Chapter 15 Perinatal development of human circadian rhythms

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This chapter focuses on the perinatal development of human circadian rhythms. Circadian rhythms are endogenous—that is, they are generated in the absence of any environmental time cues. However, under natural environmental conditions, circadian rhythms are entrained to light/dark (or other environmental Zeitgeber, usually 24-hour time cues) and temporarily interrelated. The entrainment and internal synchronization are aspects of the circadian timing system, which appear to be important for adaptation and optimal functioning of the organism. The fetal biological clock is an endogenous clock capable of generating circadian rhythms and responding to maternal entraining signals long before the moment of birth. Through the fetal biological clock, maternal circadian rhythms influence the fetal overt rhythms. Maternal rhythms influence the fetus, and fetal rhythms feed back to the mother (via the placenta). Disruption of this fetal-maternal interaction during gestation leads to (a) disturbances of maternal and fetal circadian rhythms, (b) disappearance of circadian rhythms at the time of birth, (c) a gestational period that is either too short or too long, and (d) delayed or impaired maturation of the circadian rhythms of the infant.

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