Biological clock dysfunction exacerbates contact hypersensitivity in mice

Circadian Oscillations in Skin and Their Interconnection with the Cycle of Life

Periodically oscillating biological processes, such as circadian rhythms, are carefully concerted events that are only beginning to be understood in the context of tissue pathology and organismal health, as well as the molecular mechanisms underlying these interactions. Recent reports indicate that light can independently entrain peripheral circadian clocks, challenging the currently prevalent hierarchical model. Despite the recent progress that has been made, a comprehensive overview of these periodic processes in skin is lacking in the literature. In this review, molecular circadian clock machinery and the factors that govern it have been highlighted. Circadian rhythm is closely linked to immunological processes and skin homeostasis, and its desynchrony can be linked to the perturbation of the skin. The interplay between circadian rhythm and annual, seasonal oscillations, as well as the impact of these periodic events on the skin, is described. Finally, the changes that occur in the skin over a lifespan are presented. This work encourages further research into the oscillating biological processes occurring in the skin and lays the foundation for future strategies to combat the adverse effects of desynchrony, which would likely have implications in other tissues influenced by periodic oscillatory processes.

Vivarium Lighting as an Important Extrinsic Factor Influencing Animal-based Research

Light is an extrinsic factor that exerts widespread influence on the regulation of circadian, physiologic, hormonal, metabolic, and behavioral systems of all animals, including those used in research. These wide-ranging biologic effects of light are mediated by distinct photoreceptors, the melanopsin-containing intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells of the nonvisual system, which interact with the rods and cones of the conventional visual system. Here, we review the nature of light and circadian rhythms, current industry practices and standards, and our present understanding of the neurophysiology of the visual and nonvisual systems. We also consider the implications of this extrinsic factor for vivarium measurement, production, and technological application of light, and provide simple recommendations on artificial lighting for use by regulatory authorities, lighting manufacturers, designers, engineers, researchers, and research animal care staff that ensure best practices for optimizing animal health and wellbeing and, ultimately, improving scientific outcomes.

Skin microbiota of oxazolone-induced contact hypersensitivity mouse model

Contact allergy is a common skin allergy, which can be studied utilising contact hypersensitivity (CHS) animal model. However, it is not clear, whether CHS is a suitable model to investigate skin microbiota interactions. We characterised the effect of contact dermatitis on the skin microbiota and studied the biological effects of oxazolone (OXA) -induced inflammation on skin thickness, immune cell numbers and changes of the microbiota in CHS mouse model (n = 72) for 28 days. Through 16S rRNA gene sequencing we defined the composition of bacterial communities and associations of bacteria with inflammation. We observed that the vehicle solution of acetone and olive oil induced bacterial community changes on day 1, and OXA-induced changes were observed mainly on day 7. Many of the notably enriched bacteria present in the OXA-challenged positive group represented the genus Faecalibaculum which were most likely derived from the cage environment. Additionally, skin inflammation correlated negatively with Streptococcus, which is considered a native skin bacterium, and positively with Muribacter muris, which is typical in oral environment. Skin inflammation favoured colonisation of cage-derived faecal bacteria, and additionally mouse grooming transferred oral bacteria on the skin. Due to the observed changes, we conclude that CHS model could be used for certain skin microbiome-related research set-ups. However, since vehicle exposure can alter the skin microbiome as such, future studies should include considerations such as careful control sampling and statistical tests to account for potential confounding factors.

The Impact of Sleep Quality on Mood Status and Quality of Life in Patients with Alopecia Areata: A Comparative Study

Alopecia Areata (AA) is a chronic condition which has been associated with poor quality of life and mood status disturbances. The aim of this study is to compare the sleep quality between AA patients and controls, and to analyze the impact of poor sleep quality on patients with AA regarding mood status disturbances, quality of life and sexuality. A cross-sectional study including patients suffering from mild-to-severe AA and sex- and age-matched healthy controls was performed. Socio-demographic and clinical variables, sleep quality, quality of life, sexual disfunction, anxiety, depression and personality were collected using validated questionnaires. A total of 120 participants (60 patients and 60 controls) were included. Patients with AA showed worse sleep scores than controls (p = 0.003), as well as higher rates of anxiety and depression (p < 0.05). After a multivariate analysis, a worse sleep quality was found to be linked to anxiety, depression, a poorer quality of life and a type D personality score independently of the disease severity. In light of the results, patients with AA have a worse sleep quality than healthy controls. A poor sleep quality is associated with anxiety, depression and a worse quality of life, therefore being a general marker of a poor quality of life. Screening for sleep disturbances in specialized units could be useful to detect patients who could benefit from additional psychological support.

Circadian rhythm affects the magnitude of contact hypersensitivity response in mice

BACKGROUND

The circadian rhythm controls multiple biological processes, including immune responses; however, its impact on cutaneous adaptive immune response remains unclear.

METHODS

We used a well-established cutaneous type IV allergy model, contact hypersensitivity (CHS). We induced CHS using dinitrofluorobenzene (DNFB). Mice were sensitized and elicited with DNFB in the daytime or at night.

RESULTS

In mice, a nocturnally active animal, we found that ear swelling increased when mice were sensitized at night compared with in the daytime. In addition, cell proliferation and cytokine production in the draining lymph nodes (LNs) were promoted when sensitized at night. We hypothesized that these differences were due to the oscillation of leukocyte distribution in the body through the circadian production of adrenergic hormones. Administration of a β2-adrenergic receptor (β2AR) agonist salbutamol in the daytime decreased the number of immune cells in blood and increased the number of immune cells in LNs. In contrast, a β2AR antagonist ICI18551 administration at night increased the number of immune cells in blood and decreased the number of immune cells in LNs. Accordingly, the severity of CHS response was exacerbated by salbutamol administration in the daytime and attenuated by ICI18551 administration at night.

CONCLUSION

Our study demonstrated that the magnitude of adaptive CHS response depends on the circadian rhythm and this knowledge may improve the management of allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) in humans.

Lifestyle Factors Involved in the Pathogenesis of Alopecia Areata

Alopecia areata is a representative inflammatory skin disease that is associated with various environmental stimuli. While psychological stress is believed to be a major pathogenetic trigger in alopecia areata, infants and newborns also suffer from the disease, suggesting the possible presence of other environmental factors. Daily lifestyle is well known to be involved in various inflammatory diseases and influences the severity of inflammatory skin diseases. However, only a limited number of studies have summarized these influences on alopecia areata. In this review article, we summarize lifestyle factor-related influences on the pathogenesis of alopecia areata and focus on environmental factors, such as smoking, alcohol consumption, sleep, obesity, fatty acids, and gluten consumption.

Potential effects of shift work on skin autoimmune diseases

Shift work is associated with systemic chronic inflammation, impaired host and tumor defense and dysregulated immune responses to harmless antigens such as allergens or auto-antigens. Thus, shift workers are at higher risk to develop a systemic autoimmune disease and circadian disruption with sleep impairment seem to be the key underlying mechanisms. Presumably, disturbances of the sleep-wake cycle also drive skin-specific autoimmune diseases, but epidemiological and experimental evidence so far is scarce. This review summarizes the effects of shift work, circadian misalignment, poor sleep, and the effect of potential hormonal mediators such as stress mediators or melatonin on skin barrier functions and on innate and adaptive skin immunity. Human studies as well as animal models were considered. We will also address advantages and potential pitfalls in animal models of shift work, and possible confounders that could drive skin autoimmune diseases in shift workers such as adverse lifestyle habits and psychosocial influences. Finally, we will outline feasible countermeasures that may reduce the risk of systemic and skin autoimmunity in shift workers, as well as treatment options and highlight outstanding questions that should be addressed in future studies.

The circadian clock and diseases of the skin

Organisms have an evolutionarily conserved internal rhythm that helps them anticipate and adapt to daily changes in the environment. Synchronized to the light-dark cycle with a period of around 24 hours, the timing of the circadian clock is set by light-triggering signals sent from the retina to the suprachiasmatic nucleus. Other inputs, including food intake, exercise, and temperature, also affect clocks in peripheral tissues, including skin. Here, we review the intricate interplay between the core clock network and fundamental physiological processes in skin such as homeostasis, regeneration, and immune- and stress responses. We illustrate the effect of feeding time on the skin circadian clock and skin functions, a previously overlooked area of research. We then discuss works that relate the circadian clock and its disruption to skin diseases, including skin cancer, sunburn, hair loss, aging, infections, inflammatory skin diseases, and wound healing. Finally, we highlight the promise of circadian medicine for skin disease prevention and management.

The Impact of the Circadian Clock on Skin Physiology and Cancer Development

Skin cancers are growing in incidence worldwide and are primarily caused by exposures to ultraviolet (UV) wavelengths of sunlight. UV radiation induces the formation of photoproducts and other lesions in DNA that if not removed by DNA repair may lead to mutagenesis and carcinogenesis. Though the factors that cause skin carcinogenesis are reasonably well understood, studies over the past 10–15 years have linked the timing of UV exposure to DNA repair and skin carcinogenesis and implicate a role for the body’s circadian clock in UV response and disease risk. Here we review what is known about the skin circadian clock, how it affects various aspects of skin physiology, and the factors that affect circadian rhythms in the skin. Furthermore, the molecular understanding of the circadian clock has led to the development of small molecules that target clock proteins; thus, we discuss the potential use of such compounds for manipulating circadian clock-controlled processes in the skin to modulate responses to UV radiation and mitigate cancer risk.

Daily Lifestyle and Inflammatory Skin Diseases

Throughout life, it is necessary to adapt to the Earth’s environment in order to survive. A typical example of this is that the daily Earth cycle is different from the circadian rhythm in human beings; however, the ability to adapt to the Earth cycle has contributed to the development of human evolution. In addition, humans can consume and digest Earth-derived foods and use luxury materials for nutrition and enrichment of their lives, as an adaptation to the Earth’s environment. Recent studies have shown that daily lifestyles are closely related to human health; however, less attention has been paid to the fact that obesity due to excessive energy intake, smoking, and alcohol consumption contributes to the development of inflammatory skin diseases. Gluten or wheat protein, smoking and alcohol, sleep disturbance, and obesity drive the helper T (Th)1/Th2/Th17 immune response, whereas dietary fiber and omega-3 fatty acids negatively regulate inflammatory cytokine production. In this review, we have focused on daily lifestyles and the mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of inflammatory skin diseases.

Effects of constant light exposure on allergic and irritant contact dermatitis in mice reared under constant light conditions

Environmental light levels can affect physiological functions, such as general activity, body temperature and metabolism. Irregular lifestyles, such as those involving exposure to light during the night, can exacerbate the clinical symptoms of several inflammatory skin diseases. However, the effects of constant light exposure on immune responses are not fully understood. This study aimed to elucidate the effects of constant light exposure on two major types of skin reactions, allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) and irritant contact dermatitis (ICD). BALB/c mice were kept under constant light conditions or a normal light and dark cycle, and their ACD and ICD responses were assessed after the topical application of 2,4,6-trinitro-1-chlorobenzene and croton oil, respectively, to the ear skin. Interestingly, in both ACD and ICD, the ear-swelling response and local leukocyte infiltration were aggravated by constant exposure to light, which has previously been shown to severely disturb the behavioural rhythms of mice. In ACD, these findings were accompanied by increases in the numbers of degranulated mast cells and eosinophils. These results suggest that constant light exposure intensifies allergic and non-allergic skin inflammation.

Glucocorticoids Regulate Circadian Rhythm of Innate and Adaptive Immunity

Animals have evolved circadian rhythms to adapt to the 24-h day-night cycle. Circadian rhythms are controlled by molecular clocks in the brain and periphery, which is driven by clock genes. The circadian rhythm is propagated from the brain to the periphery by nerves and hormones. Glucocorticoids (GCs) are a class of steroid hormones produced by the adrenal cortex under the control of the circadian rhythm and the stress. GCs have both positive and negative effects on the immune system. Indeed, they are well known for their strong anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive effects. Endogenous GCs inhibit the expression of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines at the active phase of mice, regulating the circadian rhythm of tissue inflammation. In addition, GCs induce the rhythmic expression of IL-7R and CXCR4 on T cells, which supports T cell maintenance and homing to lymphoid tissues. Clock genes and adrenergic neural activity control the T cell migration and immune response. Taken together, circadian factors shape the diurnal oscillation of innate and adaptive immunity. Among them, GCs participate in the circadian rhythm of innate and adaptive immunity by positive and negative effects.

Circadian Regulation of the Biology of Allergic Disease: Clock Disruption Can Promote Allergy

Allergic diseases such as allergic rhinitis, asthma, atopic dermatitis, and food allergy are characterized by epithelial barrier dysfunction and deregulated immune responses. Components of the circadian clock interact with critical elements of epithelial barrier function and immune responses, and regulate the biological processes on a 24-h cycle at steady state. This may represent an anticipatory defense response to day-night fluctuation of attack by noxious stimuli such as pathogens in the environment. This review will summarize clock control of epithelial barrier function and immune responses associated with allergic disease and offer novel insights and opportunities into how clock dysfunction impacts allergic disease. Importantly, perturbation of normal clock activity by genetic and environmental disturbances, such as chronic light cycle perturbations or irregular eating habits, deregulates epithelial barrier function and immune responses. This implies that the circadian clock is strongly linked to the fundamental biology of allergic disease, and that clock disruption can precipitate allergic disease by altering the epithelial barrier and immune functions. Given that contemporary lifestyles often involve chronic circadian disruptions such as shift work, we propose that lifestyle or therapeutic interventions that align the endogenous circadian clock with environmental cycles should be a part of the efforts to prevent or treat allergic disease in modern society.

Night shift work surrounding pregnancy and offspring risk of atopic disease

BACKGROUND

Night shift work surrounding pregnancy may contribute to the risk of developing atopic diseases in offspring due to alterations in the prenatal environment, from stress.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the association of maternal night shift work surrounding pregnancy and offspring risk of developing atopic diseases from childhood to adolescence.

METHODS

We examined the association between night shift work before and during pregnancy among 4,044 mothers in the Nurses' Health Study II (NHSII) and atopic dermatitis, asthma and hay fever risk in 4,813 of their offspring enrolled in the Growing Up Today Study (GUTS). Mothers reported whether GUTS participants had ever been diagnosed with atopic dermatitis, asthma or hay fever in the GUTS Mothers' questionnaire. Generalized estimating equation regression models were used to estimate multivariable adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

RESULTS

There were no significant associations between pre-conception maternal night shift work and risk of atopic dermatitis, asthma or hay fever in their offspring. Among 545 mothers with information on night shift work during pregnancy, shift work also was not associated with atopic dermatitis, asthma or hay fever in the offspring. Stratified analyses by history of parental atopy and maternal chronotype showed some statistically significant findings, but they were inconsistent and no significant interaction was seen with increasing duration of night shift work.

CONCLUSION

In this study, night shift work before and during pregnancy did not increase offspring risk of developing atopic dermatitis, asthma or hay fever.

Atopic Dermatitis: Identification and Management of Complicating Factors

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic relapsing inflammatory skin disease, associated with impaired skin barrier function and an atopic background. Various complicating factors, such as irritants, aeroallergens, food, microbial organisms, contact allergens, sweat, and scratching can induce the development of AD symptoms. Irritants, including soap/shampoo and clothes, can cause itching and eczematous lesions. In addition, young children with AD tend to become sensitized to eggs, milk, or peanuts, while older children and adults more often become sensitized to environmental allergens, such as house dust mites (HDM), animal dander, or pollen. Serum-specific IgE levels and skin prick test reactions to food tend to show high negative predictive values and low specificity and positive predictive values for diagnosing food allergy. On the other hand, AD adult patients tend to have severe skin symptoms and exhibit high HDM-specific IgE levels. Microbial organisms, e.g., Staphylococcus aureus and Malassezia furfur, might contribute to the pathogenetic mechanisms of AD. While sweat plays a major role in maintaining skin homeostasis, it can become an aggravating factor in patients with AD. Furthermore, scratching often exacerbates eczematous lesions. Several patient-specific complicating factors are seen in most cases. The identification and management of complicating factors are important for controlling AD.

Circadian control of interferon-sensitive gene expression in murine skin

The circadian clock coordinates a variety of immune responses with signals from the external environment to promote survival. We investigated the potential reciprocal relationship between the circadian clock and skin inflammation. We treated mice topically with the Toll-like receptor 7 (TLR7) agonist imiquimod (IMQ) to activate IFN-sensitive gene (ISG) pathways and induce psoriasiform inflammation. IMQ transiently altered core clock gene expression, an effect mirrored in human patient psoriatic lesions. In mouse skin 1 d after IMQ treatment, ISGs, including the key ISG transcription factor IFN regulatory factor 7 (Irf7), were more highly induced after treatment during the day than the night. Nuclear localization of phosphorylated-IRF7 was most prominently time-of-day dependent in epidermal leukocytes, suggesting that these cell types play an important role in the diurnal ISG response to IMQ. Mice lacking Bmal1 systemically had exacerbated and arrhythmic ISG/Irf7 expression after IMQ. Furthermore, daytime-restricted feeding, which affects the phase of the skin circadian clock, reverses the diurnal rhythm of IMQ-induced ISG expression in the skin. These results suggest a role for the circadian clock, driven by BMAL1, as a negative regulator of the ISG response, and highlight the finding that feeding time can modulate the skin immune response. Since the IFN response is essential for the antiviral and antitumor effects of TLR activation, these findings are consistent with the time-of-day-dependent variability in the ability to fight microbial pathogens and tumor initiation and offer support for the use of chronotherapy for their treatment.

Effects of light at night on laboratory animals and research outcomes

Light has substantial influences on the physiology and behavior of most laboratory animals. As such, lighting conditions within animal rooms are potentially significant and often underappreciated variables within experiments. Disruption of the light/dark cycle, primarily by exposing animals to light at night (LAN), disturbs biological rhythms and has widespread physiological consequences because of mechanisms such as melatonin suppression, sympathetic stimulation, and altered circadian clock gene expression. Thus, attention to the lighting environment of laboratory animals and maintaining consistency of a light/dark cycle is imperative for study reproducibility. Light intensity, as well as wavelength, photoperiod, and timing, are all important variables. Although modern rodent facilities are designed to facilitate appropriate light cycling, there are simple ways to modify rooms to prevent extraneous light exposure during the dark period. Attention to lighting conditions of laboratory animals by both researchers and research care staff ensures best practices for maintaining animal welfare, as well as reproducibility of research results. (PsycINFO Database Record

The Circadian Clock Drives Mast Cell Functions in Allergic Reactions

Allergic diseases are known to vary in the severity of their symptoms throughout the day/night cycle. This rhythmicity is also observed in mast cell function and responsiveness. Mast cells are key effector cells of allergic reactions and release cytokines, chemokines, and important inflammatory mediators such as histamine, which have been shown to display diurnal variation. Recent research clarified that mast cells are controlled by their internal clock-which is regulated by a specific set of clock genes-as well as external factors such as light sensed by the suprachiasmatic nuclei, hormonal status, or diet. Here, we give an overview of the connections between circadian clock, mast cells, and allergic disease. Further work aimed at studying the role of chronotherapy/chronomedicine should take into account this rhythmic nature of not only mast cells but also the immune responses generated by mast cell signaling.

Asymmetric expression level of clock genes in left vs. right nasal mucosa in humans with and without allergies and in rats: Circadian characteristics and possible contribution to nasal cycle

Numerous peripheral tissues possess self-sustaining daily biologic rhythms that are regulated at the molecular level by clock genes such as PER1, PER2, CLOCK, and BMAL1. Physiological function of nasal mucosa exhibits rhythmic variability to a day-night environmental cycle. Nevertheless, little is known of the expression and distribution pattern of clock genes in nasal mucosa. The present study investigates the expression level and distribution pattern of PER1, PER2, CLOCK, and BMAL1 genes in nasal mucosa of healthy controls, allergic rhinitis patients, and normal rats. In human and rat nasal mucosa, the levels of these genes are asymmetrically expressed in nasal mucosa derived from right and left cavities in normal controls, allergic patients, and rat. In human nasal mucosa, the expression levels of these genes were higher in the decongested side than the congested mucosa. In rat nasal mucosa, these clock genes are expressed in a rhythmic circadian manner under the regular light/dark cycles. The expression levels of MUC5AC, a key mucin genes produced in superficial epithelium, are higher in decongested side than that congested side in human nasal mucosa. In rat nasal mucosa, MUC5AC levels showed a circadian rhythm which was associated with different expression levels in nasal mucosa derived from the right and left nasal cavities. Taken together with these results, the present study shows that the clock genes such as PER1, PER2, CLOCK, and BMAL1 are present in human and rat nasal mucosa, and suggest that these clock genes may control the pathophysiological function of nasal mucosa as circadian oscillators and affect the maintenance of the nasal cycle.

Biological clocks: their relevance to immune-allergic diseases

The 2017 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine, awarded for the discoveries made in the past 15 years on the genetic and molecular mechanisms regulating many physiological functions, has renewed the attention to the importance of circadian rhythms. These originate from a central pacemaker in the suprachiasmatic nucleus in the brain, photoentrained via direct connection with melanopsin containing, intrinsically light-sensitive retinal ganglion cells, and it projects to periphery, thus creating an inner circadian rhythm. This regulates several activities, including sleep, feeding times, energy metabolism, endocrine and immune functions. Disturbances of these rhythms, mainly of wake/sleep, hormonal secretion and feeding, cause decrease in quality of life, as well as being involved in development of obesity, metabolic syndrome and neuropsychiatric disorders. Most immunological functions, from leukocyte numbers, activity and cytokine secretion undergo circadian variations, which might affect susceptibility to infections. The intensity of symptoms and disease severity show a 24 h pattern in many immunological and allergic diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, bronchial asthma, atopic eczema and chronic urticaria. This is accompanied by altered sleep duration and quality, a major determinant of quality of life. Shift work and travel through time zones as well as artificial light pose new health threats by disrupting the circadian rhythms. Finally, the field of chronopharmacology uses these concepts for delivering drugs in synchrony with biological rhythms.

Expression profiles and functional annotation analysis of mRNAs in suprachiasmatic nucleus of Clock mutant mice

The core circadian clock gene, Clock, is a positive component of the transcription/translation feedback loop in the master pacemaker suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) in mammals. The robust daytime peak of some clock genes in the wild-type SCN is absent in Clock mutant mice. However, very little is known about the impact of Clock mutation on the expression of other functional genes in SCN. Here, we performed cDNA microarray and found 799 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) at zeitgeber time 2 (ZT2) and 1289 DEGs at ZT14 in SCN of Clock^△19/△19 mutant mice. KEGG pathway analysis showed that the changed mRNAs were highly associated with hedgehog signaling pathway, retinol metabolism, allograft rejection, drug metabolism, hematopoietic cell lineage and neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction. The top 14 and 71 hub genes were identified from the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network at ZT2 and ZT14, respectively. The sub-networks revealed hub genes were involved in olfactory transduction and neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction pathways. These results demonstrate the Clock^△19/△19 mutation alters the expression of various genes involved in a wide spectrum of biological function in mouse SCN, which are helpful for better understanding the function of Clock and potential regulatory mechanisms.

TIMP3 is a CLOCK-dependent diurnal gene that inhibits the expression of UVB-induced inflammatory cytokines in human keratinocytes

As the outermost physical barrier of an organism, the skin is diurnally exposed to UV radiation (UVR). Recent studies have revealed that the skin exhibits a circadian rhythm in various functions, and this oscillation is disturbed and reset via a strong environmental cue, the UVR. However, a molecular link between circadian perturbation by UVR and UVR-induced cellular responses has not been investigated. We identified tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase (TIMP)-3 as a novel circadian locomotor output cycles kaput (CLOCK)–dependent diurnal gene by using a CLOCK-knockdown strategy in human keratinocytes. Among dozens of identified transcripts down-regulated by CLOCK knockdown, TIMP3 displayed a rhythmic expression in a CLOCK-dependent manner, in which the expression of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-1 and inflammatory cytokines, such as TNF-α, chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand (CXCL)-1, and IL-8, were inversely regulated. Upon UVB exposure, the expression of CLOCK and TIMP3 was down-regulated, which led to an up-regulation of secretion of MMP1 and TNF-α proteins and in the transcription of CXCL1 and IL-8via CCAAT-enhancer binding protein (C/EBP)-α. UVB-induced TNF-α secretion increased further or decreased by knockdown or overexpression of TIMP3, respectively, as well as by CLOCK. As a novel CLOCK-dependent diurnal gene, TIMP3 inhibits the expression of inflammatory cytokines that are up-regulated by UV irradiation in human keratinocytes. Thus, our work suggests a molecular link between circadian perturbation by UVR and UVR-induced inflammation.—Park, S., Kim, K., Bae, I.-H., Lee, S. H., Jung, J., Lee, T. R., Cho, E.-G. TIMP3 is a CLOCK-dependent diurnal gene that inhibits the expression of UVB-induced inflammatory cytokines in human keratinocytes.

The circadian protein BMAL1 in myeloid cells is a negative regulator of allergic asthma

Our body clock drives rhythms in the expression of genes that have a 24-h periodicity. The transcription factor BMAL1 is a crucial component of the molecular clock. A number of physiological processes, including immune function, are modulated by the circadian clock. Asthma, a disease with very strong clinical evidence demonstrating regulation by circadian variation, is of particular relevance to circadian control of immunity. Airway hypersensitivity and asthma attacks are more common at night in humans. The molecular basis for this is unknown, and there is no model of asthma in animals with genetic distortion of the molecular clock. We used mice lacking BMAL1 in myeloid cells (BMAL1-LysM-/-) to determine the role of BMAL1 in allergic asthma. Using the ovalbumin model of allergic asthma, we demonstrated markedly increased asthma features, such as increased lung inflammation, demonstrated by drastically higher numbers of eosinophils and increased IL-5 levels in the lung and serum, in BMAL1-LysM-/- mice. In vitro studies demonstrated increased proinflammatory chemokine and mannose receptor expression in IL-4- as well as LPS-treated macrophages from BMAL1-LysM-/- mice compared with wild-type controls. This suggests that Bmal1 is a potent negative regulator in myeloid cells in the context of allergic asthma. Our findings might explain the increase in asthma incidents during the night, when BMAL1 expression is low.

Constant light exposure impairs immune tolerance development in mice

BACKGROUND

An intrinsic daily physiological rhythm called circadian rhythm has been indicated to affect the immune system and its related diseases. Immune tolerance development is closely associated with the onset of immunological disorders. However, the effect of circadian rhythm in the mechanisms of immune tolerance development has not yet been fully understood.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of circadian rhythm disruption on the development of immune tolerance by the perturbation of light environment, using a mouse model of neonatally induced cutaneous tolerance.

METHODS

Mice were kept under constant light (LL) or light-dark (LD) conditions, and hapten was applied at 2days after birth. Six weeks later, hapten was reapplied to abdominal skin, followed by hapten application to ear skin 5days later.

RESULTS

The ear-swelling responses and cell infiltration into inflamed skin significantly increased in LL mice compared with those in LD mice. Interestingly, the percentage and the number of Foxp3+-regulatory T cells notably decreased in inflamed skin and draining lymph nodes of LL mice compared with that in LD mice. Loss-of-function mutation of a key circadian gene, Bmal1, also exacerbated the ear-swelling responses and cell infiltration into inflamed skin in mice.

CONCLUSION

These results suggest that circadian rhythm may be implicated in immune tolerance development in allergic inflammation.

The mammalian circadian clock and its entrainment by stress and exercise

The mammalian circadian clock regulates day-night fluctuations in various physiological processes. The circadian clock consists of the central clock in the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the hypothalamus and peripheral clocks in peripheral tissues. External environmental cues, including light/dark cycles, food intake, stress, and exercise, provide important information for adjusting clock phases. This review focuses on stress and exercise as potent entrainment signals for both central and peripheral clocks, especially in regard to the timing of stimuli, types of stressors/exercises, and differences in the responses of rodents and humans. We suggest that the common signaling pathways of clock entrainment by stress and exercise involve sympathetic nervous activation and glucocorticoid release. Furthermore, we demonstrate that physiological responses to stress and exercise depend on time of day. Therefore, using exercise to maintain the circadian clock at an appropriate phase and amplitude might be effective for preventing obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.

Implications of circadian rhythm and stress in addiction vulnerability

In the face of chronic stress, some individuals can maintain normal function while others go on to develop mental illness. Addiction, affecting one in every twelve people in America, is a substance use disorder long associated with stressful life events and disruptions in the sleep/wake cycle. The circadian and stress response systems have evolved to afford adaptability to environmental changes and allow for maintenance of functional stability, or homeostasis. This mini-review will discuss how circadian rhythms and stress individually affect drug response, affect each other, and how their interactions may regulate reward-related behavior. In particular, we will focus on the interactions between the circadian clock and the regulation of glucocorticoids by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. Determining how these two systems act on dopaminergic reward circuitry may not only reveal the basis for vulnerability to addiction, but may also illuminate potential therapeutic targets for future investigation.

Antigen exposure in the late light period induces severe symptoms of food allergy in an OVA-allergic mouse model

The mammalian circadian clock controls many physiological processes that include immune responses and allergic reactions. Several studies have investigated the circadian regulation of intestinal permeability and tight junctions known to be affected by cytokines. However, the contribution of circadian clock to food allergy symptoms remains unclear. Therefore, we investigated the role of the circadian clock in determining the severity of food allergies. We prepared an ovalbumin food allergy mouse model, and orally administered ovalbumin either late in the light or late in the dark period under light-dark cycle. The light period group showed higher allergic diarrhea and weight loss than the dark period group. The production of type 2 cytokines, IL-13 and IL-5, from the mesenteric lymph nodes and ovalbumin absorption was higher in the light period group than in the dark period group. Compared to the dark period group, the mRNA expression levels of the tight junction proteins were lower in the light period group. We have demonstrated that increased production of type 2 cytokines and intestinal permeability in the light period induced severe food allergy symptoms. Our results suggest that the time of food antigen intake might affect the determination of the severity of food allergy symptoms.

Circadian Gene Clock Regulates Psoriasis-Like Skin Inflammation in Mice

There are several reports suggesting that the pathophysiology of psoriasis may be associated with aberrant circadian rhythms. However, the mechanistic link between psoriasis and the circadian time-keeping system, “the circadian clock,” remains unclear. This study determined whether the core circadian gene, Clock, had a regulatory role in the development of psoriasis. For this purpose, we compared the development of psoriasis-like skin inflammation induced by the Toll-like receptor 7 ligand imiquimod (IMQ) between wild-type mice and mice with a loss-of-function mutation of Clock. We also compared the development of IMQ-induced dermatitis between wild-type mice and mice with a loss-of-function mutation of Period2 (Per2), another key circadian gene that inhibits CLOCK activity. We found that Clock mutation ameliorated IMQ-induced dermatitis, whereas the Per2 mutation exaggerated IMQ-induced dermatitis, when compared with wild-type mice associated with decreased or increased IL-23 receptor (IL-23R) expression in γ/δ⁺ T cells, respectively. In addition, CLOCK directly bound to the promoter of IL-23R in γ/δ⁺ T cells, and IL-23R expression in the mouse skin was under circadian control. These findings suggest that Clock is a novel regulator of psoriasis-like skin inflammation in mice via direct modulation of IL-23R expression in γ/δ⁺ T cells, establishing a mechanistic link between psoriasis and the circadian clock.

Circadian Clocks in the Immune System

The immune system is a complex set of physiological mechanisms whose general aim is to defend the organism against non-self-bodies, such as pathogens (bacteria, viruses, parasites), as well as cancer cells. Circadian rhythms are endogenous 24-h variations found in virtually all physiological processes. These circadian rhythms are generated by circadian clocks, located in most cell types, including cells of the immune system. This review presents an overview of the clocks in the immune system and of the circadian regulation of the function of immune cells. Most immune cells express circadian clock genes and present a wide array of genes expressed with a 24-h rhythm. This has profound impacts on cellular functions, including a daily rhythm in the synthesis and release of cytokines, chemokines and cytolytic factors, the daily gating of the response occurring through pattern recognition receptors, circadian rhythms of cellular functions such as phagocytosis, migration to inflamed or infected tissue, cytolytic activity, and proliferative response to antigens. Consequently, alterations of circadian rhythms (e.g., clock gene mutation in mice or environmental disruption similar to shift work) lead to disturbed immune responses. We discuss the implications of these data for human health and the areas that future research should aim to address.

The circadian clock in skin: implications for adult stem cells, tissue regeneration, cancer, aging, and immunity

Historically, work on peripheral circadian clocks has been focused on organs and tissues that have prominent metabolic functions, such as the liver, fat, and muscle. In recent years, skin has emerged as a model for studying circadian clock regulation of cell proliferation, stem cell functions, tissue regeneration, aging, and carcinogenesis. Morphologically, skin is complex, containing multiple cell types and structures, and there is evidence for a functional circadian clock in most, if not all, of its cell types. Despite the complexity, skin stem cell populations are well defined, experimentally tractable, and exhibit prominent daily cell proliferation cycles. Hair follicle stem cells also participate in recurrent, long-lasting cycles of regeneration: the hair growth cycles. Among other advantages of skin is a broad repertoire of available genetic tools enabling the creation of cell type-specific circadian mutants. Also, due to the accessibility of skin, in vivo imaging techniques can be readily applied to study the circadian clock and its outputs in real time, even at the single-cell level. Skin provides the first line of defense against many environmental and stress factors that exhibit dramatic diurnal variations such as solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation and temperature. Studies have already linked the circadian clock to the control of UVB-induced DNA damage and skin cancers. Due to the important role that skin plays in the defense against microorganisms, it also represents a promising model system to further explore the role of the clock in the regulation of the body's immune functions. To that end, recent studies have already linked the circadian clock to psoriasis, one of the most common immune-mediated skin disorders. Skin also provides opportunities to interrogate the clock regulation of tissue metabolism in the context of stem cells and regeneration. Furthermore, many animal species feature prominent seasonal hair molt cycles, offering an attractive model for investigating the role of the clock in seasonal organismal behaviors.

Feeding and adrenal entrainment stimuli are both necessary for normal circadian oscillation of peripheral clocks in mice housed under different photoperiods

The mammalian circadian rhythm is entrained by multiple factors, including the light-dark cycle, the organism's feeding pattern and endocrine hormones such as glucocorticoids. Both a central clock (the suprachiasmatic nucleus, or SCN) and peripheral clocks (i.e. in the liver and lungs) in mice are entrained by photoperiod. However, the factors underlying entrainment signals from the SCN to peripheral clocks are not well known. To elucidate the role of entrainment factors such as corticosterone and feeding, we examined whether peripheral clock rhythms were impaired by adrenalectomy (ADX) and/or feeding of 6 meals per day at equal intervals under short-day, medium-day and long-day photoperiods (SP, MP and LP, respectively). We evaluated the waveform and phase of circadian rhythms in the liver, kidney and salivary gland by in vivo imaging of PER2::LUCIFERASE knock-in mice. In intact mice, the waveforms of the peripheral clocks were similar among all photoperiods. The phases of peripheral clocks were well adjusted by the timing of the "lights-off"-operated evening (E) oscillator but not the "lights-on"-operated morning (M) oscillator. ADX had almost no effect on the rhythmicity and phase of peripheral clocks, regardless of photoperiod. To reduce the feeding-induced signal, we placed mice on a restricted feeding regimen with 6 meals per day (6 meals RF). This caused advances of the peripheral clock phase in LP-housed mice (2-5 h) and MP-housed mice (1-2 h) but not SP-housed mice. Thus, feeding pattern may affect the phase of peripheral clocks, depending on photoperiod. More specifically, ADX + 6 meals RF mice showed impairment of circadian rhythms in the kidney and liver but not in the salivary gland, regardless of photoperiod. However, the impairment of peripheral clocks observed in ADX + 6 meals RF mice was reversed by administration of dexamethasone for 3 days. The phase differences in the salivary gland clock among SP-, MP- and LP-housed mice became very small following treatment with ADX + 6 meals RF, suggesting that the effect of photoperiod was reduced by ADX and 6 meals RF. Because the SCN rhythm (as evaluated by PER2 immunohistochemistry) was not disrupted by ADX + 6 meals RF, impairment of peripheral clocks in these mice was not because of impaired SCN clock function. In addition, locomotor activity rhythm and modifications of the feeding pattern may not be completely responsible for determining the phase of peripheral clocks. Thus, this study demonstrates that the phase of peripheral clocks responds to a photoperiodic lights-off signal, and suggests that signals from normal feeding patterns and the adrenal gland are necessary to maintain the oscillation and phase of peripheral clocks under various photoperiods.

A meeting of two chronobiological systems: circadian proteins Period1 and BMAL1 modulate the human hair cycle clock

The hair follicle (HF) is a continuously remodeled mini organ that cycles between growth (anagen), regression (catagen), and relative quiescence (telogen). As the anagen-to-catagen transformation of microdissected human scalp HFs can be observed in organ culture, it permits the study of the unknown controls of autonomous, rhythmic tissue remodeling of the HF, which intersects developmental, chronobiological, and growth-regulatory mechanisms. The hypothesis that the peripheral clock system is involved in hair cycle control, i.e., the anagen-to-catagen transformation, was tested. Here we show that in the absence of central clock influences, isolated, organ-cultured human HFs show circadian changes in the gene and protein expression of core clock genes (CLOCK, BMAL1, and Period1) and clock-controlled genes (c-Myc, NR1D1, and CDKN1A), with Period1 expression being hair cycle dependent. Knockdown of either BMAL1 or Period1 in human anagen HFs significantly prolonged anagen. This provides evidence that peripheral core clock genes modulate human HF cycling and are an integral component of the human hair cycle clock. Specifically, our study identifies BMAL1 and Period1 as potential therapeutic targets for modulating human hair growth.

Contact hypersensitivity to oxazolone provokes vulvar mechanical hyperalgesia in mice

The interplay among pain, allergy and dysregulated inflammation promises to yield significant conceptual advances in immunology and chronic pain. Hapten-mediated contact hypersensitivity reactions are used to model skin allergies in rodents but have not been utilized to study associated changes in pain perception in the affected skin. Here we characterized changes in mechanical hyperalgesia in oxazolone-sensitized female mice challenged with single and repeated labiar skin exposure to oxazolone. Female mice were sensitized with topical oxazolone on their flanks and challenged 1-3 times on the labia. We then measured mechanical sensitivity of the vulvar region with an electronic pressure meter and evaluated expression of inflammatory genes, leukocyte influx and levels of innervation in the labiar tissue. Oxazolone-sensitized mice developed vulvar mechanical hyperalgesia after a single labiar oxazolone challenge. Hyperalgesia lasted up to 24 hours along with local influx of neutrophils, upregulation of inflammatory cytokine gene expression, and increased density of cutaneous labiar nerve fibers. Three daily oxazolone challenges produced vulvar mechanical hyperalgesic responses and increases in nerve density that were detectable up to 5 days post-challenge even after overt inflammation resolved. This persistent vulvar hyperalgesia is resonant with vulvodynia, an understudied chronic pain condition that is remarkably prevalent in 18-60 year-old women. An elevated risk for vulvodynia has been associated with a history of environmental allergies. Our pre-clinical model can be readily adapted to regimens of chronic exposures and long-term assessment of vulvar pain with and without concurrent inflammation to improve our understanding of mechanisms underlying subsets of vulvodynia and to develop new therapeutics for this condition.

Impaired leukocyte trafficking and skin inflammatory responses in hamsters lacking a functional circadian system

The immune system is under strong circadian control, and circadian desynchrony is a risk factor for metabolic disorders, inflammatory responses and cancer. Signaling pathways that maintain circadian rhythms (CRs) in immune function in vivo, and the mechanisms by which circadian desynchrony impairs immune function, remain to be fully identified. These experiments tested the hypothesis that the hypothalamic circadian pacemaker in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) drives CRs in the immune system, using a non-invasive model of SCN circadian arrhythmia. Robust CRs in blood leukocyte trafficking, with a peak during the early light phase (ZT4) and nadir in the early dark phase (ZT18), were absent in arrhythmic hamsters, as were CRs in spleen clock gene (per1, bmal1) expression, indicating that a functional pacemaker in the SCN is required for the generation of CRs in leukocyte trafficking and for driving peripheral clocks in secondary lymphoid organs. Pinealectomy was without effect on CRs in leukocyte trafficking, but abolished CRs in spleen clock gene expression, indicating that nocturnal melatonin secretion is necessary for communicating circadian time information to the spleen. CRs in trafficking of antigen presenting cells (CD11c(+) dendritic cells) in the skin were abolished, and antigen-specific delayed-type hypersensitivity skin inflammatory responses were markedly impaired in arrhythmic hamsters. The SCN drives robust CRs in leukocyte trafficking and lymphoid clock gene expression; the latter of which is not expressed in the absence of melatonin. Robust entrainment of the circadian pacemaker provides a signal critical to diurnal rhythms in immunosurveilliance and optimal memory T-cell dependent immune responses.

Circadian clocks and tumor biology: what is to learn from human skin biopsies?

Some of the components of the circadian molecular clock have been shown to link directly to tumor suppression. Most studies on human tumorous biopsies with consistently down-regulated clock gene expression suggested a protective role for these genes against cancer formation. To highlight some limitations of this hypothesis we review these data in light of recent evidences from animal research, epidemiologic studies, and clinical data on skin tumors. We emphasize the role of circadian rhythmic orchestration in cellular metabolism with a potential in cancer development.

Crosstalk between the circadian clock circuitry and the immune system

Various features, components, and functions of the immune system present daily variations. Immunocompetent cell counts and cytokine levels present variations according to the time of day and the sleep-wake cycle. Moreover, different immune cell types, such as macrophages, natural killer cells, and lymphocytes, contain a circadian molecular clockwork. The biological clocks intrinsic to immune cells and lymphoid organs, together with inputs from the central pacemaker of the suprachiasmatic nuclei via humoral and neural pathways, regulate the function of cells of the immune system, including their response to signals and their effector functions. Consequences of this include, for example, the daily variation in the response to an immune challenge (e.g., bacterial endotoxin injection) and the circadian control of allergic reactions. The circadian-immune connection is bidirectional, because in addition to this circadian control of immune functions, immune challenges and immune mediators (e.g., cytokines) were shown to have strong effects on circadian rhythms at the molecular, cellular, and behavioral levels. This tight crosstalk between the circadian and immune systems has wide-ranging implications for disease, as shown by the higher incidence of cancer and the exacerbation of autoimmune symptoms upon circadian disruption.