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Enriched environment during adolescence modulates lipid metabolism and emotion-related behaviors in mice.

Ling XuMing JiaoZe-Lin CuiQing-Ya ZhaoYan WangShu ChenJun-Jie ZhangYin-Hui JinDi MuYu-Qin Yang
Published in: Journal of applied animal welfare science : JAAWS (2021)
Enriched environment (EE) is an important animal experimental paradigm to decipher gene-environment interaction. It is thought to be efficient in aiding recovery from certain metabolism disorders or cognitive impairments. Recently, the effects of EE during adolescence in mice gradually draw much attention. We first established an EE model in adolescent mice, dissected lipid metabolism, and further examined baseline level of anxiety and depression by multiple behavioral tests, including open field test (OFT), elevated zero maze (EZM), tail suspension test (TST), and forced swimming test (FST). EE mice exhibited lower weights, lower cholesterol than standard housing (SH) mice. Behaviorally, EE mice traveled more distance and had higher velocity than SH mice in OFT and EZM. Besides, EE mice showed reduced anxiety levels in OFT and EZM. Furthermore, EE mice also had less immobility time than SH mice in TST and FST. Thus, these results suggest that EE during adolescence has metabolic and behavioral benefits in mice.
Keyphrases
  • high fat diet induced
  • depressive symptoms
  • mental health
  • insulin resistance
  • dna methylation
  • metabolic syndrome
  • type diabetes
  • skeletal muscle
  • transcription factor
  • fatty acid
  • blood flow