The role of circadian rhythms in liver cancer
The circadian clock is an internal, 24-hour timekeeping system that\u2019s synchronized with the light-dark cycle, and it\u2019s resident in basically all our cells. \n\nKristin Eckel-Mahan, PhD, recently discovered an important molecular mechanism linking the circadian clock to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) growth. When her lab \u201crepaired\u201d the broken circadian clock within HCC cells, they were able to cause cell death. Her findings suggest that altering circadian function could provide prevention strategies and even, in the long term, treatment strategies for HCC, which is the most common type of primary liver cancer. \n\nKristin Eckel-Mahan, PhD, is Assistant Professor at the Center for Metabolic and Degenerative Diseases at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.\n\n2:15 \u2013 On the rise in incidence and mortality rates of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common type of primary liver cancer\n\n4:03 \u2013 Risk factors for HCC\n\n5:24 \u2013 The role of fatty liver in increased HCC risk\n\n9:22 \u2013 A particularly interesting description of the circadian clock and its importance in health\n\n13:05 \u2013 The role of the circadian clock in liver cancer, and how she\u2019s studying a protein\u2019s role in circadian repression\n\n20:34 \u2013 Therapeutic prospects related to altering the circadian system and the promise of chronotherapy (treatment of an illness or disorder that takes into account the body's natural rhythms and cycles)\n\n27:52 \u2013 A message she\u2019d like to share with cancer patients and caregivers