On Monday, three American scientists were awarded the Nobel prize in physiology and medicine for their research on the body’s 24-hour clock. They discovered how genes affect organisms sync with Earth’s revolutions. This “internal clock” regulates factors of health, such as eating, hormone release and blood pressure.
Jeffrey Hall, Michael Rosbash, and Michael Young’s research was first published in the early 80’s, as the three scientists raced each other to compete for finding credit. The original findings covered the “period gene”, found in fruit flies, which inspired further digging into how this gene can be applied to the human system. They discovered molecular mechanisms that control the circadian rhythm. This rhythm determines humans sense of restlessness or drowsiness. The discovery is groundbreaking because it stresses the importance of schedule and how it can directly affect your health.
“Our well-being is affected when there is a temporary mismatch between our external environment and this internal biological clock, for example when we travel across several time zones and experience jet lag,” the Nobel committee noted. Changes to this schedule (bright lights at night or irregular sleeping patterns) can cause an internal jet-lag sensation.
All three scientists were shocked by the award for their accomplishments, receiving early morning calls congratulating them as winners of the Nobel Prize. Jeffrey Hall was greatly astounded by this prize due to his departure from science a decade ago. Hall critiqued the science world before he left, as he lost funding for his projects. “Whether or not a researcher of a certain notoriety deserves that the ‘support system’ keep him going, there is a far more general problem. What props up biological research, at least in the vaunted US of A, involves a situation so deeply imbued with an entitlement mentality that it has sunk into institutional corruption”, Hall said to Current Biology journal.
The Nobel Prize winners were awarded a medal and split a hefty monetary prize. Jeffery Hall told ABC that his plans were to donate to multiple foundations, specifically one specializing in rescuing animals from floods occurring as result of Hurricane Harvey.
“I have always loved and cared about animals,” Hall said. “I didn’t even intend to last this long so I still have some money left over and I’ll have bloated coffers now.”
These groundbreaking health discoveries directly impact students, as they seldom receive enough daily sleep. The study concludes that even altering sleep by a few hours each night can completely alter your schedule. The negative effects of changing one’s internal clock results in mental and physical detriments, therefore people are warned not to stray from the recommended hours of sleep for each age range.
Justin Harrington • Oct 12, 2017 at 10:47 pm
Wow! Who knew that even a small change in schedual can mess up my body? I feel more empowered than ever!