Mechanisms for entraining the cyanobacterial circadian clock system with the environment

Abstract

The importance of resetting one's internal biological clock is most obvious when traveling across multiple time zones. Just as humans have mechanisms that allow recovery from jet lag, the cyanobacterial circadian system also possesses pathways that transduce external stimuli to the central pacemaker. The daily synchronization of the endogenous circadian rhythm with the environment allows the clock to control downstream processes at the time of day most beneficial to that organism. Here, the strategies used by Synechococcus elongatus to coordinate its internal cycle with daily cues are described.