| dc.description.abstract | Obesity is a worldwide epidemic that is increasing at an alarming rate. One of its causes is the increased
availability and consumption of diets rich in fat. In the present study, we investigated the effects of shortterm
consumption of a high fat diet (HFD) on dietary preferences in Swiss CD1 mice and its relation in
time to specific metabolic effects. Mice that were weaned 21 days postpartum and fed a chow diet for
one week were afterward subjected to a diet preference test for 5 days, exposed to both a regular diet
(RD) and HFD. We found that mice did not show any preferences. In a second experiment, two groups
of mice that were weaned 21 days postpartum and subjected to a chow diet for one week were fed either
RD or HFD for 18 days, and a diet preference test was performed for 5 days. After this short-term
consumption of HFD, mice preferred HFD, while mice subjected to RD did not show any preference.
Importantly, no differences in blood glucose levels were found between the groups prior to and after
the experiments. The results support our hypothesis that the preference for HFD is not a spontaneous
behavior in CD1 mice, but it can be observed after short-term consumption; additionally, this preference
develops before metabolic effects appear. Finally, this preference for HFD could not be observed when the
mice were i.p. injected daily with low doses of the NMDA receptor antagonists, ketamine, ifenprodil or
MK-801 during the HFD feeding period. These data suggest that acquisition of dietary preference for
HFD is a NMDA receptor-dependent learning process. | |
