1 Major Subject Area: Neuroscience 2 3 4 Differential Effects of Light and Feeding on Circadian Organization of Peripheral Clocks 5 in a Forebrain Bmal1 Mutant 6 7 8 Mariko Izumo1,a, Martina Pejchal2,a, Andrew C Schook2,3, Ryan P Lange2, Jacqueline A 9 Walisser4, Takashi R Sato5,6, Xiaozhong Wang7, Christopher A Bradfield4, and Joseph S 10 Takahashi1,8,* 11 12 1Department of Neuroscience, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, United 13 States; 2Department of Neurobiology, Northwestern University, Evanston, United States; 14 3Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Evanston, United States; 4McArdle Laboratory for Cancer 15 Research, University of Wisconsin, Madison, United States; 5Werner Reichardt Centre for 16 Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany; 6JST, PRESTO, 17 University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany; 7Department of Molecular Biosciences, 18 Northwestern University, Evanston, United States; 8Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Dallas, 19 United States. 20 21 a These authors contributed equally. 22 23 * For correspondence: [email protected] 24 25 Corresponding author: 26 Joseph S. Takahashi 27 Mailing address: Department of Neuroscience, University of Texas Southwestern Medical 28 Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd, NA4.118, Dallas, Texas 75390-9111 29 Telephone: 214-648-1876 30 Fax: 214-648-1801 31 E-mail: [email protected] 32 33 34 Manuscript information: 55 text pages (including references and figure legends), 9 figures, 35 supplemental figures & tables (5 figures and 7 tables). 36 37 38 Abbreviations: BAC, bacterial artificial chromosome; CT, circadian time; DD, constant 39 darkness; DMH, dorsomedial hypothalamus; FAA, food-anticipatory activity; FFT, fast Fourier 40 transform; FR, food restriction; LD 12:12, 12-hr light, 12-hr dark cycle; LL, constant light; Luc. 41 luciferase; Per2, Period2; SCN, suprachiasmatic nucleus; ZT, zeitgeber time 42
43 Keywords: circadian rhythms, Bmal1, Cre/loxP, suprachiasmatic nucleus, peripheral clocks, light 44 entrainment, food entrainment
45
1 46 Abstract
47 In order to assess the contribution of a central clock in the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nucleus
48 (SCN) to circadian behavior and the organization of peripheral clocks, we generated
49 forebrain/SCN-specific Bmal1 knockout mice by using floxed Bmal1 and pan-neuronal Cre lines.
50 The forebrain knockout mice showed >90% deletion of BMAL1 in the SCN and exhibited an
51 immediate and complete loss of circadian behavior in constant conditions. Circadian rhythms in
52 peripheral tissues persisted, but became desynchronized and damped in constant darkness. The
53 loss of synchrony was rescued by light/dark cycles, and partially by restricted feeding (only in
54 the liver and kidney but not in the other tissues) in a distinct manner. These results suggest that
55 the forebrain/SCN is essential for the internal temporal order of robust circadian programs in
56 peripheral clocks; thus,individual peripheral clocks are affected differently by light and feeding
57 in the absence of a functional oscillator in the forebrain.
58
59
60 Impact Statement:
61 Conditional deletion of Bmal1 in the forebrain/SCN reveals an essential role of a
62 functional master clock in maintaining synchronized and high amplitude rhythms of peripheral
63 clocks.
64
65
2 66 Introduction
67 The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) in the hypothalamus is the primary regulator of daily
68 rhythms of behavior and physiology in mammals (Meijer and Rietveld, 1989; Ralph et al., 1990;
69 Sujino et al., 2003; Welsh et al., 2010), yet the majority of tissues in the body possess
70 autonomous cellular oscillators (Yamazaki et al., 2000; Abe et al., 2002; Nagoshi et al., 2004;
71 Welsh et al., 2004; Yoo et al., 2004; Abraham et al., 2005). The circadian clock in the SCN as
72 well as in other mammalian cells is composed of interacting positive and negative transcriptional
73 and post-translational feedback loops involving Clock and Bmal1 transcription factors and their
74 target genes, Period (Per1, 2, and 3) and Cryptochrome (Cry1 and 2) (King et al., 1997; Gekakis
75 et al., 1998; Hogenesch et al., 1998; Lee et al., 2001; Lowrey and Takahashi, 2004; Lowrey and
76 Takahashi, 2011; Mohawk et al., 2012; Huang et al., 2012). Extensive evidence suggests that the
77 SCN controls not only behavioral rhythms but also the circadian programs of peripheral tissues
78 (Yoo et al., 2004; Guo et al., 2005; Guo et al., 2006; Saini et al., 2013; Yamaguchi et al., 2013).
79 However, much remains unclear regarding the relationship between the central clock and
80 peripheral oscillators, which can be entrained by many different stimuli (Stokkan et al., 2001;
81 Buhr et al., 2010; Saini et al., 2012). To clarify the contribution of a central clock to the
82 circadian rhythms of peripheral tissues, we sought to find a way to disable the molecular
83 oscillators in the brain without affecting the genetic components in the rest of the body.
84 Traditionally, a functional role of a gene has been investigated by a gene targeting
85 strategy, which eliminates the gene from embryonic stem cells so that it is inactivated
86 ubiquitously in mice. While this approach provides a powerful method to study the function of
87 genes in vivo, it cannot be applied to genes that affect developmental or metabolic processes
88 crucial for survival. Moreover, even if the knockout mice survive to adulthood, some lines suffer
3 89 from systemic conditions and hence require special handling in experiments. For instance,
90 although a global knock out of Bmal1 (Bmal1-/-) completely eliminates circadian rhythms
91 (Bunger et al., 2000), the animals suffer from morbid conditions including arthropathy (Bunger
92 et al., 2005), sterility (Alvarez et al., 2008; Boden et al., 2010), defects in glucose homeostasis
93 (Rudic et al., 2004; Lamia et al., 2008; Marcheva et al., 2010), premature aging and decreased
94 lifespan [their average lifespan is 37 weeks (Kondratov et al., 2006; Sun et al., 2006)]. Possibly
95 due to the pleiotropic effects of Bmal1, results of studies such as food entrainment behavior with
96 Bmal1-/- mice have been controversial (Fuller et al., 2008; Mistlberger et al., 2008; Fuller et al.,
97 2009; Mistlberger et al., 2009a; Mistlberger et al., 2009b; Pendergast et al., 2009; Storch and
98 Weitz, 2009; Mieda and Sakurai, 2011). To circumvent these problems, conditional knockout
99 techniques utilizing Cre recombinase and loxP sequences have been applied widely in the
100 nervous system (Gavériaux-Ruff and Kieffer, 2007; Taniguchi et al., 2011). However, until
101 recently, Cre drivers that can efficiently recombine a floxed allele in the majority of SCN
102 neurons have not been identified [(Mieda and Sakurai, 2011; Musiek et al., 2013) but see (Husse
103 et al., 2011)].
104 Here, we examined the ability of a forebrain-specific Cre driver to excise floxed alleles of
105 Bmal1, a critical component of the molecular oscillator, specifically from brain regions including
106 the SCN. The resulting knockout mice were devoid of BMAL1 expression in the forebrain/SCN
107 but not in other peripheral tissues. Unlike Bmal1 global knockout mice, Bmal1 forebrain
108 knockouts did not display detectable defects in reproduction, activity, body weight or life span,
109 thereby providing an ideal model to study circadian physiology in the absence of a central clock.
110 These genetically engineered mice are better experimentally controlled than mice that receive
111 SCN lesions, which is a classic method to induce arrhythmic behavior in rodents (Meijer and
4 112 Rietveld, 1989). With SCN lesions, precise removal of the SCN tissue varies from mouse to
113 mouse and requires laborious confirmation of the excision. In addition, ablation of the SCN
114 destroys neuronal networks and communication pathways, rendering the network responses and
115 mechanisms incapacitated.
116 With forebrain-specific Bmal1 knockout mice, we examined the impact of defunct brain
117 clocks on the organization of peripheral oscillators as well as their response to environmental
118 signals such as light and food. Cre-mediated excision of Bmal1 in the forebrain/SCN confers
119 complete arrhythmicity to circadian behavior. In contrast to the abolition of rhythms in the SCN,
120 all peripheral tissues in these mice sustained circadian rhythmicity; however, they lacked phase
121 coordination and normal amplitude in constant darkness. The synchrony and the oscillatory
122 amplitude of peripheral rhythms in these mice were completely rescued by exposure to LD
123 cycles, but not fully in time-restricted feeding experiments. The feeding cues appear to control
124 the phase expression of the peripheral clocks in a tissue-specific way and in a distinct manner
125 from light. These results demonstrate that an intact central clock plays an essential role in
126 driving normal circadian behavior as well as synchronized and robust circadian programs in
127 peripheral clocks and that light and feeding act on individual peripheral clocks differently in the
128 absence of a functional oscillator in the SCN.
129
130 Results
131 Forebrain/SCN-specific deletion of Bmal1
132 Bmal1 (also known as Arntl, Mop3) is one of the essential components of the molecular
133 oscillator, unique in that the single knockout of Bmal1 can confer arrhythmicity both at the
134 behavioral and molecular levels (Bunger et al., 2000). To generate a forebrain-specific knockout
5 135 of circadian rhythms, we crossed floxed Bmal1 (Bmal1fx/fx) mice (Johnson et al., 2014) to
136 Camk2a::iCreBAC mice (CamiCre or Cre) (Casanova et al., 2001) and produced CamiCre+;
137 Bmal1fx/fx (that we denote as “Brain” Knockout, BKO, defined as a forebrain-specific knockout)
138 as well as Bmal1fx/fx (Fx/Fx), CamiCre+ (Cre) and CamiCre+; Bmal1fx/+ (Het) control mice.
139 Camk2a::iCreBAC mice were used because their Cre expression is faithful to the endogenous
140 Camk2a gene expression pattern: it is neuron-specific, forebrain-enriched (Casanova et al., 2001)
141 and expressed highly in the SCN as observed in Cre-dependent fluorescence reporter mice,
142 CamiCre+; tdTom+ (Figure 1A-E). Although there are more than 37 different Camk2a::Cre
143 transgenic lines reported in Mouse Genome Informatics database
144 (http://www.informatics.jax.org/searchtool/Search.do?query=Camk2a-cre&page=featureList),
145 the majority do not appear to express well in the SCN (e.g., http://connectivity.brain-
146 map.org/transgenic/experiment/81162458) likely because of shorter promoter regulatory
147 sequences and position effects. The other advantage of this Cre driver is that its Cre expression
148 is postnatal and starts at P3 (Casanova et al., 2001), thus reducing potential developmental
149 effects. Bmal1fx/fx mice were generated by inserting loxP sites into the introns surrounding exon
150 4, which codes for the DNA-binding bHLH domain (Westgate et al., 2008). Upon Cre
151 recombination, exon 4 is deleted in BKO brain tissues that express Camk2a::iCre. The predicted
152 BMAL1 sequence encounters a STOP codon after a stretch of 18 non-native residues following
153 native coding exon 3. The resulting protein is 91 amino acids long (vs 626 amino acids of native
154 BMAL1) and is almost identical to the truncated BMAL1 protein of Bmal1-/- mice (Bunger et al.,
155 2000); both proteins contain no known functional domains and do not accumulate to a detectable
156 level.
6 157 In contrast to global Bmal1 knockouts, the reproduction, longevity and health of BKO mice
158 were as robust as that of wild-type mice. The fertility of both males and females was
159 indistinguishable from wild-type. At 2 months and 4-6 months of age, the body weights of
160 BKO’s were found to be nearly identical to Fx/Fx, Cre and Het mice (Figure 1-figure
161 supplement 1).
162 In order to assess the deletion of Bmal1 in the SCN, we examined the circadian mRNA
163 expression pattern of Bmal1 and Per2, a key Bmal1 target gene, by in situ hybridization after two
164 days of constant darkness (DD). At all 7 time points taken over a period of 24 hours, BKO’s
165 showed a low level of Bmal1 and Per2 mRNA in the SCN as well as in the entire coronal brain
166 section (Figure 1F,G). In more detailed analysis, control mice (Cre, Fx/Fx) showed intense
167 mRNA expression of Bmal1 in the SCN at its peak time (CT18) as well as circadian fluctuation
168 (CT18 vs CT6) (Figure 1F,H; Figure 1-figure supplement 2). Accordingly, Per2 mRNA was
169 also robustly expressed in the SCN in a circadian manner (Figure 1G,I; Figure 1-figure
170 supplement 2). Het mice showed reduction in the Bmal1 mRNA abundance, yet cycling of Per2
171 mRNA was retained in the SCN (Figure 1-figure supplement 2), indicating that 50% wild-type
172 Bmal1 mRNA is sufficient to sustain Per2 expression in the SCN. In contrast, in BKO mice,
173 Bmal1 mRNA was reduced ~90% in the SCN (Figure 1F,H; Figure 1-figure supplement 2),
174 and Per2 mRNA cycling was significantly attenuated (~20% WT levels at CT10. See Figure
175 1G,I).
176 To confirm that no BMAL1 protein was expressed in the SCN of BKO’s, we performed
177 immunohistochemistry in the SCN at Zeitgeber Time (ZT) 16. In contrast to the intense BMAL1
178 staining in the SCN of Fx/Fx controls, BMAL1 staining in the BKO and global Bmal1 knockout
179 SCN was reduced to background levels (Figure 1J). To further characterize the tissue
7 180 specificity of the BKO’s, we used Western blot analyses to measure BMAL1 protein levels in
181 various brain and body tissues at ZT16 (Figure 1K,L). In contrast to Fx/Fx and Cre controls,
182 BMAL1 (~69 kD) was detected only faintly in BKO frontal cortex and olfactory bulb (Figure
183 1K) likely due to glial and non-neuronal expression of BMAL1 since Camk2a is not expressed in
184 glial cells (Lin et al., 1987). Levels of BMAL1 in the cerebellum of BKO’s were similar to
185 Fx/Fx and Cre control mice (Figure 1L). Outside of the brain, like Fx/Fx mice, but unlike global
186 Bmal1-/- mice, BKO’s showed equivalent BMAL1 expression levels in the liver, spleen, kidney,
187 heart and lung (Figure 1K). Taken together, these results confirm the forebrain specificity of our
188 Bmal1 conditional knockouts.
189
190 Lack of circadian rhythms in BKO’s
191 To assess whether forebrain/SCN Bmal1 is necessary for normal circadian behavior, we
192 examined circadian rhythms of locomotor activity in Cre, Fx/Fx, Het and BKO mice in a 12
193 hour:12 hour light:dark (LD) cycle followed by DD and constant light (LL) conditions (Figure
194 2). In both DD and LL, control mice (Cre, Fx/Fx and Het) expressed robust circadian rhythms of
195 activity (Figure 2A,C,D). The locomotor activity of Het mice was indistinguishable from that of
196 the other controls. In contrast to controls, Bmal1 brain knockouts exhibited no circadian rhythm
197 of activity in DD or in LL (Figure 2B-D). Out of 31 BKO mice, none had a period in the
198 circadian (18-30 hour) range in DD. In LL, only 2 out of 21 mice had a period in the circadian
199 range (24.1 and 20.9 hrs). However, they showed extremely low amplitudes of circadian activity
200 (0.025 and 0.019, respectively, fraction of power in the circadian range where 1.0 represents the
201 total power in the normalized power spectrum) and spectral analysis using Fast Fourier
8 202 Transform (FFT) did not detect periodicity in the circadian range in any of the BKO’s under
203 either DD or LL conditions (Figure 2D).
204 Unexpectedly, total daily activity of BKO’s was significantly higher than that of control
205 mice both in DD and in LL (Figure 2E). Previous studies have found that the locomotor activity
206 of Bmal1-/- mice is decreased dramatically below wild-type levels (Bunger et al., 2000) and that
207 transgenic BMAL1 expression in skeletal muscle rescues this diminished activity (McDearmon
208 et al., 2006). Taken together, these results suggest that a peripheral defect in BMAL1 is
209 responsible for the low activity levels that had been reported in global Bmal1-/- mice. In BKO’s
210 (which do not have this peripheral defect so that locomotion is normal), the absence of a central
211 circadian gating mechanism, that normally suppresses activity during the subjective daytime
212 (Davis and Menaker, 1980), likely contributes to an increase in overall levels of activity.
213
214 Entrainment to light cycles and masking
215 One of the notable differences between BKO and SCN lesioned mice is that BKO’s display
216 apparent entrainment to light/dark cycles (probably because BKO’s are spared from surgical
217 interruption of retinal inputs to the SCN which usually occur in lesion experiments) (Figure 2).
218 However, the activity onset of BKO’s in LD was variable and on average earlier than controls.
219 As a result, daytime activity level was higher in BKO’s (15.58 ± 1.8% of total daily activity)
220 compared to the three control groups (3.81 ± 0.96%, average of the three control groups ± SEM)
221 (Figure 3-figure supplement 1). Yet it was unclear whether the pre-dark activity of Bmal1 brain
222 knockouts around the light/dark transition was due to poor entrainment of a residual circadian
223 pacemaker or to a defect in masking.
9 224 In order to test whether Bmal1 brain knockouts entrain to light, we used a skeleton
225 photoperiod (LDLD 1:10:1:12, Figure 3A-E). The activity patterns of Cre, Fx/Fx and Het mice
226 during the skeleton photoperiod were virtually indistinguishable from the activity patterns in LD
227 12:12 (Figure 3A). In contrast, none of the 10 BKO mice used in this study entrained normally
228 to the skeleton photoperiod (Figure 3B): 3 BKO mice showed activity that resembled their
229 activity in DD (Figure 3B, left), 2 BKO mice displayed a bimodal activity pattern (Figure 3B,
230 right), and 5 BKO mice exhibited activity that was intermediate between these two phenotypes
231 (Figure 3B, middle). Unlike control mice, BKO mice distributed their running activity equally
232 between the subjective day and the subjective night of the skeleton photoperiod (Figure 3C,D).
233 In fact, controls spent 97.9% of their activity during the skeleton night, compared to only 52.5%
234 for BKO mice (Figure 3E). The amount of activity that BKO’s spent during skeleton day vs.
235 night was not significantly different. This type of abnormal entrainment to skeleton
236 photoperiods is reminiscent of the entrainment behavior of pinealectomized sparrows, which
237 behave as a population of circadian oscillators that entrain with two opposite phase relationships
238 to the skeleton photoperiod (Takahashi and Menaker, 1982). Therefore, we conclude that
239 entrainment in Bmal1 brain knockout mice is abnormal under skeleton photoperiods, consistent
240 with the idea that the coherence of phase during entrainment may be compromised. Overall this
241 suggests that the periodicity seen in LD 12:12 in BKO’s arises from entrainment of a population
242 of driven oscillators in which phase control is labile.
243 Since the skeleton photoperiod and LD photoperiod results both indicated some impairment
244 of masking in BKO’s, we next tested whether negative masking (the ability of light to acutely
245 suppress locomotor activity) in Bmal1 brain knockouts was defective. To assess masking in
246 BKO mice, we used an LD 3.5:3.5-hr light-dark cycle (Redlin et al., 2005) (Figure 3B,F,G).
10 247 Mice are unable to entrain to LD 3.5:3.5 cycles, thus permitting the masking and the entraining
248 effects of light to be distinguished. Maintaining this schedule for a week ensures the testing of
249 all phases of a circadian cycle (Figure 3G). On average, BKO’s exhibited significantly less
250 activity during the light portions of LD 3.5:3.5 (4.68 ± 0.71 % of total activity vs 9.56 ± 1.83 %
251 for Fx/Fx littermates, P < 0.032 by t-test). Fx/Fx mice display more activity during the light
252 portions of LD 3.5:3.5 because the circadian clock is promoting activity despite the presence of
253 light (Figure 3G, left). While Fx/Fx mice have an underlying circadian component of activity
254 under LD 3.5:3.5, BKO’s have none (Figure 3G-I; Figure 3-figure supplement 1). Aside from
255 this difference, when we examined the time course of the masking response, it became apparent
256 that the masking of BKO’s is delayed compared to controls (Figure 3F; a score of 50% indicates
257 failure to mask). Thus BKO's failed to mask during the first 30 min of the light phases. Plotting
258 actograms on a 7-hr time scale aids in visualization of this masking impairment in BKO’s
259 (Figure 3-figure supplement 1). These entrainment and masking studies led us to conclude that
260 BKO’s lack an endogenous clock but also exhibit some impaired masking.
261
262 Phase synchrony and desynchrony in peripheral tissues of BKO’s
263 To analyze the temporal organization of peripheral oscillators at an organismal level, we crossed
264 the BKO’s to PER2::LUC mice (Yoo et al., 2004) and monitored the bioluminescence signals
265 from the SCN and other tissues in the body. Compared with the robust oscillation of the control
266 SCN, the SCN of BKO’s exhibited blunted expression patterns with low-amplitude but
267 detectable rhythms, that were close to 24 hr (23.54 0.29 hr in Fx/Fx control SCN vs. 22.99
268 2.36 hr in BKO SCN for mean period length SD, Figure 4A). These rhythms are likely to be
269 derived from glial cells and/or residual neurons in which Cre-mediated excision of floxed Bmal1
11 270 was incomplete (see Figure 1J), or possibly from residual stochastic oscillations that we have
271 observed in the SCN of global Bmal1 knockouts (Ko et al., 2010). Rhythmic expression in the
272 dorsomedial hypothalamus (DMH) in BKO’s was also significantly attenuated. In contrast to the
273 SCN and DMH, peripheral tissues retained persistent circadian rhythms (Figure 4A), consistent
274 with the normal expression of BMAL1 in peripheral tissues (Figure 1K).
275 These observations prompted us to use the forebrain-specific knockout mice to re-
276 investigate the relationship between the brain’s central pacemaker and circadian oscillations of
277 peripheral tissues. Previous studies have addressed a similar question by lesioning the SCN
278 (Yoo et al., 2004; Tahara et al., 2012; Saini et al., 2013). Unlike SCN lesioned mice, however,
279 BKO’s preserve intact neural networks and show normal or enhanced levels of behavioral
280 activity in LD and in constant conditions. This new analysis allows us to determine whether
281 deleting BMAL1 (thus inactivating the molecular clock) in the forebrain, without destroying the
282 structure of the SCN, is sufficient to affect the organization of peripheral rhythms.
283 Age-matched pairs of mice (Fx/Fx littermate control and BKO) were maintained in DD for
284 more than 30 days (30–44 days) before harvesting eight different tissues for real-time reporting
285 of circadian gene expression. As a light synchronized control group, tissues were also collected
286 from mice in LD12:12. Consistent with previous studies (Yoo et al., 2004; Tahara et al., 2012),
287 mean period length was variable yet characteristic from tissue to tissue (Figure 4B,C). The
288 difference of the mean periods between the Fx/Fx control and BKO mice, however, was not
289 significant either in LD or DD, except for the SCN and DMH (Figure 4B,C).
290 To analyze the temporal organization of the rhythms of each tissue, we constructed a phase
291 map by plotting the peak on the second day in the luminometry recording. Fx/Fx control mice
292 displayed tightly clustered phases in peripheral rhythms in both LD and DD conditions (Figure
12 293 5A,B,E). On the other hand, while BKO’s exhibited relatively coherent rhythms in peripheral
294 tissues in LD (Figure 5C,E; Figure 5-source data 1), their phases were significantly dispersed
295 among animals in DD (Figure 5D,E; Figure 5-source data 1). In order to measure the degree of
296 phase coherence of peripheral clocks within individual animals, the circular variance of peak
297 bioluminescence of all tissues in each mouse was compared (Figure 5-source data 2,3).
298 Statistical analysis (Figure 5F,G) showed that BKO cultures from the DD condition have a
299 significantly wider phase distribution among organs (Figure 5G, P = 0.0008 by Mann Whitney
300 test). This result indicates that a loss of phase coordination occurred in peripheral clocks within
301 individual BKO animals when placed in DD. In contrast, we found that BKO’s displayed well-
302 phased rhythms from tissue to tissue when maintained in LD (Figure 5F, N.S. by Mann Whitney
303 test), suggesting that the internal phase synchrony is still maintained even in the absence of a
304 functional master pacemaker when the animals are exposed to LD cycles.
305
306 Decreased oscillatory amplitude in peripheral tissues of BKO’s
307 In addition to period and phase, we also estimated amplitude because there was a trend for
308 oscillatory amplitudes in peripheral tissues from BKO’s to be lower than that of controls (Figure
309 6-figure supplement 1). To compare across different experiments, all time-series data were
310 adjusted for PMT background counts and PMT gain, before applying FFT-NLLS computation as
311 developed previously (Izumo et al., 2006). Only normalized amplitudes were compared in this
312 study. For the SCN and DMH in which Bmal1 is deleted from the majority of neurons, only
313 residual amplitude was detected (Figure 6A,B). Likewise, the amplitude of the pituitary was
314 lower in BKO’s from LD, which was likely due to partial deletion of BMAL1 (see Figure 1K).
315 This decrease was further pronounced when BKO pituitary was harvested from DD (Figure
13 316 6A,B). For all other peripheral tissues, the relative amplitude was significantly decreased when a
317 light-driven signal was removed from BKO’s in DD, but the severe reduction was not observed
318 in BKO’s from LD (Figure 6A,B, except for liver). These damped rhythms, however, regained
319 oscillation after receiving a stimulatory medium change (Figure 6-figure supplement 1), which
320 suggests the possibility that phase desynchrony is taking place within individual tissues of
321 BKO’s.
322 To distinguish whether the decreased amplitude of BKO tissues is due to phase desynchrony
323 between the cells or to lowered amplitude within the cells, we performed bioluminescence
324 imaging on a peripheral BKO tissue from DD. Heart tissue was chosen for this experiment,
325 because the heart showed both significant phase dispersion and severe amplitude reduction in
326 DD (Figure 5D; Figure 6B,C). In this imaging, bioluminescence signals from heart tissue were
327 insufficient to identify single cells in the field of view. Therefore, we developed a grid method
328 to allow extraction of time-series data in a narrow area of the target-imaging sample (Figure
329 6D). The size of the grid was narrowed down to 40µm x 40µm. Circadian rhythms in the
330 brightest 200 grids were aligned in the order of expression intensity in a heatmap (Figure 6E).
331 Consistent with the organotypic recording by LumiCycle luminometry (Figure 6C), while the
332 heart cells from a wild-type mouse exhibited robust oscillation, those from a BKO displayed
333 damped rhythms with broader phase distribution. The damped rhythms were also clear in a
334 linear graph in which the top 50 time-series were plotted (Figure 6F,G). Amplitude analysis of
335 these 50 time-series data showed that the oscillatory amplitude was significantly reduced within
336 the grids in the BKO heart sample (Figure 6H). Furthermore, their phases were significantly
337 dispersed (Figure 6I). These results suggest that the amplitude decrease in the BKO tissue is
338 caused by a combined effect of amplitude reduction and phase desynchrony at the cellular level.
14 339
340 Intact food-anticipatory activity in brain Bmal1 knockouts
341 Because nutrient signals can provide a potent entraining cue for peripheral circadian oscillators
342 (Green et al., 2008; Bass and Takahashi, 2010; Mohawk et al., 2012), we investigated whether
343 scheduled food restriction (FR) could restore circadian temporal organization of peripheral
344 oscillators in forebrain-specific Bmal1 knockouts. First, to test the effect of forebrain Bmal1 on
345 food-anticipatory activity (FAA), we subjected BKO’s to a schedule of FR under both LD and
346 DD conditions (Figure 7A).
347 Both qualitatively and quantitatively, mice lacking forebrain Bmal1 exhibited clear food
348 anticipatory behavior in LD that was similar to that of control mice (Figure 7B-E). Notably, the
349 mean FAA profiles of BKO’s were enhanced in DD during temporal food restriction (Figure 7C,
350 G), and the total daily activity levels in BKO’s during FR were significantly higher (almost 2-
351 fold higher) than those of controls, despite the observation that BKO’s exhibited a trend to eat
352 less during FR (Figure 7-figure supplement 1). Surprisingly, FAA profiles showed that, during
353 FR in DD, BKO’s had extended activity for up to 15 hours before food availability, while
354 controls allocated most of their activity to the 6-hr window of FAA (Figure 7F,G). Another
355 study has found similarly longer FAA in Bmal1-deficient mice (Takasu et al., 2012). To further
356 characterize the food anticipatory behavior, we measured the time course over which FAA
357 emerged in BKO’s and controls after the start of food restriction. We found FAA development
358 to be similar in the two genotypes under both LD and DD conditions. FAA appeared after about
359 2 days and reached a plateau after about 4 days in both genotypes (Figure 7D,H). The mean
360 time by which FAA anticipated the daily onset of food (phase angle with respect to food
361 presentation) was not significantly different between the two genotypes during FR in LD (Figure
15 362 7E). During FR in DD, the random activity in BKO’s partially obscured their FAA; however,
363 FAA was still recognizable above the baseline both in individual records (Figure 7F) and in the
364 population activity profile (Figure 7G). This activity change was statistically significant
365 (Figure 7I). Therefore, behavioral responses to temporal food restriction in BKO’s were
366 enhanced in DD.
367 Previously, the DMH was thought to be a possible candidate site of a food entrainable
368 oscillator (FEO) that regulates feeding behavior [(Gooley et al., 2006; Mieda et al., 2006) but see
369 (Landry et al., 2006; Landry et al., 2007; Moriya et al., 2009; Acosta-Galvan et al., 2011; Landry
370 et al., 2011)]. To examine Bmal1 deletion and Per2 gene expression at this anatomical site, we
371 conducted in situ analysis on the DMH. We collected brains at CT6 and CT18 on the third day
372 of ad lib feeding in DD. Controls showed high expression levels of Bmal1 mRNA in the DMH,
373 albeit with no circadian fluctuation. On the other hand, BKO’s had no significant Bmal1 mRNA
374 in the DMH at either time point (Figure 7-figure supplement 1). Despite a complete lack of
375 Bmal1 in the DMH, BKO’s exhibited normal FAA, indicating that Bmal1 in the DMH is not
376 necessary for food entrainment. Surprisingly, BKO’s showed Per2 expression levels comparable
377 to those of controls (Figure 7-figure supplement 1). Both genotypes displayed intense staining
378 in the ventromedial portion of the compact nucleus of the DMH (DMC, Figure 7-figure
379 supplement 1), and the difference between peak and trough Per2 mRNA was not significant for
380 either genotype. This result implies that transcriptional regulation of Per2 in the DMH involves
381 activation pathways (e.g., cAMP response element (CRE) and serum response element (SRE)
382 mediated pathways) in addition to CLOCK:BMAL1 as seen previously (Travnickova-Bendova et
383 al., 2002; Gerber et al., 2013).
384
16 385 Restricted feeding selectively resynchronizes peripheral tissues
386 It has been shown that rhythms of peripheral tissues can be dissociated from the control of the
387 central clock in the SCN and be re-entrained to a new phase by temporal feeding restriction
388 (Damiola et al., 2000; Stokkan et al., 2001). The ability of the peripheral tissues to respond to
389 feeding signals was further demonstrated in vivo (Tahara et al., 2012; Saini et al., 2013), with an
390 observation that phase changes take place faster in the liver when the SCN is surgically lesioned.
391 To assess the impact of feeding cues on the synchrony of peripheral rhythms, we subjected BKO;
392 PER2::LUC mice to a restricted feeding schedule in the absence of light signals (Figure 8A).
393 The duration of constant darkness was the same as the desynchronization experiment (Figure 5).
394 During these >30 days, mice were fed ad libitum for the first two weeks, and after five days of a
395 food ramp, temporal food restriction was performed for 2 weeks before harvesting the tissues for
396 real-time gene expression recording.
397 Consistent with a previous report (Storch and Weitz, 2009), Fx/Fx control mice exhibited
398 both free-running activity and FAA in constant darkness (Figure 8B). The peripheral tissues in
399 these mice displayed variable phase relationships with respect to the feeding time (Figure 8D).
400 However, when the peak phases were converted to the circadian time of the animal at harvest,
401 the phases in a majority of tissues examined (except for pituitary and liver) became markedly
402 clustered (Figure 8E,G; Figure 8-source data 1), suggesting that the circadian rhythms in many
403 peripheral tissues in wild-type mice are still dictated by the signals from the intact central clock.
404 On the other hand, the peripheral tissues of BKO’s showed distinct changes in phase expression
405 patterns in response to restricted feeding cues (Figure 8F). Although BKO’s exhibited
406 prolonged pre-feeding activity in DD (Figure 7F; Figure 8C), only the liver and kidney showed
407 tightly clustered phases (Figure 8G; Figure 8-source data 1). Other tissues (heart, lung, spleen)
17 408 were variable in phase, though their phase distribution was different either from that found in an
409 ad libitum condition (see also Figure 5D) or from those in Fx/Fx (Figure 8G, Figure 8-source
410 data 1). These results suggest that feeding cues differentially entrain peripheral clocks; FR
411 strongly synchronizes circadian clocks in the liver and kidney, but has weaker effects on other
412 peripheral tissues such as the pituitary, heart, lung and spleen.
413 To our surprise, with the exception of the liver, oscillatory amplitude of peripheral
414 rhythms of BKO’s remained lower than that of Fx/Fx control mice even after two weeks of FR
415 (Figure 8I). Lower amplitude is not related to the state of phase synchrony, because relative
416 amplitude of kidney still remained low even though FR synchronized its phase. This indicates
417 that the damped rhythms were not completely restored by food signals.
418 To compare ad libitum and FR conditions directly, we performed a “meta-analysis” on
419 phase and amplitude within Fx/Fx and BKO’s, respectively (Figure 9A-D). Statistical
420 comparison between ad libitum in DD (BKO from DD) and FR in DD (BKO from DD+FR)
421 confirmed tissue-specificity of phase entrainment by feeding (Figure 9; Figure 9-source data
422 1,2). This result is in striking contrast to the case in which BKO’s were exposed to LD cycles,
423 which synchronized all peripheral rhythms examined even in the absence of a functioning SCN
424 (Figure 9B,D; Figure 9-source data 2). Nevertheless, both internal synchrony and oscillatory
425 amplitude in peripheral tissues were maintained most optimally when an intact SCN was present
426 (Figure 5; Figure 6A; Figure 8H). Taken together, these results indicate that, while individual
427 tissues can be entrained by light/dark cycles and feeding schedules independently, the central
428 clock plays an important role in sustaining coherence among peripheral tissues and robust
429 circadian programs at the organismal level.
430
18 431 Discussion
432 Circadian behavioral rhythmicity is abolished by deleting Bmal1 from the forebrain
433 Bmal1 is the only component of the mammalian circadian clock whose sole deletion generates a
434 complete loss of circadian rhythms in mice (Bunger et al., 2000). Therefore, elimination of
435 Bmal1 from a target tissue provides an invaluable model to study the behavioral and
436 physiological consequences of abolishing circadian rhythms in a tissue-specific manner. Here,
437 we succeeded in removing Bmal1 specifically from the forebrain using a Camk2a::iCreBAC line
438 (Casanova et al., 2001). Notably, this CamiCre driver was able to efficiently recombine and
439 delete our target floxed gene in the entire SCN. These forebrain/SCN-specific Bmal1 knockouts
440 exhibited a total loss of circadian behavioral rhythmicity and their circadian phenotype in DD
441 and LL is similar to that of global Bmal1 knockouts (Bunger et al., 2000). Thus, Bmal1 in the
442 forebrain is essential for normal circadian activity rhythms. However, a Cre driver that can
443 express more specifically in the SCN would be necessary to confirm the dominance of the SCN
444 over other sites of the brain.
445 BKO’s displayed apparent entrainment to LD cycles; however, additional experiments
446 revealed two deficits in these mice. First, entrainment in a skeleton photoperiod was abnormal
447 with a bimodal pattern. A similar pattern is found in pinealectomized sparrows in which a
448 population of oscillators entrains with two different and opposite phase angles (Takahashi and
449 Menaker, 1982). Second, there is a delay in masking behavior to light under LD 3.5:3.5 which is
450 similar to that seen in Clock mutants (Redlin et al., 2005). Thus, the variable phase angle of
451 entrainment in BKO’s on LD 12:12 is consistent with weaker synchronization of residual
452 oscillators as well as a small deficit in masking.
453
19 454 Impact of a loss of a functional forebrain clock on circadian organization of peripheral
455 tissues
456 Despite a complete loss of circadian behavioral rhythmicity, Bmal1 forebrain-specific knockout
457 mice are as healthy as wild-type mice, consistent with our earlier results using tissue-specific
458 rescue of Bmal1-/- mice (McDearmon et al., 2006). These results suggest that Bmal1’s
459 contribution to the circadian phenotype seen in Bmal1-/- mice is distinct from its role in the
460 maintenance of normal activity levels, body weight, reproduction and longevity. For instance,
461 the skeletal muscle defects seen in Bmal1-/- mice (Andrews et al., 2010) are likely a causative
462 factor in their low activity. Muscle-rescued Bmal1-/- mice exhibit improvement of body weight,
463 activity and longevity, but not of arthropathy (McDearmon et al., 2006). Our findings as well as
464 others’ suggest that the effects of BMAL1 can be dissociated between brain and other tissues
465 including the reproductive system.
466 While the effect of Bmal1 deletion is local, the impact of disabling the brain’s clock on
467 peripheral circadian organization is significant. Previous studies have investigated the effect of
468 SCN ablation on peripheral rhythms by making SCN lesions and recording circadian gene
469 expression of peripheral tissues either ex vivo (Yoo et al., 2004) or in vivo (Tahara et al., 2012;
470 Saini et al., 2013). Here, we used a Cre-mediated genetic excision approach to remove a critical
471 component of the molecular oscillator from the intact SCN network. This strategy demonstrates
472 that internal synchrony and high amplitude rhythms are lost in the absence of a functional master
473 oscillator in the forebrain/SCN and supports previous reports (Yoo et al., 2004; Tahara et al.,
474 2012; Saini et al., 2013). Nevertheless, further studies are needed to elucidate the functional
475 consequences of damped circadian rhythms in each peripheral organ.
20 476 On the other hand, the dispersed phases in BKO’s were not observed when mice were
477 placed in an LD condition (Figure 5C,E). Given that the BKO’s circadian behavior is driven by
478 light from retinal pathways presumably acting via the SCN, this demonstrates that cyclic photic
479 input (Figure 3) is sufficient to sustain coherent temporal synchrony of peripheral oscillators.
480 Alternatively, the effects of light could also be mediated by activity (wheel-running)-associated
481 stimuli driven by LD as another source of systemic signals impinging on peripheral clocks
482 analogous to that found previously (Kornmann et al., 2007; Hughes et al., 2012).
483
484 Forebrain Bmal1 expression is not necessary for food entrainment behavior
485 BKO’s offer an advantage for investigating the effects of a disabled master clock in the brain
486 because they do not suffer from the morbid phenotypes observed with a global loss of Bmal1.
487 Using the forebrain Bmal1-deficient animals, we were able to conduct food restriction
488 experiments under completely standard conditions. In contrast to global Bmal1 knockouts,
489 altered experimental conditions such as enriched liquid food (Storch and Weitz, 2009), LD 18:6
490 (Pendergast et al., 2009), or food placed on the cage bottom and gentle handling to prompt
491 feeding (Fuller et al., 2008) were not required for these mice. Our results show that BKO’s
492 indeed displayed normal FAA as other studies using global Bmal1 knockouts have reported
493 (Mistlberger et al., 2008; Pendergast et al., 2009; Storch and Weitz, 2009), demonstrating that
494 BMAL1 in the forebrain is not essential for food entrainment behavior. Specifically, our Bmal1
495 in situ results in the DMH indicate that the DMH is not necessary for FAA as reported
496 previously (Landry et al., 2006; Landry et al., 2007; Moriya et al., 2009; Acosta-Galvan et al.,
497 2011; Landry et al., 2011). In our experiments, BKO’s tend to exhibit intact food anticipatory
498 behavior under constant darkness conditions. However, overall activity of BKO’s circadian
21 499 behavior was also significantly elevated in DD, which makes it difficult to distinguish whether
500 the elevated pre-feeding activity is due to enhanced FAA or to the effect of overall activity
501 increase. Nevertheless, these results suggest that an inhibitory system (Davis and Menaker,
502 1980) suppresses the total activity of both circadian behavior and FAA. It remains to be
503 determined what factors underlie suppression of the activity and how their regulation in the SCN
504 and other brain regions is altered by the deletion of BMAL1.
505
506 Differential effects of light/dark cycles and feeding cues
507 Previous work has shown that restricted feeding can alter the phase of peripheral rhythms
508 without affecting the phase of the SCN (Damiola et al., 2000; Stokkan et al., 2001). While
509 peripheral oscillators can be uncoupled from the central clock in the SCN, recent studies have
510 suggested that SCN-derived signals counteract the feeding cues for rapid phase-shifting of
511 peripheral clocks (Saini et al., 2013) and that phase-shifting rates are variable among different
512 tissues (Damiola et al., 2000; Yamazaki et al., 2000). Consistent with these observations,
513 peripheral tissues in our control mice displayed variable phases relative to the FR schedule when
514 conducted in constant darkness (Figure 8D). In these free-running conditions, the circadian
515 activity rhythms of the mice were not affected by FR; and as a consequence, the phase
516 relationships between the FR schedule and circadian phase could be dissociated. When control
517 mice in DD under ad libitum conditions were compared to control mice in DD under FR using
518 circadian phase as a marker, the liver, kidney and heart significantly shifted their mean circular
519 phase in response to feeding, showing an effect of FR on these tissues (Figure 9A, compare
520 Fx/Fx from DD with Fx/Fx from DD+FR (in CT); Figure 9-source data 1). However, the
521 phases of the peripheral rhythms were significantly clustered with the phase of the activity
22 522 rhythm (Figure 8E), strongly suggesting that signals from the SCN continue to dictate the
523 expression of peripheral phases in wild-type mice despite the expression of FAA behavior.
524 Indeed, only the liver was strongly clustered in phase with FR in DD (Figure 8G, Fx/Fx from
525 DD+FR) compared to the circadian phase of activity [Figure 8G, Fx/Fx from DD+FR (in CT)]
526 in which all peripheral tissues were clustered in phase. Thus we see a rather complex picture in
527 control mice in which FR exerts tissue-specific effects on peripheral organ circadian phase and
528 coherence.
529 In contrast, in the absence of a functional pacemaker in the forebrain, liver and kidney
530 clocks shifted to a distinct phase in response to food restriction and became synchronized
531 (Figure 8F,G; Figure 9B), which supports the results of an in vivo study using SCN-lesioned
532 animals (Saini et al., 2013). We found, however, that other tissues such as heart, lung, and
533 spleen did not entrain to food restriction even after two weeks of treatment (Figure 9B; Figure
534 9-source data 2). Although the precise mechanism is not known, the lower degree of synchrony
535 of these tissues could be due to the longer duration of pre-feeding behavioral activity which
536 could mobilize additional (conflicting) signals. At the same time, these tissues showed distinct
537 phase shifts in response to feeding (Figure 9B; Figure 9-source data 2). Circular phase
538 variance analysis indicates that internal coherence among different organs within an individual
539 mouse still remained disrupted (Figure 8H). Therefore, these results suggest that, while
540 synchrony of individual tissues such as liver and kidney can be maintained independently by a
541 feeding schedule, synchrony among peripheral tissues requires central clocks in the
542 forebrain/SCN.
543 The effects of FR were different from the effects of LD cycles (Figure 5; Figure 9B), which
544 sustained both phase synchrony and oscillatory amplitude in peripheral clocks in BKO’s (Figure
23 545 9). Notably, both phase angle (Figure 5E; Figure 5-source data 1) and phase coherence among
546 peripheral tissues (Figure 5F) were similar to those in Fx/Fx control mice which possess an
547 intact central clock. We speculate that, while feeding cues can antagonize SCN-derived signals,
548 LD cycles appear to act in concert with the SCN or signals arising from the SCN. Although
549 detailed pathways through which the SCN controls the peripheral clocks remain unknown,
550 recently, SRF was identified as a transcription factor that regulates gene expression in peripheral
551 tissues in response to systemically oscillating signals (Gerber et al., 2013). It will be interesting
552 to explore how these signals affect circadian gene expression in vivo to determine the
553 mechanisms by which the SCN communicates with peripheral oscillators. Our experiments
554 reveal the diverse behavioral and peripheral physiological consequences of inactivating a
555 forebrain clock. They pave the way for further exploring the complex relationship between
556 central and peripheral clocks.
557
24 558 Materials and methods
559 Animals
560 All mice were housed under LD 12:12 unless otherwise noted. Camk2a::iCreBAC mice
561 (CamiCre) (MGI:2181426) were kindly provided by Dr. G. Schutz (Casanova et al., 2001). For
562 a Cre reporter mouse, Rosa26-CAG-LSL-tdTomato (Ai14, kindly provided by Dr. Hongkui
563 Zeng) was used (Madisen et al., 2010). Bmal1fx/fx mice (Johnson et al., 2014) are homozygous
564 for a Bmal1 allele which has loxP sites inserted into the introns surrounding exon 4. Bmal1fx/fx
565 mice (129SvJ × C57BL/6J N3 backcross) were crossed to CamiCre to produce Bmal1fx/fx
566 (Fx/Fx), CamiCre+;Bmal1fx/+ (Het) , and CamiCre+; Bmal1fx/fx (BKO) mice. CamiCre mice
567 were mated to their siblings (FVB/N × C57BL/6J N3 backcross) to generate CamiCre
568 hemizygous controls. Bmal1-/- global knockout mice (Bunger et al., 2000) were 129SvJ ×
569 C57BL/6J N14 backcross congenic animals. For the real-time reporting assay, PER2::LUC mice
570 (Yoo et al., 2004) were crossed to Bmal1fx/fx to produce CamiCre+; Bmal1fx/fx; Per2Luc/+ and its
571 control littermate, Bmal1fx/fx; Per2Luc/+. For the bioluminescence imaging experiments, Per2Luc
572 mice were homozygous. For all experiments, male and female mice were used in balanced
573 ratios; mice were 2-7 months old for behavior experiments and 3-11 months old for
574 bioluminescence recordings and age-matched across groups, except for FR (males only were
575 used for behavior experiments), where mice were 1.9-3.6 months old at the start of the
576 experiment. All animal studies and experimental procedures were in accordance with
577 Northwestern University and UT Southwestern Medical Center guidelines for animal care and
578 use.
579
580 PCR genotyping
25 581 The following sets of genotyping primers were used: CamiCre: iCre-PCR-F 5’-
582 TCTGATGAAGTCAGGAAGAACC -3’ and iCre-PCR-R 5’-
583 GAGATGTCCTTCACTCTGATTC -3’ (amplified a 400 bp product). PCR reactions were
584 carried out in a final volume of 30 µl buffer consisting of 5 µl Promega 5x Colored buffer, 2.7 µl
585 25 mM MgCl2, 0.38 µl 20 µM each primer, 3 µl 2 mM dNTPs, 3 µl NaOH-extracted tail
586 genomic DNA, and 0.3 µl Promega Go Taq (1 U/rx; Promega, Madison, WI). PCR conditions
587 were: 5 min at 95º C, followed by 30 cycles of 1 min at 94º C, 2 min at 58º C, and 2 min at 72º
588 C, followed by 8 min at 72º C. The reaction products were analyzed on a 2% agarose gel.
589 Bmal1fx/fx: OL5436 5’- CCC TGA ACA TGG GAA AGA GA -3’ and OL6013 5’- ATT CAC
590 CTT TTG GGG AGG AC -3’ (floxed band: 360 bp, WT band: 310 bp). PCR reactions were
591 carried out in a final volume of 25 µl buffer consisting of 5 µl Promega 5x Colored buffer, 3 µl
592 25 mM MgCl2, 1 µl 20 µM each primer, 2.5 µl 2 mM dNTPs, 3 µl NaOH-extracted tail genomic
593 DNA, and 0.3 µl Promega Go Taq (1.25 U/rx). PCR conditions were: 5 min at 95º C; followed
594 by 37 cycles of 30 sec at 95º C, 30 sec at 60º C, and 30 sec at 72º C, followed by 5 min at 72º C.
595 Ai14: Ai14F 5’- TAC GGC ATG GAC GAG CTG TAC AAG TAA -3’and Ai14R 5’- CAG
596 GCG AGC AGC CAA GGA AA -3’ (amplified a 517 bp product). Bmal1-/- and PER2::LUC
597 mice were genotyped as previously described (Bunger et al., 2000; Yoo et al., 2004).
598
599 Behavioral experiments and activity monitoring
600 To record the rhythm of locomotor activity, adult mice (at least 8 weeks old) were individually
601 housed in activity wheel-equipped cages under LD 12:12 for at least 10 days. Locomotor
602 activity was recorded and analyzed using ClockLab software (Actimetrics, Wilmette, IL) as
603 previously described (Vitaterna et al., 1999; Siepka and Takahashi, 2005; McDearmon et al.,
26 604 2006; Vitaterna et al., 2006). Fluorescent lights (300-600 lux inside the cage) were used for
605 behavior experiments. Mice were transferred into DD for 4 weeks, returned to LD for 2 weeks,
606 released into LL for 4 weeks, and then returned to LD for at least 2 weeks. For the entrainment
607 experiment, mice were placed in LD12:12 for at least 10 days, released into DD for 4 wks,
608 followed by LD for 2 wks, before they were introduced to a skeleton photoperiod (LDLD
609 1:10:1:12) for 4 wks. The mice were returned to LD for 2 wks and then switched to an ultradian
610 cycle (LD 3.5:3.5) for 3 wks.
611
612 Food restriction experiments
613 For the food restriction experiment, the mice were placed in wheel-equipped cages under LD
614 12:12 for 2 weeks, then underwent a 5-day FR ramp of gradually decreasing food availability
615 (Figure 7A), followed by 14 days of FR in LD. They were returned to ad lib feeding under LD
616 for 2 weeks, DD for 2 weeks, and LD for 2 weeks. Then the mice underwent a 5-day FR ramp
617 after which they were released into DD for 14 days of FR in DD. On the first day of the FR
618 ramp, food was removed at ZT/CT18, and 12 hours later food was returned. On each successive
619 day, food was removed 2 hrs earlier until food was available for 4 hrs, from ZT/CT6-10 (Figure
620 7A). This was the final food availability window for 14 days of FR. A regular mouse diet
621 (5K52; Lab Diet, Richmond, IN; contains 19.3% protein and 6.2% fat, or 2918; Irradiated Global
622 Diet, Teklad Diets, Madison, WI; contains 18.6% protein and 6.2% fat) was used during FR
623 experiments. Food pellets were weighed daily for each mouse before and after food availability
624 to monitor food consumption. Individual mean daily activity profiles were computed by
625 ClockLab; group average profiles were made using Microsoft Excel.
27 626 For the bioluminescence recording experiment, mice were initially entrained in LD12:12
627 for a minimum of 6 days (6-12 days), as the light-on time was delayed for 6 hr, before they were
628 released into DD for 2 weeks. Then the mice underwent a 5-day FR ramp as above, after which
629 4-hr FR was conducted from ZT/CT6-10 for 2 weeks (Figure 8A). On the final day of 2 weeks
630 of FR, tissues were harvested for bioluminescence recordings at 2 hrs after the food was
631 withdrawn (ZT/CT12).
632
633 Behavioral data analysis
634 Wheel-running activity was recorded and analyzed essentially as previously described (Vitaterna
635 et al., 2006). The free-running periods in DD and LL were calculated from the entire 28-day
636 interval by using 2 periodogram analysis (Clocklab software, Actimetrics). The amplitude of
637 circadian rhythm was analyzed using the fast Fourier transform (FFT), which estimates the
638 relative power of approximately 24 hour period rhythm in comparison with all other periodicities
639 in the time series (Shimomura et al., 2001). The power spectral densities for frequencies ranging
640 from 0 to 1 cycle/hr were determined and normalized to a total power (area under the curve) of
641 1.0. The peak in the circadian range (18- to 30-hr period or 0.033–0.055 cycles/hr) of the
642 relative power was determined for each animal for comparison. If no significant periodicity in
643 the 18-30 hr range was detected by FFT, the free running period was not scored. For analysis of
644 total daily activity, the total number of wheel revolutions per day was averaged in LD (last 10
645 days of initial LD interval), DD and LL (28 days) using the same days described above for free-
646 running period and amplitude analysis. Effects of genotype were analyzed by a Generalized
647 Model (GLM) ANOVA by using NCSS (Kayesville, UT), with Tukey-Kramer multiple
648 comparison post-tests for pairwise comparisons.
28 649 Two-sample t-tests were used to analyze subjective day vs night activity during skeleton
650 photoperiod and amplitudes during LD 3.5:3.5, and Repeated Measures GLM ANOVA with
651 Tukey-Kramer multiple comparison post-tests was used to compare the time course of masking
652 between genotypes during days 3-15 of the 21-day LD 3.5:3.5 cycle. FFT was used to analyze
653 amplitudes in the circadian as well as 7-hr range during LD 3.5:3.5. To analyze FR data,
654 Repeated Measures GLM ANOVA with Tukey-Kramer multiple comparison post-tests was used
655 to compare the effect of genotype, time, and interaction between the two on FAA (absolute
656 counts), FAA (% of total activity), weights, total daily activity, and food intake. Two-sample t-
657 test and paired t-test, respectively, was used to calculate FAA onset and activity fold change
658 from ad lib to FR.
659
660 In situ hybridization
661 For the time course collection of brain tissue for in situ hybridization, after 2 weeks of
662 entrainment in LD, animals were released into DD for two days, and tissues were harvested on
663 the third day of DD. Brains were rapidly dissected and frozen on dry ice, and stored at -80ºC
664 until further processing. Standard in situ hybridization procedures were used as previously
665 described (Sangoram et al., 1998). Alternate 20-µm thick coronal sections were collected from
666 each brain from the rostral to the caudal end of the SCN or DMH (24-32 total, 12-16 for each
667 probe) by using a Leica CM3050S cryostat. Sections were thaw-mounted onto superfrost plus
668 microscope slides (VWR, Radnor, PA), then stored at -80º C until all sectioning was completed.
669 Alternate sections were hybridized to a combination oligoprobe against mBmal1 exon 4 and to a
670 riboprobe against Per2. For the Bmal1 combination oligoprobe, three 37 to 50-mer
671 oligonucleotide probes (IDT, Coralville, IA) were radiolabeled at the 3’ ends with 33P via
29 672 terminal I Deoxynucleotidyl Transferase (Gibco/Invitrogen, Life Technologies, Grand Island,
673 NY) and used in equal proportions: Mop3Ex4Probe1 5'-
674 AACTGTTCATTTTGTCCCGACGCCTCTTTTCAATCTGACTGTGGGCCTCC - 3',
675 Mop3Ex4Probe2 5'- CCTGGACATTGCATTGCATGTTGGTACCAAAGAAGCCAATTCATC
676 - 3', Mop3Ex4Probe3 5'- CTGAACAGCCATCCTTAGCACGGTGAGTTTATCTAAC - 3'.
677 Templates for the antisense and sense Per2 probes were PCR-generated by using the following
678 primers: Per2-insitu-f 5' - ACG AGA ACT GCT CCA CGG GAC - 3', Per2-insitu-r 5' - ACA
679 GCC ACA GCA AAC ATA TCC GC - 3'. PCR products were cloned into a TA cloning vector
680 (Invitrogen). The T7 promoter from the TA cloning vector was used to generate both antisense
681 and sense probes. All probes were labeled with 33P. Quantitation of the autoradiogram signal
682 was performed by using NIH ImageJ 1.34s software (NIH, Bethesda, MD) and normalized to
683 radioactive standards as described previously (Vitaterna et al., 1999). The optical density (OD)
684 of individual SCN or DMC (the compact nucleus of DMH) was normalized by subtracting the
685 OD of an area of identical size in the lateral hypothalamus or the magnocellular nucleus of lateral
686 hypothalamus, respectively, from the same side (left or right) and section. Normalized values
687 from three sections near the middle (anterior-posterior) SCN or caudal DMH (at the level of
688 DMC) were used to calculate an average for each brain. Effects of genotype, time, or their
689 interactions were analyzed by GLM ANOVA, with Tukey-Kramer multiple comparison post-
690 tests for pairwise comparisons.
691
692 Western blotting
693 For Westerns blots, tissues were harvested at ZT16 from mice in LD 12:12. Tissues were
694 homogenized by a polytron homogenizer in a buffer containing 44.6 mM Tris HCl, 5.5 mM Tris
30 695 Base, 154 mM NaCl, 29.8 mM Sodium Pyrophosphate, 20 mM Glycerol 2-phosphate, 50 mM
696 NaF, 1 µg/ml aprotinin, 1 µg/ml leupeptin, 1 mM PMSF, 1 mM sodium orthovanadate, 1 mM
697 EDTA, 1 mM p-nitrophosphate, 0.1% SDS, 0.5% Sodium Deoxycholate, and 1% NP-40.
698 Homogenates were centrifuged at 15,000 x g for 20 min at 4º C. Supernatants were collected
699 and protein concentration was estimated using Bio-Rad DC Protein Assay according to the
700 manufacturer’s instructions. Total protein (10 µg) was diluted 1:1 with Laemmli sample buffer
701 and resolved on a 10% SDS–polyacrylamide gel by electrophoresis. Thereafter, proteins were
702 electrotransferred onto a GE Healthcare PVDF transfer membrane. The membranes were
703 blocked with PBST (PBS + 0.1% Tween-20) containing 5% non-fat powdered milk for 1 hr and
704 then incubated with the rabbit polyclonal anti-MOP3 antibody (1:6,250, generated in Dr.
705 Bradfield’s lab and is available at NB100-2288, Novus Biologicals LLC, Littleton, CO) followed
706 by anti–rabbit IgG secondary antisera horseradish peroxidase (1:1,000; PI-1000, Vector
707 Laboratories, Burlingame, CA). Proteins were visualized with a chemiluminescence detection
708 system (ECL Western blotting detection analysis system; Amersham Pharmacia, GE Healthcare
709 Bio-Sciences, Pittsburgh, PA) and with subsequent exposure to autoradiographic films.
710
711 Immunohistochemistry and microscopy
712 Brain tissues for immunohistochemistry were harvested at ZT16 under LD 12:12. Animals were
713 anesthetized with ketamine/xylazine/saline cocktail (10 mg/ml ketamine, 10 mg/ml xylazine) at
714 0.01 ml/g body weight or with sodium pentobarbital at 120 mg/kg body weight and then perfused
715 intracardially with 25 ml of 4% paraformaldehyde (pH 7.4, Sigma-Aldrich, St Louis, MO) in
716 63.4 mM phosphate buffer (pH 7.5). The brains were removed and postfixed for 2 hrs at 4º C in
717 4% paraformaldehyde in 63.4 mM phosphate buffer and transferred to 20% sucrose/phosphate
31 718 buffer overnight. For immunohistochemistry, 50-µm coronal sections were collected through the
719 entire SCN using a Leica cryostat and processed free-floating. Sections were incubated with the
720 rabbit polyclonal anti-MOP3 (BMAL1) antibody (1:1,000) followed by anti–rabbit IgG
721 secondary biotinylated antisera (1:200; BA-1000, Vector Laboratories) and visualized using
722 Vectastain ABC Kit and 0.5 mg/ml diaminobenzidine, 0.01% hydrogen peroxide, and 0.03%
723 NiCl2 in 0.05 M Tris (pH 7.2). Sections were mounted onto gelatin-coated microscope slides
724 using aquaeous mounting medium (3:1 glycerol/phosphate buffer), coverslipped, and imaged
725 with a Leica DM-RB upright microscope using Openlab software in the Biological Imaging
726 Facility at Northwestern University. For the whole brain imaging, a Zeiss Stereo Discovery
727 Microscope V12 was used under a bright field. Fluorescence images were taken by Olympus
728 MVX10 (1x) and a Zeiss LSM 510 confocal microscope (20x objective).
729
730 Real-time bioluminescence recording and data analysis
731 To monitor real-time reporting of PER2::LUC oscillations, tissues were harvested after cervical
732 dislocation between ZT/CT10.5-13. Coronal sections of the brain were sliced at 300 μm
733 thickness by a vibratome in ice-cold Hank’s balanced salt solution (HBSS, Invitrogen). Each
734 individual SCN was dissected out and cultured on a Millicell organotypic membrane (PICM
735 ORG50, Millipore, Billerica, MA) in a 35 mm tissue culture dish containing 1.2 ml DMEM (90-
736 013-PB, Mediatech, Manassas, VA) supplemented with 2% B27 (Invitrogen), 10 mM Hepes (pH
737 7.2), 4 mM L-glutamine, 0.035% sodium bicarbonate, 25 units/ml penicillin, 25 μg/ml
738 streptomycin, and 0.1 mM luciferin (L-8240, Biosynth AG, Staad, Switzerland). Other tissues
739 were processed as previously described (Yamazaki and Takahashi, 2005) and cultured as above.
740 The bioluminescence was monitored by a light-tight 32-channel LumiCycle luminometry
32 741 (Actimetrics, Wilmette, IL) maintained at 36C and was recorded at an inverval of 10-min
742 continuously for a minimum of 8 days followed by medium change to confirm the viability of
743 the samples.
744 All data were analyzed essentially as described previously (Izumo et al., 2006). Briefly,
745 raw data of bioluminescence records were corrected for background counts and PMT gain. For
746 animals harvested from a DD condition (30-44 days in DD), activity onset of each Fx/Fx control
747 mouse was set as CT12. The time series data were detrended by a 24-hr running average and
748 then subjected to FFT-NLLS analysis to calculate periods and phases. The initial 20 hrs of data
749 were trimmed because they contain an acute effect of explant preparation. Data beyond 192 hr
750 before medium change was also trimmed except for one group (1 Fx/Fx control and 1 BKO),
751 which was affected by an electrical shutdown on Day 6. The amplitude was computed at a 36–
752 60 hr range and normalized as previously described (Izumo et al., 2006). For all data, the
753 calculations were averaged where duplicated samples were prepared from the same tissue within
754 an individual mouse, and the averaged value was used to map or calculate for all mice collected.
755 Samples with RelAmp Error 0.84 (background counts) or out of a circadian (17-31 hr) range
756 (24 hr 30% of 24 hr) in the periodicity were excluded from the analysis. A total of 1106
757 LumiCycle files were processed and used in this study. To construct a phase map, smoothed
758 time series were used to determine the peak on the second day. Phase angles and circular
759 variances of circular plots were computed using Oriana (Kovach Computing Services, Wales,
760 UK). The variance of the peak phases between two groups was compared using bootstrap
761 analysis (Sato et al., 2007). For each iteration of the bootstrap, the difference of the variance
762 between the two groups was calculated by random sampling with replacement from the data
33 763 within the each of the two groups. Following 20,000 iterations, ninety-five percent confidence
764 intervals were used to determine whether the differences were significantly different from zero.
765
766 Bioluminescence imaging and data analysis
767 For real-time bioluminescence imaging analysis, age-matched pairs of mice (Fx/Fx control and
768 BKO) were placed in DD for >30 days before harvesting the tissues. The tissue collection was
769 repeated for a total of three pairs of mice. The tissues were processed and prepared in the same
770 manner as in the luminometry recording, except that a glass bottom culture dish (MatTek,
771 Ashland, MA) was used. The sealed culture was placed onto the stage chamber maintained at
772 36C inside the LV200 Bioluminescence Imaging System (Olympus America, Irving, TX). The
773 sample was imaged using a 10x objective lens with 10-min exposure time at 25-min invetvals for
774 7 days. The imaging files were converted to linear time series by quantifying the signals on grid
775 matrices. The heat map was generated using the top 200 time series data starting with the
776 strongest signals. The top 50 of these time series data were analyzed for period, phase, and
777 relative amplitude by FFT-NLLS as desribed above. The phases calculated by FFT-NLLS were
778 further converted to the actual time and divided by each circadian period to normalize period
779 differences. Statistical analysis was conducted between paired mice as described above.
780
781 Acknowledgements
782 We thank Ms. Amanda Falk for help with mouse production, Dr. Tereza Smejkalova for help
783 with Westerns, Dr. William Russin at the Biologial Imaging Facility and Dr. Xinran Liu for help
784 with imaging, Dr. David Ferster for help with data analysis, Mr. Giuseppe Fruci for assistance
785 with figure production, Drs. Martha Vitaterna, Hee-Kyung Hong, Marleen de Groot, Kazuhiro
34 786 Shimomura, and Ethan Buhr for helpful discussions. We also thank Dr. Hongkui Zeng at Allen
787 Institute for Brain Science for Ai14 mice. J.S.T. is an investigator in the Howard Hughes
788 Medical Institute.
789
790
791
35 792 Additional information
793 Funding
Funder Grant reference number Author Howard Hughes Medical H0690101 Joseph S Takahashi Institute National Institutes of Health U01 MH61915, Joseph S Takahashi P50 MH074924 National Institutes of Health 1F30NS056551-01 Martina Pejchal National Alliance for Mariko Izumo Research on Schizophrenia and Depression (NARSAD) Young Investigator Award National Institutes of Health R01 ES005703 Christopher A Bradfield Japan Science and Technology Takashi R Sato Agency (PRESTO: Precursory Research for Embryonic Science and Technology)
794
795 Competing interests
796 The authors declare that no competing interests exist.
797 Author Contributions
798 MI, Conception and design, Acquisition of data, Analysis and interpretation of data, Drafting or 799 revising the article. 800 MP, Conception and design, Acquisition of data, Analysis and interpretation of data, Drafting or 801 revising the article. 802 ACS, Acquisition of data, Analysis and interpretation of data. 803 RPL, Acquisition of data, Analysis and interpretation of data. 804 JAW, Analysis and interpretation of data, Contributed unpublished essential data or reagents. 805 TRS, Analysis and interpretation of data, Contributed unpublished essential data or reagents, 806 Drafting or revising the article. 807 XW, Contributed unpublished essential data or reagents, Drafting or 808 revising the article. 809 CAB, Contributed unpublished essential data or reagents, Drafting or 810 revising the article. 811 JST, Conception and design, Analysis and interpretation of data, Drafting or revising the article.
36 812
813 Ethics
814 Animal experimentation: All animal care and use procedures were in accordance with guidelines 815 of the Northwestern University (Protocol 2006-0035) and UT Southwestern Institutional Animal 816 Care and Use Committees (Protocols 2009-0054 and 2012-0090).
37 817 References
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43 1052 Figure Legends 1053 1054 Figure 1. CamiCre+; Bmal1fx/fx mice are forebrain/SCN-specific Bmal1 knockouts.
1055 (A) Dorsal view of a CamiCre-; tdTom+ control brain. Bright field. Scale bar, 1 mm. (B)
1056 Dorsal view of a CamiCre+; tdTom+ brain. Bright field. (C) Ventral view of (B). (D)
1057 Fluorescence image of a coronal brain section containing the SCN from a CamiCre+; tdTom+
1058 mice. (E) Confocal image of the SCN showing tdTomato expression in the CamiCre+; tdTom+
1059 mice. Scale bar, 50 µm. (F,G) Coronal brain sections at the level of the SCN, prepared from
1060 mice sacrificed every 4 hrs starting at CT2 following two days of DD, were hybridized in situ to
1061 examine Bmal1 (F) and Per2 (G) mRNA levels in CamiCre+; Bmal1fx/fx (BKO) mice (n=3
1062 except n=4 for CT10, 14, 18) and Bmal1fx/fx (Fx/Fx) control littermates (same as BKO except
1063 n=1 for CT18 Bmal1 and n=3 for CT18 Per2). Below each coronal brain section is a close-up of
1064 the SCN. (H,I) Optical density graphs of the in situ time course data displayed in (F) and (G).
1065 Shown are means ± SEM, with significant effect of genotype in (H) [F1,46 = 40.70, P = 0.0000]
1066 and (I) [F1,44 = 1148.03, P = 0.0000] by GLM ANOVA. Tukey-Kramer multiple comparison
1067 post-tests (P ≤ 0.05) showed that in contrast to Fx/Fx littermates, neither Bmal1 nor Per2 mRNA
1068 is rhythmic in BKO’s. (J) Immunohistochemistry for BMAL1 on SCN-containing coronal
1069 sections of Fx/Fx (n=3), BKO (n=3), and Bmal1-/- (KO, n=1) mice sacrificed at ZT16. Captured
1070 with an x20 objective. (K,L) Western blot analysis of BMAL1 in BKO’s sacrificed at ZT16.
1071 (K) Western blot of various tissues in Fx/Fx (n=2), BKO littermate (n=2), and KO (n=1) mice.
1072 (L) Western blot of frontal cortex, cerebellum, and liver in Cre (n=2), Fx/Fx (n=2), BKO (n=3),
1073 and KO (n=2) mice. F. CTX: frontal cortex. Cer.: cerebellum.
1074
44 1075 Figure 1-figure supplement 1. Weights of Bmal1 brain knockout mice are similar to controls at
1076 2 months and 4-6 months of age.
1077 All body weights were measured in live, wheel-naïve animals. Numbers of male mice weighed
1078 at 2 months (= 54-62 days old) and 4-6 months (= 120-195 days old), respectively: Cre (n=25,
1079 35), Het (n=13, 15), Fx/Fx (n=98, 37), and BKO (n=55, 12). Numbers of female mice weighed
1080 at 2 months and 4-6 months, respectively: Cre (n=28, 39), Het (n=23, 35), Fx/Fx (n=84, 54), and
1081 BKO (n=54, 29). Shown are the mean weights SD. A significant effect of genotype was
1082 found using GLM ANOVA, followed by Tukey-Kramer multiple comparison post-tests. The
1083 difference between Cre and Fx/Fx mice (*P ≤ 0.05) is likely due to the difference in the genetic
1084 background (CamiCre+ is generated in FVB background, and floxed Bmal1 in 129sv).
1085 Importantly, there was no significant difference between BKO males and control males at 4-6
1086 months and BKO females did not weigh less than any control group at either time point.
1087
1088 Figure 1-figure supplement 2. Additional in situ analysis of Bmal1 brain knockout mice.
1089 (A,B) Coronal brain sections at the level of the SCN. Below each coronal brain section is a
1090 close-up of the SCN. (A) Mice were sacrificed at CT18 and CT6 following two days of DD.
1091 Sections were hybridized in situ to examine Bmal1 mRNA levels in Cre (n=5 at CT6 and 4 at
1092 CT18), Fx/Fx (n=7 at CT6 and 7 at CT18), Het (n=6 at CT6 and 6 at CT18), BKO (n=4 at CT6
1093 and 4 at CT18) and Bmal1-/- mice (KO, n=1). (B) Mice were sacrificed at CT10 and CT22
1094 following two days of DD. Sections were hybridized in situ to examine Per2 mRNA levels in
1095 Cre (n=7 at CT10 and 6 at CT22), Fx/Fx (n=10 at CT10 and 8 at CT22), Het (n=7 at CT10 and 7
1096 at CT22) and BKO (n=9 at CT10 and 9 at CT22) mice. (C,D) Optical density of Bmal1 (C) and
1097 Per2 (D) mRNA in the SCN. Shown are means ± SEM, with significant effect of genotype in
45 1098 (C) [F3,42 = 217.91, P = 0.0000] and (D) [F3,62 = 28.00, P = 0.0000] by GLM ANOVA. (C)
1099 Tukey-Kramer multiple comparison post-tests (**P ≤ 0.05) showed that BKO mice had
1100 significantly lower Bmal1 mRNA levels than all three control groups at both CT6 and CT18. At
1101 both time points Het mice had significantly less Bmal1 mRNA than the other two controls but
1102 more mRNA than BKO’s (*P ≤ 0.05). (D) BKO mice had significantly lower levels of Per2
1103 mRNA than all three control groups at CT10 but not at CT22 (*P ≤ 0.05).
1104
1105 Figure 2. Complete loss of circadian rhythmicity of Bmal1 brain knockout mice in constant
1106 darkness and constant light.
1107 (A,B) Representative actograms of daily wheel-running activity of Cre, Fx/Fx, Het, and BKO
1108 mice. Activity records were double plotted, with each day being represented beneath and also to
1109 the right of the preceding day. Horizontal black and white bars at the top of each actogram
1110 represent lights off and on, respectively. Mice were housed in LD, released into DD for 4 wks,
1111 returned to LD for 2 weeks, released into LL for 4 weeks, and then returned to LD. GLM
1112 ANOVA and Tukey-Kramer multiple comparison post-tests were used to compare genotypes
1113 tested. BKO’s showed no significant periodicity in DD or LL. (C-E) Period (C), amplitude of
1114 circadian rhythm (D), and activity levels (E) in Cre mice (n=28 for DD, 12 for LD, 12 for LL),
1115 Fx/Fx mice (n=31 for DD, 18 for LD, 18 for LL), Het mice (n=31 for DD, 13 for LD, 15 for LL)
1116 and BKO mice (n=31 for DD, 16 for LD, 21 for LL). Bar graphs show means ± SEM. (C) Free-
1117 running period was determined using 2 periodogram for days 1-28 of DD or LL. A significant
1118 effect of genotype on period was found for both DD [F3,120 = 164319.90, P = 0.0000] and LL
1119 [F3,65 = 20429.03, P = 0.0000]. In DD, Cre mice were found to have a slightly longer period than
1120 the other two control groups (*P ≤ 0.05). In LL, Het mice were found to have a shorter period
46 1121 than the other two control groups (*P ≤ 0.05). Nevertheless, all three control groups showed a
1122 free-running period in both DD and LL similar to that reported for WT mice. (D) DD and LL
1123 amplitude of circadian rhythm represented by FFT in the circadian range. A significant effect of
1124 genotype on amplitude was found for both DD [F3,120 = 150.64, P = 0.0000] and LL [F3,65 =
1125 23.72, P = 0.0000], with BKO mice having significantly lower amplitude (*P ≤ 0.05) in both DD
1126 and LL. (E) Total daily DD, LD and LL activity levels, in wheel revolutions per 24 hrs. BKO
1127 activity levels were found to be significantly higher than those of controls in DD [F3,119 = 9.00, P
1128 = 0.0000] (*P ≤ 0.05) and LL [F3,65 = 5.84, P = 0.0014] (*P ≤ 0.05), but not in LD.
1129
1130 Figure 3. Both entrainment and masking are abnormal in Bmal1 brain knockout mice.
1131 (A,B) Representative double-plotted actograms of daily wheel-running activity of Cre, Fx/Fx,
1132 Het, and BKO mice. Mice were housed in LD, released into DD for 4 wks, returned to LD for 2
1133 wks, introduced to a skeleton photoperiod (LDLD 1:10:1:12) for 4 wks, returned to LD for 2
1134 wks, and then switched to an ultradian cycle (LD 3.5:3.5) for 3 wks. Shown are days 1-24 of the
1135 skeleton photoperiod and days 3-15 of LD 3.5:3.5. (C,D) Average activity profiles of Fx/Fx
1136 (n=12) and BKO littermates (n=10) during LDLD 1:10:1:12. (C) Average profiles for individual
1137 mice; (D) The ensemble average for the entire group. Each data point represents counts per
1138 minute averaged across a 6-min bin (± SEM for D). (E) Total activity counts (means ± SEM)
1139 during 10 hrs of subjective day (Sk. Day) and 10 hrs of subjective night (Sk. Night) of LDLD
1140 1:10:1:12. In contrast to Fx/Fx littermates, BKO’s are equally active during skeleton day vs.
1141 skeleton night. *P < 0.0001 by t-test. (F) Masking of BKO (n=14) and Fx/Fx littermates (n=9)
1142 during specific 0.5 hr light bins of LD 3.5:3.5. Total activity (mean ± SEM) during each 30 min
1143 light bin is divided by the total of that bin plus the corresponding dark bin. Thus the first data
47 1144 point for each genotype represents the distribution of activity between the first 30 min of light
1145 and the first 30 min of dark. There was a significant interaction between genotype and time
1146 using Repeated Measures GLM ANOVA [F1,160 = 22.31, P = 0.0000]. Specifically, days 1, 6,
1147 and 7 were found to be significantly different by Tukey-Kramer multiple comparison post-tests
1148 (*P ≤ 0.05). (G) Representative double-plotted actograms of daily wheel-running activity of
1149 Fx/Fx (left) and BKO (right) littermates. These are the same mice as those shown in (A, middle
1150 panel) and (B, middle panel), respectively. Light phases are indicated in yellow to show the
1151 structure of the LD 3.5:3.5 cycle as well as to help visualize the occurrence of wheel-running
1152 activity under this schedule. Note that, after one week of this cycle, initial phase relationships
1153 are regained. (H) Representative amplitude power spectra of Fx/Fx and BKO mice, from FFT
1154 analyses performed on the same activity records shown in (G). The highest peaks for both
1155 genotypes were in the 7-hr range, corresponding to the LD 3.5:3.5 schedule. The second-highest
1156 peak for the controls was in the circadian (18-30 hr) range (left). None of the BKO’s was found
1157 to have a period in the circadian range (right). (I) Group averages of amplitudes in the 7-hr
1158 range and in the circadian range for the same Fx/Fx and BKO mice as in (F). Compared to
1159 controls, BKO’s had significantly higher amplitude in the 7-hr range (**P < 0.0001 by t-test) and
1160 significantly lower amplitude in the circadian range (*P < 0.0060 by t-test).
1161
1162 Figure 3-figure supplement 1. Masking in Bmal1 brain knockout mice.
1163 (A) Daytime activity levels during LD, as percentage of total daily activity, in Cre (n=12), Fx/Fx
1164 (n=18), Het (n=13) and BKO (n=16) mice. A significant effect of genotype on daytime activity
1165 was found by GLM ANOVA [F3,58 = 12.43, P = 0.0000], with BKO mice having significantly
1166 higher daytime activity by Tukey-Kramer multiple comparisons post-test (*P ≤ 0.05).
48 1167 Combined, controls allocate an average of 3.81 ± 0.96% of their total activity to running during
1168 the daytime. In contrast, 15.58 ± 1.8% of BKO wheel-running activity occurs during the light
1169 phase. (B-E) Shown are days 3-15 of a 21-day LD 3.5:3.5 cycle; these are the same days as
1170 those shown in Figure 3A,B. (B,C) Representative single-plotted actograms of daily wheel-
1171 running activity of (B) Fx/Fx and (C) BKO littermates. These are the same mice as those shown
1172 in Figure 3A (middle panel), 3B (middle panel), and 3G. Actograms are plotted modulo tau
1173 (25.2 hrs for B) to help visualize the circadian “beating,” i.e. the gaps in activity in controls (B)
1174 caused by the suppressive effects of the light phases of the LD 3.5:3.5 cycle on running. A
1175 circadian component of wheel-running activity is clearly evident in controls (B) but absent in
1176 BKO’s (C). (D,E) Representative actograms of wheel-running activity of Fx/Fx (D) and BKO
1177 littermates (E), plotted on a 7 hr time scale (x axis). Y axis shows successive 7 hr spans for days
1178 3-15 of this cycle. The gaps in activity in some of the dark periods in Fx/Fx controls represent
1179 times when the circadian cycle is specifying rest even though lights are off (see Figure 3G, left
1180 panel). To the right of each actogram is an activity profile for that individual mouse, averaged
1181 over 13 days. Each data point represents counts per minute averaged for each mouse across a 6-
1182 min bin. The boxed area corresponds to the first one-third of all the light phases of the LD
1183 3.5:3.5 schedule. Substantial BKO wheel-running activity is seen during this interval, especially
1184 the first 30 min, during which BKO’s fail to mask altogether (see Figure 3F). Horizontal black
1185 and white bars represent lights off and on, respectively.
1186
1187 Figure 4. Real-time reporting of circadian expression of PER2::LUC in the forebrain/SCN
1188 knockout mice.
49 1189 (A) Representative records of bioluminescence reporting of circadian expression from various
1190 tissues in Fx/Fx and BKO mice. Tissues were prepared from mice in LD. PMT counts are
1191 plotted against the LD cycle of Day 1. Shown are 10 days of continuous recording after explant
1192 preparation, except for the SCN for which medium was changed on Day 12. (B,C) Period plots
1193 of various tissues harvested from Fx/Fx control (open circle) and BKO (dark circle) mice in LD
1194 (B) and DD (C). The sample size is indicated on right. Shown are mean periods SD. **P <
1195 0.01, ****P < 0.0001 by t-test.
1196
1197 Figure 5. Phase analysis of circadian expression of various peripheral tissues from the
1198 forebrain/SCN knockout mice.
1199 (A) Phase map of circadian rhythms of various peripheral tissues from Fx/Fx control mice in LD
1200 (n=15, except for pituitary n=14). The peak phases (or averaged peak phases where more than
1201 two pieces were prepared from the same tissue) in the second cycle were plotted against the LD
1202 cycle of the day when explant cultures were prepared. Tissues from the same animal are
1203 connected by colored lines with matched symbols. (B) Phase map of Fx/Fx control mice in DD
1204 (n=15). The peak phases (or averaged peak phases) in the second cycle were plotted against the
1205 predicted onset of activity (= CT12) of the day when the explant cultures were prepared. (C)
1206 Phase map of BKO’s in LD (n=15, except for pituitary n=14). (D) Phase map of BKO’s in DD
1207 (n=15). The phases were mapped against the predicted onset of activity (=CT12) of paired
1208 Fx/Fx control mice. (E) Circular plots of peak bioluminescence rhythms in the SCN and
1209 peripheral tissues presented in (A-D). A circle represents a 24-hr clock, and peak phases of
1210 bioluminescence rhythms of individual tissues were calculated as angles and plotted as colored
1211 symbols outside the circle. Each tissue is denoted by the same color and symbol scheme. The
50 1212 direction of the arrow indicates mean phase angle, with the length of the arrow expressing the
1213 strength of phase clustering. The sample size, mean phase angle, and circular variance for each
1214 data set are summarized in Figure 5-source data 1. (F,G) Scattered plot of circular variance in
1215 each individual mouse. Degree of variance among the peak phase values of pituitary, liver,
1216 kidney, heart, lung, and spleen in each individual mouse was calculated and expressed as circular
1217 variance (see Figure 5-source data 2,3), and compared between Fx/Fx controls and BKO’s in
1218 LD (F) and DD (G). The bar is ± SD. A significant effect was found between Fx/Fx control and
1219 BKO mice in DD (P = 0.0008 by Mann Whitney test), but not in LD (P = 0.0627 by Mann
1220 Whitney test). N.S. = not significant.
1221
1222 Figure 5-source data 1. Summary of statistical analysis of circular plots presented in Figure 5.
1223 Figure 5-source data 2. Statistical analysis of circular variance for peak bioluminescence in
1224 individual mice in LD.
1225 Figure 5-source data 3. Statistical analysis of circular variance for peak bioluminescence in
1226 individual mice in DD.
1227
1228 Figure 6. Decreased amplitude in peripheral tissues of BKO’s.
1229 (A,B) Normalized amplitude of bioluminescence rhythms from Fx/Fx control (open bar) vs BKO
1230 (dark bar) in LD (A) and DD (B). Mean relative amplitude ± SD are shown. The sample size is
1231 the same as in Figure 4B & 4C. *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ****P < 0.0001 by t-test. (C)
1232 Representative records of real-time monitoring of circadian expression of heart tissues in Fx/Fx
1233 control (upper) and BKO (lower) mice maintained in DD. (D) Representative frames of
1234 bioluminescence imaging with grids over each heart tissue. (E) Heat maps of the brightest 200
51 1235 time series data beginning with the strongest signals in the grids shown in (D). (F,G) Linear
1236 traces of the top 50 of time series data from the Fx/Fx (F) and BKO (G) heart tissue shown in
1237 (E). The Y-axis was expanded for the BKO sample in the most right graph. (H) Normalized
1238 amplitude quantified from the top 50 of time series data shown in (F) and (G). ****P < 0.0001
1239 by t-test. (I) Circular plots of peak phase values of the top 50 time series data shown in (F) for
1240 Fx/Fx and (G) for BKO tissues. Degree of variance was compared between the two samples by
1241 bootstrapping simulation (****P = 0.0000).
1242
1243 Figure 6-figure supplement 1. Real-time monitoring of circadian expression in forebrain/SCN
1244 knockout mice from DD.
1245 Representative records of bioluminescence reporting of circadian expression from Fx/Fx and
1246 BKO mice maintained in DD. Tissues were harvested before the predicted onset of activity (=
1247 CT12) of Fx/Fx control mice. Shown are 10 days of continuous recordings followed by medium
1248 change. Quantification of period, phase, and relative amplitude of these samples are shown in
1249 Figure 4C,5,6B.
1250
1251 Figure 7. Intact FAA in Bmal1 brain knockout mice.
1252 (A) Schedule of a gradual temporal FR protocol in LD (upper) or DD (lower). Horizontal black
1253 and white bars represent lights off and on, respectively. Gray bars represent food availability.
1254 Since abrupt shifts to FR can have a high morbidity in mice, a gentle temporal FR paradigm was
1255 used (FR ramp), decreasing the duration of daily food availability from constant to a final 4 hr
1256 window over the course of 5 days. Because free-running in DD can obscure FAA in control
1257 mice, we obtained DD baseline activity and then switched mice to 14 days of LD (not shown).
52 1258 We then transferred our mice directly from LD into DD FR following an LD food ramp (lower).
1259 It should be noted that once gradual FR began, the time of onset of food availability was the
1260 same each day. (B,F) Representative double-plotted actograms of daily wheel-running activity
1261 of 3 Fx/Fx control littermates and 3 BKO mice during ad lib feeding and under subsequent FR
1262 during LD (B) or DD (F). The boxed area toward the left side of each actogram indicates the
1263 daily interval of food availability under FR, and yellow areas indicate time of lights-on during
1264 LD 12:12. After 5 days of gradually decreasing food availability, the final food availability
1265 window was ZT/CT6-10. For clarity, the 5-day FR ramp is not included in the boxed area (B).
1266 (C,G) Mean locomotor activity profiles of Fx/Fx littermates (n=7) and BKO mice (n=14) under
1267 ad lib feeding (left) and during FR days 8-14 (right) under LD (C) or DD (G). Each data point
1268 represents counts per minute averaged for each genotype across a 6-min bin (± SEM). The
1269 dashed boxed area (left) indicates, for comparison, the daily interval corresponding to subsequent
1270 food availability. The solid boxed area (right) indicates the daily interval of food availability
1271 under FR. (D,H) Time course of the development of FAA in Fx/Fx controls (n=7) and BKO
1272 mice (n=14) during LD FR (D) or DD FR (H). FAA is plotted as the total number of activity
1273 counts (mean ± SEM) allocated to a 6-hr time interval prior to mealtime, ZT/CT0-6 (D,H). (E)
1274 Number of hours by which FAA preceded daily meal times in Fx/Fx (n=7) and BKO mice
1275 (n=14) during LD FR. Wheel-running activity profiles were averaged for each individual during
1276 stable FR (as in C), and the average time of onset of FAA was determined as the time before
1277 food availability at which FAA rose to its half-maximum value (mean ± SEM). (I)
1278 Quantification of FAA under DD conditions in BKO mice (n=14). Plotted is fold-change of
1279 wheel-running activity (counts per minute, mean ± SEM) in each mouse for CT0-6 (window of
1280 FAA) compared with CT10-24 (the rest of the day except for the window of food availability).
53 1281 During FR, increased locomotor activity during CT0-6 compared with CT10-24 was highly
1282 significant (*P = 0.0001 by paired t-test).
1283
1284
1285 Figure 7-figure supplement 1. Lack of Bmal1 expression in the DMH of Bmal1 brain knockout
1286 mice.
1287 (A,B) Food consumed during FR was significantly lower in BKO's compared to controls using
1288 Repeated Measures GLM ANOVA for both LD conditions [F1,291 = 43.40, P = 0.0000] (A) and
1289 DD conditions [F1,293 = 15.47, P = 0.0009] (B). Food consumed on days 12-14 of LD FR (A)
1290 represents the average food consumed over those three days and is plotted in triplicate to enable
1291 comparison between LD and DD food consumed. (C,D) Coronal brain sections at the level of
1292 the DMH, prepared from mice under ad lib feeding at CT6 and CT18 following two days of DD,
1293 were hybridized in situ to examine Bmal1 exon 4 (C) and Per2 (D) mRNA levels in Fx/Fx
1294 control littermates (n=6 for CT6, n=7 for CT18) and BKO mice (n=6 for CT6, n=8 for CT18).
1295 On the right of each coronal brain section is a close-up of the DMH. (E,F) Optical density of
1296 Bmal1 (E) and Per2 (F) mRNA in the DMC. Shown are means ± SEM, * significant effect of
1297 genotype in (E) [F1,26 = 208.31, P = 0.0000] but not in (F) using GLM ANOVA.
1298
1299 Figure 8. Effects of restricted feeding on circadian rhythms of peripheral tissues.
1300 (A) Schedule of a temporal FR protocol in DD for real-time circadian reporting assay.
1301 Horizontal black and white bars representing lights off and on for LD 12:12 are shown above as
1302 a reference for a daily feeding schedule. Gray bars represent food availability. After
1303 entrainment to LD12:12, mice were released into and maintained in DD for a total of >30 days.
54 1304 In DD, mice were fed ad libitum for the initial 2 weeks and underwent a 5-day FR ramp of
1305 gradually decreasing food availability to reach the final food availability window of 4 hrs (from
1306 ZT/CT6-10) for 2 weeks of FR. Tissues were harvested at 2 hrs after removal of the food. (B,C)
1307 Representative double-plotted actograms of 2 Fx/Fx control (B) and 2 BKO mice (C) during 2
1308 weeks of ad lib feeding followed by the 5-day FR ramp and subsequent 2 weeks of FR in DD.
1309 The boxed area toward the left side of each actogram indicates the daily interval of food
1310 availability under FR (ZT/CT6-10). (D) Phase map of circadian rhythms of various peripheral
1311 tissues from Fx/Fx controls in DD+FR (n=11). The peak phases (or averaged peak phases) were
1312 plotted against the feeding time (green bar). Tissues from the same animal are connected by
1313 colored lines with matched symbols. (E) Phase map of (D) was converted to CT for the harvest
1314 time. (F) Phase map of BKO’s in DD+FR (n=11). The peak phases (or averaged peak phases)
1315 were plotted against the feeding time (green bars). (G) Circular plots of peak bioluminescence
1316 rhythms in the SCN and peripheral tissues presented in (D-F). The mapping strategy is the same
1317 as in Figure 5E. The sample size, mean phase angle, and circular variance for each data set are
1318 summarized in Figure 8-source data 1. (H) Scattered plot of circular variance in each individual
1319 mouse. Degree of variance among the peak phase values of pituitary, liver, kidney, heart, lung,
1320 and spleen in an individual mouse was calculated and expressed as circular variance (see Figure
1321 8-source data 2), and compared between Fx/Fx controls and BKO’s in DD+FR. The bar is ± SD.
1322 Note that the degree of variance is not changed by phase data conversion from ZT to CT. A
1323 significant effect was found between Fx/Fx control and BKO mice (P = 0.0002 by Mann
1324 Whitney test). (I) Normalized amplitude of bioluminescence rhythms from Fx/Fx control (open
1325 bar) vs BKO (dark bar) in DD+FR. Mean relative amplitude ± SD are shown. The sample size
1326 is the same as in (D,F). ***P < 0.001, ****P < 0.0001 by t-test.
55 1327
1328 Figure 8-source data 1. Summary of statistical analysis of circular plots presented in Figure 8.
1329 Figure 8-source data 2. Statistical analysis of circular variance for peak bioluminescence in
1330 individual mice under restriction feeding.
1331
1332 Figure 9. Analysis of circadian rhythms of peripheral tissues under different conditions.
1333 (A,B) Comparison of peak bioluminescence rhythms in the peripheral tissues in Fx/Fx (A) and
1334 BKO (B) mice under LD, DD, and FR conditions. Circular plots are as presented in Figure 5E
1335 and Figure 8G. Watson-Williams F-test and bootstrap analysis were performed to compare the
1336 mean phase angle () and the variance (V, distribution of peak phase values) between two
1337 circular data, respectively. Statistical comparison was summarized in Figure 9-source data 1,2.
1338 *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001, ****P < 0.0001. N.S. = not significant. (C,D) Comparison
1339 of normalized amplitude of bioluminescence rhythms from Fx/Fx (C) and BKO (D) mice under
1340 LD, DD, and FR conditions. Each bar graph is as presented in Figure 6A,B and Figure 8I.
1341 Mean relative amplitude ± SD are shown. *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001 by ANOVA.
1342
1343 Figure 9-source data 1. Summary of statistical comparison of peak phases from Fx/Fx mice 1344 under different conditions. 1345 Figure 9-source data 2. Summary of statistical comparison of peak phases from BKO mice 1346 under different conditions.
56 AB C DE
F CT2 CT6CT10CT14 CT18 CT22 CT2 H Fx/Fx BKO 350 Fx/Fx 300 250 200 150
Bmal1 100 Bmal1 mRNA BKO 50 0 2 6 10 14 18 22 2 G Circadian Time (hr) I 350 Fx/Fx 300 250 200 150 Per2 100 Per2 mRNA BKO 50 0 2 6 10 14 18 22 2 Circadian Time (hr)
J Fx/Fx BKO KO
K L Cortex Bulb Eye Frontal Olfactory Cerebellum Pituitary Muscle Liver Spleen Kidney Heart Lung Cre Cre Fx/Fx Fx/Fx BKO BKO KO KO Fx/Fx F. CTX
BKO BMAL1 Cer.
KO Liver A Cre Fx/Fx Het C Period 0 LD LD LD 26 DD LL 25 * DD DD DD 24 * Hours 23 LD LD LD 22 Days CreFx/Fx Het BKO LL LL LL D Amplitude LD LD LD 104 0.2 DD 0.16 LL B BKO BKO BKO 0.12 0.08
0 LD LD LD FFT Power 0.04 * * 0 CreFx/Fx Het BKO DD DD DD E LD LD LD Activity Level DD
Days * LD 40 * LL LL LL LL * 30 20 * 104 LD LD LD (x 1000) 10 024480244802448
Wheel revs/day 0 Time of day (hr) Time of day (hr) Time of day (hr) Cre Fx/Fx Het BKO A Cre Fx/Fx Het C D 0 LD 80 80 60 60 DD 40 40 Fx/Fx LD 20 20 Mean counts/min
LDLD Mean counts/min 0 0
Days 1:10:1:12 80 80 LD 60 60 LD 40 40 BKO 116 3.5:3.5 B 20 20 BKO BKO BKO 0 0 Mean counts/min Mean counts/min 0 LD 01224 01224 Time of day (hr) Time of day (hr) DD E Sk.Day F Fx/Fx LD Sk.Night BKO 22.5 50 * LDLD Days 1:10:1:12 15 25 7.5 * *
LD (x1000) 0 * 0 % of activity Wheel revs
LD Fx/Fx BKO 0-½ ½-1 116 3.5:3.5 1-1½ 1½-2 2-2½ 2½-3 3-3½ 0 24 48 0 24 48 0 24 48 ½ hr light bins Time of day (hr) Time of day (hr) Time of day (hr) G H I Fx/Fx BKO Fx/Fx BKO 0 0.25 0.2 7 hr ** 18-30 hr 0.2 0.15 0.15 0.1 Days 0.1 0.05 0.05 13 FFT Power * Relative power 0 0 0244802448 0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 Fx/Fx BKO Time of day (hr) Time of day (hr) Freq (cyc/hr) Freq (cyc/hr) A B SCN DMH Pituitary Liver 120 30 50 150 40 90 20 100 30 60 20
Fx/Fx 10 50 30 10 0 0 0 0 0 2 4 6 8 10121416182022 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 160 40 50 180
120 30 40 120 30 80 20
BKO 20 60 40 10 10 Bioluminescence (counts/sec) 0 0 0 0 0 2 4 6 8 10121416182022 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Lung Heart Spleen Kidney C 280 25 90 40 20 210 30 60 15 140 20 10 Fx/Fx 30 70 5 10
0 0 0 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 210 30 90 40
30 140 20 60 20 BKO 70 10 30 10 Bioluminescence (counts/sec) 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Time (Day) Time (Day) Time (Day) Time (Day) A C
BD
E Fx/Fx BKO Fx/Fx BKO F from LD from LD from DD from DD
SCN
Pituitary
G Liver
Kidney
Heart
Lung
Spleen
Time (hr) Time (hr) Time (hr) Time (hr) A B
CDHeart Fx/Fx E Fx/Fx 100
50
50 100
150
0 200 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKO BKO 100
50
50 100 BKO Fx/Fx Bioluminescence (counts/sec) 150
0 200 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Time (Day) Time (Day) F G Fx/Fx BKO BKO 4x1044 4x1044 2x1044
3x1044 3x1044
2x1044 2x1044 1x1044
1x1044 1x1044 0 0 0 Bioluminescence (a.u.) 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Time (Day) Time (Day) Time (Day) HI Fx/Fx BKO
0 0 **** 6 18 6 18 12 12
CT (hr) CT (hr) A LD
DD
food available progressive final window of ad libitum food restriction food availability B C Fx/Fx BKO 80 0 constant restricted 60 Fx/Fx 40 20
33 Counts/min 0 012 012 ZT (hr) ZT (hr) 0 DE 20 2 BKO 10 1 (hrs) (x1000) 0
FAA/6 hrs 1471013 0
33 FAA Onset Days after onset of FR Fx/Fx BKO F G 80 0 constant restricted Fx/Fx 60 14 0 40 20 14 Counts/min 0 012 012 0 CT (hr) CT (hr) BKO H I 14 0 20 2 * 10 14 1 (x1000) 0 00024 4824 48 24 48 ad FR FAA/6 hrs 1471013 0 lib Time of day (hr)Time of day (hr) Time of day (hr) Days after onset of FR Activity fold A LD
DD ------food available progressive final window of ad libitum food restriction food availability Tissue (2 weeks in DD) (2 weeks) collection
Fx/Fx Fx/Fx B G Fx/Fx from Fx/Fx from BKO from 0 DD+FR DD+FR (in CT) DD+FR 14 19 Days
33 SCN C BKO BKO 0
14 19
Days Pituitary
33 0243612 0243612 Time of day (hr) Time of day (hr) D Liver
Kidney
Heart E
Lung
Spleen F Time (hr) Time (hr) Time (hr)
I
H A B Fx/Fx Fx/Fx Fx/Fx from BKO BKO BKO from from LD from DD DD+FR (in CT) from LD from DD DD+FR μ: N.S. μ: N.S. V: DD μ: *** μ: N.S. μ: *** V: DD μ **** μ: ** μ: *** μ: * V: DD>DDFR**** Kidney V: N.S. V: N.S. Kidney V: LD μ: ** μ: ** μ: N.S. μ: **** V: LD μ: * μ: N.S. μ: N.S. μ: **** Lung V: N.S. V: N.S. Lung V: LD μ: N.S. μ: N.S. μ: N.S. μ: **** V: LD>DD* V: N.S. V: LD Time (hr) Time (hr) Time (hr)Time (hr) Time (hr) Time (hr) C D