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Science 2 May 1997:
Vol. 276. no. 5313, pp. 753 - 754
DOI: 10.1126/science.276.5313.753
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Perspectives

Circadian Rhythms:
PAS, Present, and Future: Clues to the Origins of Circadian Clocks

Steve A. Kay

Circadian clocks are everywhere. These molecular time-keeping devices are found in the cells and tissues of all organisms, including single-cell life forms and plants. In this issue Crosthwaite et al. (p. 763) report a key molecular component, WC-2, of the circadian clock from the fungus Neurospora, which contains one of the best understood clocks. In his Perspective Kay discusses the fact that WC-2 is also a light-receiving molecule and how this lets us understand for the first time the evolutionary origins of circadian clocks.

The author is in the National Science Foundation Center for Biological Timing, Department of Cell Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA. E-mail: stevek{at}scripps.edu

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