Behavioural disruption in diabetic mice: Neurobiological correlates and influences of dietary α-linolenic acid

Abstract

AimEvolving type 2 diabetes (T2D) may influence locomotion and affective state, promoting metabolic dysfunction. We examined behaviour and neurobiology in a model of T2D, testing for benefits with dietary n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA). MethodsMale C57Bl/6 mice received vehicle or 75 mg/kg streptozotocin (STZ) and 21 wks of control or Western diets (43 % fat, 40 % carbohydrate, 17 % protein). Sub-sets received dietary α-linolenic acid (ALA; 10 % of fat intake) for 6 wks. Behaviour was examined via open field and sucrose preference tests, and hippocampal and frontal cortex (FC) leptin and dopamine levels and inflammatory signalling assessed. Key findingsT2D mice exhibited weight gain (+15 %), hyperglycemia (+35 %), hyperinsulinemia (+60 %) and insulin-resistance (+80 % higher HOMA-IR), together with anxiety-like behaviour (without anhedonia) that appeared independent of body weight and glycemic status. Cortical leptin declined whereas receptor mRNA increased. Supplementation with ALA did not influence metabolic state, while enhancing locomotion and reducing anxiety-like behaviours in healthy but not T2D mice. Hippocampal dopamine was selectively increased by ALA in T2D mice, with a trend to reduced circulating leptin in both groups. Across all groups, anxiety-like behaviour was associated with declining cortical and hippocampal leptin levels and increasing receptor mRNA, while declining dopamine levels were accompanied by decreased dopamine/serotonin receptor transcripts. SignificanceChronic T2D induced anxiogenesis in mice appears to be independent of metabolic homeostasis but linked to central leptin-resistance, together with disturbed dopamine and serotonin signalling. Despite anxiolytic effects of ALA in healthy mice, no metabolic or behavioural benefits were evident in T2D.