Center for Biological Clocks Research
Welcome to The Center for Biological Clocks Research at Texas A&M University. Welcome to the Center for Biological Clocks Research (CBCR) at Texas A&M University. The CBCR provides an organizational structure to enhance and coordinate research and educational activities on biological clocks. The goal of the CBCR is to promote discoveries in the field of biological clocks and to train researchers at all levels and in diverse disciplines in biological clocks. Activities related to this goal include disseminating important research results, educating the public about biological clocks, enhancing the education and mentoring of trainees, and fostering interdisciplinary communication via local and regional meetings.
IN THE NEWS
Farhy Lab Study Reveals How Astrocytes Shape Brain Development
A new study from the Farhy lab in the Texas A&M University Department of Biology sheds light on how astrocytes, a type of non-neuronal brain cell, help wire developing neural circuits. The research, published in Communications Biology, focuses on how these important cells contribute to the formation and function of excitatory synapses of the visual circuit.
Dr. Farhy joined the Department of Biology in 2020. Her lab studies how astrocytes and neurons communicate to build and maintain synapses, work that directly links to human health, as synaptic dysfunction is a hallmark of conditions including autism spectrum disorders, schizophrenia, major depressive disorder, and Alzheimer’s disease.
Texas A&M Biologists Reveal How the Circadian Clock Controls Protein Synthesis
After more than a decade of research, a team led by Drs. Deborah Bell-Pedersen and Teresa Lamb in the Department of Biology at Texas A&M University, has uncovered how the body’s internal clock fine-tunes the cellular machinery responsible for making proteins.
The study, published in Cell Reports, demonstrates that the circadian clock rhythmically alters the composition of ribosomes – the molecular machines that translate genetic information into proteins. These daily changes, the researchers found, regulate both when proteins are produced and how accurately they are synthesized.
