Metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease are strongly associated with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS), which causes substantial changes to normal circadian physiological functions, including metabolic pathways. Because core clock genes are known to be modulated by sleep/vigilance cycles, we asked whether the expression level of mRNA coding for clock genes is altered in non-treated OSAS patients and if it can be corrected by standard continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment.
