Juvenile, but not adult exposure to high-fat diet impairs relational memory and hippocampal neurogenesis in mice

Hippocampus. 2012 Nov;22(11):2095-100. doi: 10.1002/hipo.22032. Epub 2012 May 17.

Abstract

Increased consumption of high-fat diet (HFD) leads to obesity and adverse neurocognitive outcomes. Childhood and adolescence are important periods of brain maturation shaping cognitive function. These periods could consequently be particularly sensitive to the detrimental effects of HFD intake. In mice, juvenile and adulthood consumption of HFD induce similar morphometric and metabolic changes. However, only juvenile exposure to HFD abolishes relational memory flexibility, assessed after initial radial-maze concurrent spatial discrimination learning, and decreases neurogenesis. Our results identify a critical period of development covering adolescence with higher sensitivity to HFD-induced hippocampal dysfunction at both behavioral and cellular levels.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Age Factors
  • Animals
  • Blood Glucose / analysis
  • Body Weight / drug effects
  • Corticosterone / blood
  • Dentate Gyrus / chemistry
  • Dentate Gyrus / pathology
  • Diet, High-Fat / adverse effects*
  • Discrimination Learning / drug effects
  • Doublecortin Domain Proteins
  • Energy Intake / drug effects
  • Hippocampus / drug effects*
  • Hippocampus / pathology
  • Immunoenzyme Techniques
  • Leptin / blood
  • Lipids / blood
  • Male
  • Maze Learning / drug effects
  • Memory / drug effects*
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Microtubule-Associated Proteins / analysis
  • Nerve Tissue Proteins / analysis
  • Neurogenesis / drug effects*
  • Neuropeptides / analysis
  • Overweight / blood
  • Overweight / etiology*
  • Spatial Behavior / drug effects

Substances

  • Blood Glucose
  • Doublecortin Domain Proteins
  • Leptin
  • Lipids
  • Microtubule-Associated Proteins
  • Nerve Tissue Proteins
  • Neuropeptides
  • Corticosterone