In a new study, University of Auckland scientist Christopher Hall and his colleagues focused on neutrophils, a type of white blood cell that play a key role in antibacterial immunity.
Yi Du et al. identified a light-responsive cell-intrinsic timer that controls time-of-day variations in antibacterial activity. Image credit: Summerstock.
The study authors used zebrafish as a model organism, because its genetic make-up is similar to ours and they can be bred to have transparent bodies, making it easy to observe biological processes in real time.
“In earlier studies, we had observed that immune responses peaked in the morning, during the fish’s early active phase,” Dr. Hall said.
“We think this represents an evolutionary response such that during daylight hours the host is more active so more likely to…