Meeting Abstract

P3.190  Monday, Jan. 6 15:30  Role of light wavelength in the circadian entrainment of the starlet sea anemone, Nematostella vectensis HUMBEL, E.*; REITZEL, A.M.; University of North Carolina, Charlotte ehumbel@uncc.edu

Circadian clocks play an integral role for regulating diel oscillations in animal behavior and are generally entrained by light in the visible spectrum. At the molecular level, bilaterian clocks are in part regulated by light-induced degradation of particular proteins, particularly the blue-light-sensitive cryptochromes, a class of flavoproteins. Recent studies have shown that cnidarians, including the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis, have circadian behavior and conserved molecular and functional components of the circadian clock similar to those of bilaterians, including insects and vertebrates. In addition, expression of genes presumably involved in cnidarian clocks is differentially regulated depending on the spectral qualities of the environment. Here we report results describing the role of isolated portions of the light spectrum on the entrainment of Nematostella’s behavior. Using programmable LED lighting paired with behavior-monitoring software , we quantified individual movements in response to light:dark cycles, in which various wavelengths were tested. Our results indicate that the anemone circadian clock is differentially entrained by isolated portions of the light spectrum, providing evidence for additional conserved components of the cnidarian clock with those of bilaterians.