In OnTime, we want to discover the response characteristics of the clock in a variety of chronotypes of all ages, living and working in all sorts of environments. This is especially challenging since the causes of chronotype variation are environmental, developmental and genetic, and the genetic causes can act on various aspects of the circadian system (input, oscillator, output, etc.). We thus use a variety of approaches and tools, requiring technological developments that lead to consumer lifestyle products, and medical devices and pharmaceuticals as well as information that will explicitly strengthen the knowledge economy. We need to develop improved devices and algorithms (requiring new technologies) that can be developed into affordable units to be made widely available. We need to attack the problem using large numbers of individuals facing different challenges (from everyday life to shift work to those with sleep-related pathologies). In addition to evaluating behaviour, we will probe key physiological parameters, such as chronopharmacodynamics and (glucose) metabolism and we will address the impact of (disturbed) circadian performance on major health problems. Limitations concerning experimental possibilities on humans necessitate the use of animal models. Thus, we developed a set of complementary projects that allow faster progress in key areas by virtue of using novel animal models.

The projects are organised in three different research lines:

1) NEW TOOLS
Devices 
Algorithms 

 2) HUMAN CIRCADIAN BEHAVIOUR AND PHYSIOLOGY 
Decreasing Social Jetlag 
Light and Shift Work 
Insomnia 
Enlightened Meals
Chronopharmacology 

 3) ANIMAL MODELS FOR CHRONOBIOLOGY
The SCN Metabolome
Physiological Consequences of Aging
Improving Sleep in Aging 
Feeding on Time 
Treatment of Bipolar Disorder