Physiopathology of circadian rhythms: Understanding the biochemical mechanisms of obesity and cancer

Obesity and cancer have become urgent and pressing health problems in industrialized societies. Both diseases are interrelated: overweight and obesity favor tumorogenesis in a variety of tissues and organs, mainly supported in the biochemical alterations caused by a diabetogenic state and the pro-inflammatory condition associated. An additional perspective involves disturbances in circadian rhythms which are associated with a metabolic dysfunction; circadian disruption has also been considered as a carcinogenic condition for humans based in evidence that link dysfunctional control of cell division and differentiation to an altered circadian molecular clock. In this chapter, we review recent findings that demonstrate the interplay between metabolism and circadian rhythmicity, as well as the repercussions involved in the physio- pathology of obesity and cancer.Abstract Obesity and cancer have become urgent and pressing health problems in industrialized societies. Both diseases are interrelated: overweight and obesity favor tumorogenesis in a variety of tissues and organs, mainly supported in the biochemical alterations caused by a diabetogenic state and the pro-inflammatory condition associated. An additional perspective involves disturbances in circadian rhythms which are associated with a metabolic dysfunction; circadian disruption has also been considered as a carcinogenic condition for humans based in evidence that link dysfunctional control of cell division and differentiation to an altered circadian molecular clock. In this chapter, we review recent findings that demonstrate the interplay between metabolism and circadian rhythmicity, as well as the repercussions involved in the physio- pathology of obesity and cance.