Well, that brings us to the topic of the day which is -- tah dah -- The Night Owl Gene!
Believe it or not, there really is such a gene. It is also often called the ‘After Hours Gene’ and, according to one of the articles I read, it is a mutation of a gene called “after-hours” (Afh), which is located in the gene Fbxl3, a gene until now not known to be linked to the circadian cycle. Apparently, the Fbxl3 binds and drives the degradation of a clock protein called Cryptochrome (CRY).
Not many folks have heard about this gene but it explains why the ‘night owl folks’ have the seemingly ‘odd’ preference to sleep late in the mornings but are alert and awake and doing things into the wee hours of the night.
The folks who do not have this gene are ‘morning people’ and usually consider those with the 'night owl gene' and, therefore, sleep late in the morning, to be sloths. They also think the ‘night people should change their ways, get up early, and be instantly awake like they are.
Well, for the night owl folks, this is much easier said than done since they are genetically programmed to be night people.
But, the night owls do ‘conform’ to the day folks for most of their lives in that they get up early, go to their day jobs, and stagger around bleary eyed in the mornings until finally the time of day when they would have awakened had they been allowed to be ‘normal’ happens. Then they are alert and happy and merrily working for the rest of the day and wayyyyy into the night. But, until then, life is not fun or very productive.
On the other hand, the ‘day folks’ wake up in the early hours or maybe even pre-dawn, are instantly alert, and ready to start doing things. But, they can not understand why the night owl types aren’t able to do the same thing.
Yes, yes, I have heard that old adage: “You can’t soar with the eagles if you are up with the owls”. ...
Anyway, the other day I was discussing this with some folks who are ‘day people’. When I tried to tell them about the ‘night owl gene’, they didn’t believe me.
So, I set out to once again find some of the articles I had read years ago which told of the discovery of the ‘Night Owl Gene’.
And as a result of that search I found several articles. I will include only a few of them for you to read but there are many more.
So, with that said, and to read more about this interesting gene, CLICK HERE and HERE and HERE and HERE and HERE .
By the way, guess which gene I have. Hint: Look once again at the time that most of these blog entries are posted.
