Biological timing, homeostasis and infectious disease

Cells have intrinsic mechanisms to keep track of time and these molecular “circadian clocks” generate ~24h rhythms in most fundamental biological process, for example protein synthesis. At first glance, such daily variation runs counter to homeostasis, where cells try to maintain a stable intracellular environment and minimise perturbations.

Our recent findings suggest that circadian timekeeping actually promotes the steady-state, enabling proteome renewal whilst ensuring cellular bioenergetics, osmolarity and volume stay within tolerable limits.

This talk will address how circadian rhythms intersect with protein homeostasis and osmotic balance, their impact on cellular physiology and infectious diseases, and how we applied this research to prevent respiratory virus transmission.