Abstract
Presentation Description :
Recent studies indicate that circadian timing has profound influences on human health. Light in the beginning of the night phase-delays the rhythm in systemic melatonin (“dim light melatonin onset”), and suppresses melatonin levels. These effects on the circadian system presumably underlie various pathologies, including some cancers. By the same token, accumulating evidence from animal models link altered ocular circadian rhythms to altered ocular growth rates and myopia development. Nighttime exposure to light in the blue spectrum might have the most deleterious consequences, as it has maximal effects on the primary circadian photoreceptors, the ipRGCs. I will discuss the effects of blue light in the evening on eye growth and ocular rhythms, and the effects of (white) light in the middle of the night, on the chick model of myopia. I will also discuss the influences of the autonomic nervous system on parameters of ocular rhythms and relate these to changes in ocular growth rates. Finally, evidence for alterations in the retinal dopamine rhythm that are associated with visual manipulations that influence eye growth will be examined.
This abstract was presented at the 2019 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Vancouver, Canada, April 28 - May 2, 2019.