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Science 7 September 1973:
Vol. 181. no. 4103, pp. 956 - 957
DOI: 10.1126/science.181.4103.956
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Articles

Entrainment of the Body Temperature Rhythm in Rats: Effect of Color and Intensity of Environmental Light

Robert A. McGuire 1, William M. Rand 1, and Richard J. Wurtman 1

1 Department of Nutrition and Food ‘Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge 02139

The daily rhythm in body temperature in rats was continuously monitored during exposure to low-intensity environmental illumination of various colors in the visible and near-ultraviolet spectrum. The ability of phase shifts in the lighting schedule to induce concomitant changes in the rhythm was used to determine the spectral sensitivity of the retinal photoreceptor systems mediating rhythm entrainment. Green light (lgr = 530 ± 45 nanometers) was most potent, and red (lgr = 660 ± 19 nanometers) and ultraviolet (lgr = 360 ± 34 nanometers) were least potent in entraining the temperature rhythm.


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Photons, Clocks, and Consciousness.
G. C. Brainard and J. P. Hanifin (2005)
J Biol Rhythms 20, 314-325
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Sensitivity of the Human Circadian Pacemaker to Moderately Bright Light.
D. B. Boivin, J. F. Duffy, R. E. Kronauer, and C. A. Czeisler (1994)
J Biol Rhythms 9, 315-331
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