Chronic circadian phase advance in male mice induces depressive-like responses and suppresses neuroimmune activation.

Altered working and sleeping schedules during the COVID-19 pandemic likely impact our circadian systems. At the molecular level, clock genes form feedback inhibition loops that control 24-hr oscillations throughout the body. Importantly, core clock genes also regulate microglia, the brain resident immune cell, suggesting circadian regulation of neuroimmune function.

Light at night during development in mice has modest effects on adulthood behavior and neuroimmune activation.

Exposure to light at night (LAN) can disrupt the circadian system, thereby altering neuroimmune reactivity and related behavior. Increased exposure to LAN affects people of all ages - and could have particularly detrimental effects during early-life and adolescence. Despite this, most research on the behavioral and physiological effects of LAN has been conducted in adult animals.