MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr Timothy Brown BSc, MRes, PhD Senior Lecturer University of Manchester MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Over the past 20+ years multiple lines of scientific evidence have indicated that short wavelength light is especially effective at re-setting the body clock and driving associated physiological responses in humans and other mammals. This reflects the involvement of a specialised light sensing protein in the retina, melanopsin, which more efficiently detects photons in the short wavelength region of the visible spectrum and has therefore commonly been reported as indicating a major role for ‘blue’ light. If fact, however, melanopsin does not detect colour. Instead, our perception of colour comes from comparing signals detected by the different types of cone cells in the retina. Importantly then, except under very specific circumstances, there is no correlation between perceived colour and the brightness signals detected by the melanopsin system. (more…)