Sleep and Clocks in Health and Disease

Since the discovery of clock genes in Drosophila (Nobel Prize 2017), research on the circadian system has evolved into a leading field in the life sciences. It has led to the identification of additional clock genes and more than 3,000 clock-controlled genes in mammals, including humans.
The circadian system plays a crucial role in various physiological and pathophysiological processes, such as sleep, metabolism, and neurodegeneration. Disruptions of circadian rhythms can result in sleep disorders, metabolic dysfunction, and may promote tumor development.

This symposium brings together internationally renowned scientists and aims to promote the concept of “Time matters in medicine” and to establish circadian medicine as a new discipline in both academic and clinical practice.

Program
Opening: Horst-Werner Korf ML, Düsseldorf, Germany
09.15 - 10.00 Andries Kalsbeek, Amsterdam, Netherlands: "Discovering the Ins and Outs of the SCN Based on its Prototypical Neurotransmitter Vasopressin"
10.00 - 10.30 Coffee Break
10.30 - 10.55 Dieter Kunz, Berlin, Germany: "Sleep & Rhythm in Neurodegeneration" 
10.55 - 11.20 Tom de Boer, Leiden, Netherlands: "Effects of Photoperiod in Development and Adulthood on Sleep"
11.20 - 11.45  Natalie Hauglund, Oxford, UK: "Sleep is for Brain Cleaning – Mechanisms and Function of the Glymphatic System"
11.45 - 12.10  Lisa Marshall, Lübeck, Germany: "Stimulating Waves – Modulated Efficacy of Closed-Loop Acoustic Stimulation"
12.10 - 12.30  Young Investigator Session: 2 short oral presentations selected from submitted abstracts
12.30 - 14.00  Lunch and Poster Session
14.00 - 14.25  Hikari Yoshitane, Tokyo, Japan: "A Mouse Circadian Proteome Atlas and Post-translational Regulations in the Circadian Clock"
14.25 - 14.50  Hiroki Ueda, Tokyo, Japan: "Towards Human Systems Biology of Sleep/Wake Cycles:  The Role of Calcium and Phosphorylation in Sleep"
14.50 - 15.15  Arisa Hirano, Tsukuba, Japan: "Modes of Circadian Entrainment and Resetting"
15.15 - 16.00  Young Investigator Session (selected from abstracts submitted to EBRS 2025): 3 short oral presentations
16.00 - 16.30  Coffee Break
17.00 - 18.00  Discussion on Statements: Circadian Medicine and Daylight Saving Time Changes (Discussion leaders: Jan Born ML, Tübingen; Charlotte Förster ML, Würzburg; Horst-Werner Korf ML, Düsseldorf; Martha Merrow, München; Till Roenneberg, München), Chair: Horst-Werner Korf ML, Düsseldorf, Germany
17.15 - 18.45  Lectures to the Public:
Mieda Michihiro, Kanazawa, Japan: Neuronal Feedback Loop in the Mammalian Central Circadian Clock
Jan Born ML, Tübingen, Germany: Lernen im Schlaf: kein Traum

ML = Member of the Leopoldina

The symposium is supported by the Leopoldina.