There are many situations in which modern humans find that their circadian rhythms are not aligned with their desired sleep/wake schedule, such as after jet travel, during shift work, and in some sleep disorders such as the delayed sleep phase syndrome. This misalignment causes excessive fatigue, sleepiness, decrements in alertness, loss of concentration, impaired performance, shortened and disrupted sleep, gastrointestinal distress and eventually health problems. Bright light and melatonin have been used to help phase shift the human circadian clock, but little has been done to test the combination. Recent exciting discoveries show that the circadian system uses a novel photoreceptor (besides the rods and cones) which is most sensitive to short wavelength (blue) light, and that larger phase shifts can be produced with blue light than with other wavelengths. We will test the combination of blue-enriched light and melatonin in a protocol that is practical for everyday use at home and at work. In all studies, the sleep schedule will be gradually phase advanced, and in most studies a small dose of melatonin will be used in the afternoon and bright blue-enriched light (from a single light box) will be used in the morning to help phase advance circadian rhythms. Our overall goal is to produce the largest possible phase advance with the least effort, while keeping the circadian rhythms aligned with the sleep schedule to prevent side-effects or jet-lag-type symptoms.
Specific Aim #1 is to determine whether blue-enriched light produces a larger phase advance than white light.
Specific Aim #2 is to assess the relative contributions of afternoon melatonin and morning bright blue-enriched light to phase advances, and to determine whether there is any merit to a melatonin-only treatment that does not require a light box.
Specific Aim #3 is to determine whether distributing the same total duration of bright blue-enriched light into different patterns, by changing the duration of the pulses and their number, can increase the phase advance.
Specific Aim #4 is to determine whether the duration of bright light exposure can be reduced while still producing acceptable magnitudes of phase shift. In all studies, circadian phase will be assessed from complete melatonin profiles collected in dim light. We will also measure sleep (with wrist activity monitors and logs), sleepiness and other symptoms (questionnaires) and performance (computerized). These studies will yield practical recommendations for phase shifting the circadian clock and may also provide information about how the human circadian clock responds to light. ? ? ?

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01NR007677-07
Application #
7238735
Study Section
Biobehavioral Mechanisms of Emotion, Stress and Health Study Section (MESH)
Program Officer
Tigno, Xenia
Project Start
2000-09-01
Project End
2011-03-31
Budget Start
2007-04-01
Budget End
2008-03-31
Support Year
7
Fiscal Year
2007
Total Cost
$323,343
Indirect Cost
Name
Rush University Medical Center
Department
Psychology
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
068610245
City
Chicago
State
IL
Country
United States
Zip Code
60612
Kantermann, Thomas; Eastman, Charmane I (2018) Circadian phase, circadian period and chronotype are reproducible over months. Chronobiol Int 35:280-288
Paech, Gemma M; Crowley, Stephanie J; Fogg, Louis F et al. (2017) Advancing the sleep/wake schedule impacts the sleep of African-Americans more than European-Americans. PLoS One 12:e0186887
Eastman, Charmane I; Tomaka, Victoria A; Crowley, Stephanie J (2017) Sex and ancestry determine the free-running circadian period. J Sleep Res 26:547-550
Emens, Jonathan S; Eastman, Charmane I (2017) Diagnosis and Treatment of Non-24-h Sleep-Wake Disorder in the Blind. Drugs 77:637-650
Paech, Gemma M; Crowley, Stephanie J; Eastman, Charmane I (2017) Sleep and cognitive performance of African-Americans and European-Americans before and during circadian misalignment produced by an abrupt 9-h delay in the sleep/wake schedule. PLoS One 12:e0186843
Eastman, Charmane I; Tomaka, Victoria A; Crowley, Stephanie J (2016) Circadian rhythms of European and African-Americans after a large delay of sleep as in jet lag and night work. Sci Rep 6:36716
Crowley, Stephanie J; Eastman, Charmane I (2015) Phase advancing human circadian rhythms with morning bright light, afternoon melatonin, and gradually shifted sleep: can we reduce morning bright-light duration? Sleep Med 16:288-97
Eastman, Charmane I; Suh, Christina; Tomaka, Victoria A et al. (2015) Circadian rhythm phase shifts and endogenous free-running circadian period differ between African-Americans and European-Americans. Sci Rep 5:8381
Crowley, Stephanie J; Eastman, Charmane I (2013) Melatonin in the afternoons of a gradually advancing sleep schedule enhances the circadian rhythm phase advance. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 225:825-37
Eastman, Charmane I; Molina, Thomas A; Dziepak, Marissa E et al. (2012) Blacks (African Americans) have shorter free-running circadian periods than whites (Caucasian Americans). Chronobiol Int 29:1072-7

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