What TLR9 time is it?
To be honest I had never heard of the Circadian Clock! Had you?
It is our biological internal clock. The circadian rhythms refer to biologic processes that oscillate with a period of 24 hr and are influenced by regular variations in the environment, such as the alternation of night and day. Circadian rhythms include sleeping and waking in animals, flower closing and opening in angiosperms, and tissue growth and differentiation in fungi. One of the mechanisms of its regulation is the through the release of hormones. In humans, the internal clock is located within the brain’s hypothalamus and pineal gland, which releases melatonin in response to the information it receives from photoreceptors in the retina.
Thus, here comes the very surprising result presented by Silver AC and colleagues in Immunity last February.
1) Our Circadian Clock not only modulates all the biological processes indicated above, but also TLR9 expression and function!
2) Consequently, the severity of disease that are dependent on TLR9 sepsis are determined by the time of the day of the infection. And amazingly, the timing of immunization determines TLR9 ligand-adjuvanted vaccine responsiveness.
If this story arouse your curiosity as it does mine, go check it out ! Do you have the TLR9 time?