Circadian disruption is associated with obesity, implicating the central clock in body weight control. Our comprehensive screen of wild-type and three circadian mutant mouse models, with or without chronic jet lag, shows that distinct genetic and physiologic interventions differentially disrupt overall energy homeostasis and Leptin signaling. We found that BMAL1/CLOCK generates circadian rhythm of C/EBPα-mediated leptin transcription in adipose. Per and Cry mutant mice show similar disruption of peripheral clock and deregulation of leptin in fat, but opposite body weight and composition phenotypes that correlate with their distinct patterns of POMC neuron deregulation in the arcuate nucleus. Chronic jet lag is sufficient to disrupt the endogenous adipose clock and also induce central Leptin resistance in wild-type mice. Thus, coupling of the central and peripheral clocks controls Leptin endocrine feedback homeostasis. We propose that Leptin resistance, a hallmark of obesity in humans, plays a key role in circadian dysfunction-induced obesity and metabolic syndromes.

Chronic jet lag induces spontaneous hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in wild-type mice following a mechanism very similar to that observed in obese humans. The process initiates with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) that progresses to steatohepatitis and fibrosis before HCC detection. This pathophysiological pathway is driven by jet-lag-induced genome-wide gene deregulation and global liver metabolic dysfunction, with nuclear receptor-controlled cholesterol/bile acid and xenobiotic metabolism among the top deregulated pathways. Ablation of farnesoid X receptor dramatically increases enterohepatic bile acid levels and jet-lag-induced HCC, while loss of constitutive androstane receptor (CAR), a well-known liver tumor promoter that mediates toxic bile acid signaling, inhibits NAFLD-induced hepatocarcinogenesis. Circadian disruption activates CAR by promoting cholestasis, peripheral clock disruption, and sympathetic dysfunction.