Ken-ichi Honma, M.D., Ph.D.

 

Bibriography

 

Dr. Ken-ichi Honma is Professor of Medicine and Chair of the Department of Physiology at Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine in Sapporo. He graduated from Hokkaido University School of Medicine and had postgraduate training at Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine. He became Assistant Professor, Lecturer and Associate Professor at the Hokkaido University.  Since 1973, he has been involved in the circadian rhythm researches and his major interests currently are in the molecular mechanism of circadian oscillation and the mechanism of entrainment of the human circadian rhythms. He has published more than 100 scientific papers related to the circadian rhythms and had an honor to be the president of the 1^st World Congress of Chronobiology held in Sapporo in 2003.

 

 

Biological Clock and Physical Exercise

 

Biological clock is located in the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nucleus and generates stable rhythms of ca. 24 hour period.  The clock entrains to the day-night alternation through the retinal light perception, and thereby organizes the bodily functions in term of the temporal structure.  Effects as well as ability of physical exercise show 24 hour periodicities and there is the best time for them.  On the other hand, physical exercise feedbacks onto the biological clock, and strengthens the rhythm entrainment.  Physical exercise is helpful for rapid adaptation to a new time zone or to a shifted schedule, and especially important for blind or elderly peoples for rhythm adjustment.