That biological clock that causes you to get jet-lagged from flying to the other side of the world may be able to be improved with temporal isolation and glucocorticoid tablets, according to a new study.
Researchers from the Douglas Mental Health University Institute and McGill University left 16 volunteers in temporal isolation chambers. The volunteers were given glucocorticoid tablets, which are a type of steroid hormone.
The tablets appeared to be able to synchronize the biological clocks located in the white blood cells for the first time.
"Clock genes are what drive our biological clocks, and these genes are active in all of our organs. Animal studies have shown that our central clock (in the brain) sends signals to the clocks in our other organs. Glucocorticoids appear to play a central role in transmitting these signals. However, until now, no one had demonstrated that cortisol (a glucocorticoid) plays this role in humans," Dr. Nicolas Cermakian, Director of the Laboratory of Molecular Chronobiology, said in the study.
Not sleeping at night - a feat known all too well to night-shift workers - can bring significant health issues to the table.
A seperate 2012 study published in Science Translational Medicine found that sporadic and irregular sleep can raise blood sugar levels, slow the body's metabolism, and even lead to bad food choices, reported ABC News.
While no treatment compares to actually getting a full night's rest, the researchers believe this tablet could make it easier to get over the discomfort of too little sleep.
"At this stage, we are not recommending the use of glucocorticoids to adjust the rhythms of night-shift workers, as there could be medical risks. However, these results lead us to believe that we may one day be able to use a combined therapy that targets the central clock (inverting work schedules, administering controlled light therapy) with a pharmacological treatment that targets the peripheral clocks to ensure that all clocks are adjusted," Dr. Diane B. Boivin, Director of the Centre for Study and Treatment of Circadian Rhythms, where the study took place, said in the study.
The study was published in the FASEB Journal (Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology).
