Virtually all cells within the body contain a 24-hour molecular circadian oscillator, ‘clock’, and combine to generate endogenous rhythms that pervade all levels of physiology. Circadian rhythms are of central importance to overall homeostasis – their disruption drives development of devastating diseases such as diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and neurodegeneration. Whilst much progress has been made towards understanding organ-specific roles of clock proteins, how these clock proteins generate rhythms that are coordinated across cells, organs, and at the systemic level is not well understood.  A thorough understanding of these processes will drive the development of therapeutic interventions effective at counteracting circadian disturbances and the associated disease risks.

As well as defining the key environmental inputs that modulate circadian rhythms, a major focus of the lab is on the role of circadian clocks themselves in peripheral (non-brain) tissues such as liver and muscle in guiding inter-cellular and inter-tissue communication.