Vasopressin Neurons: Master Integrators of Time and Homeostasis.

A recent article by Gizowski and Bourque shows that vasopressinergic (VP) neurons within the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) master circadian clock have the ability of encoding afferent input from osmosensors and generating appropriate homeostatic responses, suggesting that SCN neurons can integrate internal circadian time and acute changes in homeostatic markers.