F. Halberg

India revisited: a new hospital and center culminating multidecadal cooperation: From cancer chronoradiotherapy to routine cardiovascular chronotheranostics and further joint Indian-US and international BIOCOS research

Looking back on our January 20–27, 2005 visit to India, it was a whirlwind trip, very rewarding, exciting and also strenuous, in particular for Franz and also for myself, though on a somewhat different level, since I was mainly free of responsibilities. We returned 3 days before I started this note, maybe not long enough to be able to attain a more settled impression and judgment. My main purpose is to give a descriptive report about Franz’ effort to bring advances made in mapping chronomes (time structures) into practice in areas with limited resources. In particular, we wish to bring diagnostic and preventive possibilities into the clinical armament by the timely recognition and treatment of otherwise silent yet greatly increased risks of heart and brain attacks.

Chapter 26 Toward the chronobiology and chronomics of the intestine

Publisher Summary Chronomics, a computer-aided data collection and analysis, map time structures, chronomes, in the alimentary canal and elsewhere. Chronomics complement chronobiology, as genomics complement genetics. This chapter introduces the conceptual and methodological steps underlying the time-microscopic mapping of the normal range of variation in general, and in the gut in particular. With chronobiologic provisions and safeguards, chronomics can map an integrative internal–external collateral hierarchy for physiological coordination that replaces the illusion of a master clock serving for constancy. The naked eye is an important tool, but if used alone, it has severe limitations. A ubiquitous phase-adjusting mechanism with subtractive coupling, effects upon the circadian amplitude, the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN), has particular pertinence for the alimentary canal. On a restricted diet, the gut overrides the hypothalamus in collateral rather than up/down hierarchy, a basic finding that awaits time-microscopic manipulation in various applications.