Early chronotype with advanced activity rhythms and dim light melatonin onset in a rural population

Ruiz, Francieli S., Beijamini, Felipe, Beale, Andrew D., Gonçalves, Bruno da Silva B., Vartanian, Daniel, Taporoski, Tâmara P., Middleton, Benita, Krieger, José E., Vallada, Homero, Arendt, Josephine, Pereira, Alexandre C., Knutson, Kristen L., Pedrazzoli, Mario and von Schantz, Malcolm (2020) Early chronotype with advanced activity rhythms and dim light melatonin onset in a rural population. Journal of Pineal Research, 69 (3). e12675. ISSN 0742-3098

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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/jpi.12675

Abstract

Studying communities at different stages of urbanisation and industrialisation can teach us how timing and intensity of light affect the circadian clock under real-life conditions. We have previously described a strong tendency towards morningness in the Baependi Heart Study, located in a small rural town in Brazil. Here, we tested the hypothesis that this morningness tendency is associated with early circadian phase based on objective measurements (as determined by dim light melatonin onset, DLMO, and activity) and light exposure. We also analysed how well the previously collected chronotype questionnaire data were able to predict these DLMO values. The average DLMO observed in 73 participants (40 female) was 20:03 ± 01:21, SD, with an earlier average onset in men (19:38 ± 01:16) than in women (20:24 ± 01:21; P ≤.01). However, men presented larger phase angle between DLMO and sleep onset time as measured by actigraphy (4.11 hours vs 3.16 hours; P ≤.01). Correlational analysis indicated associations between light exposure, activity rhythms and DLMO, such that early DLMO was observed in participants with higher exposure to light, higher activity and earlier light exposure. The strongest significant predictor of DLMO was morningness-eveningness questionnaire (MEQ) (beta=−0.35, P ≤.05), followed by age (beta = −0.47, P ≤.01). Sex, light exposure and variables derived from the Munich chronotype questionnaire were not significant predictors. Our observations demonstrate that both early sleep patterns and earlier circadian phase have been retained in this small rural town in spite of availability of electrification, in contrast to metropolitan postindustrial areas.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: actigraphy, circadian rhythms, neuroendocrinology, phase angle, sleep-wake rhythm
Subjects: A300 Clinical Medicine
B900 Others in Subjects allied to Medicine
Department: Faculties > Health and Life Sciences > Psychology
Depositing User: John Coen
Date Deposited: 25 Aug 2021 14:39
Last Modified: 25 Aug 2021 14:45
URI: http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/47003

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