ETD

• 3-chamber
• comportamento sociale
• hfd
• microglia
• sociability
• social behaviour
• socialità

High fat diet (HFD) consumption and obesity have been linked to cognitive dysfunction, depression, and increased anxiety, significantly affecting the central nervous system (CNS). Moreover, low-level of chronic inflammation, a hallmark of obesity, is not limited to peripheral tissues but has also been observed in the brain, through the activation of microglia.
To investigate the effect of a diet rich in fat on transcriptional and functional correlate of microglia population, adult male CX3CR1GFP/+ mice were fed a HFD or a control diet (CC) for six weeks.
Since HFD affects emotional and social behaviours, HFD-fed mice were subjected to a 3-chamber test and displayed alterations with respect to CC mice.
Then, to shed light on the neural mechanisms underlying the differences in behaviour, I have examined neuronal activation in brain areas involved in social interactions using c-FOS staining. Finally, to explore the molecular correlates underlying the observed changes in microglia, a second cohort of mice were sacrificed and RNA-seq was performed on microglial cells isolated from the whole brain. I have found a dramatic remodelling of the microglial transcriptome upon HFD feeding.
Overall, my thesis provides evidence that HFD can affect social behaviour and that HFD-driven microglia transcriptional and functional changes may play a role in mediating these effects. Thus, my data contributes to shed light on the complex relationship between diet, inflammation, and brain function.