How The Human Biological Clock Responds To Light
Trends April 21, 2022 TiL Editors
A new publication in PNAS by BioClock researchers shows how the SCN responds to different colours of light. In the study conducted by BioClock coordinator Joke Meijer (Leiden University Medical Center, LUMC), it was discovered that not only blue light triggers activity of the biological clock. This is a groundbreaking discovery because until now it was generally thought that blue light stimulates our biological clocks the most. Now Meijer and colleagues discovered that other colours can impact the clock as well.
“This means, for example, that the use of blue light filters in the evening is therefore not sufficient to avoid disturbance to our sleep rhythm!” says Meijer.
Robin Schoonderwoerd, PhD candidate at LUMC executed the study in which she used MRI scans to identify and image the human SCN. Since the SCN is only 2 mm3, they had to increase the spatial resolution of the area as such to be able to measure it. This is unique because the SCN now is the smallest brain area ever measured with the MRI scan technique.
Schoonderwoerd, Meijer and colleagues state that this study offers new insights into the effect of light on the biological clock. For instance, current strategies to prevent harmful effects in the evening must be revised. “Because we now know that that multiple colours can affect our internal clock, we advise to also dim the light in the evening, instead of just filtering blue light out. The good news is this works the other way around: all colours are effective to stimulate the clock during the day, which is especially important for nursing homes, clinical settings and even for children’s bedrooms.”