Derk-Jan Dijk (born 1958 in Zwollerkerspel,

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

) is a researcher of

sleep Sleep is a sedentary state of mind and body. It is characterized by altered consciousness, relatively inhibited sensory activity, reduced muscle activity and reduced interactions with surroundings. It is distinguished from wakefulness by a de ...

and circadian rhythms. As of 2005 he is a Distinguished Professor at the

University of Surrey The University of Surrey is a public research university in Guildford, Surrey, England. The university received its royal charter in 1966, along with a number of other institutions following recommendations in the Robbins Report. The institut ...

and the director of its Sleep Research Centre.

Education and early career

Dijk attended the Meander College in

Zwolle Zwolle () is a city and municipality in the Northeastern Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of Overijssel and the province's second-largest municipality after Enschede with a population of 130,592 as of 1 December 2021. Zwolle is o ...

. He obtained a BSc and MSc (Cum Laude) in Biology at the

University of Groningen The University of Groningen (abbreviated as UG; nl, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, abbreviated as RUG) is a Public university#Continental Europe, public research university of more than 30,000 students in the city of Groningen (city), Groningen in ...

. He received his PhD from the Faculty of Medicine at the

in 1988, under supervision of the biologist

Serge Daan Serge Daan (11 June 1940 – 9 February 2018) was a Dutch scientist, known for his significant contributions to the field of Chronobiology. Early life and education Serge Daan (Mook en Middelaar, Mook, 1940) was born in a wind mill, grew up in t ...

, the physicist Domien Beersma and the psychiatrist Rutger van den Hoofdakker. The focus of his research was on testing the predictions of the two-process model of

regulation as developed by Alexander Borbely (1982),

and Domien Beersma (1984). Dijk then conducted post-doctoral research at the Institute of Pharmacology at the

University of Zurich The University of Zürich (UZH, german: Universität Zürich) is a public research university located in the city of Zürich, Switzerland. It is the largest university in Switzerland, with its 28,000 enrolled students. It was founded in 1833 f ...

with Alexander Borbely and was a Faculty Member at

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the graduate medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is one of the oldest medical schools in the United States and is consi ...

and an associated neuroscientist at the

Brigham and Women's Hospital Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) is the second largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School and the largest hospital in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Along with Massachusetts Gener ...

, Boston MA, working closely with

Charles Czeisler Charles A. Czeisler (born 1952) is an American physician and sleep researcher.Czeisler, Charles A. E-mail interview. 24 April 2013. He is a researcher and author in the fields of both circadian rhythms and sleep medicine. Background and educati ...

. Dijk returned to Europe in 1999 to take up a faculty position at the University of Surrey.

University of Surrey

Dijk created the Surrey Sleep Research Centre in 2003 and remains its Director, leading a team that investigates the regulation and function of sleep and biological rhythms at many different levels of organisation, from gene expression to cognition. In 2005 he became a Professor of Sleep and Physiology. He served as Associate Dean (research) for the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences (2013-2015). Dijk was also the Director of Sleep-Wake Research in the University of Surrey's Clinical Research Centre. Derk-Jan Dijk was from 2009 to 2016 the Editor-in-Chief of the '' Journal of Sleep Research,'' the official journal of the European Sleep Research Society. He is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Biological Rhythms. In 2021 he was a guest on the

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

programme ''

The Life Scientific ''The Life Scientific'' is a BBC Radio 4 science programme, presented by Professor Jim Al-Khalili , in which each episode is dedicated to the biography and work of one living scientist. The programme consists of an interview between Al-Khalili a ...

'' to talk about his life and work to a wider audience.

Research

Dijk's research focusses on the regulation and function of sleep and its interaction with the circadian timing system in humans. He examines how sleep, sleep regulation and circadian rhythms change across the lifespan and how sleep and circadian rhythms are affected by environmental factors such as natural and artificial light. Dijk researches how individual differences in preferred timing of sleep is related to the biological clock and genetic variations. Dijk serves as a consultant to the pharmaceutical and lighting industry.

Research findings and highlights

* 1987: Demonstrated that sleep timing can be shifted by bright light * 1988: Identified gender differences in human sleep * 1994/5: Characterized the circadian process regulating human sleep * 1999: Discovered how circadian regulation of sleep changes with ageing * 2004: Discovered melatonin's effects on human sleep timing * 2007: Demonstrated the effects of changes in a 'clock' gene on human sleep and performance * 2008: Conducted first large scale field trial to test the effect of blue light in the workplace * 2009: Discovered of the daily and seasonal variation in the spectral composition of light exposure. * 2010: Discovered that older people are less sleepy than young people * 2012: Discovered association between circadian clock and sleep timing during the week and the weekend * 2014: Demonstrated that mistimed sleep disrupts the circadian organization of the human blood transcriptome

Honours and awards

Dijk is a

Fellow of the Society of Biology The Royal Society of Biology (RSB), previously called the Society of Biology, is a learned society and professional association in the United Kingdom created to advance the interests of biology in academia, industry, education, and research. Fo ...

and the Academy of Medical Science
Academy of Medical Sciences
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-05/aoms-lsr050818.php Eurekealert]. Dijk's pioneering sleep-wake research was recognised with a

Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award The Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award was an award made by the Royal Society from 2000 to 2020. It was administered by the Royal Society and jointly funded by the Wolfson Foundation and the UK Office of Science and Technology, to provide ...

in April 2013. Dijk's contribution to sleep research was recognized by the Distinguished Scientist Award from the Sleep Research Society in 2015. This award is the highest award presented by the Sleep Research Society and honors a single individual for research contributions made over an entire career.

References

External links

Surrey Sleep Research Centre
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dijk, Derk-Jan 1958 births Living people Dutch neuroscientists Academics of the University of Surrey Fellows of the Royal Society of Biology Harvard Medical School faculty Sleep researchers University of Groningen alumni People from Zwolle