse hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), and a rapid way to culture the SCN tissue in organotypic culture condition, are reported. Further, the measurement of oscillatory clock gene protein expression using dynamic luciferase reporter technology is described.
10:41
Generation of Dispersed Presomitic Mesoderm Cell Cultures for Imaging of the Zebrafish Segmentation Clock in Single Cells
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Cited by 8 •
2014
Somitogenesis is a rhythmic developmental process that spatially patterns the body axis of vertebrate embryos. Previously, we developed transgenic zebrafish lines that use fluorescent reporters to observe the cyclic genes that drive this process. Here, we culture dispersed cells from these lines and image their oscillations over time in vitro.
FAQs
Periodic activation and repression create the rise-and-fall behavior needed for a recurring signal. When clock genes and proteins alternately promote and inhibit one another, the system can repeatedly shift between different molecular states instead of remaining fixed. Those repeating molecular states provide a basis for organizing downstream events, such as gene expression, within a biological schedule.
Light and darkness act as environmental timing cues that can synchronize an internal cycle. Synchronization aligns molecular timing with recurring conditions outside the body, helping biological events occur at suitable points in the daily environment. This relationship explains how an internally generated rhythm can remain coordinated with the day-night pattern rather than operating independently of it.
Clock cycles are relevant at both cellular and behavioral levels because the same timing principle can organize different outputs. At the cellular level, it relates to periodic gene expression; at the physiological level, to hormone release and metabolism; behaviorally, to sleep-wake patterns. Considering these levels together shows how timing links molecular activity with whole-organism function.
Researchers can compare recurring internal timing with environmental light-dark conditions. Agreement suggests synchronization between the biological oscillator and external cues, whereas a mismatch indicates that the internal schedule is not aligned with those conditions. This comparison is useful for studying how organisms coordinate molecular, physiological, and behavioral events with their surroundings.
When biological timing becomes disrupted, the consequences can extend beyond an altered schedule. Disrupted timing is associated with disease and with changed responses to treatment, making clock cycles relevant to both basic biology and health research. Examining these relationships can help identify whether inappropriate timing accompanies a condition or influences how an intervention affects biological processes.
By relating internal timing to treatment responses, clock-cycle research adds a temporal dimension to health studies. Disrupted biological timing is associated with altered responses to treatment, so researchers can examine whether timing-related changes accompany differences in outcomes. This perspective highlights why biological timing belongs in analyses of disease and treatment, even when no specific therapy is being considered.