News Archieven - BioClock

Looking back: The 4th Dutch Chronobiology Symposium

Written by bioclock on March 31, 2026. Posted in News.

On 27 March 2026, an international community of chronobiologists gathered at Leiden University’s Kamerlingh Onnes Building for the 4th Dutch Chronobiology Symposium. This full‑day meeting was dedicated to circadian biology it all of its many forms, attracting researchers from neurology and immunology to ecology and light design. The symposium opened with a keynote lecture by Prof. Chris Colwell (UCLA), who explored how circadian disruption contributes to neurodevelopmental...

BioClock in the spotlight as we switch to daylight saving time

Written by bioclock on March 30, 2026. Posted in News.

As we transition into daylight saving time once again, the biological clock takes center stage in public discussion. Several BioClock researchers recently had the opportunity to share their expertise in national media, offering insights into the historical roots of daylight saving time, its societal impact, and its consequences for our biological clock. The History of Daylight Saving Time and Why It’s Time for a Change Together with Universiteit van Nederland, Maaike van der...

Early bird or night owl? New BioClock research reveals that light sensitivity plays a big role

Written by bioclock on March 4, 2026. Posted in News.

Light is one of the most powerful signals synchronizing our biological clock to the outside world, but people differ widely in how sensitive they are to light. A new BioClock study, recently published in SLEEP, takes a closer look at how these individual differences in light sensitivity relate to chronotype – whether someone is naturally an ‘early bird’ or a ‘night owl’. The BioClock research team, led by Dr Laura Kervezee, conducted this ambitious study at the NEMO Science...

New BioClock research: nocturnal insect attraction throughout the night

Written by bioclock on February 10, 2026. Posted in News.

Artificial light at night has a large impact on our environment, and nocturnal insects are particularly sensitive to it. Previous BioClock research already showed us that color affects insect attraction. But now, thanks to a new study by BioClock researcher Gabriel Charvalakis, we know that it is also affected by the time of night. The experiment To study this phenomenon, Gabriel and his colleagues placed special camera traps in four forested locations in the...

New BioClock research: the benefits of light dimming and darkness in cities for bats and insects

Written by bioclock on February 4, 2026. Posted in News.

It attracted a quite some attention from local residents when BioClock researchers Hannah Broeckx and Sander Buddendorf came to hang their measuring equipment on lampposts in The Hague and Rotterdam. They were conducting research into the effects of dimmed versus bright artificial light at night on urban pipistrelle bats and their prey: flying insects. We are all familiar with the image: a street lamp with a swarm of flying insects captivated by the light. This behavior is...

Wheel running in the wild on BBC Winterwatch

Written by bioclock on January 29, 2026. Posted in News.

BBC Winterwatch recently showcased a unique study led by Prof. Joke Meijer, head of the BioClock Consortium. The research from 2014 revealed that wild mice — and even other small animals — voluntarily use running wheels placed in their natural environment. These findings challenge the idea that wheel running is merely a behavior caused by captivity and instead reveal it as a natural, self‑motivated activity. On the program, the Winterwatch team even recreated the scientific...

The clock starts ticking early: circadian variation in preterm breastmilk

Written by bioclock on January 27, 2026. Posted in News.

Human breast milk is surprisingly adaptive, consistently changing to best meet the baby’s needs. Even the time of day has been known to affect its composition. But what happens when a baby is born very prematurely? A new study by BioClock researchers Demy van Gilst and Inês Chaves aimed to find out if 24-hour variations are already present in breastmilk following a very premature birth. Researchers collected around 15 milk samples over 72 consecutive hours,...