Sleep and Circadian Health

Image of an alarm clock from which small particles fly off against the background of an abstract image of DNA chains and chemical flasks and test tubes

Improving worker health through the lens of sleep, circadian physiology, nutrition, and physical activity.

Health, safety, and well-being are intrinsically linked to the interactions between daily activities, sleep, and circadian rhythms. Researchers at the Oregon Institute of Occupational Health Sciences are internationally recognized for their scientific contributions in the areas of circadian health and its relationship to nutrition, physical activity, sleep, and related biological processes.


Featured research

Mistimed eating: understanding the implications for reproductive health

Researchers at OccHealthSci's Butler Clock Physiology Lab are studying how flipped sleeping and eating schedules impact behaviors and hormonal signaling critical to reproductive health.

Surreal image of people dining at a cafe at night.

Nicotine use and the internal body clock

At OccHealthSci, Dr. Joshua Gonzales explorees what can be learned about the overlap between nicotine use and sleep disorders? Those are the questions that researchers at the Institute will answer in a study that examines nicotine and its effects on the body’s internal clock.

Image of a person sleeping in bed from chest up.

Sleep and circadian health research projects

Our nationally recognized scientists are setting the stage for a thriving workforce and better health in Oregon and beyond. The Institute's sleep and circadian health research seeks to identify and understand the biological mechanisms associated with health-related risks posed by exposure to environmental extremes and pollutants. The sections below contain examples of research currently underway at the Institute.


Illustration of neurons firing within an organism.

The role of GABAergic neurotransmission in SCN neuronal network activity

In this project, OccHealthSci Professor Charles N. Allen examines the role of neurons and non-neuronal brain cells in regulating biological timing and identify possible targets for the therapeutic intervention of circadian-based disorders.

Illustration of a head with a clock inside and a person walking near by. Concept illustrating circadian rhythms.

Understanding androgen receptors and sex differences in the circadian clock.

In this study, OccHealthSci Associate Professor Matthew Butler leads a team of researchers studying mouse models to understand the hormonal links to mechanisms responsible for differences in the biological clocks of males and females.

Illustration depicting circadian rhythm concept.

Role of the circadian rhythm on endocannabinoid response to acute stress

In this project, Assistant Professor Nicole Bowles and team use a circadian protocol to determine how the large daily fluctuation in endocannabinoid signaling at rest impacts emotional and cardiovascular reactivity in response to an abrupt stressor.


Researchers in the Shea lab study the biological basis behind changes in disease severity across the day and night.

Examples of recent publications

Chaput, J. P., McHill, A. W., Cox, R. C., Broussard, J. L., Dutil, C., da Costa, B. G., ... & Wright Jr, K. P. (2023). The role of insufficient sleep and circadian misalignment in obesity. Nature Reviews Endocrinology, 19(2), 82-97. 

Bowles, N. P., Thosar, S. S., & McHill, A. W. (2022). CrossTalk opposing view: Insufficient sleep is not responsible for increased risk of metabolic disease in shift workers. The Journal of physiology, 600(7), 1603. 

Elliott, J. E., Keil, A. T., Mithani, S., Gill, J. M., O’Neil, M. E., Cohen, A. S., & Lim, M. M. (2022). Dietary supplementation with branched chain amino acids to improve sleep in veterans with traumatic brain injury: a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled pilot and feasibility trial. Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience, 16, 854874. 

Gonzalez, J. E., Shea, S. A., & Bowles, N. P. (2023). Daily cannabis use is associated with sleep duration differentially across ages. Sleep health, 9(2), 181-184.  

Brito, L. C., Marin, T. C., Azevêdo, L., Rosa-Silva, J. M., Shea, S. A., & Thosar, S. S. (2022). Chronobiology of exercise: Evaluating the best time to exercise for greater cardiovascular and metabolic benefits. Comprehensive Physiology, 12(3), 3621. 

OccHealthSci researchers conduct sleep research in Institute sleep lab.

Faculty labs

Charles N. Allen Lab 
The Allen Lab seeks to understand the intracellular and intercellular signaling mechanisms that couple suprachiasmatic nucleus neurons into a neural network that generates circadian rhythms. 

Nicole Bowles Lab 
The Bowles Lab examines the roles of factors including stress, health disparities, neuroendocrinology, circadian rhythms, sleep behavior, and cannabinoids on health and well-being. 

Matthew P. Butler Lab 
The Butler Clock Physiology Lab seeks to understand how endogenous clocks in the body are synchronized and regulate physiology and behavior.

Steven A. Shea Lab 
The Shea Lab studies the biological basis behind changes in disease severity across day and night to uncover new insights into the underlying causes of disease and inform the development of therapies and countermeasures to reduce the adverse health effects of shift work. 

Saurabh Thosar Lab 
The Thosar Lab studies the effects of physical inactivity, circadian rhythms, and sleep on cardiometabolic health. The Thosar Lab also explores how common daily behaviors interact, e.g., daytime physical inactivity affecting nighttime sleep.

Affiliated faculty labs

Jonathan Emens Lab
In the Emens Lab research has focused on circadian rhythm sleep disorders (in particular, Non-24-Hour Sleep-Wake Rhythm Disorder), sleep and circadian physiology in mood disorders, and circadian physiology in sleep apnea and obesity.

Miranda Lim Lab 
The Lim Lab focuses on how sleep modulates neuropathological and behavioral outcomes in neurological disorders across the lifespan, including TBI, PTSD, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s diseases. 

Andrew McHill Lab 
The Sleep, Chronobiology, and Health Lab focuses on understanding why insufficient sleep and being awake during the night leads to poorer health and impaired cognitive performance.

Learn more about our work

Illustration showing someone opening email on a laptop.

Newsletter

Explore professional development opportunities, the latest updates from the Oregon Healthy Workforce Center and the Occupational Public Health Program, a research snapshot, and upcoming occupational health-focused events.

Picture of a person sitting on a couch reading a blog post on a laptop.

Blog

The Oregon and the Workplace Blog features the latest OccHealthSci research, professional development opportunities, and valuable insights from disciplines associated with occupational health, safety, and well-being.

OccHealthSci staff member Shaun McGillis recording a podcast.

Podcast

The What's Work Got to Do with It podcast, produced by OccHealthSci, brings together occupational health, safety, and well-being experts to discuss the latest topics relating to worker health, well-being, and safety in Oregon and beyond.