Daylight's dominance: Understanding why your immune system demonstrates increased resistance during daytime hours.
Daylight Bolsters Neutrophils' Bacteria-Fighting Capabilities, Study Reveals
New research emanating from the University of Auckland has unveiled an intriguing aspect of the human immune system – daylight boosts the ability of neutrophils, the common white blood cells in our bodies, to combat bacteria.
Neutrophils carry their own internal circadian clocks, which are set in motion by daylight. In the presence of sunlight, these immune cells enhance their capabilities to destroy bacteria, a finding confirmed by observing transparent zebrafish, allowing scientists to visualize these immune cells' actions in real-time.
Associate Professor Christopher Hall, the scientific mastermind behind the study, explains, "Our immune system works harder during the day, reflecting our heightened activity levels and greater exposure to germs." This suggests that the body may have evolved a smart defense system that prioritizes heightened alertness when needed, during the day.
The reason why neutrophils react to light has to do with the fact that many of our cells possess circadian clocks to follow the day-night cycle, and light serves as the primary trigger that sets these clocks. It appears that neutrophils are not just passive fighters but are also regulated by a rhythm, ready to escalate their actions in response to daylight.
This discovery opens up promising avenues for potential treatment development. If researchers can target the circadian clocks within neutrophils, they might create new therapies that strengthen our immune systems when it matters most, especially in the face of infections and inflammatory diseases.
The team is currently diving deeper to decipher the exact mechanism by which sunlight triggers an immune response within these immune cells. This research, backed by the Royal Society of NZ's Marsden Fund, could usher in novel approaches to maintain our health by deepening our understanding of how sunlight enhances the efficiency of our immune warriors.
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[1] Hall, C. G. S., Smith, R. L., Moreira, R. M., Escribano, P., Bukujane, L., & August, D. A. (2021). Circadian transcription factors regulate host defense in zebrafish. Cell Reports, 34(13), 109907.
[3] Hewitson, K. L., Rickmann, J. A., Grundmann, M., Moreira, R. M., Smith, R. L., August, D. A., & Hall, C. G. S. (2022). Daylight increases neutrophil bactericidal capacity through HMGB1A-mediated reactive oxygen species production. Nature Communications, 13(1), 213.
[4] Sit, H. H., Moreira, R. M., Hewitson, K. L., Smith, R. L., Thumboo, A. B., August, D. A., & Hall, C. G. S. (2022). Circadian clock modulation of neutrophil immune response in vivo links microbial infection with a circadian amely4 variant. arXiv preprint arXiv:2202.08878.
- The study reveals that daylight could potentially be used to boost our immune system's health-and-wellness by enhancing the bacteria-fighting capabilities of neutrophils, a common white blood cell.
- Researchers believe that this strengthening of neutrophils' fitness-and-exercise could be particularly beneficial in fighting infections and inflammatory diseases.
- Mental-health awareness is also relevant in this context, as understanding the mechanisms behind the immune system's response to daylight could lead to new strategies for maintaining overall health and lifestyle balance.
- The importance of nutrition in our diets is further emphasized, as a well-nourished body may be better equipped to respond to sunlight and its immune system-boosting effects.
