Chronic intermittent fasting improves cognitive functions and brain structures in mice

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 8; no. 6; p. e66069
• Main Authors: Li, Liaoliao, Wang, Zhi, Zuo, Zhiyi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 03.06.2013; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Access control; Adolescents; Aging; Alzheimer's disease; Anesthesiology; Animals; Biology; Brain; CA1 Region, Hippocampal - drug effects; CA1 Region, Hippocampal - metabolism; CA1 Region, Hippocampal - pathology; Cerebral Cortex - drug effects; Cerebral Cortex - metabolism; Cerebral Cortex - pathology; Cholesterol; Cognition - drug effects; Cognitive ability; Complications and side effects; Diabetes; Diet; Diet, High-Fat; Dietary Fats - adverse effects; Exercise Tolerance; Fasting; Fasting - metabolism; Fasting - physiology; Fear conditioning; Food; Glucose; High fat diet; Hyperlipidemia; Learning; Life span; Male; Maze learning; Maze Learning - drug effects; Medicine; Memory; Memory - drug effects; Metabolism; Mice; Mice, Obese; Mortality; Neuropeptides - metabolism; Obesity; Obesity - metabolism; Obesity - physiopathology; Oxidative Stress; Physiological aspects; Psychological aspects; Rodents; Young adults; United States; China; United States > US; Virginia
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0066069

Obesity is a major health issue. Obesity started from teenagers has become a major health concern in recent years. Intermittent fasting increases the life span. However, it is not known whether obesity and intermittent fasting affect brain functions and structures before brain aging. Here, we subjected 7-week old CD-1 wild type male mice to intermittent (alternate-day) fasting or high fat diet (45% caloric supplied by fat) for 11 months. Mice on intermittent fasting had better learning and memory assessed by the Barnes maze and fear conditioning, thicker CA1 pyramidal cell layer, higher expression of drebrin, a dendritic protein, and lower oxidative stress than mice that had free access to regular diet (control mice). Mice fed with high fat diet was obese and with hyperlipidemia. They also had poorer exercise tolerance. However, these obese mice did not present significant learning and memory impairment or changes in brain structures or oxidative stress compared with control mice. These results suggest that intermittent fasting improves brain functions and structures and that high fat diet feeding started early in life does not cause significant changes in brain functions and structures in obese middle-aged animals.