Project description DEENESFRITPL A deeper understanding of chronotype disruption Each person has a unique chronotype, an individual pattern of sleep. It’s the natural circadian rhythm that regulates sleep and activity levels. Unfortunately, circadian misalignment has become a common phenomenon, mainly due to environmental factors that can significantly alter the timing and expression of sleep and wakefulness. The EU-funded CHRONO project will review the causes and consequences of chronotype disruption caused by widespread use of electronic devices, artificial light and work-related pressures of a 24-hour economy. It will seek to explain the role of biology, society and the natural environment and their interaction on predicting and understanding resilience to chronotype disruption. CHRONO will develop a multifactor interdisciplinary theoretical model. It will also crowdsource a sociogenomic dataset with novel measures. Show the project objective Hide the project objective Objective The widespread use of electronic devices, artificial light and rise of the 24-hour economy means that more individuals experience disruption of their chronotype, which is the natural circadian rhythm that regulates sleep and activity levels. The natural and medical sciences focus on the natural environment (e.g. light exposure), genetics, biology and health consequences, whereas the social sciences have largely explored the socio-environment (e.g. working regulations) and psychological and familial consequences of nonstandard work schedules. For the first time CHRONO bridges these disparate disciplines to ask: What is the role of biology, the natural and socio-environment and their interaction on predicting and understanding resilience to chronotype disruption and how does this in turn impact an individual’s health (sleep, cancer, obesity, digestive problems) and family (partnership, children) outcomes? I propose to: (1) develop a multifactor interdisciplinary theoretical model; (2) disrupt data collection by crowdsourcing a sociogenomic dataset with novel measures; (3) discover and validate with informed machine learning innovative measures of chronotype (molecular genetic, accelerometer, microbiome, patient-record, self-reported) and the natural and socio-environment; (4) ask fundamentally new substantive questions to determine how chronotype disruption influences health and family outcomes and, via Biology x Environment interaction (BxE), whether this is moderated by the natural or socio-environment; and, (5) develop new statistical models and methods to cope with contentious issues, answer longitudinal questions and engage in novel quasi-experiments (e.g. policy and life course changes) to transcend description to identify endogenous factors and causal mechanisms. Interdisciplinary in the truest sense, CHRONO will overturn long-held substantive findings of the causes and consequences of chronotype disruption. Fields of science natural sciencesbiological sciencesgeneticsnatural sciencesmathematicsapplied mathematicsstatistics and probabilitynatural sciencescomputer and information sciencesartificial intelligencemachine learningnatural sciencesbiological sciencesmicrobiologymedical and health scienceshealth sciencesnutritionobesity Keywords circadian rhythms chronotype family health genetics microbiome Programme(s) H2020-EU.1.1. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme Topic(s) ERC-2018-ADG - ERC Advanced Grant Call for proposal ERC-2018-ADG See other projects for this call Funding Scheme ERC-ADG - Advanced Grant Host institution THE CHANCELLOR, MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD Net EU contribution € 2 499 811,00 Address WELLINGTON SQUARE UNIVERSITY OFFICES OX1 2JD Oxford United Kingdom See on map Region South East (England) Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Oxfordshire Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Total cost € 2 499 811,00 Beneficiaries (1) Sort alphabetically Sort by Net EU contribution Expand all Collapse all THE CHANCELLOR, MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD United Kingdom Net EU contribution € 2 499 811,00 Address WELLINGTON SQUARE UNIVERSITY OFFICES OX1 2JD Oxford See on map Region South East (England) Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Oxfordshire Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Total cost € 2 499 811,00
