Spectres of Clock Evolution: Past, Present, and Yet to Come

Abstract

Circadian clocks are phylogenetically widespread biological oscillators that allow organisms to entrain to environmental cycles and use their steady-state phase relationship to anticipate predictable daily phenomena – such as the light-dark transitions of a day – and prepare accordingly. Present from cyanobacteria to mammals, circadian clocks are evolutionarily ancient and are thought to increase the fitness of the organisms that possess them by allowing for better resource usage and/or proper internal temporal order. Here, we review literature with respect to the ecology and evolution of circadian clocks, with a special focus on cyanobacteria as model organisms. We first discuss what can be inferred about future clock evolution in response to climate change, based on data from latitudinal clines and domestication. We then address our current understanding of the role that circadian clocks might be contributing to the adaptive fitness of cyanobacteria at the present time. Lastly, we discuss what is currently known about the oldest known circadian clock, and the early Earth conditions that could have led to its evolution.