Simulated night shift work induces circadian misalignment of the human peripheral blood mononuclear cell transcriptome

Significance Night shift work is associated with adverse health effects, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. Understanding the molecular mechanisms that underlie this association is instrumental in advancing the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of shift work-related health concerns. We characterized the effect on genome-wide gene expression levels of a 4-day protocol simulating night shifts in healthy human subjects under highly controlled laboratory conditions. We demonstrate that this night shift protocol leads to a dampening of gene expression rhythms and a desynchrony between rhythmic transcripts and the shifted sleep/wake cycle. Moreover, we uncovered key biological processes and regulatory molecules that are altered during this night shift protocol and that may contribute to the development of health problems on the long term.