Clock controls circadian period in isolated suprachiasmatic nucleus neurons (original) (raw)

nature neuroscience • volume 1 no 8 • december 1998 articles Circadian clocks are endogenous oscillators that control daily rhythms in physiology and behavior 1 . In mammals, the circadian pacemaker driving metabolic and behavioral rhythms is located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus 2-4 . The SCN is comprised of a heterogeneous population of cells, many of which may be able to generate circadian oscillations 5,6 . However, efforts to identify the pacemakers and dissect their timing mechanism have been hindered by the relative complexity of the SCN.