Abstract: Our circadian timing system, orchestrates a wide array of physiological functions, ranging from metabolic processes to immune responses. This system operates through a central pacemaker in the brain and peripheral clocks throughout the body, which together maintain synchronization with environmental cycles such as the day-night cycle. Recent advances have uncovered the molecular underpinnings of circadian clocks, with core clock genes generating self-sustained oscillations across tissues. However, modern lifestyles—marked by irregular sleep patterns, artificial light exposure, and shift work—disrupt these rhythms, increasing the risk for chronic diseases such as cardiovascular conditions, diabetes, and mood disorders.

This presentation explores the hierarchical organization of the circadian system and the implications of its disruption for human health. We discuss the interplay between circadian rhythms and physiology, and how personalized models can be used to predict individual responses to environmental cues and therapeutic interventions.

Furthermore, wearable technologies and large-scale epidemiological studies offer new opportunities to monitor circadian disruptions in real-world settings. We will discuss how analyzing behavioral data from actigraphy and CPAP adherence studies, this work sheds light on age-dependent chronotypes and patterns of circadian disruption across populations. These insights provide a foundation for personalized circadian health interventions aimed at optimizing lifestyle choices and therapeutic outcomes.

Bio: Dr. Androulakis is a Biomedical Engineering, Chemical & Biochemical Engineering Professor at Rutgers University. He received his BS in Chemical Engineering from NTUA and his MS and Ph.D. from Purdue University. He was a research associate at Princeton University before joining ExxonMobil’s Corporate Strategic Research Laboratories. In 2004 he moved back to academia. He is currently Professor in the Biomedical Engineering Department and the Chemical & Biochemical Engineering Department at Rutgers. He is also a Graduate Faculty in the Pharmaceutical Sciences in the Ernst Mario School of Pharmacy of Rutgers as well as an Adjunct Professor in the Departments of Surgery at the RWJ—Rutgers Medical School. He has published extensively in quantitative systems biology and quantitative systems pharmacology. He is a Fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering, the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and was recently elected Fellow of the International Society of Pharmacometrics.

_~ BME Host: Matthew Ward_~

BME Historical Quote of the Week: "The most successful and employable person is the one who has learned the art of applying theory to practice." - Leslie A. Geddes, founder of Bomedical Engineering at Purdue, est. 1974

ZOOM LINK: https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/98086785448?pwd=zVpCDmwSh8BfkyET0cnILMbppdTxbx.1

*Note:  Students enrolled in the seminar course are expected to attend in person.