Urbanization and Sleep: How Modern Environments Disrupt Circadian Rhythms, Neurovascular and Glymphatic Mechanisms

Modern urban lifestyles - characterized by long work hours, late-night social engagement, pervasive digital technology use, shift work, and chronic exposure to artificial light - are increasingly linked to sleep disturbances and disruptions of circadian rhythms. These behavioral and environmental pressures contribute to irregular sleep-wake cycles, sedentary behavior, altered eating patterns, and widespread circadian misalignment, affecting multiple physiological systems.

This Research Topic aims to advance understanding of how contemporary environmental exposures and daily routines influence the neurobiology of sleep and circadian function. We invite submissions investigating the mechanisms by which artificial lighting, screen use, work schedules, psychoactive substances, and irregular behavioral patterns affect sleep regulation, circadian timing, and related physiological outcomes.

A particular focus is on emerging evidence connecting sleep and circadian disruption with diffusible signals, blood-brain barrier (BBB) integrity, and vascular, perivascular, and glymphatic systems. We encourage mechanistic and translational studies exploring how these neurovascular and fluid-transport pathways respond to disrupted rhythms and how alterations in these systems may, in turn, influence sleep architecture, circadian timing, or neural health.

We also welcome research leveraging wearable devices and digital biomarkers to assess sleep and circadian physiology in real-world urban contexts. Interdisciplinary approaches integrating environmental and behavioral perspectives are particularly encouraged. Both original research articles and comprehensive reviews are welcome.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

• Neurobiological effects of artificial light, digital technology, and urban-related routines on sleep and circadian systems
• Environmental influences on sleep regulation and circadian timing in the context of modern urban lifestyles
• Mechanisms linking circadian rhythm disruption with neurovascular, perivascular, and glymphatic function
• Targeted use of wearable devices and digital biomarkers to study neurobiological effects of circadian disruption in real-world urban settings
• Multidisciplinary approaches to understanding how modern environments shape sleep health and related physiological networks

Note: Submissions should prioritize studies that advance the neurobiology or physiology of sleep and circadian function. Manuscripts primarily focused on clinical sleep-disorder diagnosis or treatment, or on chronobiology without a clear sleep or physiological component, may be better suited to other Frontiers specialty sections.