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Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 284: R208-R218, 2003. First published October 3, 2002; doi:10.1152/ajpregu.00447.2002
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Vol. 284, Issue 1, R208-R218, January 2003

Ocular clocks are tightly coupled and act as pacemakers in the circadian system of Japanese quail

Christopher T. Steele1,2, Bora D. Zivkovic1,2, Thomas Siopes3, and Herbert Underwood1

Departments of 1 Zoology and 3 Poultry Science and 2 W. M. Keck Center for Behavioral Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695

Our previous studies showed that the eyes of Japanese quail contain a biological clock that drives a daily rhythm of melatonin synthesis. Furthermore, we hypothesized that these ocular clocks are pacemakers because eye removal abolishes freerunning rhythms in constant darkness (DD). If the eyes are indeed acting as pacemakers, we predicted that the two ocular pacemakers in an individual bird must remain in phase in DD and, furthermore, the two ocular pacemakers would rapidly regain coupling after being forced out of phase. These predictions were confirmed by demonstrating that 1) the ocular melatonin rhythms of the two eyes maintained phase for at least 57 days in DD and 2) after ocular pacemakers were forced out of phase by alternately patching the eyes in constant light, two components of body temperature were observed that fused into a consolidated rhythm after 5-6 days in DD, showing pacemaker recoupling. The ability to maintain phase in DD and rapidly recouple after out-of-phase entrainment demonstrates that the eyes are strongly coupled pacemakers that work in synchrony to drive circadian rhythmicity in Japanese quail.

melatonin; body temperature; eye; circadian; Coturnix


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