Shift workers more prone to disease


Workers are more susceptible to infection at certain times of the day as the body clock affects the ability of viruses to replicate and spread between cells, new research from the University of Cambridge suggests. 


The findings, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, may help explain why shift workers, whose body clocks are routinely disrupted, are more prone to health problems, including infections and chronic disease


When a virus enters the body, it hijacks the machinery and resources in the cells to help it replicate and spread throughout the body. However, the resources on offer fluctuate throughout the day, partly in response to circadian rhythms — that is, the body clock. 


Circadian rhythms control many aspects of human physiology and bodily functions — from sleep patterns to body temperature, and from the immune systems to the release of hormones. These cycles are controlled by a number of genes.


“The time of day of infection can have a major influence on how susceptible we are to the disease, or at least on the viral replication, meaning that infection at the wrong time of day could cause a much more severe acute infection,” explains Professor Akhilesh Reddy, the study’s senior author. 


“This is consistent with recent studies which have shown that the time of day that the influenza vaccine is administered can influence how effectively it works.”


http://medicalxpress.com/news/2016-08-day-susceptibility-infection.html