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A circadian rhythm (/ s ər ˈ k eɪ d i ə n /), or circadian cycle, is a natural oscillation that repeats roughly every 24 hours.Circadian rhythms can refer to any process that originates within an organism (i.e., endogenous) and responds to the environment (is entrained by the environment).
In vertebrates, the master circadian clock is contained within the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), a bilateral nerve cluster of about 20,000 neurons. [10] [11] The SCN itself is located in the hypothalamus, a small region of the brain situated directly above the optic chiasm, where it receives input from specialized photosensitive ganglion cells in the retina via the retinohypothalamic tract.
Because circadian clocks synchronize human sleep-wake cycles to coincide with periods of the day during which reward potential is highest – that is, during the daytime [16] – and recent studies have determined that daily rhythms in reward activation in humans are modulated by circadian clocks as well, [16] external influences on those ...
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Part of the basis for siestas and afternoon naps goes back to our body's natural 24-hour, or circadian, rhythm in body temperature. "Body temperature is at its lowest in the middle of the night ...
The best studied rhythm in chronobiology is the circadian rhythm, a roughly 24-hour cycle shown by physiological processes in all these organisms. The term circadian comes from the Latin circa, meaning "around" and dies, "day", meaning "approximately a day." It is regulated by circadian clocks.
All of these are examples of circadian rhythm disorders, which are problems with the alignment between your sleep-wake cycle and your responsibilities for the day—like going to work or school ...
24-hour physiological rhythms, known now as circadian rhythms, were first documented in 1729 by Jean Jacques d'Ortous de Mairan, a French astronomer who observed that mimosa plants (Mimosa pudica) would orient themselves to be toward the position of the sun despite being in a dark room. [6]