The effects of pinealectomy and blinding on the circadian locomotor activity rhythm in the Japanese newt,Cynops pyrrhogaster

We examined the effects of pinealectomy and blinding (bilateral ocular enucleation) on the circadian locomotor activity rhythm in the Japanese newt, Cynops pyrrhogaster. The pinealectomized newts were entrained to a light-dark cycle of 12 h light and 12 h darkness. After transfer to constant darkness they showed residual rhythmicity for at least several days which was gradually disrupted in prolonged constant darkness. Blinded newts were also entrained to a 12 h light/12 h dark cycle. In subsequent constant darkness they showed free-running rhythms of locomotor activity. However, the freerunning periods noticeably increased compared with those observed in the previous period of constant darkness before blinding. In blinded newts entrained to the light/dark cycle the activity rhythms were gradually disrupted after pinealectomy even in the presence of the light/dark cycle. These results suggest that both the pineal and the eyes are involved in the newt's circadian system, and also suggest that the pineal of the newt acts as an extraretinal photoreceptor which mediates the entrainment of the locomotor activity rhythm.Abbreviations circadian period - DD constant darkness - LD cycle, light-dark cycle - LD 12:12 light-dark cycle of 12 h light and 12 h darkness     

Circadian organization in the lizardAnolis carolinensis: a multioscillator system

Summary The locomotor activity rhythm of normal anoles freerunning in conditions of constant darkness or constant dim light typically shows a bimodal pattern. Pinealectomy of freerunning anoles renders the lizards arrhythmic (continuously active). Pinealectomy of anoles entrained to light-dark (LD) cycles often causes a large phase advance of the lizards' daily activity onsets relative to light onsets. Also, the activity onsets of individual pinealectomized anoles entrained to LD cycles often alternate between two preferred phase relationships relative to the LD cycle. These data support the hypothesis that at least two circadian oscillators (or sets of oscillators) drive the overt rhythm of locomotor activity and the pineal acts either as a circadian pacemaker or as a coupling device for these oscillators.Abbreviation SCN suprachiasmatic nuclei     

Pineal-dependent locomotor activity of lamprey,Lampetra japonica,measured in relation to LD cycle and circadian rhythmicity

Summary Locomotor activity of the river lamprey, Lampetra japonica, was investigated under a light-dark (LD 1212) cycle and under continuous dark conditions. Intact lampreys were entrained to the light:dark cycle. They were active mainly in the early half of the dark period and inactive in light period. The light:dark entrainment continued in 72.7% of lampreys after the removal of bilateral eyes, but additional pinealectomy made the entrainment disappear in all lampreys. When lampreys were pinealectomized with their eyes intact, light: dark entrainment was abolished in most cases. The results indicate that the pineal organ of the lamprey is a photoreceptive organ responsible for synchronizing locomotor activity to LD cycle. Under continuous dark conditions, the locomotor activity began to free-run with a period of 21.3 ± 0.9 h (mean ± SD, n = 53). This circadian rhythmicity was not affected by the removal of lateral eyes but was abolished by pinealectomy. The pineal organ appears to function as an oscillator, or as one of the oscillators, for the circadian locomotor rhythm of lampreys.Abbreviations DD continuous dark - LD light:dark     

Pineal and retinal melatonin is involved in the control of circadian locomotor activity and body temperature rhythms in the pigeon

Summary Although pinealectomy or blinding resulted in loss of the clarity of the free-running rhythm of locomotor activity and body temperature and reduced the peak level of circulating melatonin rhythms to approximately a half in intact pigeons, neither pinealectomy nor blinding abolished any of these rhythms. However, when pinealectomy and blinding were combined, the rhythms of locomotor activity and body temperature disappeared in prolonged constant dim light, and melatonin concentration was reduced to the minimum level of detection. In order to examine the role of melatonin in the pigeon's circadian system, it was administered either daily or continuously to PX + EX-pigeons in LLdim. Daily administration of melatonin restored circadian rhythms of locomotor activity which entrained to melatonin injections, but continuous administration did not induce any remarkable change of locomotor activity. These results suggest that melatonin synthesized in the pineal body and the eye contributes to circulating melatonin and its rhythmicity is important for the control of circadian rhythms of locomotor activity and body temperature in the pigeon.Abbreviations LD Light-dark - LLdim constant dim light - LLbright constant bright light - PX pinealectomy - EX blinding - SCN suprachiasmatic nucleus     

Retinally perceived light is not essential for photic regulation of pineal melatonin rhythms in the pigeon: studies with microdialysis

Using in vivo microdialysis, effects of retinally perceived light on pineal melatonin release and its rhythmicity was examined in the pigeon. In the first experiment, light-induced suppression of pineal melatonin release was studied. Although light given to the whole body during the dark strongly suppressed pineal melatonin release to a daytime level, light exclusively delivered to the eyes did not remarkably inhibit melatonin release. In the second experiment, in order to determine whether retinally perceived light has phase-shifting effects on pineal melatonin rhythms, pigeons were given a single light pulse of 2 h at circadian time (CT) 18 and the phases of the second cycle after the light pulse were compared with those of control pigeons without the light pulse. In this experiment, phase advances of pineal melatonin rhythms were observed when the light was given to the whole body but not when only the eyes were illuminated. In a third experiment, after entrainment to light-dark 12:12 (LD 12:12) cycles, birds whose heads were covered with black tapes were transferred into constant light (LL) conditions and only the eyes were exposed to new LD cycles for 7 days (the phase was advanced by 6 h from the previous cycles) using a patching protocol. This procedure, however, could not entrain pineal melatonin rhythms to the retinal LD cycles. These results indicate that the eyes are not essential for photic regulation of pineal melatonin release and its rhythmicity in the pigeon.Abbreviations CT circadian time - LD light-dark - LL constant light - SCN suprachiasmatic nucleus - LLdim constant dim light - NE norepinephrine - SCG superior cervical ganglia - WB whole body - E eye - EX extraretina - C control     

Loss of the circadian rhythms of locomotor activity, food intake, and plasma melatonin concentration induced by constant bright light in the pigeon (Columba livia)

Summary Locomotor activity and feeding activity were measured together with circulating levels of melatonin in pigeons which were exposed to constant bright light (LLbright, 2000 lux) following light-dark (LD) cycles. Although all the pigeons showed daily rhythms of locomotor activity, feeding activity, and melatonin levels under LD cycles, they lost all the rhythms in prolonged LLbright. Acute exposure to bright light (2000 lux) during darkness reduced plasma melatonin levels. The half-time for the suppression in melatonin levels was about 30 min after short-term light exposure. These results support the hypothesis that melatonin may control the circadian rhythms of locomotor activity and feeding activity in the pigeon.Abbreviations LD light-dark - LLdim constant dim light - LLbright constant bright light - DD constant darkness - PX pinealectomy - EX blinding - RIA radioimmunoassay     

Entrainment of the circadian system of the house sparrow: A population of oscillators in pinealectomized birds

Summary Removal of the pineal gland modifies the entrainment behavior of house sparrows. Abnormal entrainment occurs in pinealectomized sparrows exposed to skeleton photoperiods (light cycles composed of 2 pulses of light per 24-h cycle). This abnormal entrainment depends upon the state of the locomotor activity (rhythmic or arrhythmic) before exposure to the light cycle, and upon the interval between the 2 pulses of light which constitute the skeleton photoperiod. The conditions that produce abnormal entrainment in pinealectomized birds are strongly correlated with those that produce 2 stable phases of entrainment to skeleton photoperiods in normal birds (bistability phenomenon). These results suggest that after pinealectomy, there remains a population of oscillators whose combined output is reflected in the locomotor activity of individual sparrows.Abbreviations LD 12 12 light-dark cycle with 12 h of light and 12 h of dark per 24-h cycle - CT circadian time     

Circadian organization of an animal lacking a pineal organ; the young American alligator,Alligator mississippiensis

Summary Circadian rhythms were examined in young American alligators,Alligator mississippiensis, an animal that naturally lacks a pineal organ. Individual alligators displayed persistent, stable, free-running circadian activity rhythms under both constant darkness and constant illumination. Free-running activity was entrained by 24 h light-dark cycles. The circadian period length was also temperature compensated, with Q₁₀'s of 1.0–1.40 obtained for a 22–32 °C interval. The presence of this quite normal circadian rhythmicity in alligators indicates that the pineal organ is not always essential for the expression of circadian rhythms in lower vertebrates.This research was supported by grant NS 12257 for N.I.H. to C.L. Ralph. Alligators were obtained through the courtesy of C.R. Tracy and T. Joanen of the Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge, Grand Chenier, Louisiana.     

Locomotor Activity Rhythms in Cave Catfishes,Genus Taunayia,from Eastern Brazil (Teleostei: Siluriformes: Heptapterinae)

We studied the locomotor rhythmicity in heptapterine catfishes, genus Taunayia, under free-running conditions (DD) and LD cycles (12:12). Taunayia sp., anophthalmic and depigmented undescribed species from a cave in northeastern Brazil, is the fourth Brazilian troglobitic catfish studied with focus on circadian rhythms. Weak free-running rhythmicity, with absence of significant circadian components, was observed for this species when compared to the epigean, eyed relatives. On the other hand, the studied troglobitic catfishes in general presented significant circadian rhythms under LD cycles, with activity peaks in the night phase probably corresponding to nocturnal activity pattern inherited from their epigean ancestors. However, no residual oscillations were observed after transition from LD to DD. This indicates masking of activity by light-dark cycles. Regression of circadian rhythmicity in the stable, permanently dark subterranean habitat was also observed for other cave fishes. Such regression corroborates the notion that circadian rhythmicity is mainly selected in the epigean environment by ecological factors, namely daily cycles of light and/or temperature.     

Feeding rhythms in constant light and constant darkness: the role of the eyes and the effect of melatonin infusion

Exposure to constant light abolishes circadian behavioral rhythms of locomotion and feeding as well as circulating melatonin rhythms in pigeons (Columba livia). To determine if feeding rhythmicity could be maintained in pigeons exposed to constant light, periodic infusions (10h/day) of melatonin were administered to pinealectomized and bilaterally retinectomized/pinealectomized pigeons under conditions of both constant darkness and constant light. The infusions were sufficient to entrain rhythmicity in pinealectomized pigeons in constant darkness and to restore and maintain rhythmicity in bilaterally retinectomized/pinealectomized pigeons in constant darkness. On subsequent exposure to constant light, rhythmicity remained phase locked to the melatonin infusions in bilaterally retinectomized/pinealectomized pigeons but was abolished in sighted pinealectomized birds. These results suggest that while endogenous melatonin rhythms are both necessary and sufficient to maintain behavioral rhythms in DD, their effect can be overridden by constant light but only if perceived by the eyes. Thus, constant light may abolish behavioral rhythmicity in intact pigeons (and perhaps in other species) by a mechanism other than suppression of endogenous melatonin rhythmicity. Such a mechanism might involve direct stimulation of locomotor or feeding activity by retinally perceived (but not by extra-retinally perceived) light, or alternatively by suppression of a hypothalamic oscillator that receives its major light input from the retinae.Abbreviations PX pinealectomized - EX bilaterally enucleated - LD light:dark cycle - LL constant light - DD constant darkness - DD_b constant darkness before exposure to constant light - DD_a constant darkness after exposure to constant light     

Proportional effect of light on entrained circadian rhythms of birds and mammals

Summary Circadian rhythms of locomotor activity of two species of finches,Fringilla coelebs andCarduelis chloris, and four rodent species,Mesocricetus auratus, Glis glis, Eutamias sibiricus andFunambulus sp., were studied under the influence of 1212 h light-dark (LD) cycles with different levels of illumination during L and D. The LD intensity-ratio (Zeitgeber amplitude) was approximately constant at different mean levels of light intensity per cycle (Zeitgeber level). Theproportional effect of light, measured as the influence of mean light intensity per cycle (geometric mean) on the phase-angle differences between activity onset and light-on (in day-active species) or light-off (in night-active species) showed large interspecific variability. The variations—in extent and direction—were congruous with the effects of light on the free-running rhythms in the same species suggesting a functional relationship between effects of light on free-running and entrained circadian rhythms.     

Effects of physiological cycles of infused melatonin on circadian rhythmicity in pigeons

Summary The role of the hormone melatonin in the circadian system of pigeons (Columba livia) was investigated. Using an automatic infusion system, melatoni at physiological levels was delivered for 10 h each day to cannulated, pinealectomized (P-X) pigeons in constant darkness. These cyclic infusions of melatonin entrained feeding rhythms in P-X pigeons while vehicle infusions were ineffective entraining agents. When the retinae of P-X pigeons were removed (E-X), feeding rhythms were abolished in constant darkness. When cyclic melatonin infusions were delivered to these birds (E-X and P-X), feeding rhythmicity was restored whereas vehicle infusions alone did not restore rhythmicity. When melatonin infusions were terminated in E-X/P-X pigeons, feeding rhythms persisted for several days but eventually decayed. Blood melatonin levels were measured in both P-X and E-X/P-X birds infused cyclically with exogenous melatonin and were found to be within the physiological range both in level and pattern. These results strongly suggest that endogenous melatonin, released by the pineal gland and the retinae, regulates the timing of feeding rhythms by entraining other oscillators in the circadian system of the pigeon.Abbreviations P-X pinealectomized - E-X bilaterally enucleated - T period of infusion cycle - LD light: dark cycle - DD constant darkness     

Circadian rhythm of ERG in Iguana iguana: role of the pineal

In green iguanas, the pineal controls the circadian rhythm of body temperature but not the rhythm of locomotor activity. As part of a program to investigate the characteristics of this multioscillator circadian system, the authors studied the circadian rhythms of the electroretinographic response (ERG) and asked whether the pineal gland is necessary for the expression of this rhythm. ERGs from a total of 24 anesthetized juvenile iguanas were recorded under four different conditions: (a) complete darkness (DD), (b) dim light-dark cycles (dLD), (c) constant dim light (dLL), and (d) pinealectomized in DD. Results demonstrate that the b-wave component of the ERG shows a very clear circadian rhythm in DD and that this rhythm persists in dLL and entrains to dLD cycles. The ERG response is maximally sensitive during the subjective day. Pinealectomy does not abolish the circadian rhythm in ERG, demonstrating that the oscillator responsible for the ERG rhythm is located elsewhere.     

Photoperiodic control of reproduction in the male lizardAnolis carolinensis

Summary In contrast to the higher vertebrates the photoperiodic time measuring system in the male lizardAnolis carolinensis seems to rely on an hourglass timer which lacks endogenous rhythmicity. This timer appears to measure the absolute length of the light portion of light-dark (LD) cycles. The present study further characterized the nature of theAnolis photoperiodic timer and demonstrated: (1) The gonadal response is quite sensitive to photostimulation. Exposure to as few as three 16 h photoperiods (over a 3 week period) can maintain testicular function in summer anoles whereas exposure to as few as six 16 h photoperiods (over a 3 week period) can elicit maximal testicular development in the fall. (2) The photoperiodic timer does not have to be reset daily by a dark interruption. (3) The dark portion of LD cycles may be involved in a complex fashion in reversing a light-initiated reaction and (4) Comparisons of entrained circadian activity rhythms with testicular responses to various light cycles argue against the participation of a circadian clock in photoperiodic time measurement.Abbreviation CRPP circadian rhythm of photoperiodic photo-sensitivity     

The effect of pinealectomy on circadian plasma melatonin levels in house sparrows and European starlings.

We determined 24-hr plasma melatonin profiles in intact, sham-pinealectomized, and pinealectomized European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) and house sparrows (Passer domesticus) in a light-dark (LD) cycle and in constant darkness (DD). In the intact and sham-pinealectomized birds of both species, a melatonin rhythm was found, with low levels during the day and high levels during the night. Pinealectomy abolished the nighttime peak of melatonin in both species; hence, levels were low at all times sampled. This uniform response of plasma melatonin to pinealectomy contrasts with the differential response of circadian activity rhythms to pinealectomy for these two species. In DD, locomotor activity in pinealectomized house sparrows is usually arrhythmic, whereas in starlings a rhythm usually persists. This suggests that in the latter species free-running circadian rhythms are not necessarily dependent on a rhythm in plasma melatonin. The same is true for the synchronized activity rhythm observed in pinealectomized birds of both species in LD, as well as for the damped rhythm that persists in pinealectomized house sparrows following an LD-to-DD transfer. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that the pineal and its periodic output of melatonin constitute only one component in a system of at least two coupled pacemakers. They also suggest that there are species differences in the relative role played by the pineal and other pacemakers in controlling circadian rhythms in behavior.     

Circadian rhythms of demand-feeding and locomotor activity in rainbow trout

Under free-running conditions, most rainbow trout displayed circadian feeding rhythms, although the expression of circadian rhythmicity depended on the experimental condition: 16·7% of fish under constant dim light (LL dim), 66·1% under a 45 :45 min light-dark cycle (LD pulses), and 83·8% under constant light (LL). Under LD pulses, the period length of the free-running rhythms for feeding was significantly shorter (21·9 ± 0·7 h, n =8) than under LL (26·2 ± 0·3 h, n =10). Period length for locomotor activity under LL was 25·8 ± 0·6 h ( n =4). Under LD conditions, the daily demand-feeding profile was always confined to the light phase and chiefly composed of two main episodes, directly after lights on (light elicited) and in anticipation to lights off (endogenous). Contrasting to feeding, the diel locomotor activity profile varied remarkably: a diurnal activity pattern at the bottom, while a clearly nocturnal pattern at the surface. These results contribute to a better understanding of feeding and locomotor rhythms of rainbow trout, providing evidence for the existence of a biological clock involved in their circadian control. This finding contrasts with the previously recorded lack of an endogenous oscillator in the pineal organ driving the rhythmic secretion of melatonin, which suggests different locations from the pineal for the circadian pacemakers in this species.     

Development of hamster circadian rhythms: prenatal entrainment of the pacemaker

Individual hamster pups were maintained in constant dim light from just prior to birth, and their circadian wheel-running activity rhythms were recorded beginning at 18 days of age. Records of the postweaning free-running activity rhythm were used to determine the phase of a pup's rhythm on the day of weaning. Two groups of pups (LD and DL) were born to mothers that had been entrained before birth to light-dark cycles 12 hr out of phase. Both groups of pups were raised in constant dim light by foster mothers that had been entrained to only one of the prenatal cycles (LD). Thus pups born to mothers from different cycles were exposed to identical rhythmic environments postnatally. Despite the similar postnatal treatment, the two groups of pups showed activity rhythms at weaning with very different phases. The LD pups, born to and raised by LD mothers, were approximately synchronous with one another and with their foster mothers. The DL pups, born to DL mothers, but raised by LD mothers, were not synchronous with one another or with their foster mothers. Half of the DL pups showed phases predicted by their prenatal treatment, but the other half showed scattered phases. The results demonstrate that phase at weaning is affected by prenatal rhythmicity, and suggest that the circadian pacemaker underlying the activity rhythm is already functional and entrained at, or before, birth.     

Olfactory bulbectomy modifies photic entrainment and circadian rhythms of body temperature and locomotor activity in a nocturnal primate

Studies on rodents have emphasized that removal of the olfactory bulbs modulates circadian rhythmicity. Using telemetric recordings of both body temperature (Tb) and locomotor activity (LA) in a male nocturnal primate, the gray mouse lemur, the authors investigated the effects of olfactory bulbectomy on (1) the circadian periods of Tb and LA in constant dim light condition, and (2) photic re-entrainment rates of circadian rhythms following 6-h phase shifts of entrained light-dark cycle (LD 12:12). Under free-running condition, bulbectomized males had significantly shorter circadian periods of Tb and LA rhythms than those of control males. However, the profiles of Tb rhythms, characterized by a phase of hypothermia at the beginning of the subjective day, and Tb parameters were not modified by olfactory bulbectomy. Under a light-dark cycle, olfactory bulbectomy significantly modified the expression of daily hypothermia, especially by an increase in the latency to reach minimal daily Tb, suggesting a delayed response to induction of daily hypothermia by light onset. Reentrainment rates following both a 6-h phase advance and a 6-h phase delay of entrained LD were also delayed in bulbectomized males. Olfactory bulbectomy led to significant fragmentation of locomotor activity and increased locomotor activity levels during the resting period. The shortening of circadian periods in bulbectomized males could partly explain the delayed responses to photic stimuli since in control males, the longer the circadian period, the better the response to light entrainment. This experiment shows for the 1st time that olfactory bulbs can markedly modify the circadian system in a primate.     

Entraining signals initiate behavioral circadian rhythmicity in larval zebrafish

The authors show that a circadian clock that regulates locomotor activity in larval zebrafish develops gradually over the first 4 days of life and that exposure to entraining signals late in embryonic development is necessary for initiation of robust behavioral rhythmicity. When zebrafish larvae were transferred from a light-dark (LD) cycle to constant darkness (DD) on the third or fourth day postfertilization, the locomotor activity of almost all fish was rhythmic on days 5 to 9 postfertilization, with peak activity occurring during the subjective day. Rhythm amplitude was higher after four LD cycles than after three LD cycles. When embryos were transferred from LD to DD on the second day postfertilization, only about half of the animals later displayed statistically significant activity rhythms. These rhythms were noisier and of lower amplitude, but phased normally. When zebrafish were raised in DD beginning at 14 h postfertilization, only 22% of them expressed significant circadian rhythmicity as larvae. These rhythms were of low amplitude and phase-locked to the time of handling on the third day rather than to the maternal LD cycle. These results show that behavioral rhythmicity in zebrafish is regulated by a pacemaking system that is sensitive to light by the second day of embryogenesis but continues to develop into the fourth day. This pacemaking system requires environmental signals to initiate or synchronize circadian rhythmicity.     

Effects of Pinealectomy and Ocular Enucleation on Diurnal Periodicity of Leucocytozoon smithi (Haemosporina) Gametocytes in the Peripheral Blood of Domestic Turkeys1

ABSTRACT. Domestic turkeys naturally infected with Leucocytozoon smithi were blinded by bilateral ocular enucleation, pinealectomized, sham-pinealectomized, pinealectomized plus enucleated, or maintained as controls. Groups of turkeys were acclimated to either light-dark periods of 14L:10D or “darkness” with intermittent periods (10–20 min) of red light at irregular hours approximately every three days as required for maintenance of turkeys. Peripheral gametocyte numbers of L. smithi in all groups were determined every 2 h over a 36 h period. Under 14L: 10D photoperiod, no observable difference in the pattern of gametocyte circadian rhythmicity between pinealectomized, enucleated, pinealectomized plus enucleated, and control turkeys was noted. Although mean parasitemias differed among groups, peak gametocyte numbers occurred between 1000 and 1800 h; how parasitemias occurred between 2000 and 0400 h. However, the phase of gametocyte rhythmicity in pinealectomized plus enucleated turkey hosts did exhibit a lag with reference to other hosts when examined by least squares fits of simple harmonics. Under conditions of “darkness” with intermittent, irregular periods of red light, L. smithi gametocyte numbers of individual turkeys, pinealectomized, sham-pinealectomized, or maintained as controls, exhibited a circadian periodicity though parasite cycles were out of phase with the natural photoperiod to which the turkeys previously had been exposed. A slight drift out of phase of L. smithi gametocyte periodicity occurred among turkeys in the sham-pinealectomized and the control groups while a considerably more prominent drift out of phase was seen among the parasite rhythmicity patterns of the pinealectomized birds. Data indicate that the pineal gland of the turkey did not directly mediate L. smithi gametocyte circadian periodicity, although an indirect involvement in regulating the timing of parasite rhythmicity is suggested.