The p75NTR protein has been found to be essential in the functioning of our body's circadian clock. This is the main conclusion of a study presented in the latest issue of the Journal of Neuroscience by researchers at the Gladstone Institutes in San Francisco.

The research has been carried out in animals and has shown that p75NTR production oscillates over time with the biological cycle of the body and these oscillations are key to regulating some metabolic functions, so for these researchers the circadian clock helps to improve the body's metabolic health.

Katerina Akassoglou, one of the authors of the study, explains the importance of the circadian clock for metabolism and therefore of the research they conducted. "Important metabolic functions are also strongly influenced by circadian clocks, so activities such as a night-shift job can lead to a risky clock misalignment, with a increase in metabolic and autoimmune diseasessuch as obesity, type 2 diabetes, cancer and multiple sclerosis," he said.

Once upon a time it was thought that p75NTR was only active in the nervous system but studies have shown that it was found in other parts of the body. This is another area where this research has made progress. "In this study, we have identified p75NTR as an important molecular link between the circadian clock and metabolic health," Akassoglou explains.

These results stem from a 2012 study in Gladstone that showed that p75NTR was found in both liver and fat cells and regulated blood glucose levels. From there, the researchers went on to test it in a petri dish and animals until the current discovery.