Circadian clocks are biological timing mechanisms that generate 24-h rhythms of physiology and behavior, exemplified by cycles of sleep/wake, hormone release, and metabolism. The adaptive value of clocks is evident when internal body clocks and daily environmental cycles are mismatched, such as in the case of shift work and jet lag or even mistimed eating, all of which are associated with physiological disruption and disease. Studies with animal and human models have also unraveled an important role of functional circadian clocks in modulating cellular and organismal responses to physiological cues (ex., food intake, exercise), pathological insults (e.g. virus and parasite infections), and medical interventions (e.g. medication). With growing knowledge of the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying circadian physiology and pathophysiology, it is becoming possible to target circadian rhythms for disease prevention and treatment. In this review, we discuss recent advances in circadian research and the potential for therapeutic applications that take patient circadian rhythms into account in treating disease.

生物钟是产生 24 小时生理和行为节律的生物计时机制，例如睡眠/觉醒周期、激素释放和新陈代谢。当内部生物钟和日常环境周期不匹配时，时钟的适应性价值就很明显了，例如轮班工作和时差，甚至不定时进食，所有这些都与生理紊乱和疾病有关。对动物和人体模型的研究也揭示了功能性生物钟在调节细胞和有机体对生理线索（例如，食物摄入、运动）、病理损伤（例如病毒和寄生虫感染）和医疗干预（例如药物）。随着对昼夜节律生理学和病理生理学的分子和细胞机制的了解越来越多，针对疾病预防和治疗的昼夜节律变得可能。在这篇综述中，我们讨论了昼夜节律研究的最新进展以及在治疗疾病中考虑患者昼夜节律的治疗应用的潜力。