Circadian Clock - Transcriptional and Translational Control

Transcriptional and Translational Control

Evidence for a genetic basis of circadian rhythms in higher eukaryotes began with the discovery of the period (per) locus in Drosophila melanogaster from forward genetic screens completed by Ronald Konopka and Semour Benzer in 1971. Through the analysis of per circadian mutants and additional mutations on Drosophila clock genes, it was demonstrated that there is an underlying generative molecular mechanism of the circadian clock that consists of a set of core clock genes and their protein products, which together participate in positive and negative autoregulatory feedback loops of transcription and translation. Core circadian clock genes are defined as genes whose protein products are necessary components for the generation and regulation of circadian rhythms. Similar mechanisms have been demonstrated in mammals and other organisms.