VOLUME 12, NUMBER 16 • FEBRUARY 23, 2001

Centennial Corner: 92nd Street Y Lecture

This year several Rockefeller University scientists are taking part in a lecture series co-sponsored by the 92nd Street Y, entitled "Cracking the Code of Life: Genes, DNA and You." One of the goals of these centennial lectures is to introduce Rockefeller science to a broader audience.

The next talk, on Tues., Feb. 27, will feature Professor Michael Young, who will discuss "Keeping Time with Biology."

Rockefeller professor Michael Young will give a talk co-sponsored by the 92nd Street Y on Tues., Feb. 27.

Young, head of the Laboratory of Genetics at The Rockefeller University, is a geneticist whose research focuses on the cellular and molecular machinery of biological clocks, the internal mechanisms that control the timing of daily activities in living organisms.

Young helped identify and characterize a number of genes that work in tandem to regulate the clock system in the fruit fly Drosophila. One of these genes, called period (per), was recently identified in humans by other researchers and shown to regulate sleep/wake cycles in humans.

Studies have indicated that the genes and proteins governing circadian rhythms in Drosophila play a similar role in humans. In humans, daily circadian rhythms underlie many functions, including the sleep/wake cycle, body temperature, mental alertness, pain sensitivity and hormone production. In natural conditions, many rhythms have a 24-hour period related to sunlight, but though light can affect the rhythm, it does not cause the cycle. In fact, in the absence of light or other environmental clues, rhythms continue and most adapt to periods slightly longer or shorter than 24 hours.

The lecture takes place at 7 p.m. in Caspary Auditorium. Call 996-1100 for tickets (use discount code ROC).