Acs Research - Theorylab

The circadian clock is an internal, 24-hour timekeeping system that’s synchronized with the light-dark cycle, and it’s resident in basically all our cells. Kristin Eckel-Mahan, PhD, recently discovered an important molecular mechanism linking the circadian clock to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) growth. When her lab “repaired” the broken circadian clock within HCC cells, they were able to cause cell death. Her findings suggest that altering circadian function could provide prevention strategies and even, in the long term, treatment strategies for HCC, which is the most common type of primary liver cancer. Kristin Eckel-Mahan, PhD, is Assistant Professor at the Center for Metabolic and Degenerative Diseases at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. 2:15 – On the rise in incidence and mortality rates of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common type of primary liver cancer 4:03 – Risk factors for HCC 5:24 – The role of fatty liver in increased HCC risk 9:22 – A particularly inte